BIZ Astrology for Monday, September 15th - a logical approach now

Action Mars entered fiery Sagittarius on Saturday - this is a great transit for a fresh, energized new start. If you are normally a risk-taker you may have to dial it back a bit so you don't run off a cliff somewhere, but for the rest of us this energy will get us moving. Doors are opening.

With both today's sun (Virgo) and moon (Gemini) ruled by Mercury - a logical approach is supported now. Do your homework. Stuff comes to light today.

Decisive strategies are favored now. 

The stuff that came up for us in the last few days is in some way the stuff we will be dealing with next summer - how was your weekend anyway?

(the world news was all about Isis - maybe the media shouldn't nickname a group they do not want to be powerful after a powerful female Goddess at a time of rising female energy unless of course, somebody wants a powerful enemy for a never-ending war - Hilary in Iowa, Scotland's bid for independence - this one is in the shadow of Mercury retrograde so will no doubt be back if it fails.)

Mercury squares the North Node in Libra - many have cleared a lot of relationship and personal power gunk over the last few years - the Aries/Libra polarity (what house is Libra in your natal chart?). We are stepping into new waters now. Our story might look the same on the outside (although it probably doesn't), we might be doing something we have done before, but we are not the same people - we can do it differently this time.

Tomorrow Venus meets the Nodes (more on this tomorrow) and we could attract someone from our new tribe (especially someone younger than us or with newer ideas), hear some important news or get a significant contract - this could happen next week, too. We need to be clear on what we value now. What is it time for us to contribute? What have we learned? Where do we really want to go? Mars in Sagittarius (the archer) will get us to our target.

No going backwards to repair stuff right now - don't focus on what isn't working - see what is working and focus on that.

The positive spaces this new energy will focus - ARIES: education, legal matters, long distance travel, publishing, religion, encounters with the exotic TAURUS: loans, taxes, debts, inheritance, fertility, partner's money, sex, GEMINI: partnerships, marriage, intimacy, equality, CANCER: health, work, co-workers, routines, skills of value to others, LEO: children, creative projects, romance, the spotlight, play, VIRGO: home business, renovation, moving, leaving something behind, family, LIBRA: meetings, communications, siblings, open talks, clarity, speaking, teaching, writing, SCORPIO: money that is earned, security, what you value, management of resources SAGITTARIUS: personal identity, goals, your physical energy level, ambition, authority over your own life, CAPRICORN: secrets, stuff that isn't developed yet, stuff that is hidden or forgotten, meditation, spirituality, AQUARIUS: friendships, tribes, public life and image, concrete direction PISCES: career, what you are here to give, authority, destiny

BIZ Astrology for Friday, September 12th - establishing priorities and standing tall in our story

brene brown quote

Today, our practical Virgo Sun meets our practical Taurus Moon and makes a great day for establishing priorities and putting down roots - a solid, practical day. I like things simple, we just need to be sure we are not settling for easy today because it might come back to bite us later. Get stuff done. There is money to be made later from the work we do now.

This is a great day to venture into something creative. Celebrate any victories now - this will attract more and bigger reasons to celebrate. This is the space in our story where we stand tall and breathe a little; the place where the hero takes a hot bath and looks at how far he has come (and freaking amazes himself). Every story is hard. Every story is unique. Appreciate ourselves for the strength we have shown so far. We can do this.

The moon makes a square to Jupiter so it is important to stay positive. Mercury has been in this intense cardinal cross and this weekend Mercury opposes Uranus so something unpredictable and exciting could happen. This kind of pushes us to find a new way to handle something; see a new perspective. We can meet new people or a special person now.

When the Moon moves into Gemini this weekend, the winds will pick up. Youthful enthusiasm rules.

(now it is good to be prepared, but if we are the kind of person who has to prepare for every eventuality- well, things may not ever go terribly wrong for us, but they may not ever go terribly right either)

On Saturday night Mars (action) moves into optimistic, expansive Sagittarius thru October 26th and it's been almost a year since we have had Mars in fire. This is mostly a good great thing because this will make everyone a little more optimistic, a little more adventurous, a little more curious about the world.

This will be the push many people need to get moving, make a decision or do something else. Stuck stuff will get unstuck during this transit.

Now the downside (yes this is a planet of contrast, there is always a polarity and it's not always my adorable little locket - warning shameless plug ahead - check out some new necklaces here) is our impulse control might go bye-bye now. We can leap before we look (which sounds nice on a poster - leap and the net will appear, should say 'leap and the adventures will appear', I think). We can be overly trusting.

That smart executive on vacation who wandered into that cave at 3:45 and drowned when the tide came in 10 minutes later because the guide - a distracted and overworked 20 year old scuba instructor with a bad haircut; someone the executive would not have normally trusted his life to, of course - told the executive to leave the cave by 4:00 and hell, it was only 3:55; that trusting guy on an adventure, um, that trusting dead guy on an adventure (and this story is totally made up) was probably a Sagittarius.

