the weather inside me

go feather your nest

 It's nearly spring after all.

That nest could be your brain still coming off the Mars retrograde. Today may feel tense, but the cure has something to do with nests.

Venus and Pluto and Saturn form squares with one another today. On a chart this looks like the top end of a drafter's T-Square, which is what it's called --the T-square aspect. It also looks like a bow with it's string drawn back for maximum tension. So the experience could be tense, or intense.

We recommend looking at where the bow is aiming. Here, it's outlet is 5+ Cancer. The Sabian Symbol is "game birds feathering their nest". A lovely image for spring.

Venus-Pluto contacts can bring out the gamesman/powerplayer in us all, if we get hung up on winners and losers. If we can release the need to control the ball, we could find a deep surrender to something mysteriously transforming.

You don't have to be all "woo-woo" about this. Right now I'm facing a recalcitrant child with a secret agenda she won't reveal until we have a sit down with tub of cream top vanilla yogurt and the prospect of no computer access. This is the carrot (Venus) and stick (Saturn) approach so common to parents (Pluto --the prime mover) everywhere.

Of course, most of us aren't children and we need something less crude than yummy food and the threat of lost entertainment to get us motivated. But what is the motivation today? That'd be a good thing to know before you go into any negotiation.

Consider, then the game birds feathering their nests. No one's hunting them because this is home-building and security forming season. Time instead to soften the mood and deepen the feelings of purpose and place for the impending changes that will come soon enough.

Find a soft place, therefore. Add a little grace and charm to your surroundings, even if it's the simply the thoughts you surround yourself with. Relieve the me-you tension by taking the topic beyond the interpersonal. Send your need to change into your immediate surroundings and create a safe, comfortable spot for the people in your life today.

Top photo: Mamma Roots
Bottom illustration: The Paper Apartment

the pisces-saturn flashback wierding

I'm channeling Earth, Wind, and Fire. You know --the band. Last night was trying to relax with this meditation tape of running water and kept getting strains of a brass section I KNOW isn't on the tape, but holy satin spandex! It was the brass section from Earth, Wind, and Fire!

I know. So distracting. Not meditative at all.

And dreamed all night that I could hear things through solid objects. My pillow was no help because I kept hearing someone else's conversation through it.

I had this same problem last fall while listening to a Glenn Gould album. I kept hearing this cantor on some of the tracks. How he got there I have no idea. He was a nice cantor, but the experience was a whole lot like "The Kugelmass Episode" from Woody Allen's Side Effects. Ditto last night's brass section.

[Update: a friend just informed me about Gould's humming habit when he played. Okay. So that's what I was hearing. Thank you. Now can you explain the brass section?]

So of course today I had to poke around on you tube for a lil' EWF. Sigh. Ooh. Yeah. And what did I find? This fabulously cheeeeeesey scene from the embarrassing Sargent Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band, the movie. I may have been young, but I these were my Beatles obsession years and even I knew the movie sucked. Except for this great scene. Cheese tho' it may be. And then a surprising synchronicity. The date of the movie: 1978.

Saturn was last in Virgo 2007-2009, before that 1977-80 and then in Libra '80-'82/3. This is a 30 year cycle, and we're back there again --Virgo and Libra.

Saturn is retrograde in Libra, moving back to another month or so in Virgo, and with all this free-associating Pisces stuff in the water, suddenly I'm channeling my early adolescence again. Heavy Metal, anyone? (Dear lord, I had no idea how many SCTV folk were a part of that venture.) Or how about a little Xanadu? (And the death of ELO.) Talk about two ends of a fantasy spectrum. Wow. 

This was the era in which my mother lost all censorship rights when she got someone (a neighbor kid?) to (illegally) hook up to the new cable box behind someone's house. Free cable! Which meant free HBO. Whoa.

Enter the Chicago WGN station and reruns of Monty Python...and Caddyshack...and The Shining...and Ice Castles...somebody stop me now...I'm rarely the one to wax nostalgically...

