Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of September 11, 2017 - moth meet flame, rushing just creates more lack, know when to shut the hell up, a dragon in our path could be a dragon, could be a fire extinguisher

Runaway by Lukreszja

We know whenever the work week includes the complete Gemini Moon cycle it is going to be busy and we have other stuff happening that looks busy, too.

Rushing doesn't seem to get us anywhere faster though.

Remember we have had, through a strange set of circumstances, Mercury traveling with Mars for weeks and we still have one more week of this. This is fast moving energy and can lead to arguments and accidents. People will continue to be quicker to speak out, quicker to be annoyed and will speak out more forcibly.

The flow of information and daily tasks has been challenging to keep up with. Customers/clients can be irritable and want things done yesterday. Good advice (yes, from grandma) if you can't say something nice about someone, well then just shut the hell up (yes, my grandma was from New Jersey).

The Course in Miracles teaches we have two ways we can respond - through love or through fear. Love knows when to shut up. This can be the harder, higher ground. Fear requires little regulation of ourselves as we blather out something to eradicate our anxiety or cement our identity. Let's choose the higher ground this week.

All the chaotic energy that is trampling on Mother Earth's body is trampling ours, too.

There are multiple situations converging, but the Mars/Mercury piece of the puzzle (just a few more days of this one!) is impacting our liver (perfect storm for something like a bladder infection or digestive issues), stomach/solar plexus (2nd chakra).

This chakra is super impacted by Neptune's stomach churning storms (Solar Eclipse plus Pisces Full Moon ruled by Neptune and conjunct Neptune), Leo's fires (Grand Fire Trine, Eclipse, more anxiety!), dis-empowering lies and the media blasting "catastrophe" at us 24 hours a day. This chakra really needs healthy boundaries. If we are feeling something like "I can't digest all this information" or "I have lost my center" or the feeling that our gut instincts are letting us down - it's time to reset our boundaries here.

(and on the flip-side some people's boundaries are drawn so tight - we can be so sure we are right and that what we believe is TRUE - that tightness and rigidity creates similar issues with an out-of-balance 2nd chakra. I know someone who can literally only eat three different foods.)

Life on planet Earth is not for sissies folks.

Flipping that pancake and checking out the positive side (yes, that will be the side with the most visible blueberries)- Mercury/Mars, now that both are in Virgo and moving forward, is good energy for learning and applying our skills - not bad energy for back-to-school if the teachers can keep the kids from bickering and in their seats!

On MONDAY, the Moon will be void until 3:29PM EDT. This is not a good time to start anything new if we want something to come of it (so if you are filing a late tax return or something you want 'nothing to come of' this would be a green light).

Even void the Taurus Moon (ruler of our resources) and the Virgo Sun (ruler of work and service) can get alot done. Work efficiently with what you already have.

After the void, the Moon enters communicative and multi-tasking Gemini squaring Mercury (Gemini's ruler) and Mars. This would not be a good time for any kind of challenging conversation because people can be testy and words sharper than we intended. We could say/do things in haste that we might regret later. Try to avoid rushing - especially if you are a fire sign - Aries, Leo or Sagittarius. Good timing if a hard-headed (hopefully not heart-less, remember that North Node in Leo), strategic game plan needs to be announced/implemented, but not everyone is going to like it.

Jupiter (in Libra) is trining (brakes off) the South Node in Aquarius. This could be a smooth/simple opportunity to interject something Aquarian into a group or social situation. Maybe it's our freak flag - whatever makes us uniquely ourselves. Something quirky, new and innovating (or rebellious - Aquarius is that, too, of course) creates expansion and "luck" now. Since we are talking about the South Node of what we are releasing, we could be stepping away from something that is "distracting or distancing" ourselves from others (technology? many people are without electricity right now). We get lucky by getting involved and being ourselves - just keep in mind that Mercury and Mars are squaring the Moon and take your time, know when to shut the hell up.

