Astro-logical Forecast for Wednesday-Friday 1/21-23/2015: Mercury Retrograde!
So the big news today is that Mercury turned retrograde at 10:54AM ET. Your mission, should you choose to accept, is to not freak out about it. Because you already backed up your computers, right?
Still, delays and snafus involving communication and transportation devices (computers, cell phones, cars, trains, etc.) may be experienced. If 17 Aquarius is a significant degree in your horoscope, you’ll likely feel it more than most. President Obama, for example has an 18 degree Aquarius Ascendant, and with transiting Mercury so close to his Ascendant, we could expect matters of personal projection to be front and center now. Not a bad transit to have if you’re making a big speech; chances are what is said will make an impact. And in fact, just as I typed that sentence, a friend texted that “everyone at the office is talking about Obama’s State of the Union speech”. Astrology is amazing.
Those who know just enough about astrology to make them dangerous often curse Mercury retrograde, and that’s a shame. It gets a bad rap because we are geared, in this crazy modern age, to always be thinking, doing, moving FORWARD. Ya know what that gets you? Burn out! We need our down times, and Mercury retrograde is a perfect time to give our minds a rest — and an opportunity to review our progress over the past few months. Why else would your computer, phone and/or car choose this time to malfunction? Because you are supposed to be slowing down.
Be prepared for travel delays, scheduling screw-ups, computer crashes, having to repeat what you’ve just said, misunderstandings, people you haven’t seen in years showing up on your doorstep and having to repeat what you just said. Take advantage of this prime opportunity to review and rethink a project you may have abandoned. It’s probably worth a second look. Get out your Rolodex and reach out to people. Trust that they will be delighted to hear from you. Take a break from your routine. Take a vacation. Unplug your computer and cellphone. Avoid signing contracts, making major purchases (especially mechanical ones) and losing patience. Make sure the restaurant you’re meeting at is still in business. Don’t believe everything you read in the papers and ignore the juicy gossip at the water cooler. Do plan on RElaxing, REviewing, REsearching, REorganizing, REgenerating, REconnecting and REcreating.
Yesterday I received an email from a man I met at a party years ago and never saw again. He was going to another party hosted by the same organization last night, and wondered if I might be going (no), and wouldn’t it be nice to catch up (unknown). Pay attention and you may be surprised by the number of “chance” reunions you’ll have over the next few weeks.
In Aquarius, Mercury can be stubborn, quirky, detached and downright wonky as it boldly explores topics some may find revolutionary and/or socially significant. Mercury turns direct on February 11th. Mercury retrogrades are a superb time to review your life in consultation with an astrologer, and I invite you to schedule an appointment.
Planetary patterns today are generally bright, bubbly and expansive. Go about your business — reach out to people — and work on your New Moon agenda. Chill out at 8:45PM ET, when the Moon goes void.
The Moon enters soulful Pisces at 7:48AM ET on Thursday, infusing the day with a need to manifest or communicate what is ideal, intangible, impressionable. A push forward or a wet blanket may be experienced around 12:19PM ET, as the vulnerable Moon is challenged by “get real” Saturn. Creative vision or misfired communication may ensue around 5:27PM ET, as the Moon meets up with dreamy Neptune. Steaming emotions or drive is suggested around 9:10PM ET, when the Moon moves on to action hero Mars.
Today and tomorrow, take advantage of the potential for effective communication of will, backed by practicality, as the Sun and Saturn make contact on just after midnight on Friday. Get it off your desk by EOD Thursday, as the Pisces Moon will be void of course all day Friday, as of 6:13AM ET. Go with the flow of whatever twists may detour your efforts to move forward in a straight line. Better yet, use that creative energy for review and routine, given that Mercury is retrograde.
And now, the news.
In astrology, we use our astrological symbols to represent just about every aspect of modern life. Take large farm animals, for example. They are naturally ruled by the 12th house in a horoscope, and the 12th house is naturally ruled by Pisces, which also refers to empathy and suffering. (Astrology is a complex language; the symbols are intensely interconnected, which is why it is so important that your astrologer be able to translate these symbols into plain English.) Combined with never-ending corruption-exposing Uranus-Pluto square, Monday’s intense meet-up between Mars and Neptune in Pisces could be seen in this NYT headline “U.S. Lab Lets Livestock Suffer in Quest For Profit”.
I don’t know about you, but after reading books like The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight by Thomas Hartman and The Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan, my consumption of meat and processed food plummeted. I feel lucky to live within walking distance of a greenmarket where I can buy organically-grown vegetables and other comestibles directly from the farmer. The NYT article is not for the faint-hearted. But if we do not make ourselves aware, how will things ever change?
Meanwhile, disruptive Uranus and Pluto, combined with a concentrated planetary focus in “out of this world” and/or “otherworldy” Aquarius and Neptune can be enjoyed in this item about a proposal to add the dwarf planets Ceres, Eris, Haumea and Makemake to the ten already Officially Approved Members of our solar system. If the proposal flies, we’ll need a new mnemonic, which the article linked above invites you to create. In March, we can look forward to reports from Ceres (and later, Pluto), as a NASA spacecraft closes in…
Speaking of otherworldly, here is how the The Washington Times covered last night’s State of the Union speech. This is the only paper Justice Scalia says he reads, except for the Wall Street Journal. Here’s the Los Angeles Times with their take. And here’s The Guardian, pointing out one mind-blowing fact I had not seen elsewhere, which also shows how communication delays and “snafus” are being reflected in Obama’s horoscope, as noted earlier in this forecast.
Finally, here’s Jon Stewart — for no particular reason — calling out likely presidential candidate Mike Huckabee about the different worlds we may live in and the blinders we may wear…