Today's Astrology Forecast | Wednesday, February 19, 2020 - going back over our plans, re-dos and re-visions, finishing up, a nudge toward something else, making the dream real

After the Moon, in serious and work-motivated Capricorn, and a tense square to Venus in Aries this morning (in the mood to start/to fight/to get something going), moves on to easier energy, hooking up with expansive and confident Jupiter at 2:49PM EST and then an opportunistic sextile with idealistic Neptune at 3:05PM EST - she is activating tomorrow's exact Neptune/Jupiter sextile (the first of three direct hits this year and in play through October).

Here's something from the weekly post about tomorrow, but in play all week - "with Capricorn/Pisces - a dream can become real, IF we are willing to work for it - work within the rules and limits. Step into our responsibility. Possibly make a sacrifice first. This is not fast energy, so we need to have patience. This process will carry us through October."

And if this sounds something like last year's Saturn/Neptune - it is, because it's Capricorn and Pisces, and it isn't, because it's Saturn and Jupiter -

which is like the difference between Scrooge and Santa Claus.

(keep in mind alot of this year is like last year, except now we are 'past the death' or about to be)

Now, Santa's in Scrooge's office this year (Jupiter in Capricorn), so not quite doing his North Pole 'free toys' bit, because the elves are busy doing Scrooge's paperwork, but Jupiter (ie Santa) is still Jupiter even with a cranky and demanding boss breathing down his neck.

And now with this sextile to Neptune kicking in full blast - it can be like the boss is on vacation and Jupiter gets a little of his Sag boundlessness back.

The thing to look out for with this and especially because we have the Sun in Pisces and the Moon waning and Mercury retrograde in timeless Pisces is - we don't want to get caught up in all our old victim stories. We are probably going to be talking/thinking a bit about the stuff that didn't work out - par for the course with Mercury retrograde in Pisces - but we don't want to get stuck in this stuff.

Keep in mind, even retrograde, Mercury is MOVING.

And Mars is on his way to an aspect with Uranus, indicating this is a good time to take action with something new/something forward leaning. And this will be harder to do if we are 'all in' on wallowing about the way something didn't work out exactly as we had hoped, or what we lost or what we didn't get.

Now with the Moon waning and Mercury retrograde - doing the re's (re-viewing, re-vising, etc), tying up loose ends and getting stuff done will probably dominate our agenda. 

This week's Mars/Chiron could open some old wounds just as the Mars/Uranus will open up new possibilities. 

And with all the Capricorn energy, there will be certain restrictions here we will have to live with/work with and that's OK. That's life on planet Earth. 

It's up to us how we want to look at this. Glass half-empty. Glass half-full. Either way there is something in the freakin' glass, right?! 

Will we use Mercury retrograde in Pisces to re-imagine our dreams/to go on a vision quest or spend it wallowing in what didn't work out exactly the way we wanted it to, what we lost, yada yada (and I am not minimizing these losses because some people lost actual people and animals).

But what have we gained through what didn't work out/through the losses? There is something liberating here, too. How can we use this?

Mercury is going to sextile (opportunity) Pallas in Capricorn today - so MORE CAPRICORN/PISCES - making the dream real! We had this aspect back on February 9th when Mercury was direct, so this is the second hit - the "re-view" hit we skip at our own peril. Pallas is all about winning through strategies and patterns and with Mercury retrograde in Pisces stimulating "old dreams", there could be some gold to be mined here. We will have their final meeting in April. For now - what needs to be re-viewed, re-vised, re-visited? Cappy adds structure and boundaries to Pisces imaginings and driftiness. 

Whenever we have more than one aspect saying the same thing we know we need to pay attention.

We can notice how life always sends us a lifeboat, except of course those times we are required to swim or to learn how to swim, and those times are more recognizable in your natal chart than by looking at collective energies, we can notice how there is ALWAYS  a way through. And also notice how we MADE IT THROUGH. Or we can notice what is missing now that we are in the lifeboat. That part is up to us.

Pisces season is the time to give our problems/baggage to a higher power through prayer/meditation. We are not going to have all the answers now. Mercury retrograde in Pisces at the same time Jupiter is aspecting Neptune is offering us A VISION QUEST. Mars/Uranus is opening a door. Mars/Chiron and Venus/Jupiter are giving us some tense/challenge to push against/to stand up for, cautioning against going too big/too fast. Requiring us to have faith.

