A Personal Note

What is that above?

That is a 340 ton rock. It is in a rock quarry in Riverside which is a town outside of Los Angeles. Last night it was put on a truck and will begin its journey to Los Angeles County Art Museum (LACMA) where it will be a part of a permanent installation called "Levitated Mass." This project has been in development for years and one of the biggest hurdles is ----The route. There are a bunch of towns between LACMA and the rock quarry and not all of them will do the work, (take down street lights, telephone cables, etc) to allow this gynamorous rock on their roads. So, it will be a circurtious route of 110 miles and will take 11 days to get to its destination.

So, why am I putting a story about moving a giant rock here?

Because my Sun conjunct Saturn in Sagittarius loves this story!

How to move it? What happens to the roads? What about bridges? Only goes a few miles a day? What a weird route! I am all about this one!

The extra boon for me is that I live not too far from LACMA so I think I will go over there for the final arrival. Although, I beilieve there will be quite a crowd when the rock arrives!

And the Oscar goes to ....Neptune

Last year when Neptune visited Pisces briefly and then when it turned direct last fall after a summer of retrograde, I mentioned that cinema and film making in general would undoubtedly be influenced by Neptune's move into Pisces. No surprise during the Oscar season that "Hugo" and "The Artist" movies which celebrate the early days of film were fan and critic favorites. And then last night both received an abundant of Oscars.


Neptune stays in a sign for a very long time, and what movies come out of the cycle in the beginning of the transit will have morphed by the end of the transit. For example let's look at the Neptune in Sagittarius period.


Neptune was in Sagittarius between 1970-1984: Of course the 70's were seminal years for movies. Godfather, Jaws, Star Wars, the French Connection, Chinatown, Rocky, Network, Annie Hall, Raging Bull and then in the early 80's things started to change with for example huge mega hits E.T. and Raiders of the Lost Arc.

And if we go back further, during the late 1950's and all through the 1960's Neptune was in Scorpio and we had big ol' traditional type films, in particular adaptations of proven hits either via books or stage such as Dr. Zhivago, West Side Story, Sound of Music, Romeo and Juliet, but then near the end of the 60's, Bonnie and Clyde, The Graduate, and Midnight Cowboy were starting to emphasize a more independent style in films. Naturally, sex, drugs and the more Scorpio side of life were highlighted.

So, how movies start off now at the beginning of Neptune in Pisces will be much different by the time we end in 2025.

But right now the Oscar goes to Neptune! Especially given the dates of the Oscar telecasts for the next few years will take place with Sun conjunct Neptune!

Coming up this week

2/28: Sun/Pluto: shakes ups that are inspired. Spirit steps in shakes things up for higher good.


First Quarter Moon
February 29 8:21pm



Questions: What actions can you take that help you synthesize information? Do you usually put things in a black box and a white box and never merge them? What if you merge seemingly disparate thoughts so much so that you can see Spirit is possibly talking to you? What actions can you take right now that merge information? What is speaking to you brain but activating your spiritual nature?

3/2: Mercury enters Aries http://astrology.about.com/od/mercury/p/MercuryAries.htm

3/3: Sun/Mars Harsh movements, rash, delusional versus obsessive
3/4 : Venus/Saturn: cold versus love, weak partners exposed, investing in new structures to support love

An Ice Age gift from a long dead squirrel

Yesterday a story appeared in the NYTimes which is perfect for the rich fantasy world of the Pisces lunar cycle which begins today.

A seed was found in an ice age squirrel's burrow that has been scientifically hocused pocused into a living plant. If it turns out to be legitimate this plant was last seen about 32,000 years ago in the Siberian tundra. Apparently the squirrel who gathered the seed put it in his little cubby in the permafrost which acted like a nice refrigerator and kept it from going bad in the summer. Little did that squirrel know that it would pop up as a plant on some scientist's desk in Russia thirty thousand years later.

Consider it my Fat Tuesday gift to you.



