Today's Astrology Forecast | Tuesday, January 28, 2020 - confusion, delusion, the need to rest, maybe a disappointment or maybe the fight dissolves, keep moving forward

The Moon is very active in Pisces today - she hooked up with Neptune at 4:33AM EST, Venus at 6:01AM EST and then sextiles Pluto (5:20PM EST) and finally goes void off a sextile to Saturn at 8:08PM EST. Good for tangible results tonight. Dealing with authority/goals. Creative work. Compassionate work.

Working with Piscean themes or the theme of your natal Pisces house.

Pisces rules our collective 12th house of what is hidden and put away, the ways we self-sabotage because from our vantage point in our 1st house we can't see what's behind us/don't know what we don't know, illusions and delusions, escape, sacrifice, our addictions, our imagination, music, art, lack of boundaries, connection, compassion, charity, hospitals, prisons, the things we do last, the things we have forgotten, our distant pasts, our ancestors, water, sleep, illness, healing, spirituality ....

Mars' square to Neptune becomes exact (with Venus just moving off her conjunction to Neptune and square to Mars - but both still in play).

Mars is our passion, our initiative, our action, our anger. Neptune is our longing 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.

Maybe Mars, in the middle of optimistic and 'bigger-is-better' Sag (although tempered quite a bit by Sag ruler Jupiter in Cappy this year) might hit a foggy roadblock with Neptune. Confusion. Maybe dishonesty. Exhaustion. A need for rest. A need for art/music/God.

Some people might feel like the rug has been pulled out from under them this week.

In Sagittarius, disappointment could be something like, "I hoped it would be this way, but it's not". With Neptune, disappointment could be something like, "I hoped this would be real, but it's not".

Neptune dissolves limits and boundaries and Mars in Sag can be impulsive and fast-moving, so we need to stay focused on reality or we might not see we have passed that warning sign that said ROAD OUT. If our faith (Sag) has been misplaced, we could be really far out there by the time we realize we have run out of asphalt. Yes, Mars in Sag is answering to happy-go-lucky Jupiter, but in Capricorn Jupiter is answering to steely and sober Saturn. And the buck stops there. Our house needs to be built on bricks or there will be a hundred opportunities in 2020 for the wolf to blow it down. This square to Neptune is just one of them.

For other people/situations - where our faith has been placed in something real and we are on the right path to begin with - maybe the fight (Mars) dissolves (Neptune). Obstacles can liquefy (I guess spellcheck is with me on this one). We think we are going to have trouble with XYZ and suddenly XYZ isn't even there anymore. Keep in mind with Mercury in Aquarius we are prone to over-thinking and looking too-far-ahead anyway. The obstacles we think we see around the next bend may not even be there by the time we get to them.

With the Sun in Aquarius and the Moon in Pisces - one plus one might not equal just two. There is innovation and magic here. All the planets are direct and the Moon is waxing.

Keep moving forward.

xo all

photo by the amazing Julie-de-Waroquier

More in the monthly HERE. Working on the next 2020 post tonight!

Today's Astrology Forecast | Monday, January 27, 2020 - investing in our dreams, energy leaks and confusion, pushing without pushing, sensitivity, fighting ghosts, a focus on what is most meaningful

I haven't been doing the weeklies since I did a monthly for January which is HERE, but here are some of this week's aspects.

SUNDAY - Venus squares Mars
MONDAY - Venus conjuncts Neptune, Black Moon Lilith into Aries
TUESDAY - Mars squares Neptune
WEDNESDAY - Sun inconjunct North Node
FRIDAY - Ceres into Aquarius
SUNDAY - Venus sextile Pluto, First Quarter Moon in Taurus

We start the week - and this is in play until about Thursday - with Mars (in Sagittarius) squaring Neptune and Venus (they meet in Pisces at 16 degrees TODAY).

Venus is very active this week so relationship issues, money stuff, situations involving women, beauty, our values and self-esteem will be prominent. Neptune is also very active which can add magic, compassion, imagination, but also delusion, escapist tendencies, the blurring of boundaries.