Leaping is good during this transit, but there definitely needs to be some looking first - fortune favors the bold, but not the reckless now -

because Saturn is going to join this little Sagittarius party and he will see to it the stuff we put into motion now will stick.

(yes, first we get unstuck then we get stuck again - this is why we need to be following our passion and living from our heart, so if we fall on our asses at least we will have a craft room filled with yarn and pillow inserts to cushion our fall)

It will not be so easy to extricate ourselves from this stuff quickly - we could set something into play that reverberates until Saturn vacates the premises in 2016.

The house Sagittarius sits in our natal chart (print out your natal chart!) will be where this all plays out - this is where we can expand our awareness through the gathering of unfamiliar experience.

We need to be conscious of anything we are creating and signing up for now through the end of October because come December and for the next couple years we will have to live with this.

BIZ Astrology for Thursday, September 11th - ambitious activity

We have a grounded Sun/Saturn sextile today and an action Aries Moon that goes void. Not a great day to start something brand new, but an excellent day for ambitious activity - let's get some $hit done today (and tomorrow) folks!

We might get the feeling that it is now or never; that stuff has to happen NOW. This isn't really true, but we can use this AGITATION to make stuff happen. This is an excellent day to get our creative efforts out there. Concrete stuff is happening. Take a deep breath. Details are wrapping up. Decisions are being made.

This is passionate energy so the stuff that calls to our heart will be easy to NOTICE now. If we don't feel like doing it today, we probably never will ....

(yes, I am feeling the need to CAPITALIZE - don't hate me)

We might over focus now- so let's keep our eye on the big picture. We have Mars moving into Sagittarius in a couple days and that is going to be AMAZINGLY GOOD!

The fly in the ointment -

(why is there always a fly in the damn ointment - why can't we ever remember to put the cap on the damn ointment before the fly gets in there)

Mercury has an inconjunct aspect to Chiron for the next couple days - so even though we are trying to say the right thing we might say the wrong thing or maybe there will just not be a right thing to say - someone is not going to be happy with what we say or maybe we are the one getting upset.

This is the space between the rock and the hard place. We might feel forced to respond before we are ready to answer. There will be some kind of wrap up to this thing next Tuesday, but for now with Mercury in Libra it is best to communicate with collaboration, diplomacy, tact and hospitality.

On Sunday, Mercury will enter his shadow (he will be retrograde most of October) and start asking us "Are you sure? Is this what you really want? Is this where you really fit? Do you still fly with this flock?". Mercury is in Libra - so this will be about our partnerships and relationships. Saturn will make us commit to these partnerships and tribes during the eclipses in October.

Today is a great day to step things up and cement something solid - this will be in the area of our work, health, small pets, organization and routine.

And we have that Virgo Sun shining a light on all the ways we are not organized. Stuffing it in the closet just doesn't work now.

Tonight the Moon moves into Taurus - so it's a great night to ... well, I'll just leave it at that. This is a business blog after all (if you squint and stand at twenty paces). xo all

BIZ Astrology for Wednesday, September 10th - creative action

collage by spiresburn

We have an independent and dynamic Aries Moon pushing us forward today (with Aries we always have to take a second look and make sure we are not pushing into a wall - the Aries ram's gotta ram after all) and in a big old T-Square. Uranus is creating excitement. Opposing Mercury in Libra is creating indecision. Mercury squaring Pluto is asking us to embrace new ideas. 

Things could still look better than they actually are. Mistakes can happen. Attractive Venus opposing kindhearted Neptune today may draw sob stories - we want to be practicing high levels of compassion now, but not be foolish or self-sacrificing.

Since Venus rules the 2nd house of everything money can buy and everything money can't - hold onto our wallet and our values today (that smooth talking guy at the bar needs to go home alone, that broke-ass girlfriend can get a job, those boots you can't afford anyway will not fit right).

This is a good day for solid forward motion - an Aries moon makes us brave, a Virgo sun makes us detail oriented. If we are building our life on the solid ground of what we really want (this can be tricky, so take this part seriously), we cannot lose. We can always fail, but we cannot lose.

We have the grounded Virgo Sun sextiling Saturn in Scorpio (this won't happen again for decades) so our passions are really growing legs now. Creative people are thinking bigger and taking action. This is manifesting energy. That same Neptune / Venus opposition can create real beauty in the world now.

Some people may feel next month's eclipse this week with something important eclipsing out of our life. It's time (this doesn't make it any easier or hurt any less, I know). xo all

BIZ Astrology for Tuesday, September 9th - after the storm

after the storm print by elly mckay

That Pisces full Moon continues until tonight - emotions could be and have been intense. Today is like the fog after a big rainstorm.

Pisces is a water sign so anything that makes us cry now is something to look at. The full moon always shows us what we are holding onto. There is a gift in letting go. Know that any emotional endings now are perfectly timed.

The Hindu Goddess Kali is the Goddess of Autumn and rules endings and beginnings. She represents Mother Nature and is an archetype of Scorpio - she helps things that are ready to die. Call on her if we need strength - she is an ass-kicker and gets things done.