On TUESDAY, Venus (in Leo) is trining (brakes off) Saturn (in Sagittarius). This is excellent energy for manifesting into physical form (Saturn) what we want (Venus). This energy is in play all week. This is still Saturn so results come through work and time, but they do come. The investments we make now (love, money, what we already have, women, beauty, self-esteem, values) can pay off later. We can also see the results of our prior labors this week and next.

On WEDNESDAY, the fly in the ointment (damn flies) to yesterday's exact Venus/Saturn trine is today's Sun square Saturn. This could take us back to something started when the Sun met up with Saturn back in December. With the Sun ruling the Leo North Node of our collective way forward AND our HEART this obstacle/restriction/wall is actually a positive. In both the same way all obstacles are positive in the end when we look back at what we have learned and in the sense, at this particular time in our history with the collective way forward about following our HEART - whatever stands in the path of that will need to be dealt with.

For now it might look like a fire breathing dragon. And in fact it could be an actual fire breathing dragon, but it could be the dragon that will lead us directly to the acquisition of the fire extinguisher that we will need moving forward. Whatever we use - skill, resources, etc - to get around or over this thing is going to be needed later on, too. We have the Sun in Virgo and Virgo loves to make something. We might have to build it as we go.

Any tension or challenges now that come up are part of the process that gets all of us to a happier space. Yes, we will have to deal with whatever comes up now, but life is magical and we get the square at precisely the right time - Virgo season! - so we'll use that Virgo Sun to fix what needs fixing here. It doesn't have to be a perfect fix and it won't be some big, splashy thingamajig. Virgo rules the small, practical steps that are helpful. Work small with whatever is challenging while keeping your heart (North Node Leo) firmly fixated on what you WANT (that Venus!).

The Moon goes void at 2:35PM EDT.

On THURSDAY, Venus (still in fiery Leo and approaching the eclipse degree next week - that's when the benefits of that monster Solar Eclipse will become more visible) meets up with the North Node of our collective destiny. Pay attention to what comes to your attention now. Maybe a woman comes into your life and moves your whole story forward somehow. This is the energy for desire (Venus) to meet up with whatever it takes to make the desire come true. Moth meet flame. We'll talk more about Venus's journey this week in the dailies including a sextile (opportunity) with big-time opportunity maker Jupiter on FRIDAY.

Lots more to write about including Mars and Mercury's final exact conjunction on Saturday, but I am out of time this morning. I have a largish store order to get to and another store owner who wants a face-to-face skype - which means I have to think about what my own face looks like this morning. Which reminds me with all this Venus we will want to be looking our best this week (and next week). It will make us more attractive - ie more able to attract what we want.

Venus loves all the lace and polish and we want her on our team now. We will be a stronger channel for our favorite muse's energy if we take a little extra care with ourselves.

xo all

Today's Astrological Weather Report - handcut carrots, small tweaks adjust BIG things, practical language, the audience goes home

South wind by painted poppy

Today, we have the Sun (in Virgo) trining (brakes off) Pluto (retrograde in Capricorn), Mars (action, initiative, passion, anger) changing signs from fiery Leo into stable Virgo and Venus (in Leo) inconjunct Pluto. The Moon is waxing in Aries this morning and moves into Taurus at 12:23 EDT (after a short void around lunchtime). The Moon is exalted in Taurus - the sign of prosperity and ruler of our resources.

First, let's look at Mercury.

You might remember he moved into Virgo on July 25th before reversing course and traveling back through Leo. So, now we are kind of back where we were then, but with a clearer grasp on whatever information/facts we need to be grasping to move ahead. We are older and wiser now. The retrograde forced us to deal with delays, to take another look at something, to ask the right questions, to revise, to review, to reconsider - and now we have the results/the decision/the info we need. It won't get much clearer than this.

Retrogrades force our hand with this stuff. They can't always force us to use what we have learned, but let's face it - if we were planning to do X, and, during the last few weeks learned Y and Z that impact X, we would be a fool not to use what we have discovered/learned as we move forward. So we will.

Mercury (communication, thinking, ideas, local neighborhood, siblings, transportation) is quite happy to be back in Virgo - a sign he rules.