We have antsy Mars charging through Sagittarius and (as us) figuring it out as he goes along. So now he runs into this Piscean square, and yes, it can bring tension and friction and confusion into this space that Mars wants to expand/explore, 

but on the flip-side, Mars is bringing initiative and action into our magical Piscean dream-space because Venus/Neptune in Pisces left to their own devices - would dream their lives away. 

Keep in mind Venus in Pisces is exalted. She has everything she wants here, so it might take a square from a fiery Mars in Sagittarius to get her, as us, moving - and we probably do need to be MOVING, because we aren't going to have all the planets full steam ahead for very long like we do right now, and the Moon is waxing (growing), too.

So, we have our beautiful annual meeting of Venus and Neptune - this is excellent energy to fall head over heels in love. Also to be swept off our feet and carried away by whatever catches our fancy now. Keep in mind if you feel a powerful attraction to something/someone it could very well dissipate as this transit unwinds itself, so don't run off to Vegas or spend a bundle of money just yet.

It can be hard to know what is real. We could be lied to, be lying to someone else (or to ourselves) or just think we are being lied to. There is confusion, misinformation, rumors.

Transiting planets aspecting each other in Pisces will draw our attention here (especially if they touch our natal planets or points or duplicate aspects we have in our natal chart), and we will have the Moon in Pisces, too, now -

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. Venus, boosted by the tension of the Mars square, will bring our attention to any situations brewing here, but it's not like these energies are coming into a neat and orderly place and kicking up a mess.

Drugs and alcohol will have a heightened effect - I am sure even cold medicine, so be careful. Also our boundaries are thin and germs can spread very easily, so keep this in mind.

All this Pisces smoke and mirrors could feel defeating to Mars (as us) blasting through the middle of Sagittarius - maybe our energy/passion is diluted. We could feel drained. Confused. It could feel late in the game and it is late in a very challenging month and we could be tired. 

There is almost a kind of test here. Pushing won't work with all this Neptune. What do we want?

Also on Monday, Black Moon Lilith, finishing up a complete cycle through the zodiac, enters the first sign of Aries. BML is the radical (is being an independent female radical?) first wife of Adam - pre-Eve - the one who said adios muchacho and split (or was exiled from the garden for disobedience). Over the next few weeks, and maybe something today kicks this off as we begin this transit - we might find ourselves facing a situation where we have to assert ourselves and this assertion could feel uncomfortable or like we are doing/did it all wrong. Then maybe we say "well, I won't do that again" ... and then, of course, we find ourselves having to do exactly that, and not until we "get it right", but until we can do it without the discomfort. Until we understand that we aren't being selfish when we are being self-assertive. Other people will model this for us, too. If we have a fear of being in charge, but have a desire to do so, this might be the transit - over the next few weeks - when we move in this direction. And keep in mind Black Moon Lilith represents female energy that breaks the rules, so stories about this and repressed anger (at being rejected/left behind) that won't be able to be repressed anymore will be in the collective news ...and playing out in our own lives.

The Moon is in Pisces until Tuesday night and will sextile (opportunity) Jupiter in Capricorn on Monday night at 8:13PM EST.

I have Mars square Neptune in my natal chart and I know it can make us want to give up/keep us stuck in the emotions of the past/dilute our passion. But it can also give us the courage to serve a higher purpose/creativity. Keep your eyes (and your words) on the FUTURE. We could spend Mars/Neptune fighting ghosts and waste the beauty and compassion and love of Venus/Neptune this week.

Take advantage of the Aquarius Sun - use logic to see through the confusion. Aquarius rules groups. Where is your tribe? It's not just children who need a village.

Venus/Neptune is asking us to reconnect with our hearts and other people's hearts, too. To focus on what is meaningful to us. To feel the power in creative expression. That square to Mars can be used to energize the whole thing. Venus (our money, resources, values, self-esteem) is asking us to invest in our dreams (Neptune).

And bringing all this Pisces down to its most 3D mundane level we could be dealing with the theme of your Pisces natal house and water, leaks, meditation, music, art, wet weather, colds and flu, boundary issues, insects, hospitals, healing, spirituality, endings, the past, things/people that have been put away, things can slip away now so hold onto your wallet, etc - you get the idea.