Even as we are doing the re's and finishing something up, something is pushing/nudging us to grow/expand into a new area. Pay attention.

And keep in mind always that North Node in Cancer - caring for ourselves as well as we would care for someone we love.

xo all

photo by the talented LloydHughes

Today's Astrology Forecast | Tuesday, February 18, 2020 - get to work, wrap it up, a little elbow grease, something unexpected, easing into the future

The Moon, in serious and earthy Capricorn since 5:37AM EST, is goal-focused now and ENERGIZED.

We have the Moon, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Pluto and the South Node all in Capricorn - and I said this week was Pisces, Pisces, Pisces! Ha!

She will conjunct Mars at 8:16AM EST, and then maybe giving us a little preview of what Mars will be up to later in the week, squares Chiron (tension/hurting/healing) and trines Uranus (11:44AM EST - smooth movement toward something else, change, expect the unexpected).

The day will also be colored by the Moon's last aspect in Sagittarius (a sextile to the Sun at 4:03AM EST). This month's waning sextile (opportunity) from Sagittarius to Aquarius.

With the Sun wrapping up her yearly journey through Aquarius around lunchtime today - here is some hope/optimism/expansion that could feel liberating/group or future focused.

There could be an opportunity here, and with so much about to get very slippery in Pisces, we might want to PAY ATTENTION.

None of today's aspects should involve us beating our head against the door or leaping off a tall building.

Which is a good thing, obviously. but also means we might miss the good stuff that is almost within our sight, if we look just a little bit ahead, and maybe even within our reach, if we reach just a little farther/higher.

That trine to Uranus speaks of stepping out of the box/out of our comfort zone. Changes, for the better, - with our money, our values, our resources.

The waning Moon could indicate a wrap-up/ending. It is a good time to finish something.

And all this Cappy says - apply yourself to whatever you are doing. Give this your best shot. Allow yourself to feel your ambitions. We are nurtured through Capricorn now - our goals, our work, the stuff we have earned.

xo all

photo by the amazing oprisco

Weekly Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of February 17th, 2020 - a dream starts to grow legs, a push in a new direction, Pisces on steroids

SUNDAY - Mercury station retrograde in Pisces, Mars enters Capricorn
TUESDAY - Sun enters Pisces
THURSDAY - Jupiter sextiles Neptune
FRIDAY - Mars squares Chiron
SATURDAY - Mars trines Uranus
SUNDAY - New Moon in Pisces (4 degrees)

Let's take a quick look at the week ahead!

Lots of Pisces/Neptune, so double up on that Vitamin C!

Sunday's energetic shifts are going to be in play for a few weeks, so read about them HERE.

On TUESDAY - the Sun joins Mercury in dreamy and intuitive Pisces - the mutable water sign of mystics, empaths, dreamers, poets, escape artists and addicts.

Our imagination, and Pisces natal house theme, gets solar charged now!

Pisces is the final sign of the zodiac, the sign of consciousness. Although often pictured as fish, probably Pisces is best represented by the ocean itself. A symbol of life and healing - the space where one thing flows into the next, until there is no 'next thing'. When we are lost at sea, there are literally limitless options as to where we can go - all directions are available to us.

(which is hell for the indecisive but invigorating when we remember we are here for the adventure!) 

Pisceans have the ability to comprehend almost anything (the downside is the ability to easily hook into stuff that isn't real). Certainty is a temporary state of mind for Pisces. Even the truth can get a bit stretchy. For grounding and to stay in touch with the ethereal energies that continually beckon to them - they really need to meditate daily (research shows coloring activates the same brain areas) - we are all burning Pisces fuel now, and so, especially if we find ourselves distracted, unfocused and forgetful we can use a meditation practice to free up the space we need to remain effective and centered.

Ruled by Neptune, Pisces is the space in our natal chart where we heal, avoid, wallow, dissolve or transcend boundaries. Since Neptune came home to Pisces in 2012, we have all been a little less clear about what is real.

Think of meditation as a requirement for life on planet Earth now - also hydration!

My multi-generational childhood home 'contained' four Pisces. Of course Pisces energy cannot really be contained. It washed over all of us and blended us all together - for better or worse.

