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I am a reporter with a unique beat. I use my understanding of planetary cycles to provide advance notice and analysis on the Zeitgeist of the day. If you have ever wondered “why is this happening now,” my insights will transform your experience of the headlines, adding new meaning and understanding. Call it Astrology for News Junkies. If you’re curious to know why the Impossible Burger is trending…or why the outcome of the 2019 Israeli elections was likely to be a shocker …or why “Woodrow Wilson, Stud Muffin” was a New York Times headline in December 2013, you will find it here, in over a decade’s worth of historical research and reporting.
Note that I do use astrological jargon in The Forecast in my effort to show how the planetary patterns are reflected in mundane events. I explain what the jargon symbolizes, so that all who want to understand the connections between astrology and the news may do so. However, I do not use astrological jargon in personal consultations, just plain English.

Monday 7/24/2023: Sneak Peek at the Week; Astrology is Amazing
/in The ForecastAlllrighty-then!
Exact planetary patterns are light this week, hopefully giving us time to process the potential cuts, losses, and power plays of last week. Think I’m kidding? Here is what was written for last Thursday:
Obviously, I wasn’t surprised by the super’s sudden break because astrology is amazing. Everyone else was shocked, shocked, shocked.
What happened in your neck of the woods? Oh — and if you know of any super candidates in the NYC area, send them my way. We’re hiring!
Anyhoo…
This week should be much lighter, with potential for much creative play — yay!
Highlights for this week:
It goes like this:
No sleeping in on MONDAY. The first day of the work week continues the easy flow of action, building to a sobering reality check on TUESDAY, which is the Full Moon in Aquarius and the first day of August.
Here’s what Beth Owl’s Daughter’s always-in-sync Tarot Card of the Week has to say.
Meanwhile…if you’ve ordered a few paragraphs of personal insights about how the Venus retrograde is likely to activate your horoscope, I will have those sent in a day or two, with gratitude for your faith and patience.
And now, the news.
First, if you would like to listen to the astro-logical take on the SAG-AFTRA strike, and how it prepares us for the challenges of 2025 (especially in the age of AI), here is Episode 44 of Off the Charts: A Stellar Newscast. Other topics: the future of affirmative action; Barbie and Oppenheimer — all according to astrology.
Venus — women, art, money, social expression — slowed to a virtual standstill in Leo over the weekend, and isn’t it cool how these stories “just happened” to command our attention:
Take the focus of Venus retrograde and add in the iron-fisted militant discipline of Mars opposing Saturn, the power play potential of Sun opposing Pluto, the dreamy/surreal spin of Sun trine Neptune, and the shock/innovative potential of Mercury square Uranus:
Speaking of Russia, if you listened to Episode 42 of Off the Charts: A Stellar Newscast, you’ll recall its focus on Vladimir Putin, and what we could anticipate this summer. The short-lived rebellion led by Wagner group head Prigozhin seemed too soon to be permanently disruptive, given what we know of Putin’s horoscope. Things are starting to heat up now, with the first of three contacts of Uranus to Putin’s Midheaven just two days ago, and the first of three to his Pluto (ruler of his presumed Scorpio Ascendant), on July 30. Next date to watch: August 21st, when we believe he will have a contact to his Ascendant from Pluto. As reported by Heather Cox Richardson, he’s not attending the BRICs summit in South Africa because there’s a warrant out for his arrest. HCR has more on the significance of Putin’s change of status. Meanwhile he made news today by being hateful to Russia’s transgendered citizens .
Here in the U.S., the militant power play potential was reflected in:
And….that’s a wrap. I wish I could share what Stephen Colbert has to say about it all, but his writers are still on strike. Thus, in honor of Venus retrograde in Leo, I’ll end with Cyndi Lauper’s classic, “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” That’s your mission, for the rest of the week. Guys can play, too.
Here’s the 411 on personal consultations. We will have a fine discussion together.
Thank you for reading this forecast — and sharing it with friends. Thanks for listening to Off the Charts: A Stellar Newscast, too!
Monday 7/17/2023: Sneak Peek at Big Week; New Moon in Cancer; Venus Turns Retrograde & Much, Much More!
/in The ForecastAlllllrighty then!
We’re starting the week off in the dark — literally — symbolized by the New Moon in Cancer, which kicks in at 2:31 PM ET on Monday. In the few days before a New Moon we may feel restless or listless, sensing a new cycle is around the corner, but we can’t quite see it yet. The seed potential of the New Moon contains all of these patterns:
The potential for how it all develops is aptly reflected in two Hollywood blockbusters that are premiering on Friday — Barbie and Oppenheimer. For the latter, one critic tweeted:
“Detailed…intricate…” are fitting for the militant discipline of Thursday’s Mars-Saturn opposition, with the “fearsome” annihilation potential of the Friday Sun-Pluto opposition.