Stay focused. Expect people to be more sensitive. The planets are all direct and the Moon is waxing. It's a time for action. The veils are very thin now. We can reach right in and pull out some MAGIC.

xo all

photo by the talented soppotea

Today's Astrology Forecast | Saturday, January 25, 2020 - setting our intentions, the future vs that death grip on what we have now or what we've lost, walking our talk, chilling out, getting some rest

The energy of the New Moon in Aquarius is pulling us forward. She will sextile Mars at 1:34PM EST and she goes void off a conjunction to Mercury at 2:06PM EST. The Moon will be void until 6:44PM EST on SUNDAY, so that gives us plenty of time to CHILL OUT. 

At the same time the Moon is talking to Mercury and Mars they are talking to each other in an opportunistic sextile - a day to walk (Mars) our talk (Mercury). Our words and our actions are in flow. With Mercury in Aquarius (logical, future-thinking) and Mars in Sagittarius (adventure, expansion, going out on a limb), and we talked about this in the New Moon post HERE, this is part of the energy of the next two weeks that is about us stretching into something NEW. 

Mercury is squaring Vesta.

So again, we need to stop talking/thinking about the past. We need to take a good look at that thing we are holding onto with a death grip because a focus on safety/security at all costs is really going to cost us in the long run!

Is what we have really that important that we need to go to such great lengths to preserve/protect it or would our energy, our money, our resources, our time - be better spent in another way? With Vesta in Taurus - the space in our chart that holds the really important stuff (the stuff we are literally designed in this lifetime to prioritize) - in Taurus, she, as us, can get so caught up in this holding on thing, we probably need a square to an Aquarius Mercury to stop and think if we really still need to do/have/to be this stuff anymore.

We might also get some news now that rattles our security. In detached Aquarius, Mercury allows us to take a step back (if we allow ourselves this space), but Vesta in Taurus is trying like hell to hold on. We don't want to be all "take this from my cold, dead fingers" because yes, Uranus, ruler of Aquarius is squaring the Sun and, maybe now or maybe when Mars gets here, will do, or has done, just that!

Use logic. The future ahead of us is so bright it would blind our eyes to see it now, so we can't.

Or use Venus because at the same time -

Venus (ruler of our resources, love, money, values and self-esteem) is sextiling Vesta.

So there is harmony/opportunity here and with Venus in Pisces the ability to feel beyond our current borders and 3D world. Connection. Love that is bigger than two people. Magical resources we can line up with. The ability to focus on what is pleasurable and beautiful. I know two people with Venus/Vesta exact sextiles and one works all the time and the other doesn't want anything to do with work, so we might find ourselves feeling one way or the other right now!

Saturday looks like a time to go out with friends, hang on the internet, chill, think and talk about the future, give some thought to what you are putting your time/resources into and what needs to change here. The skies are still dark. SET YOUR INTENTIONS BEFORE THE VOID MOON. Think seeds in the ground time. In Aquarius, your thoughts and your words are your seeds.

If that dark Moon in Cappy has exhausted you (it WAS exhausting), give yourself a break. Sunday is a day made for rest anyway and tomorrow's void Moon - which starts this afternoon - is just what we need. The North Node is still in Cancer - we have to prioritize self-care and nurturing. Chicken soup. A good movie. A day with some paints and a canvas. Move your body. Rest your body.

Whatever it takes.

xo all

photo by the talented RaphaelleM

New Moon in Aquarius | Friday, January 24, 2020 - the need to reinvent ourselves, a change of direction, sudden insights, moving toward what's next

The Moon starts the day void of course and then moves into airy and future-focused Aquarius at 8:20AM EST, where following the Sun's path from the last couple days and Mercury's path from last week - she moves into a jolting square with Uranus (1:34PM EST) followed by a healing sextile to Chiron.

At 4:42 PM EST, the Aquarius Moon will meet the Aquarius Sun (four degrees) giving us this month's New Moon - our monthly beginning.

Here is where 2020 really gets started!

FRESH AIR. Contacts to change maker Uranus - electricity. All the planets are direct, Saturn is past Pluto and Pluto is out of shadow. DON'T LOOK BACK!

All the Cappy energy is still humming along in the background, but now it is background. We are, obviously, still working with the karma (ie cause and effect) of past chapters, but the more we can focus on what will be and not what was - and these are two very different things now - the more wholly we can accept what is - the quicker we can line up with the energies pulling us forward.

