risks and rewards ....

bowie owl by shannon ott

Venus (in big picture Sagittarius) trines Uranus (in passionate/action oriented Aries) at 16 degrees.

Venus rules love, money, our values, art, beauty, balance and women - she attracts. She also rules people with Taurus and Libra rising (although in different ways). Venus in our natal chart shows us how we can attract what we want, shows men their natural partner, shows us the space we need to feel balanced, what we need to feel loved.

Uranus rules "new", surprise, the unexpected, technology, large groups, the future, creative genius - his job is to break rules and demolish existing structures and paradigms; to get us where we need to be in the fastest way possible. He also rules the sign of Aquarius. Uranus in our natal chart is the space where we need to break the rules, chart our own path, function without social approval (no thumbs up or likes for us here). Uranus shows us what authorities we are determined to challenge, who we will offend and even where we will receive our most misleading advice. (I'm pretty sure being an Aquarius - I'm in your chart somewhere doing exactly this :)

Trines are happy, easy aspects. The energy today and tomorrow is ripe for attracting what we want by doing something in a new and unexpected way. Love, money - what we truly value - may be suddenly exposed. The ordinary becomes the extra-ordinary. Who knows where we might travel this year, if we stop caring what others think?

xo all

(Note - Bowie was an Aquarius rising, ruled by Uranus) My favorite Bowie song, played this one about 10,000 times one summer ....


Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of January 11th - back in the driver's seat, positive progress and reading smoke signals

drive by simsalabima

Everything old is new again ....thank you New Moon in Capricorn! Still time to set your New Moon intentions. This one is in the Capricorn house of permanent changes, so changes we make before the first quarter Moon on the 16th will have excellent sticking power.

Our Sun in Capricorn trines (brakes off) benevolent and lucky Jupiter (recently retrograde in Virgo) on Wednesday and then trines the North Node of Fate (also in Virgo) on Thursday. The Sun is then conjunct Mercury (retrograde in Capricorn) and trining Jupiter and the North Node. This week could feel pretty damn good. Maybe we'll all win the Powerball!

While these influences are exact mid-week, we may feel them as early as Monday.

With Mercury's retrograde (especially in sober and all-business Capricorn) coaxing us to take a second look, to make a correction, to ask that question again - this alignment is the perfect opportunity to get it right this time. 

Venus is now in harmony with Uranus giving us a very real opportunity for something/someone we thought was over or something we thought we missed out on to come back around again. So, although for brand new opportunities this is the time to take our time, for past opportunities or things or people that we were maybe disillusioned with or thought we were finished with, well, maybe we'll decide to give it another go-round or maybe this will at least be a good chance to clear the air and energy, so we can all move on. Either way it's a win.

Being sober and taking care of business will play a large role in any success now but there is also an element of "luck" with right time/right place situations. Any luck or opportunity will manifest because preparation has met inspiration has met right timing! It will be what we do with the information/work that is right in front of us that makes us "lucky". Water signs (Sun and Rising) can be especially lucky with money now.

Some things may appear to just fall right into place. Yes, even during Mercury Retrograde this happens sometimes :)

Sometimes there's a little twist first. Like maybe the house we want falls through, but then suddenly the house we wanted last year, the one we really wanted in the first place is suddenly available again. Or maybe a person or situation from the past turns back up at precisely the right time to get us thinking, and moving, in a new and better direction. Maybe a mistake we find while we are re-checking one thing (that costs us money) leads us to discover another mistake that will save us a bundle.

The profit/advantage to us may or may not be immediately apparent - it may show up later on. Maybe when Mercury stations direct at the end of January or maybe when Jupiter stations direct in early May.

Both Virgo and Capricorn are earth signs. So there's a need now for work, practicality and a focus on the small stuff (yes, still - we're ready for this, right). We may not be able to move forward from where we are now, but we can rework old information or redo something. Earth signs are about making things real. The stuff being re-rooted/re-routed now will lead to actual physical changes and material manifestations. Where is your Capricorn house again? What were your New Moon intentions?

This is the time/space that can put us back in the driver's seat or at least reconfirm/illuminate why we started down this particular road in the first place.