Pisces season allows the dream to come into focus as it seeps into our cells ... or goes down the drain. We can also get sick as the boundaries between us and other people thin.

It opens us up to the new astrological year that kicks off next month with Aries.

I notice, for me, Neptune energy (Neptune rules Pisces) and Pisces season often feels like I have returned to square one with whatever I am dealing with. With the Sun in Pisces our ability to force things is not as powerful. The more we struggle to stay on course, the more we drift toward the rocks. This doesn't mean we give up or go back to bed - it just means the best course will be with the current now - saving our strength for when the energy is best for challenging the prevailing tides .....

on THURSDAY we get the first DIRECT HIT of this year's favorite repeating aspect (which is in play for most of the year) - Jupiter (in Cappy) moves into his first exact trine (brakes off) with Neptune (in, do I even have to say it - Pisces).

This is kind of like the Saturn/Neptune sextile we had last year - there is always a way through challenging energies and this is our collective golden ticket through 2020.

With Capricorn/Pisces - a dream can become real, IF we are willing to work for it - work within the rules and limits. Step into our responsibility. Possibly make a sacrifice. This is not fast energy, so we need to have patience. This process will carry us through October.

Keep in mind that following our heart and doing what is required of us is actually the same thing.

We get this stuff confused because we think doing what's in our heart will make us happy.

That's not always true.

The sun's light may be very bright and feel really good sometimes, but the sun's light burns, too.

Following our heart doesn't guarantee a happy life; it does guarantee an authentic one though. At the end of our days in rocking chairs or hospital beds we will be content with what we have done.

But now, hopefully many years before those rocking chairs and hospital beds, we think that living a happy life is what we want, although often we don't know what will make us happy and get ourselves stuck and sometimes we think we do know and then we get the thing we are so sure will make us happy and realize it doesn't make us happy after all - this happiness thing can really muck us up.

(we can't really muck it up though, don't worry, life will find a way to get us to the challenges we came here to meet)

The fly in the ointment with Jupiter this year is probably trying to go too big or too fast or not having faith in the thing we are trying to do. This aspect is quite literally an open pipeline between our material reality (Cappy) and the ethereal realms (Pisces). Now there is always flow between our Cappy and Pisces houses but now the flow is filtered and AMPLIFIED by the presence of Jupiter and Neptune. It sounds BIG because it is big, but it is also subtle in the way all Piscean/Capricorn stuff is lasting, so takes time. Think of the way water changes the structure of stone.

We'll talk about this more as we move through the week and year.

On FRIDAY, Mars, strong and sobered up in Capricorn now, squares hurting/healing Chiron. Our actions/passions bring us to a space of a very old pain - something about our ability to take care of ourselves/stand up for ourselves/be brave enough/measure up/be taken seriously. The good news because Mars is very fast-moving is that very quickly he

trines Uranus (in Taurus) on SATURDAY. So the way through this involves CHANGE, soing something differently and probably some disruption -

because, yes, change can feel erratic especially when it comes by way of anything-can-happen Uranus and through Taurus, a space where we really like things to stay the same.

A Uranus trine isn't about doing things the same old way. Not gonna work.

(although with Mercury retrograde in Pisces we could be re-looking at our old creative imaginings that MIGHT be re-tooled)

So, Mars (through us) hits this Aries obstacle/tension/frustration/this pain and the way through this, after we feel it/live through it, is a change of course - now the change of course comes via a trine so will happen smoothly. Trust this. Collectively (and for Aries rising) this pain/frustration will be about our career/work in the world and the change will come through our values, money, self-esteem. New ways to deal with these issues.

And we all have natal house themes where this is playing out, in addition to the collective energies that influence all of us, so for example - let's say you are a Cancer rising and Mars has come into your 7th house of partnership, and well maybe a partner does something that is hurtful. This will trigger the need for a change, and maybe not just in the way you work with this one particular partner, but maybe with other people because Uranus is in your your 11th house of friendships and groups. Maybe you need more friends or maybe you need different friendships or different goals that bring you in touch with other people.

This won't be the same thing for everyone. But the different/future focused path - and we can move smoothly toward this, we won't need to make any herculean efforts to figure this out, maybe because it will feel like the only open door at the moment - will be the way through.

We will talk about the New Moon in another post and the Moons as we move through the week. And keep in mind with Mars following Saturn's footsteps in Capricorn - whatever is still standing in our Cappy house (after last year and last month) will start to be TESTED this week.