In Virgo, our thinking, writing and communication will be more practical and commonsense. We will be all about the details. Nothing gets by Mercury in Virgo.  But lots of things get dismissed. If it's not real, if it doesn't work - it's gone. This is an excellent transit for organization, cleaning, paperwork, working on the tedious trivia we have overlooked during Mercury's days in star-studded Leo. The curtain gets drawn, the crowds go home, the star of the stage (us!) hones his craft without an audience, without applause. This is the work that gets done right because it needs to be done right. This is also excellent service energy - for taking care of our health, for taking care of other people, for taking care of our animals.

The Virgo house in your natal chart gets a visit from active Mercury - this is where the solutions will be. This is where we can drill down the details and become more efficient.

This is where we will be walking our talk.

The shadow side of Mercury during this transit (through September 29th when he moves into Libra - note he will start covering entirely new ground in Virgo on September 19th) is that we can't always see the forest for the trees. We might get so caught up in the details the big picture gets away from us. We could forget/lose sight of why we are doing the thing we are doing in the first place. Or we get so caught up in something being so perfect, that it never gets finished. Or we pare something down so much that in the end we end up with nothing .... keep an eye (yes, we need three eyes now!) out for this stuff.

The big news today is the perfection of the trine between the Sun and Pluto.

This is an aspect we don't want to waste. Here is where a precise adjustment (Sun in Virgo) creates career/place in the outer world opportunities (Pluto in Capricorn). A tweak to our day-to-day activities or work routine (or diet/health routine! or some regimen with our pets!) STARTED NOW is very powerful. We have to do what is right for other people here, too, because our Virgo Sun rules service - we can't take more than our fair share or cop out on something that is necessary. 

POWER comes through the details now. Use this transit to set up an improved schedule. Prioritize. Do the most important thing first. Take a look at the houses in your natal chart this trine is impacting (your Capricorn and Virgo houses) - there is an increased opportunity for these houses to work together now. Trines are easy to miss because things fall into place easily. Note where this is already happening. Help it along with increased efficiency toward what we are passionate about!

The fly in the ointment with this and yes, there is always a damn fly in the ointment. Maybe without the fly there would be no ointment!

We have Venus (love, money, women, beauty, our values, our self-esteem) inconjunct (something not solvable here) the same career/place in the outer world/authority Pluto.

It looks like something we want (Venus) won't happen quite the way we want it to. Or maybe a situation with a woman isn't working out. Love/money can be tricky. To the extent we are not valuing the right stuff the support won't be there. Whatever this is, it will impact this final leg of our Pluto story which started when Pluto met up with the Sun back in early January.

The trine with Virgo though tells us the way through this is to do our Virgo.

Cross our t's and dot our i's. Do what is right in front of us. Clean up the mess. Share. Put one foot in front of the other now. Eat right. Go for a walk. There won't be any shortcuts, but we won't need them because with Pluto answering to Saturn - whatever it is we are building it is going to be sticking around for a long time ...

xo all

Enjoy that Taurus Moon this afternoon - take comfort in what really matters. Get out in nature (Ack - I am writing a post for tomorrow about the crazy weather!). Get your hands in the dirt. Balance your checkbook. Get a massage. Cut the vegetables with a knife, not one of those fancy electric choppers. You get the idea.

Today's Astrological Weather Report - peacocks strutting their stuff, something about not trying so hard, imperial ambitions and alpha dogs going at it plus an empty nest "no one needs my homemade cookies anymore" sniffle

Insecure by Birdy-7

Today we have the Moon in fiery, independent Aries. Trining Venus (love, money, women) in Leo this morning making it a good time to push (the Moon is answering Mars today!) for something close to our heart that we started working on/dealing with before the end of July when Mercury went retrograde - remember Mercury is walking old territory until September 19th.

This energy is good for strong females who want to be noticed ... hmmm :)

It's also good for independent action.

By lunchtime, the Venus trine is fading out (dammit, I want my spotlight!) as the Moon moves into a square with Pluto (in Capricorn) AND Mars - in possibly today's biggest aspect - a sesquiquadrate with Pluto (yes, that's a word).