What were you up to these years?

the story so far...the (long) late february 2010 overview

If you're just joining us, here’s a summary on the current long and mid-term astro scene:

Pluto-Saturn square: it’s still on --the hard realities, the call to courage, the fear, the projecting of shadows-- but Saturn’s moving back into the Virgo degrees, so we’re just getting a second look at relationship “stuff” that popped up since last October. Count it a second chance at important conversations and decisions.

Neptune-Chiron in Aquarius: the end of an era, or as Gawker proclaimed it, “The Fake Decade”. Finally, we're getting it. Chiron’s not done with his work here, but these past few weeks have certainly given me some unusual views into inconvenient “truths”. And talk about a wild dream life. Oy. I need a break.

Jupiter in Pisces: Connections, identifications, and professions with and of encouragement and hope are totally available if you want them. As are big creative possibilities. Can you be the bigger person? Sure you can. (As I type this, I’m listening to Alan Simpson joking it was time to hold hands and jump into the wine-dark sea --of the budget deficit. Poetic water imagery as political threat? Only with Pisces.)

Avoid the paranoid and the generally detached from reality. This is the dark side of Pisces and not a comment on Mr. Simpson. Uranus in Pisces (at the end of the sign, now at 25+ degrees), is pulling punches with those teetering on the edge of the Fear Abyss. A lot people are completely convinced this is the end of the world. No, it's just the end of the world as they know it, a fact that's microcosmically true every day of our lives. Still, we can't ignore the big, big challenges we face as a country. It's just that fear is not gonna get us closer to a sane deficit, safe highways, or decent health care for all.

On a related note: if you’re a Pisces or have personal planets in Pisces, take care with substances this year--right on down to caffeine, MSG, BHT and food coloring. I’m serious.

And finally, Mars, still retrograde in Leo: Mars is really slowing down now, and by the full moon on the 28th will have reached it’s retrograde direct degree. So if you feel some kind of gear grinding or stuckness, that would be Mars. Ditto big case of anticipation. This is all about going backstage and reworking your self image. (My original horoscopes on the retrograde are here and here.) What you're feeling could be a case of stage fright, or could be a case of retrenchment before the big advance come March. Circumstances vary.

If you know where Mars is passing through your chart, just ease up on yourself in that area. Strategize, visualize. Play with any new ideas that popped up with the Neptune/Chiron bingle last week AND the Full Moon in Leo in mid-January. What do you want to do with that new knowledge?

Strangely, if we’re not handling our own nervousness or irritation well, we seem to invite similarly nervous, irritating people into our lives. Not always true, but you could play with that idea and observe other people’s responses to your energy right now.

A note to men, or anyone who cares about a man: I'm not a guy, nor do I play one on TV, so I'm not gonna pretend I know what this feel like for you. My thoughts are based on my own reading, and the thoughts shared by men at other serious astrology forums.

Mars retrograde is especially challenging for men; after all, Mars is THE planet of the male impulse, the anima, the dude in you. Here’s the bottom line: the man in your life (could be you!) may or may not know what Mars retrograde is doing, but it's affecting him nonetheless --rearranging his ego, his self-image, his heart, his leadership instincts, his pride for his pride (or whatever substitutes for his creative output, progeny or no).

Mars retrograde is all backwards and inhibiting, frustrating and often confusing for many men. You could be angry, frustrated, scattered, inconsistent, or distant --really, really distant. Especially now as we approach the incredibly slow stationing direct motion. Imagine trying to save the damsel in distress who's stranded on the opposite side of a molasses pit. And the molasses pit is your expectations about what guys should do, could do, did do --starting with your dad and then every significant male authority figure you've known in your life. Now imagine how difficult this time could be if you never really had a solid male figure who taught you what to do when damsels lie on the other side of molasses pits. McGuyver never had it so bad. This "self" thing won't get fixed with a Leatherman, some chewing gum and three paper clips. Think about that for a moment.