And Mercury will be in shadow soon preparing for his upcoming retrograde (in foggy Pisces again this year!), so moves/decisions we make now we won't have to go back and forth over like we will if we wait!! We will still have to deal with Mercury retrograde in Pisces, but we will have something tangible to work with.

In March, Saturn will move into Aquarius (his first retrograde in Aquarius will briefly pull him back into Capricorn for him, as us, to finish up) for the first time since 1991, to pave the way for Pluto's entry into Aquarius in 2023 which will shift everything - in Aquarius we have Saturn paving the way for Pluto, whereas in Capricorn we had Pluto ripping out the paving in preparation for Saturn! And keep in mind Jupiter (expansion, luck) never catches up to Saturn in Capricorn, but he will catch up to Saturn in Aquarius in December 2020.

We'll talk more about what all this means in the 2020 series.

In the meantime, we have today's New Moon which will be in play until our next New Moon (New Moon in Pisces on February 23rd). The next two weeks - while the Moon is waxing/growing is the strongest time of the month for new beginnings/growth.

Let's unpack the chart!

The Moon and Sun are squaring Uranus (ruler of this New Moon) and sextiling Chiron. Uranus is trining Pallas. Eris is squaring Pluto. Venus is sextiling Jupiter, squaring Mars and conjunct Neptune. Saturn, Ceres and Pluto are still conjunct in Capricorn. Mercury is sextiling Mars and squaring Vesta. Jupiter is trining Vesta.

Blah. Blah. Blah. Too much - cue exploding head (whah!)

Let's prioritize here. The most important aspect the Moon is making is her square to Uranus and Uranus as co-ruler of Aquarius is the ruler of the New Moon.

The Moon isn't comfy cozy in Aquarius to begin with - the Moon ruling our roots/our past and Aquarius ruling uprooting/our future - the square just amps up the New Moon's need to break established patterns.

This is disruptive/unexpected change. Sudden insights.

Squares are tense aspects. They create tension to stimulate needed action. The planets within us and outside of us are working at cross purposes - there could be stress/frustration here. Taurus is some of our most entrenched energies, so sometimes it takes big things to uproot this space in our chart!

In this case, since this aspect is waning and we have been working with these energies since Mercury walked this minefield last week, this might not be something that happens today, although we might be feeling the stress of the square today -  

the tension/change coming through our natal Taurus house theme or the collective Taurus themes of our income, our self-esteem, our values, our resources - what we own/what we have. 

Although the change itself will probably not be something brand new, since the aspect is waning/in the past - it could be what the New Moon is really offering us is CLARITY about the door this change has flung open - an awareness of the fresh start/liberation the change/disruption is making available.

The Moon is sextiling Chiron and again this aspect is waning, so the New Moon is pulling us away from this hurting/healing.

In Aquarius, maybe we are sensitive to humanity's plight/to what is best for the group/the future. There is something both hurting and healing here - the Sun is shining a light on this. Maybe we are healing through our relationship to the group. Or through our ability to step away from the group and just be ourselves.

We are integrating our ability to stand on our two feet with other people. The more self-sustaining and self-accepting we can be going forward into the new energies the better!

We can literally reinvent ourselves/our brand now (and something is going to need to shake loose first!).

Uranus is trining strategic warrior Pallas in sober Capricorn. And we had Mercury's square to Uranus (what the Moon/Sun are doing now) on the day Pallas went into Capricorn (January 18th).

So, here is a way through any unexpected chaos - planning, patience, a deliberate focus, ambition. Being smart/decisive/playing the long game.

There is probably nothing better, after a disrupting pattern-breaking Uranus square, than a smooth trine (brakes off) to wise and strategic Pallas! We got this thing.

Also, Mercury is sextiling (opportunity) Mars and squaring Vesta. So, although there is tension around what really matters here - we may want to move our attention from that thing that used to really, really matter and sustain us (that thing that kept us/keeps us up at night) and turn our conversations, our actions and our passion to something that feels more like a stretch/something that gives us optimism and hope - something that focuses on our next step and requires faith.