Is it still strong? Is it still needed?


xo all

photo by the talented Jarno-photograhy

Today's Astrology Forecast | Sunday, February 16, 2020 - Mars into capricorn, Mercury stations retrograde - swimming with the sharks, dreaming backward

Big changes in the skies today as Mars moves into Capricorn (through March 30th) - a space he is exalted, but also this year, the temporary home of some other VERY big players whose footsteps he is following, making Mars in Cappy, for maybe the first time in our lifetimes - a small fish in a very big (and complicated) pond.

At the same time we have Mercury stationing retrograde at 12 degrees Pisces - ready to back over the degrees she/he didn't get to do a do-over with last year. Mercury will be retrograde until March 9th.

At first glance these are paradoxical influences - our actions (Mars) moving FORWARD, into what some might call "shark-infested" waters at exactly the time our thinking (Mercury) - which we might think needs to sharp as a laser beam right now for us to survive - is moving BACKWARD; drifting and unfocused. 

This sounds like a recipe for disaster, we'll make a rather tasty lunch for one of those sharks we have circling.

But, if we really think it through, taking into consideration this thinking is being done using a brain in Pisces - this is all starting to make perfect sense. Like the drunk man who survives the car crash - we don't tense up, our reaction time slows down, we don't "brace for impact".

(An old EMT customer once told me, and it makes perfect sense to me and, so, although I have forgotten a  gazillion things over the years this has always stuck with me - if you are driving and can see a collision/impact coming, it's important to stay in a relaxed state, don't try to control your body, don't grab for anything.)

Now as Mercury stations retrograde - and keep in mind the start of the retrograde itself sets up an event chart that gives some indication of what we can expect over the next couple weeks - she semi-squares Saturn and then the Moon (in Sag now, have I said that yet?) squares her/him - Mercury is androgynous, and I like to switch pronouns now and then to keep us all awake.

So, the semi-square could be viewed as a problem up ahead - all things being equal, if we continue going the way we are going. The problem will be Saturnian - so with limits, authority, responsibilities, deadlines, goals, etc. But this is just a semi-square, so a kind of heads-up, we aren't totally lined up with this.

The Moon's square to Mercury, on the other hand, is here now - tension/frustration. This is a Sagittarian square - so maybe a challenge with what we believe or maybe with a burdensome fact. Or maybe an actual Sagittarian situation, or the theme of our natal Sag house, is drifting off course and requiring us to look backward (legal, media, foreign issue, education, travel, politics, wedding, etc).

And as with all Mercury retrogrades - we do the "re's" - re-think, re-do, re-examine, re-search, re-peat, reunion, reminisce, re-vise, re-move, re-visit, relax - this time focused on whatever is happening in our Pisces house.

The stuff we have done/said hastily or from too detached a space when Mercury was in Aquarius, will now be re-analyzed and gone over from a more intuitive/emotional vantage point.

Situations and people from our past can show up because we are looking backward.

Pisces rules our collective 12th house where there is no separation between us and everything else. There is no time. There is no space. This is where we find God/spirit/the Universe.

The positive expressions of Piscean energy include - connection, imagination, music, art, empathy, compassion, healing, spirituality, transcendence of the physical world. The negative expressions of any energy are really the positive expressions taken to an extreme. So imagination becomes delusion/lies, empathy become martyrdom, transcendence (lack of physical connection) becomes addiction, escapism, mental illness. Pisces is the last house - it rules endings and the things we do last. Because the 12th house is behind the 1st house (our physical self) - it rules what is behind us, what is done behind our back, what we have put away, our past, the things we have forgotten, memory, our ancestors, sleep, charities, prisons, hospitals, illness.

Mechanical stuff can encounter glitches. Rushing around will only result in stubbed toes, stressed out interactions and dents in our car

(I once had three car accidents in a month when Mercury was retrograde, two of them in my own driveway!).

Something isn't quite ready for prime-time. Here's another chance to get it right.

Taking our time with important decisions, hesitating, being unsure of which direction to take, needing to think things through slowly and carefully and taking the time to listen and allow things to fall into place in their own right timing - are par for the course now.

This is not the best time to plow full steam ahead, but, yes, Mars is in Capricorn and there will be some plowing!