Barbie opens with Venus — women, values, aesthetics, money — at a virtual standstill in drama queen Leo, needing to make regal pronouncements and have a grand old time. The Sun’s trine to Neptune on Thursday infuses the production with rose-colored pixie-dust and plastic. The movie’s logline is:
Punished for being less-than-perfect? Apropos for Mars in Virgo (which seeks a perfect action plan), opposed by authoritarian Saturn. Early reviews see Barbie as less of a fluffy fantasy, more of a film about empowerment (Sun opposing Pluto) — not without controversy — and “what it means to be a woman.” It’s being lauded for its wit and quirks — apt for Sunday’s Mercury-Uranus square (which also reflects the genius and tech advances of Oppenheimer).
It’s interesting that we have two big movie premieres that feel like they could be blockbusters, after weeks of successful publicity campaigns…and last week, SAG-AFTRA went on strike, joining the Writers Guild, whose members have been picketing since mid-May.
In any case, keep those two films in mind as you chart your course this week, which goes like this:
A pause, to consider the chart for the New Moon in Cancer, set in Washington, DC.
Observations:
On to the rest of the week:
A pause, while we reflect on the opportunities and challenges of Venus retrograde:
But wait! There’s MORE!
Goodness gracious, what a busy week!!! Beth Owl’s Daughter’s Tarot Card of the Week offers a Really Useful Coping Strategy for these heavy patterns, combined with Venus turning retrograde. She is AWESOME.
Next week we will only have two things to talk about (Mercury meets up with Venus on Thursday; Mercury enters Virgo on Friday), so there will be much more space for news. But — briefly…
Dominant patterns over the weekend included a square between Mercury and Jupiter, and Jupiter refers to horses.
There was BIG NEWS in sports, with an innovative spin:
With Pluto and Saturn now retrograde, we have an apt set-up for a REVIEW of projects launched into the collective consciousness in the early days of Pluto in Aquarius and Saturn in Pisces. In the case of Pluto, we anticipated extremes of empowerment in technology as it dipped into Aquarius – and along came AI all over the place. Aquarius refers to the public, as in public utilities; Pluto refers to power sources, including the Powers That Be.
Speaking of which, Saturn in Pisces suggests necessary controls and possible shortages in matters of water (literally), and compassion for emotional trauma.
It was anticipated that Jupiter’s ingress into Taurus might expand initiatives to preserve material comfort and security, and possibly bring down the heat. Obviously this hasn’t happened with respect to the climate, where Earth is experiencing the hottest temperatures ever recorded, as well as sudden and calamitous floods in unexpected places (e.g., Vermont). However…
Venus slowing to its station suggests a focus on Venusian concerns, such as:
Crumbs and cat poo: Renaissance women’s ‘astonishing’ beauty tips revealed . Yes, it’s a frothy headline, and the fact is that some of these concoctions are ones that any student of herbalism and/or medical astrology would discover.
The obituaries also offer an opportunity to reflect on uncommon women and their influence on the arts:
Astrology is amazing.
Here’s the 411 on personal consultations. We will have a fine discussion together.
Thank you for reading this Forecast…for sharing it with friends…and for inviting me to speak to your company, club or any other social gathering.
Sabian Symbol for the New Moon in Cancer: a dark shadow or mantle thrown over the right shoulder, as Venus slows to a virtual standstill, demanding our focus.
Monday 7/10/2023: Sneak Peek at the Week; Mars & Mercury Change Gears; Cookin’ Up a Storm
/in The ForecastAlllllrighty then!
The holiday week is over, and it’s time to get back to work. Highlights this week are:
So…most of the action happens today — Monday — perhaps bringing us down to Earth. That’s certainly the message of Beth Owl’s Daughter’s always-in-sync Tarot Card of the Week.
And now, the news.
Stories of action and heat — with a dramatic urgency — reflect Mars, planet of action and assertion, as it blazed through the last degrees of Leo. Add images of information and communication, reflecting Mercury’s contact with Uranus, Neptune, and — especially — Pluto. Sports seems to be another dominant theme::
Astrology is amazing. We could stop right there, yes?
But wait — there’s more!
Actor Kevin Spacey is on trial — again — this time, in the UK. The allegations are that he is a “vile sexual predator,” which is pretty much what he was accused of years ago, when he stood trial in the US and mounted a successful defense. There is dispute over his birth date, but we know enough to see clear patterns suggesting 1) magnetism; 2) things may not be as they seem; and 3) ruthless perfectionism and willpower. As I wrote nearly five (!) years ago for Mountain Astrologer:
Current planetary patterns for Spacey include 1) karma cop Saturn putting the squeeze on Spacey’s ruthless assertive drive; and 2) the above-referenced emotional catharsis being rescheduled to 2024, affecting the area of the horoscope related to self-undoing.