Ideas can get us fired up, but we need to stop talking about the past! Even the recent past. Don't talk about that cold you had last week that kept you awake every night - take this energy down to its most 3D/mundane level. Shut up about it. Talk about the future. Put your attention there.

Venus is sextiling Jupiter and moving toward a square to Mars (in Jupiter ruled Sag) and conjunction with Neptune - we don't want to fall in over our head and drown here and there will be tension, probably within our relationships or with our money/resources, but we probably need the square to get us moving since Venus in Pisces can get kinda tired and drifting (even sick, so take some extra Vitamin C or whatever you do to stay healthy). Venus/Jupiter is waning, too, but just barely - there is beauty here - something GOOD.

Again the need for faith and that stretch.

Saturn, Aquarius's other ruler is still conjunct Pluto and Ceres. Things are still deadly serious somewhere in our life. There is certainly energy at this New Moon to be free and liberated, but we can't just be free and liberated. We still have Saturn/Pluto/Ceres keeping us tethered to reality.

It's still winter. 

There are so many other aspects in this event chart we would just muddy the waters talking about them.

The bottom line is some turbo-charged fresh air!

And, yes, there is the possibility of the turbo charging coming through an unexpected crisis/frustration. But, this may have already happened and here is where we get the clarity we need to move in a fresh direction.

Aquarius rule groups and the goals that bring us into connection with other people - the Aquarius New Moon is always an opportunity to take a long look at how the life we are building fits in with the other lives we share the planet with and move in a more powerful direction of building a space that supports all of us.

NEW MOON INTENTIONS

As we work with the Aquarius positives - innovation, genius, advancement, the new/modern, the power of groups, the power of the individual (yes Aquarius has both!) and eliminate the Aquarius negatives -  too much detachment, too many distractions, our feelings of alienation and our need to get lost in the crowd and hide out in the audience - if we do our work - and we are not required to do our work perfectly - we are left with a cool head, an open mind and enough emotional distance from whatever we are creating to allow the magical forces in play to work for and through us RIGHT NOW!

AFFIRMATION TIPS for your monthly New Moon:  always make affirmations from a  positive place (positive meaning both happy and certain) - write your affirmations down by hand in script, speak them out loud.

Then release your attention from these things knowing that your intention is known.  

Know these things are already yours.

(I would recommend setting your intentions on Saturday morning or Sunday night to avoid the void Moons plus we'll have the energy of billions of people celebrating the newness of the Chinese Year of the Rat helping us!)

xo all

Today's Astrology Forecast | Thursday, January 23, 2020 - surprises, endings, past the death, a silver lining

The Balsamic Moon continues her journey through Capricorn - the sign of her detriment - sextiling Neptune at 7:19AM EST (dreams grounded in reality, visionary goals) and then meets up with Pluto (7:18PM EST) and Saturn (9:08PM EST).

This is the first time in over 500 years the Moon will cross Pluto and then Saturn in Capricorn - we are past the "death", not only physically, but emotionally now. We got to the place in the game where we (our ancestors/past lives) have died and died and died before, and now, like an avatar in a video game, we are on the next level. This applies somewhere to our life in the "mundane" world.

What have we had to let go of?

We have the dark Moon crossing these "karmic ending" energies today - while the Sun squares Uranus (shaking loose what is desirous of liberation/fast change) and we start to move toward the Aquarius New Moon tomorrow which will bring, over the next couple weeks - fresh air and fresh starts and the beginning of a radically innovative chapter.

The Sun (in Aquarius) squares Uranus (ruler of Aquarius) at 2 degrees.

Change is empowered here. Fast change can leave us feeling disoriented, especially with our dark, besieged Moon - no soft space to fall. Squares indicate tension/frustration, so whether we are the one making the change or it feels like it is coming at us from the outside - it seems our back is against the wall with this. Over time we might be able to see that with this change - a weight is being lifted from us. It could feel heavy now though, especially if we are still holding on to the things that used to stabilize us/make us feel secure that are no longer working/no longer there.

At the same time we have an amazing silver-lining - sextile - between Venus (in Pisces) and Jupiter (in Capricorn) at 11 degrees - as Venus moves toward her meeting with Neptune on Monday.