“This is an amazing breakthrough,” said Grant Zazula of the Yukon Paleontology Program at Whitehorse in Yukon Territory, Canada. “I have no doubt in my mind that this is a legitimate claim.” It was Dr. Zazula who showed that the apparently ancient lupine seeds found by the Yukon gold miner were in fact modern.

But the Russians’ extraordinary report is likely to provoke calls for more proof. “It’s beyond the bounds of what we’d expect,” said Alastair Murdoch, an expert on seed viability at the University of Reading in England. When poppy seeds are kept at minus 7 degrees Celsius, the temperature the Russians reported for the campions, after only 160 years just 2 percent of the seeds will be able to germinate, Dr. Murdoch noted.

The Russian researchers excavated ancient squirrel burrows exposed on the bank of the lower Kolyma River, an area thronged with mammoth and woolly rhinoceroses during the last ice age. Soon after being dug, the burrows were sealed with windblown earth, buried under 125 feet of sediment and permanently frozen at minus 7 degrees Celsius.

Some of the storage chambers in the burrows contain more than 600,000 seeds and fruits. Many are from a species that most closely resembles a plant found today, the narrow-leafed campion (Silene stenophylla).

Working with a burrow from the site called Duvanny Yar, the Russian researchers tried to germinate the campion seeds, but failed. They then took cells from the placenta, the organ in the fruit that produces the seeds. They thawed out the cells and grew them in culture dishes into whole plants.

Go HERE for whole article.

Pisces New Moon

Pisces New Moon is Tuesday February 21 at 5:34pm EST.

Hey--Happy upcoming New Moon. It is a beatiful moon in many ways. I just put up my article which you can find at Margaret Wendt's website

Here is a snippet but go to the link for the whole write up.

Letting Go
At the Pisces New Moon we are entering the last lunar month of the astrological year. Our astro year began last spring with Aries and we celebrated by making our Treasure Maps. Now we are in the final twenty eight days of the year. And what do we know about the final days of anything? We know it is time to let go.

Pisces is the final sign and specifically the final water sign of the zodiac. His ruler Neptune is of course God of the Seas. No surprise that Pisces is the fish symbol where two fish are swimming in two different directions. Are they going up stream? Or are they going downstream? Or are they going in circles chasing each other’s tails? This is the Pisces conundrum and part of the reason why it is so important to let go. The only way the fish can find the correct direction is by getting quiet and intuiting their route. For these 28 days, we must all let go and get quiet so that we can find our right direction.

What does letting go mean? Well, where we have been joyous, it is time to let go. Where we have been angry, it is time to let go. Where we have been passionate and hardworking, it is time to let go. Where we have been adventurous it is time to let go.

Now, I’m not saying that if you had a horrible situation come up this year and you have kept yourself clear of certain people, places or things you should now let down your guard and embrace those situations. No you should not. But perhaps you need to let go of the charge. After all, if you learned the lesson then you won war so there is no sense staying in battle. Step aside and let go of the charge. The same with those things that were brilliantly wonderful this last year. No matter how wonderful, step aside and let it go because we have a new year coming and the best way to embrace the future is by being in the here and now. Not in the past where wounds were great and rewards were awesome. It is time to let go of the past so that we can go inward and find our new selves which will be launched next month with Aries New Moon.

Divine intervention

The beauty of Pisces is that when they are in synch with their higher nature they are almost unworldly. We can go out to dinner with our Pisces friend and talk about all kinds of things and have long conversations where we think they are with us. But in truth they have one foot on earth and the other foot is in the divine world. Perhaps they discuss something that stir us up and we think about....

Pearls before Breakfast

My friend Jody sent me an article yesterday that was long and from 2007. And I was not sure I had it in me to read---But I was intrigued. Basically, The Washington Post set up a prank. Well, not a prank more of an exercise. What would happen if a top notch musician performed in front of masses of people--in an unexpected place? How would the people respond?