Meanwhile…
President Biden, Barack Obama and the former guy all experienced events reflecting transiting Mars making challenging contacts with other planets and angles in their respective horoscopes. In the case of TFG, as Mars conjoined his Mars and 29 Leo Ascendant, his rants on his social media platform included the posting of what he said was Obama’s address in Washington, DC. I don’t know why there is confusion over whether this address was correct; either it was, or it wasn’t, amiright? In any case, soon thereafter, an armed man was arrested outside the Obama’s DC home, as transiting Mars squared Obama’s 28 Scorpio Midheaven.
President Biden has Sun-Venus at 27 and 28 Scorpio, respectively (no wonder Biden was so supportive of Obama’s professional status), and Biden certainly has been active in recent days. Biden’s Sun rules his 9th house — of travel and foreign affairs, and he’s currently overseas, meeting with King Charles today, (to discuss the climate crisis) and onto to Lithuania and Finland. Note that this focus on foreign affairs was anticipated in the analysis of the chart for the Summer Solstice. Neat, huh?
Fun fact: Biden’s Sun, Queen Elizabeth’s Sun and King Charles’s Moon are all 0 Taurus. Prince William’s Jupiter is at 0 Scorpio, which is right on Prince Harry’s Pluto. The horoscopes of the Biden-Harris Inauguration and the official start of Brexit both have Moon at 29 Aries. All of these horoscopes are being simultaneously super-charged by dynamic contact with transiting Pluto — power & resources; transformation.
Finally…
Transiting Mars was active in my horoscope over the weekend, too, which is my rationale for why I spent all day Sunday in the kitchen. Sorrel soup, red pepper hummus, couscous salad, and a plum-blackberry torte, anyone? Mars can be quite the positive catalyst, doncha’ know — when it is not being reflected in the smashing of printers with hammers.
Here is the world-famous plum torte.
The sorrel soup recipe is from The Silver Palate, a cherished tome. To die for!
Here’s what I did with the chrysanthemum leaves I told you about a few weeks ago — OMG — these greens are sooooo delicious! So were the amaranth leaves, which I steamed and used as a bed for a fish curry — yummy!
But perhaps you didn’t come here for recipes. Perhaps you are interested in discussing your life, using the potential of your horoscope as a guide. I can help with that, too. Here’s the 411 on personal consultations.
Thank you for reading this Forecast, and for listening to Off the Charts: A Stellar Newscast.
Thank you for sending clients and speaking engagements my way. Referrals are the best!
Photo of a beach, for no reason in particular.
Friday 7/7/2023 & the Weekend: Mercury in the Driver’s Seat; News, News, News
/in The ForecastTGIF!!
Here’s a recap of the Forecast for the weekend:
No sleeping in on MONDAY. The Aries Moon will not be void, so get up and get going, now armed with a new action plan that puts a great priority on efficiency in every detail, as opposed to a dazzling, “because I said so” execution. Why? Because at 7:40 AM ET, Mars leaves Leo and enters Virgo. Perfection and correctness; hypochondria and anxiety; these are apt topics for conflict and combat until August 27th, when Mars enters Libra. Mars in Virgo is an excellent time for analysis and adjustment in matters of health, diet, and work routines. I would not be surprised to hear more headlines of labor disputes (especially about work environments and comparisons to slave labor) over the next six weeks.
This weekend may be a banner one for investigative reporters and others who deliver “news from underground.” I say this because at 4:47 PM ET on Monday, Mercury (how we need to think and communicate) and Pluto (power and resources; depth, transformation; corruption revealed) will oppose each other.
Anyhoo…
I am inspired to offer this Friday news round-up because so many this week’s headlines aptly reflected what I wrote on Monday:
…because it was the only planet other than the Moon making exact contact with the other planets. Mercury sextiled technogeek Uranus on Wednesday. It will trine woo-woo Neptune on Sunday, and oppose “news from underground” Pluto on Monday. Plus, in the chart for Monday’s Full Moon, we noted:
Ready?
In other news…
Mars at the end of Leo suggests dramatic actions, consistent with being at a crisis point, and/or at the end of a phase of action:
Meanwhile…
UPDATE: on Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO). On Monday, a review of his new book noted his “weird fixations, which I noted were no doubt a reflection of transiting Neptune making challenging contacts to his rigid Mercury-Saturn square. Neptune dissolves whatever it touches, and if what it touches is a pattern that suggests a severe, disciplined or controlling mindset, we could expect an element of the surreal or flat-out unreal to manifest. An upside potential would be sublime inspiration, and astrologers have to wait and see how the individual brings it to life. Hawley made news again this week when he, as reported by Heather Cox Richardson:
Anyone who has planets at 27 degrees of Gemini, Virgo, Pisces, and Sagittarius may be feeling a bit foggy in matters related to the planet impacted by Neptune. Consult your local astrologer for details.
UPDATE: Avid Readers may recall that at the beginning of June, we would expect U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to be in a bit of a break-out period, as patterns in her horoscope suggest a need for greater freedom of expression. This week she traveled to China, where she has already made news by speaking out against “controls.” Astrology is amazing!
Here’s the 411 on personal consultations.
Have a fabulous weekend.
Thank you for reading — and sharing — this Forecast.