Here is the real-world expansion of our Piscean imagination/the dream/the big thing we really want that sits beyond the thing we think we want. Again this supports the Saturn/Neptune good stuff - the solid manifestation of the dream. We'll talk about this more in the New Moon post tonight - Jupiter will require we stretch/go out on a limb/have faith, Cappy will require some sweat equity/patience/responsibility, Venus will want whatever we are creating to be beautiful and wanted and Pisces will require connection/imagination/love. We have the support of everything we have ever done and everyone who has come before us here.

There is something bigger/better right over there - but new to this level (like when we get to a new level of a video game and we have to run around a bit and get acclimated) we might not know exactly what we are doing or where we are going just yet.

Doors that need to close, before other doors can open, are going to close.

And if we are hanging onto something that needs to go - keeping that door open, maybe ... just in case - we might create a situation like when we open both front car doors at the same time on a windy day and everything gets blown around or important stuff blows out the door (actually this could just be me in my messy car) because that new door IS opening. We can't hold it closed if we try.

Do what you have to do. Big girl pants are on. That poster about being kind to other people because everyone is fighting their own battle (or something like that) applies now.

Have faith. These mountains are moving folks. The skies are dark. We can't see what we are doing, so take a breath.

xo all - back with the New Moon post

More in the monthly HERE

phopto by the talented iNeedChemicalX

Today's Astrology Forecast | Wednesday, January 22, 2020 - steely nerves, being ourselves, shake-ups and break-ups as we move forward, healing through groups, getting things done

The Moon moved into industrious/ambitious Capricorn at midnight EST last night.

She trined (brakes off - did you jump out of bed ready to get going?!) Uranus at 4:59AM EST and will sextile (opportunity) Venus at 8:52PM EST.

The Moon is considered "in her fall" in Capricorn, since she is at home in Capricorn's polarity sign of Cancer, but if you have something going on that requires steely nerves and dogged determination - a Cappy Moon is your friend.

A good day to make things happen. Get 'er done folks.

The Sun, in Aquarius now and doing this week what Mercury did last week, is sextiling Chiron and squaring Uranus.

Maybe shining a light or energizing/culminating last week's surprise/wake-up call information or conversation. The sextile (opportunity for healing) is Aries/Aquarius so something here about independence/innovation - the ability to be ourselves, maybe stand up for ourselves or do it our own way. The square is Aquarius/Taurus so a shake-up/change (doesn't have to be a bad thing) that is somehow either liberating/innovating involving our resources/values/money/self-esteem.

And, of course, these are collective themes, and we have our personal house themes that will shape this a bit differently for each of us.

(A little example from last week in my own life - hubs and I were out to breakfast during Mercury's - communication, information - walk through this minefield.

I don't know what I was saying to him - chatting up the news or something, but he was looking at me for a long time and then said, "you really are ... a piece of work".

Now most of the time, knowing his Aries Moon/Aquarius Sun very well by now and being an Aquarius Sun myself, I might have responded with a "damn right" and gotten on with things,

but, partly because I was prepared to hear "you really are ... so beautiful" or something like this, even though I would have doubted his sincerity knowing my messy bun and mouth full of bagel, -  I was very hurt. 

Not drama-mama hurt, but actually hurt. And he felt it, too.

So, we had hubs feeling the liberation from what he valued and me feeling my own weirdness detaching me from what I valued. His words triggering all the times I haven't fit in for me and for him, via my reaction, his words triggering all the times he has 'opened mouth/inserted foot' and said something distancing. Somehow these words are still ringing in my ears ...)

Venus is moving toward her square to Mars - there is tension here, and probably the need for movement and decisions. Venus in Pisces doesn't really want anything. She is exalted/has it all in Pisces - this could make us a bit lazy, so I think the Mars square could be a good thing.

The Moon is dark/balsamic (desiring rest) as we build toward Friday's 'change-bringing' New Moon, but in Capricorn she is made to continue to push. 

If something is not moving forward with us in 2020 - and this upcoming New Moon square Uranus speaks of us needing to face this - we can use this energy to fuel whatever needs to be completed/wrapped up.

xo all

More in the monthly HERE

Photo by the amazing Natalia Ciobanu