If the man in your life doesn’t know what’s going on, or they’re resistant to introspection, you get a guy who needs to take on the world instead of himself. This might get internalized as heart problems; Leo rules the heart. As Leo practically grinds to a halt, Evan Bayh announced today that he’s lost heart in his work in the Senate and will retire. This is not good for the already straggling Democrat majority in the Senate.

The WORST example of this impulse also showed up in the news today: Andrew Stack, an enraged, suicidal man (badly managed Mars retrograde?) who’s sense of manhood and pride (Leo) was threatened by the limitations (Saturn) imposed by a government (Pluto in Capricorn) agency, the IRS, flew his personal airplane into an IRS office.

No doubt his actions were exacerbated by feelings of paranoia and doom emerging from those who’ve been embracing the end of the world (Uranus in Pisces) scenarios. He's not the first man who's wanted to take on the IRS with violence, but as we're revisiting a Saturn-Pluto alignment that last appeared fall of 2001, I'm saddened but not shocked that Stack chose to mimic the violence of that tragedy by flying his plane into an IRS office in Austin, Texas. Note --this was his own Piper airplane, and thus, he was not one of the huddled masses spewing underclass resentment. This was a wealthy guy by any standard. Do you have Piper small craft docked in your local airport hanger?

On that note, I looked at Glenn Beck’s astrology last week. He’s got Venus at 29+ degrees Pisces, the last degree of the zodiac, aka, the end of the world (sort of). In short, he’s in love with the end of the world. Yes. Have a look at his wiki and you’ll see a guy obsessed with eschatology. We'll hear much more about his obsession come spring. Bank on it.

Sigh. So play safe out there folks. You don’t have to be paranoid. You don’t have to push people around. I know so many people who are experimenting with huge new possibilities for their lives. Really big thoughts. I've got one friend who was making good money as a black-jack dealer, but she's leaving the industry to work at a raw-food retreat. She'd been wanting to walk away, but it wasn't until she broke her wrist in four places over the January eclipse that the decision was forced on her. A break like that is a career ender for a card dealer. But the end didn't start there: as she became mentally and emotionally more stable, her tips took a nose dive and she knew why --unhealthy people only reward their own kind. She's a Cancer rising, so Leo is working through her second house of money and self-esteem.

If you're moving towards healthier self-esteem, know that some people will find this a turn-off and not know why. They would prefer you functioning as their food source for whatever emotional, financial, or practical service you give them. And you're gonna catch some flak for this. For my friend, this translated into lost income. If you're hanging with people who pay you for being as immature, selfish, and needy as they are, you're going to face a loss of something --a contract, a contact? Or you may face losing old friends. These are not easy losses at first because they represent an old image you've probably carried with you for years. But this whole year is forcing all of us to rethink the old ways. Those who refuse to change won't be any fun to hang with anyway. Keep that in mind as you grow and experiment with the new you.

The time is also exciting because it presents the kind of risks that demand truly creative thinking and not a little paradigm shifting/shattering going on in that mix. But the risk doesn’t disappear just because the adventure holds happy possibility. So compassion is very much in need right now, too. Compassion that entends both ways --to you and to those around you-- and patience.

In that spirit, I’m taking a few days off from this blog to address some work at my side. One project is a revamp of this site, another some notes for the upcoming NCGR conference...and then daily ephemera and sticky fingerprints that come with motherhood. I need to shift my focus for a bit. Maybe I'll actually go for a walk. What a thought.

I’ll be back before the Full Moon to talk about the Venus-Uranus conjunction and early March events.

Until then, have a visit with any of the forecasters on my link list. They’re good people who’ll be happy to serve your astro needs.

Ciao.

Art: lisacongdon.com

Photo: seattlepi.com

All other photos: Philippe Halsman

astro in motion: sharing the stories

I had a consultation with such a lovely, funny, intelligent woman today, and it reminded me of why I doing this: I love hearing your stories.