This is not the best time to sign a contract, because things will come to light later that require revisions or our thinking (Mercury) can change after Mercury moves direct (in March).

Now, sometimes things can't wait and contracts and papers must be signed and if that is the case - this would be a good time to READ THE FINE PRINT. No skimming. Get a lawyer or maybe better yet get a psychic - if they have any kind of game at all, they should be on top of it now - the psychic I mean, the lawyer will probably miss stuff, too. I would get one anyway though.

Use clear spoken and written language - and this won't be easy with Mercury moving backward through Pisces - we need to be doubly sure people are understanding what we are saying and that we are understanding other people, because wires get crossed now. And people will lie and maybe not even know they are lying. Secrets/behind door dealings will come out, but first they will be HIDDEN.

Double check that email before hitting 'send'. Mercury, the fleet footed messenger, rules things that are fast moving from our computers to our cars. BACK UP YOUR FILES. Check your oil.

Pisces is a water sign. We are going to be feeling what people are saying.

We will be more intuitive. Other people will be, too. On the other hand, our ability to "trust our gut" is dependent on what we have been putting in it. If we have just eaten a Big Mac and downed a Coca-Cola and we are thinking we know that this other person is telling us the "truth" or that some decision we are making is the right decision based more on feelings than facts, I would sleep on the whole thing and give that stuff - the words and the food - a couple days to digest ... first.

Mercury/Pisces confusion is a collective thing. So we will all be sucked into it, BUT keep in mind your natal Pisces house has ALWAYS been the part of your chart where your boat isn't so tightly tethered to the dock. This isn't a rock-solid, stable area of life for you anyway. Mercury will bring your attention here, and his retrograde behavior will bring the need to revise, re-think, etc, but it's not like she is coming into a neat and orderly place and kicking up a mess.

And the fact that we had a Mercury in Pisces retrograde just last year covering the later Pisces degrees and now we have one this year covering the early Pisces degrees tells us Pisces, as a collective energy, demands a thorough RE-IMAGINING.

Now, this is what is happening in the physical world, but there is another level we are all working with, and in this higher level, in the ethereal realms, something else is happening.
 
We are surrendering, allowing, receiving (Pisces) a new way of thinking/communicating (Mercury).
 
Mercury is doing a back and forth over our "divine wound", the ground Chiron just spent the last few years triggering. This is the space of shame, victimization, betrayal, grief, loss of faith and self-sabotage AND also the space of healing connection.
 
This retrograde, happening at the same time Mars will cross the South Node and Neptune will sextile Jupiter, is truly a divine intervention.
 
We are listening to higher frequencies. We are reminded of our old dreams, our past life stories and the stories of our ancestors (both helpful and hindering) that were passed on to us to see what we could do with them!
 
The past and all that has been forgotten in that 12th house - is given a voice (Mercury) now. 
 
Our mind is going all spiritual ninja on us.

It will be important to stay attuned to what our body needs while our mind is thinking it's 5:00 somewhere.

We will need more sleep. We might need a couple days of escape. Let's schedule some rest/relaxation into our calendar now, so we have something to look forward to. Just keep in mind with Mercury retrograde our plans will need to stay flexible, and if traveling, it is best to re-turn to a place we have been before.

We are going to need to drink more water. We can more easily catch colds and things, so do whatever it is you do to try to prevent that. We are going to need to meditate or do some mindfulness exercises. Time spent outdoors, and with grounded animals and plants (and babies!) will be time well-spent. We will be very sensitive to music while Mercury is retrograde in Pisces (and song lyrics and tunes will get stuck in our heads).

Note for people with addiction issues and for people who love people with addiction issues - this Mercury retrograde in Pisces might be treacherous, but also exactly the energy needed for a true breakthrough/healing. 

***

With Mars in Cappy the work we do will pay off over time. We will be more ambitious and goal-oriented. We need to be serious about what we are doing. Maybe put on a second pair of big girl/boy pants over the first pair until the end of March.

With a retrograde Mercury in Pisces we will be looking/thinking back to our old dreams, our old imaginings. The past will be on our mind. Our thinking will be more fluid, more intuitive.

This will somehow turn out to be most useful in our Mars in Capricorn, shark infested waters. We'll talk about all of this as we move through it.

xo all

artwork by the talented stellartcosica