The person was Joshua Bell, a world class famous violinist. The location was L'Enfant subway station in Washington DC.

Wow. What a set up, I'm gamed to know the answer. And so I read it.

Well, after I read it I had a moment of mulling and I thought this exercise speaks to the astrology of today: Doing art for oneself that may or may not be appreciated by others. As Neptune gets cozy in his home sign Pisces we may all feel like Joshua Bell on certain days.

Pearls before Breakfasthttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/04/AR2007040401721.html


HE EMERGED FROM THE METRO AT THE L'ENFANT PLAZA STATION AND POSITIONED HIMSELF AGAINST A WALL BESIDE A TRASH BASKET. By most measures, he was nondescript: a youngish white man in jeans, a long-sleeved T-shirt and a Washington Nationals baseball cap. From a small case, he removed a violin. Placing the open case at his feet, he shrewdly threw in a few dollars and pocket change as seed money, swiveled it to face pedestrian traffic, and began to play.

Happy V Day!

February 14

You know what this day is all about. Lots of pink cards, candies, flowers, a whole lotta noise for a day that we really don't know quite understand the root. Something to do with Rome. How that something which scholars believe began with Christians martyred and a Saint named Valentine turned into a highly profitable day for Hallmark and Godiva will never exactly be understood by at least me.

Nonetheless, here we are celebrating this day.

The moon is in Scorpio in the morning and early afternoon and spends the day pretty much in a bitch fight with the sun in Aquarius. The Sun in Aquarius likes to love people and humanity where the Moon in Scorpio wants to love one person and hold on to them and control them until they have completely submitted. If you need a visual think of a child holding a small kitten, "You will love me or else." Doesn't quite fit with Aquarius, "Love everyone, Peace, man".

Don't be surprised if today and I'm not talking about your love life, just life in general if some people hold on to control. "Not my job, don't saddle me with that" versus others who say, "Come on we need someone to step up for the good of the group."

Luckily, by the end of the day the Moon will have moved into Sag and in a nice angle with Uranus. Everyone should feel a lot looser. And probably will imbibe. Can't say Sag without a little drinkeepoo.

Whatever you chose to do, I wish you a loving day. And if things get tough, please laugh. At least you are not being martyred by a bunch of pissed off Romans.

Smooch.

Whitney Houston

I was not familiar with Whitney Houston's chart before today. Kind of sad to look at a chart for the first time after they have died. I didn't draft it. David Crook did a nice write up on her chart. She was a Leo (no kidding) with Moon in Aries (no shit) and Virgo rising and Uranus in the 12th house and Pluto in the first is so apparent. The demons were great. Truly.

ETA: Correction. Thank you to the reader who correctly pointed out to me Whitney had Pisces Asc. I went too fast that day and even though David laid out the solar return chart carefully when I went back to post I misidentified Whitney's Asc as Virgo. That was the Solar Return for Beverly Hills place of her death. I was off my game. Pisces of course speaks to her musical talents. I have got to slow down with Mars in Virgo--Clearly!



Go to David Crook's for his write up on Whitney.

The Week Ahead

I am still watching the world as we process Venus in a tight spot between Uranus and Pluto. As I mentioned last week the window between Feb 9 and Feb 15 Venus goes from a conjunction with Uranus to a square with Pluto. I indicated that I had my eyes on money since Venus rules values and rules money.

And interestingly the world stock markets rally to some highs and then there was sell offs by the end of the week along with Greek Government accepting an Austerity program.

I should also add that Venus rules women! And fertiltiy. And man, oh, man did the social values especially in regards to women hit the fan this week.

Catholic Church and Obama and Birth Control and a bunch of angry people

also this week, Rick Santorum increased his place in the GOP primary for President and he had a few words to say to women about women that may actually not be well received by those people with a vagina.


We still have this week to see what else happens to Venus the rest of this week.

Also this week:

2/13: Mercury/Saturn: Great logic that is sustentative.