I get no high off of "knowing the future". First of all, the future is always in motion and our responses to that future vary so widely I will not say exactly how a person will react. Every astrological theme represented by a planet or angle has a range of expression and gives us choices about how to proceed. The pleasure is in discussing the possibilities.

Anyway. Not going off on that tangent. But really, I love hearing your stories and I'm deeply, ever so deeply grateful you share them.

Over and out.

get out of your own way

I love this. Robert Wilkinson always pulls something good out for days like today.

“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way.” --Goethe

Which is why we should never allow our limitations or fears to deflect us from a noble goal. You just never know what might happen if you get out of your own way....

Just what my incentive/disincentive dilemma tape needs to hear.

Art: Damien Hirst, The Dream

the relationship has changed

The Libra Moon crosses the Aries Point and on-going Saturn/Pluto square this morning: your feelings need an adjustment. The relationship has changed. Could be work, friendships, lovers, parent/child, hair dresser...it's a relationship. Today we strike a note of feeling the change.

The Saturn/Pluto square demands we shift our relationship expectations. It asks us serious questions we haven't wanted to look at for nearly a decade now.

Is it fair? Who's on top? Who wants to be on top? If I'm on top, then who gets to be on bottom? And will you like that? Do I have to like you to work with you? Do I have to hate you in order to love you, too? Can I be your child and an independent adult? Can you work part time from home and still keep the house?

And it's pushing us to make decisions.

It's sort of complicated --but on a big, socio-economic scale, too. Whatever decisions are going down in Washington matter to you. This time, it's personal. Yes, personal. You don't want to be the small guy who's always stuck on the bottom while corporations go roaming the earth like they're human or something. Everyone knows they're giant machines, so why did we give "individual" rights to robots and not, uhm, same-sex couples who've been faithful to one another for decades?

Libra's always interested in the balance of power between two people, two companies, or two nations. Or two sofas. It's about the dynamics of relationship. Always. And aesthetic. Grace. Dipolmacy. Win-win. Libra hates hard angles.

But rarely do we get a win-win solution. So you have to take the long view and believe THE RELATIONSHIP HAS CHANGED.

Everyone has a stake in this one. That's the emotional truth right now.

Photo: from En Tus Brazos.

no pink cupcakes: adjustments this week and the tipping point of June 2010

The tipping point this year will be the Uranus/Jupiter conjunction on June 8th, followed by the Big Shift of August.

I'm not going to make specific predictions about what this summer will bring, but I have been thinking about it for a year and half now, and I do know this:

• Summer 2010 will be a summer when people make decisions, or will be forced into decisions. These decisions will be life-shifting choices.
• Uranus and Jupiter will meet at zero degrees Aries. This is the Aries Point, where the personal meets the political. Whatever happens here will have a public and private influence.
• Aries is THE action/initiation/pioneer sign. Aries is not into second place finishes, diffidence or hunkering down.
• Aries is a declaration of self: I AM is a declaration of identity. We will declare some new form of identity. For some people this will be a big deal; others will be simply adopting a new radical stance in place of their old radical stance. Your mileage will vary according to personality and circumstance.
• We've been working towards this for a year already.
• It's not a disaster.

This weekend we'll have another Saturn/Pluto exact square. The next Saturn/Pluto square is in August. So this is yet another adjustment in a long series of initiatory shifts towards a new adventure and/or identity that will begin to emerge in the summer.

Saturn/Pluto squares always demand we sober up and make plans. If we don't, then someone else will make plans for us, and with Saturn/Pluto aspects those plans don't involve pink frosted cupcakes and a cool glass of lemonade.

People, ideals, and ideas form the backdrop of these shifts. This is Aquarius activity, which we're still in the thick of until 2011.

Right now many of us are trying to get clear about who to trust and why to trust them. Some of us are playing with possibilities of new associations, new identities, new group work and new people to play with.

This is all Neptune in Aquarius (which has been with us since 1998), finishing up it's last degrees and preparing for a new social plan.