That's alot of Pluto. And since Pluto is in Capricorn, that's alot of Capricorn.

This will likely direct our action, emotions and possibly our anger at Capricornian thingamajigs - Cappy people, serious people, fathers, our career, authority, limits, rules, time constraints, security, safety, physical things we can touch, walls, things that can't be moved.

Pluto will always beat Mars in an arm wrestling contest, so this is good energy to find out who is really in charge. Battles for dominance and power are likely. It looks especially treacherous ground for the earth signs - Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn - to slug it out.

On the other hand somebody has to come out on top. Note - it will probably be whoever started out there ....

With Pluto there is always the possibility of destruction. We will be holding a hammer so everything might look like a nail. Or maybe someone else is holding a sledgehammer. Either way the good news is with Pluto there is always the potential for the destruction to lead to rebirth. Things/people/relationships can, and often do, come back better and stronger after a Pluto whomping. Or they end up six feet under. There is rarely an in between. Keep this in mind.

Another aspect perfecting today - is Ceres (in Cancer) inconjunct the South Node (in Aquarius).

I have been feeling this one and went looking through today's chart to see what it was. With perfect timing as always (kids going off to school although that's not my story now) the universe offers up an "empty nest", "miss the good old days when I was taken care of or when I took care of something/someone" transit.

There is "mothering/smothering", "nurturing", "sustenance" that is no longer needed. Maybe it has been outgrown entirely or maybe we just need to find a new way of doing it because the seasons (of life or the year) have changed.

With the South Node involved we know something is leaving. With Aquarius involved we know the ending/release is liberating. Whatever is happening will be a big deal to us to the extent our past includes issues of separation and insecurity (and whose doesn't!). And the extent 24 degrees Cancer or Aquarius - or thereabouts - might factor into our natal or progressed charts.

We'll work through this. Maybe we need to mother ourselves now!

If you have some choices about what you are doing today - and you do! - remember it is Virgo season. We are going to have an even greater heap of Virgo to work with/deal with over the next couple weeks, so it's good to embrace it.

Let's focus on what is right in front of us. Clean stuff up. Get organized. All this Pluto today makes it a good day for purging and recycling, plus the Moon in waning. Take care of the details now. Know when good enough is good enough.

With Mercury heading back into Virgo (moving forward) it is best to say what needs to be said and then drop the matter. Too many directions, extra words, etc, will be taken as criticisms ... even though we are thinking we just want something done right. Let's go easy on others, who don't have the benefit of astrology that we do, when they seem to be criticizing us. Isn't it possible they just want things done right/to go right, too?  

Best to talk about what you know for sure NOT what you are worried about that hasn't even happened yet. This is probably always good advice. Make a bumper sticker. But don't forget to credit your grandma. She probably said it first. xo all

Full Moon in Pisces | the mystical, watery dreamer's moon - seeing what we want to see

Tree Of Life by Dani-Owergoor

You have probably noticed the Moon appearing larger and fuller over the last few days as we've approached this morning's Full Moon in Pisces. I hope you have been able to get out and walk in it!

With the Sun at 13 degrees Virgo and the Moon at 13 degrees Pisces - anyone with planets or points around the middle degrees of the mutable signs - Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces - and people with planets or points around the middle degrees of the water signs - Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces - will feel this Full Moon energy strongest.

Check your natal and progressed charts (astro.com).

Today's Full Moon is conjunct a retrograde Neptune at 12 degrees Pisces and Neptune is the ruler of Pisces and so the ruler of this Full Moon - its strength is GREATLY increased. Neptune reflects the longing in us to lose our separateness and merge with the greater whole. It's our quest for Eden, the draw to return to the vanished magic of the womb - to God, to the source of life. It's about everything we can feel and nothing we can touch.

With imaginative and illusory Neptune so strong now whatever is going on - coming to light, culminating, releasing - can be beyond our wildest dreams. 

This can be a real thing or it can be a total delusion - smoke and mirrors.