The Moon moves into Aries tonight and things get back on track. If your natal Moon is in Aries (moon's position when you were born) this is a perfect night for some fun play - a sporting event, a bike ride with your stopwatch, a poker game, any kind of competitive play that has no meaning.

If you know someone with an Aries Moon who never gets to play aggressively it is safe to assume he (or she) is very, very angry.

This is more true for men than women. By being born a woman the elements of water and earth are in our physical bodies although this is not always automatic and can require an action to activate it - something like raising a child, tending a garden or growing a business.

Venus in Virgo opposes Neptune today so our projects and relationships are fluid and malleable. We have to balance the fantasy and reality here. Let's not get sidetracked. Things might not be fully developed - we may have a feeling that something has to be done right now that isn't quite ripe. Sit on it until at least tomorrow.

Mercury in Libra forms a challenging position to Pluto that could make us obsess a bit, sending us into an insecure space when it comes time to say what we need to say. Pluto wants us to get to the bottom line. Mercury wants accuracy. Libra wants diplomacy. There's also some secrecy aspects to this placement. Uranus opposing Mercury could upset even the best intended plans.

There's a cosmic adrenal exhaustion warning now - we need to get enough sleep, we need to eat whole healthy foods, we need to move our bodies away from the computer or work bench - we can't stay motivated when we are struggling with burnout and depression. If we have to step back, we can always step back, no one is keeping score - we can be human-kind or the human-race now, I guess - it's up to us.

Full Moon in Pisces - Monday, September 8th - radical compassion with ourselves and others

chalk wall pattern

We have a full moon tonight at 9:38 EST. This is a sensitive, powerful full moon and our 3rd super Moon of the summer! This full moon conjuncts Chiron (wounded healer), trines Saturn and trines Juno.

We could have life changing moments today and tomorrow.

This isn't about setting intentions for what we want (like new moon energy affirmations). This is release energy. So we take that thing we want and release what is blocking us from having it. For example we want excellent health so we release our attention from junk food. We want a strong, focused mind so we release our attention from distractions. Then we have this wonderful Virgo Sun to take the actions that set up the systems to support us to do this. The release is the big huge first step that supports all the baby steps that follow.

It feels like a good time to step out of development issues. This is the time to release any energies that are wounding us. With Mercury squaring Pluto some deep fears can be released. Mercury is in Libra so other people are involved here.

These fears are the self-sabotaging stuff that keeps us stuck and makes us more comfortable playing small.

With Venus opposite Neptune this will highlight projects, money and relationships. There are excellent aspects for physical healing now (releasing the emotional component of an illness).

Pisces and Virgo are opposite signs, but really the opposite sides of the same coin. The balance of these two signs is where we bring God (life, the universe or whatever word you feel most comfortable using here) to earth through our actions of service.

Virgo/Pisces service is about the highest levels of service and compassion - it doesn't take on the burdens of others - compassion holds a higher vibration. It's not about removing the pain or suffering of another person which we literally can't do because the karma (ie energy attraction, cause and effect, our perfectly pre-planned, but not predestined life experiences) - that created it in the first place will just recreate it in another form.

Pisces is the last and final sign - the place where the buck stops - Pisces energy knows this.

Pisces compassion shows patience, lends an ear or a shoulder without the need for recognition - without the need for thanks - knowing the service is its own reward; the work is often invisible. 

It holds open doors and the spaces for others to be strong and courageous and confident. This is the power we hold now - we can see "who is doing without" and know what needs to be said or done. 

There are magical spaces for simple hospitality to create real change now. A stranger isn't really a stranger.

For more about the Full Moon the Mystic Mamas blog has a great post HERE
 
In my own life this healing is working through a long Saturn transit and since about 1 in 5 people have a difficult Saturn complex (although almost every human being born in patriarchy is subject to this feeling to some degree) on their natal chart, the healing energy now makes me think there is value in writing about it.

The smartest way to handle a Saturn transit (and my natal Saturn squaring my Sun makes me somewhat of an expert on this since my entire life is one long Saturn transit - imagine a stern father looking over your shoulder all the time!) is to know that often limitation has value.

A Saturn complex creates a feeling of things not being OK just as they are - this can give us high standards, drive and ambition, but also the feeling we have something to prove. In a natal chart these will simply be qualities of who we are - like having green eye and blond hair. Saturn's little inside joke is that we better enjoy what we are doing because there are no additional rewards for getting it right or being perfect.

The process is an end in itself and not a means to an end. Ultimately Saturn teaches us to love and value ourselves and not look for validation from outside sources. I think I will have to write a post about this.

For today - stay centered - let's choose our words carefully - they are powerful now and the less we speak today the stronger our words will be tonight when we need them. Get into water. Take a bath. Walk barefoot in that full moon tonight, even if you have cloudy skies, I can assure you the moon is still just as powerful. 

Set your intention to release what isn't working - be advised this is a very strong moon and this 'stuff that isn't working' will release. This may or may not feel good. If there are big things in our lives not working, a release intention at the full moon, can change everything. Let's be brave. Let's do what we came for.