But Neptune prefers not to define anything and definitely won't color inside the lines. So if you feel the information you're getting through the mass media (Aquarius), is nothing but mirror tricks and squishy "facts", you're not paranoid. If you're believing all the "facts", however, I might say you're gullible. Never assume, is my motto concerning all things Neptunian. Walk in that other person's shoes, is also a good Neptunian motto. Think a bit before you react. Have a heart.

I don't have a big story to tell you here. You just need to know that if people are breaking off and if stuff feels like it's getting pulled out of your life and you feel like it's shit or get off the pot time, know you're not the only one. Maybe you have outgrown or simply don't need the circumstances and friends you currently know. Maybe you need to rethink what sentimental or power-trippy attachments are holding you back. Maybe you need to get your finances straight. Maybe you need to go apply for that business license...Or give up the cigarettes. Whatever. You're working toward a new role in the world.

The question behind all this change is: What kind of person do you want to be and what will you do to work for that?

You have until summer to get clearer about this. Come June, we'll all be making bigger choices. The adjustments we make now will influence how pro-active or reactive those choices will feel to us.

smart astro commentary on the citizens united v. the federal election commission

Capricorn rules corporations. Please don't forget that. The first international corporation (or joint-stock company) was in fact The East India Trading Company, first incorporated during the reign of Queen Elizabeth on December 31st, 1600  --a Capricorn by birth. The EITC was the very model of a modern major corporation: with the help of its home government (England) it eventually created it's own army, invaded a country (India) and then ruled it for over 20 years. Of course, England's and EITC's interests in India predate the Battle of Plassey by about 200 years, but the event guaranteed "company rule" of an entire continent for whole generation. It's effects, for good and for ill, were long lasting.

Now, just after a significant eclipse in the sign of Capricorn, we have a seismic political shift that undercuts 100 years of judicial precedent and suddenly favors corporations over individuals. But then history shows us that governments and corporations go together like peanut butter and jelly, like Oreo and ice cream, like marmalade and toast. Just not as yummy.

From today's weekly subscription newsletter at Planet Waves, the editorial (bolded text, mine):

Personally, I cannot think of a more significant issue for the Supreme Court to rule on, in our era of unmitigated corporate power. Here, we have one of the first landmarks in the Pluto in Capricorn era, a time when we know that the structure of society will change in many ways.

The court held yesterday that corporations have the free speech rights of people. Yet if anything, corporations are superhumans, subject to no responsibilities of citizenship that would balance freedom on the scale that they typically exercise it.

They do not have a natural lifespan, and can in effect live forever. They cannot be incarcerated, and holding them civilly liable for crimes or abuses of their rights verges on impossible (case in point, Bhopal). Any punishment is meaningless, as most in the position to commit atrocities have so much money that even a heavy a fine comes out of the petty cash fund. They can be as big as the state of Israel (or bigger), have an army and exist on five continents at a time. They have no lawful interest except for profit. They can employ a thousand attorneys. Their shareholders can come from many different countries. Their own power and structure shields the individuals involved from most forms of prosecution; it is rare that corporate officers are held accountable for the crimes committed by their companies.

This is an easy distinction, to see the difference between human rights and corporate rights. While many think there is a precedent for this, the original decision supposedly giving corporations the rights of people was so flawed that the issue is right in Wikipedia where school kids can read about it on their iPhones. That famous case, Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad, never took up the constitutional issue. Many in the legal community are fully aware of this issue, to the extent that there is a law center devoted to dealing with it.

Most people do not understand that ‘corporatism' is the true definition of fascism; that is, the merging corporate interests and entities with the state itself. This is the thing to beware of. What we have just witnessed is an example of the state granting greater rights to the corporations who are its creatures than to the natural sovereign citizens of the land -- in this case, the power to influence elections to high office. In effect, the government has privatized elections and has sold out its own power: a typical move, consistent with the central bank existing as a private entity as well.