It might be hard to tell which is which. We will see what we want to see now, especially within our relationships with other people since Full Moons are times of Sun/Moon oppositions.

Something stirred up by the recent Solar Eclipse energy comes to light or culminates now.

The Moon is also sextiling (opportunity) Pallas in Taurus. So, there is opportunity energy between our natal Pisces house and our natal Taurus house themes. Sextiles are the kind of opportunities that require some kind of action. Think about how you might be able to work with this.

(for example Pisces rules my 4th house of home and Taurus my 7th house of partnership, so an opportunity for me to take action, and meet with success, combining these two themes)

Pisces rules the 12th house of what is hidden and put away, the ways we self-sabotage, escape, our addictions, our imagination, lack of boundaries, connection, compassion, charity, hospitals, prisons, the things we do last, the things we have forgotten, our distant pasts, water, sleep, illness, healing, spirituality ....

Our Piscean spaces (the roles we play and the roles we have rejected within ourselves and passed out to other people to act out for us) will be on full display. Dreamers will dream. Escapists will run away. Victims and martyrs will play out some endless saga we will all have to hear about. Saviors will march into action. Seekers will look within. Artists will make art. Drifters will drift off course. Anyone whose boat is only lightly tethered to the dock will be pulled out to sea ...

Maybe a whole lot of people could just feel like giving up.

The invitation to regress, to have permission to suspend the hard work of critical thinking/doing, to indulge "poor me", can be mightily seductive in Pisces. We need to be especially gentle with ourselves and others now.

It will be best to seek to balance the Virgo/Pisces polarity (warning shameless plug ahead - have you seen my Polarity Lockets HERE - I am having a rare sale) through some combination of imagination (Pisces) and practicality (Virgo) with whatever we are dealing/working with.

Know that things that look too good to be true now ARE too good to be true. This doesn't mean the whole thing is necessarily a total tosser though, use the Virgo Sun to see what is really going on.

We can ask ourselves - what is our big pie-in-the-sky Piscean dream? How can channeling our inner Virgo and breaking it down into practical, doable slices help make our dream come true?

AND in what ways is life feeling tense and stressed because of a pressure to do something just right or to have something show up in a very specific way? How can channeling our inner Pisces help us let go of the specific version of the way something has to be, or how perfect it needs to be or any need to micro-manage the process - go with the flow and allow ourselves to trust that life really does have our back, now and always?

Neptune is a trans-personal planet ruling the collective - it rules the realms where we are all connected and there are no boundaries between us (one of the reasons since "like cures like" that connection is the most powerful tool to aid addiction). And just as our dreamy Pisces Moon reaches its peak, Trump, whose 12th house has been on fire for weeks with that 28 degree Leo, announces an end to DACA (the dreamers program) .... hopefully Congress - with the help/push of the American people and the people who want to be American people - will use practical Virgo and idealistic Pisces to make this all work out.

For today - get your body into water (this is good advice for all week!), get rid of something/give it away/clear it out - we are FULL UP, too, and it is good practice to make some room for something else at this time of the month. Get out and walk in the Full Moon energy. See what opens up. It is magical!

Make art. Write a poem. Journal. This week has some crazy long Void Moons, too - we might really need some extra rest now (written at 4:44AM since I can't sleep - ack!). Give yourself permission to take a time-out if you need it. Take a nap. Thin boundaries make it easier to catch colds and things from each other (also bad moods!) so take some extra Vitamin C or whatever works best for you.

Our intuition will be strong, but we could pick up the wrong signal and there are other energies at play advising us to be cautious now - not guarded exactly, but it's certainly NOT the time for any big decisions.

Make the time to meditate today - truly this is the best use of the energy. The portals between yourself and yourself are wide open.

xo all

(see yesterday's post HERE for more details on this Moon - and take this breather today because the end of the week is going to see more KABOOM energy with the Aries Moon again clashing with Pluto! Also the Moon goes void at 4:30PM EDT today and stays void until 8AM EDT tomorrow morning - the longest we've seen in a long time.)