Note - the Moon is void all day Tuesday and Thursday afternoon (expect some wonkiness, best times for practiced, productive work) . This week's energy will also bring any pre-holiday chickens home to roost - so whatever we pushed off our to-do lists then will have to be pulled out to be taken care of now. Bills, too (ouch).

xo all

New Moon in Capricorn | Saturday & Sunday - what we're made of (and no, it's not sugar and spice and everything nice)

shock by just a shadow left
When the Sun and the Moon are in the same space, as they are this weekend, all possibilities are on the table.

We have so much happening now - Mercury has moved back into Capricorn. Venus and Saturn are joined in Sagittarius. Jupiter is retracing his earlier steps in Virgo. The Sun and the Moon are having a party.

(although in Capricorn this party probably looks more like an all-night study session or late night at the office where they toss you a slice of cold pizza and some strong coffee and sternly advise you to keep working)

Uranus squares (what we resist persists). Jupiter trines (be wary of over-confidence). Chiron sextiles (and heals).

So, what might all this look like? Maybe we become aware of what we have and what we don't have. With so much energy encharged with looking behind us, maybe we second guess ourselves. Maybe the more decisive among us, just cut their losses and move on. For the rest of us, we see the chances we have missed (ouch) and the choices we have left. Or maybe we don't see any choices. But we will.

For now we just handle what we have to handle. We take care of business.

Maybe we realize we have been asking for too little and secretly hoping more will just fall into our lap .... in Capricorn's ability to withstand we can lose our knowing that we don't always have to settle.

My grandmother always said, "where there is a will, there is a way." 

Well, with Capricorn there is a will.

Capricorn is the sign that rules our public image, our career, our accomplishments, our ambition, our ability to hold the course and just keep going (still winter for most of us right folks?).

Even with a New Moon there are multiple celestial indicators that a new beginning now will not run smoothly. That's OK, we are not afraid of a little choppy water - we'll just take our time with this. There is no rush.

Capricorn is ruled by Saturn so we channel this energy - we use common sense, we get organized, we do things in an efficient way, we make responsible decisions, we keep our word, we think quality over quantity, we get up early (yes, I just want to sleep, too - next week will be better, I promise), we do the thing that is right in front of us.

For years, I have believed the pareto principle - that 80/20 thing, that 20% of the work produces 80% of the results, 80% of the sales come from 20% of the customers, yada yada. The idea that we have to have all this superfluous stuff, and energy expended, to get to the good stuff. I am willing to rethink this. Just because someone called it a "principle" and gave it a lovely Italian name doesn't mean it has to be true anymore and wear us all out. Maybe it's time to cut out what isn't clearly working instead of working on the assumption that it gets us something somewhere else.

We will all be looking at how much we are working and how much we are making and getting out of it and have to show for it - this isn't all about money. But it is about money, too.

We don't want to clutter up our life with loose ends now. We take care of our physical body (Jupiter is in Virgo until next summer - this is the best time in years to get real results from prioritizing our health). This isn't work til we drop stuff - nothing in the universe supports us hurting ourselves ever.

This is first chakra security stuff. Capricorn rules bones, skin and joints.

So if we are not getting what we need from relationships or activities that we spend considerable amounts of time on, our body and mind (depression is here, too) will tell us now. 

First center physical issues like fatigue, skin problems and joint pain that are ignored (ie we don't look at what we are getting back from what we are giving our energy and time to) lead to worse stuff like arthritis, allergies and autoimmune problems. This is an excellent time to create new routines for physical stuff.

If we know an area of our life that can use a Capricorn overhaul - that's certainly where this energy is meant to be used. 

We can wait until Mercury is direct later in the month to make our move, but we can plan our movements now. Mercury retrograde is great for rethinking and planning! Mars will be retrograde in Scorpio for a few months, Jupiter is retrograde now - we have to just go ahead and work with the times we are in. 

If now is when we feel the dissatisfaction, then now is the time the solution is available.