I would say that Thursday's decision in Citizens United is an example of unequal protection under the law. Paraphrasing Carl Sagan, those who enjoy extraordinary rights must be held to extraordinary responsibilities. The problem in our moment of civilization is precisely that this alien race of entities thinks it has no responsibilities at all, in any meaningful sense of the concept.

martin luther king, jr: capricorn sun/pisces moon

While the Sun is in its last degrees of Capricorn and the moon drifts through Pisces we find ourselves honoring an American icon of practical dreamers, Martin Luther King, Jr --born under a Cap sun with a Pisces moon.

Remember when I said last week that all Caps have a hidden side to their stuffy selves? Here's Capricorn leader who gave us inspiring leadership and kept a couple of secrets on the side.

This is my first look at his chart, so these are just a few first glance notes:

Cap Sun in 10th: destiny as public figure. Bam. No gettin' round that. These Capricorn hooves did climb to the mountain top.

Pisces Moon, conjunct Ceres in 12th: nurtured the creative, imaginative and spiritual dreams of the oppressed or confined. A karmic role. Here the Pisces moon/Ceres in 12th also illustrates his unconscious desire (he feeds himself with it) for sacrifice as well as his enduring legacy as a martyr devoted to his universal compassion (Pisces) for his family/people (Moon) of African-Americans, as well as all people. (Consider Eric Francis' recent discussion of the Thema Mundi (aka, "The Chart of the World", which begins with Cancer and the sign of the Moon. In other words, the Thema Mundi suggests we are all one family.) Many believe the content of his last speech also suggests he knew his death was imminent.

Packed 12th house: this is the house of hidden enemies as well. While in prison (12th house activity) his Letters From A Birmingham Jail revolutionize (Uranus) the civil rights movement and bring him, finally, into the public discussion (the Uranus/Aries Point conjunct iconoclast Eris--wow--talk about rock the boat). Eris always has something to tell us about folks who "didn't get invited to the party" and Uranus isn't interested in following anyone else's lead. Unfortunately, a 12th house Uranus in Aries also suggests unpredictable (martial--Aries) self-undoing or by hidden enemies --he was assassinated by hidden (to the public) enemy. One could easily argue his self-destructive secret affairs were part of his undoing.

Saturn in Sagittarius: on the cusp of the 9th House of Belief. classic signature of the preacher. 'Nuff said. Eighth house stuff is an issue, though. Hard lessons about the libido? Sagittarius is impulsive. Saturn says you gotta control those impulses or you'll face consequences. 'Nuff said.

Mars in Gemini: in 2rd House of Resources: driven to communicate and connect with people. Opposed Sagittarius.

Mercury in Aquarius in the 10th: career of speaking to people. Aquarius thinking = iconoclast, inventive, utopian. Downside? The tendency to embody the phrase "Do what I say, not what I do."  Sun in tenth (out of sign) with Mercury means what he says and who he is are conjoined in our image of King.

Taurus rising: semisextile the Aries Point at 0 degrees. Jupiter and Chiron conjunct Asc. This gives me the feeling of someone who can never escape the perception that he must provide for others. If Santa ain't gonna come this Christmas, he's got to boot up and be Santa. Taurus is a provider sign, and semisextile the AP, his provisions will have public consequences.

And on and on... a really interesting chart to study in these times. Or any time, but especially now.

If you're planning on taking my Astro 101 class in February, expect to work with this chart.

a special january eclipse week note to Capricorns/Capricorn Rising

If you're a Capricorn or Cap rising --be kind to yourself right now. Really.

You so easily dog yourself about what you have/have not done on the road to success (whatever that road is to you), but this week don't indulge that stuff. Instead this is a good week to think hard about liking yourself for the right reasons, and deciding what sort of leadership you truly want to give to the world.

You like being seen doing the "right thing," whether that's promptly sending thank you cards or knowing the company vision statement by heart. You don't see yourself as a complete suck-up to the job because like all cardinal signs, you've got an independent, self-starting streak within you. You prefer to think you decided what the right thing is. It just so happens that your version of "right" has an air of long tradition hanging around it, which might sound to some folks an awful like like "status quo". But is it?

Just because something is time-honored doesn't make it bad, you think. You have no problem with time. I am here to ask you about "honor" though. Specifically, I want to ask you "what's worth honoring?"

Now is the time to rethink what the "right thing" is in your life. If you are more honest with yourself, you'll admit you're too often driven by an authority or voice of authority outside yourself. What is this authority you revere --or fear? Your boss, your friends, your perceived reputation, your family faith? Pick one --or two or three. 

You want an accumulation of worth and you definitely want the esteem of others, but someone else seems to be defining that worth. What are you working towards? 10 million frequent flier points on your credit card? Another company recognition plaque on the office wall? An "appropriate" partner for that next marriage/project/committee? What is it? There's some delectable fruit you're after; I know because every Capricorn is always working toward something.

Working towards something implies we're also working away from something. For many of you that something is a fear that keeps you in constant motion toward your goals. Maybe you had a hard childhood; maybe you once knew poverty; maybe you lost a parent at an early age; maybe you grew up in an emotionally hostile/cold/or enmeshed family. Whatever it is, it's the fear that that monstrous memory coming back to you that pushes you out, away and up into some kind of carefully controlled (and I mean controlled) need for civility and accomplishment combined. No more chaos and crazy people, you vow. (Nope, those folks are getting side-lined quicker these days.) Like Scarlett O'Hara, herself, you vow you'll never go hungry again.

And no more fear of rejection. Ah, the fear of rejection: your very painful achilles ouchy spot. You know exactly what I mean.

Perhaps this is an expression of Capricorn's fishy side: the symbol of the climber is also has a tail of a fish. The fish within you vibes more like Pisces: it's the trembling, sensitive, secretive and (potentially) spiritual side of you. Do you remember the last time you stunned a friend who discovered your secret passion for crop circles? That stash of weed --or your tarot collection? "I had no idea you were into this stuff! I mean, I thought you were so straight." Uh, yeah... Your fishy secret self is also the side of you prone to (self) deceptive illusions. Exhibit A: Tiger Woods, the Capricorn of the hour and control freak extraordinaire. If you want to be an illusionist, take care. All Caps have some weird side, and so do you. Pluto, however, has a way of outing your weirdness. Digging in the basement, so to speak. Some honesty may be necessary if you haven't found some peace between your goat (climber) and fish (dreamer) halves.

With Mercury still in retrograde in your sign of Capricorn, take some time right now to think about who --or what- exactly is driving your ambition. And your fears of ambition. What is your ouchy spot, anyway? Are you self-medicating that spot with shopping and power grabs? Or maybe hitting the hooch a little too hard? Or have you buried your brain between the pages of Harlequin Romances?

This week as we prepare for a solar eclipse in your sign, the Sun, Venus and the North Node are clustered together in Capricorn, too. All are pressing you forward toward a more authentic expression of your leadership potential. Which means, you've got a really good opportunity this week --and I mean a really, really good opportunity-- to tune into what's attracting you to your future. With all these signs in your sign (or rising sign) the attraction signals should be coming from you.

Tune into yourself and listen deeply to your own heart. What is the most noble and life-affirming leadership you can offer? --First, to yourself, and then to others. You've got stuff in there that bears no resemblance to the rat-race, corporate/parental authority kow-towing you've known for most of your life.

Capricorn is the sign of revolutionaries. That's an amazing thought because most everyone has written you off as pretty uptight in these tell-all, happy-clappy Facebooking times. But you know, stuff doesn't change without someone with backbone in charge. Real change requires people who commit to long-term visions. That, Cappy, you've got in spades --long term vision.

So be the one with backbone. Be the one with vision for the long-haul. Just make sure the revolution you're starting is your own heart's fire; don't settle for anything less.