MONTHLY AFFIRMATION TIPS:

Some Capricorn new moon affirmation areas to think about: security, time, self-discipline, your brand and image, ambition, opportunity, goals, delegation, releasing control, father figures, reputation, your bones, knees, skin and joints

Some I will be working with include (note - these are from last year, this year I am going to be more specific - think Virgo precision since that's where expansive and lucky Jupiter is hanging out!):

1. I easily recognize, welcome and enjoy the work that leads to success.
2. I receive and enjoy positive recognition for my work.
3. I easily set personal and work boundaries that create time for me to do the things I love to do
- I shoot for 10 (see Jan Spiller's site for some ideas with these - she calls them monthly wishes, if wishes feels right to you and better than the word affirmation use that)

Get grounded - we're in an earth sign now, so this should be easier - always make affirmations from a  positive place (positive meaning certain) - write your affirmations down by hand in cursive, we want the letters all connecting and flowing together, speak them out loud. I used to write my affirmations on strips of paper and put them into a bowl of rice so I can mix them around every now and then with my fingers if things got stagnant - then release your attention from them knowing that your intention is known.

Lately I have been burning mine and releasing the ashes into moving water. I feel a little more connected with the finality of the results when I do this. Yes, you can flush them, but try to get outside!

Know these things are already yours. xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | week of January 4th - freedom vs. control, mercury retrograde - part lll

the game by vi mark

I cannot believe this week has taken three long posts just to list all the aspects. If you are having a baby this week ... well, he or she is going to be carrying some very big energy!

Good luck to the new mommies and daddies out there with that :)

See part I and part II 

We are in the Balsamic Moon Phase (here's a post on Jess's blog about that) so if you are not feeling the New Year "go-go-go, hit the ground running, fresh start thing" use this time to rest. You can't really go wrong with the Moons.

OK, back to this week- today we have the Sun conjunct Pluto at 15 degrees Capricorn. This feels like some kind of relentless ambition or a light thrown on some area of power. Whatever this is it is getting us ready for the New Moon in Capricorn at the end of the week.

On Thursday, Jupiter stations retrograde (yes, another retrograde planet).

This takes us back to the October 12th New Moon when Jupiter first entered the space he is about to retrace. You might remember we had a Jupiter/Pluto trine - a fresh start, wealth and abundance energy. I don't talk about that kind of thing very often (it's the whole glass half empty thing I think), so when I do, and I did, you might take notice!

There is a test with this transit (Moon square Jupiter) re: self control. We don't want to get over confident with this energy. Greed, extravagance are no-go's here. Remember, Jupiter is in Virgo - small, measured steps, just do the work. If something kicked off for you in mid October, this is your chance (through early May) to get all your ducks in a row with it.

Jupiter is stationing retrograde on the North Node of Fate and he is traveling with the Node of Fate for all of January and most of February! This is about connecting us with our fate. Since he is retrograde these connections may involve people, places and activities from our past. This will be about our work, health, daily routine or pets since the North Node (and Jupiter) are in Virgo (work, health, routine). Mercury will also be trining Jupiter during this transit (plus he is the ruler of Virgo!) - a VERY positive aspect. Check your natal chart for 22-24 degrees Virgo to see where this connection with fate will come from for you. 23 Virgo sits on the cusp on my 10th and 11th houses - so for me this will come through work (10th house) or a friend (11 house) - if you would like me to check for you, just let me know!

We'll talk more about this as we move through the winter, but let's keep our eyes, ears, minds and especially our hearts open. We don't necessarily have to say yes to every opportunity presented now, but we definitely want to take a phone number or business card!

I am going to do a 2016 year ahead post next - I have had a few people ask me for kind of an overview of the energies and also wanting to know when things are going to get 'back to normal'. The second part is easy because there is no 'back to normal' - life has reset for all of us.

It's like we've moved from the Serta perfect sleeper to the water bed - we just have to roll with it now even as our head bumps against the wall and we roll awake every time our partner takes a deep breath - that old mattress is sitting at the bottom of the garbage dump with two years worth of empty Hungry Man dinner boxes lying on top of it.

The mutable signs will feel this year the strongest. And with 4 Mercury retrogrades in earth signs in 2016, lots of physical changes to people's lives will be happening. Spring will be nuts. The way through everything is still Virgo .... we've got that part down .... 2016 will be a year of sobriety - we are all going to need a clear head for this one. xo all