Last Quarter Moon Phase
January 14, 2012 12:03pm EST

Last Quarter moon: Now we do the final adjustments to the seeds we planted on new. The final call, the final letters to send, we follow all the trails that came up that still make sense. And we let the other parts lay fallow. It is a time of action but wise action. It is a time for living “The serenity prayer”

God, grant me the Serenity
to accept the things
I cannot change Courage to change the
things I can, and the
Wisdom to know the difference.


Focus on: How are your intimacies supporting your uniqueness? What is your visionary intellect telling you about your resources? What actions can you take settle tax and debt issues and therefore helps release you to the next step of your vision?

Special Focus:
2/14: Mercury/Neptune: Dreamy, unworldly thoughts, illusions. Staying grounded is mentally challenging.
2/15: Venus/Pluto: Bitchy time, love doesn’t feel like it is good enough. 2nd part of window of financial issues.
2/16: Mercury/Jupiter: Joyful, abundant thinking, bridges can be built

Oldest Work of Art Discovered

And less than one week since Neptune moved into Pisces (formally) Scientists announced that cave paintings older than those ones of bison or elk or whatever they were in France have been found in Spain. And they weren't done by humans. Nope, at 42,000 years old, the 'people' on Earth were something different.

Also what is interesting is that these paintings are of fish. How perfectly Pisces!


You thought art history was limited to human beings? Well, think again.

A recently discovered painting in Spanish caves in Costa Del Sol was found by scientists to be approximately 42,000 years old, making it the oldest artwork ever. What is more, this artwork dates back even before our hairy ancestors evolved into Homo Sapiens, making it the first known painting by Neanderthals. Professor Jose Luis Sanchidrian called it an "academic bombshell" and its effects will reverberate through the field of Art History for years to come.

Saturn Retograde in Libra Equals ....

....a court ruling which reverses Prop 8 (2008) in California over banning same sex marriages.

Can't get more perfect of a theme for Saturn retro in Libra.





Court Strikes Down Ban on Gay Marriage in CaliforniaBy ADAM NAGOURNEY
LOS ANGELES — A federal appeals court panel on Tuesday threw out a voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage passed in 2008, upholding a lower court’s ruling that the ban, known as Proposition 8, violated the constitutional rights of gay men and lesbians in California.

The three-judge panel issued its ruling in San Francisco, upholding a 2010 decision by Judge Vaughn R. Walker, who had been the chief judge of the Federal District Court of the Northern District of California but has since retired. The panel found that Proposition 8 — passed by a vote of 52 percent to 48 percent — violated the equal protection rights of two same-sex couples who brought the suit. The proposition placed a specific prohibition in the State Constitution against marriage between two people of the same sex.

But Tuesday’s 2-to-1 decision was much more narrowly framed than the sweeping ruling of Judge Walker, who asserted that barring same-sex couples from marrying was a violation of the equal protection and due process clauses of the Constitution.

The two judges on Tuesday stated explicitly that they were not deciding whether there was a constitutional right for same-sex couples to marry, instead ruling that the disparate treatment of married couples and domestic partners since the passage of Proposition 8 violated the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause.

“Although the Constitution permits communities to enact most laws they believe to be desirable, it requires that there be at least a legitimate reason for the passage of a law that treats different classes of people differently,” Judge Stephen R. Reinhardt wrote in the decision. “There was no such reason that Proposition 8 could have been enacted.”

“All that Proposition 8 accomplished was to take away from same-sex couples the right to be granted marriage licenses and thus legally to use the designation ‘marriage,’ ” the judge wrote, adding, “Proposition 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gay men and lesbians in California.”

MORE HERE

As I indicated in an earlier post I have got my antenna up on Venus this week. Naturally, when it comes to Venus which rules things we value--aka money & love, I felt the need to go see what Ray Merriman has to say for this week. And no surprise he and I were on the same page about the 9th through the 15th.

Ray is an astrologer and expert on stocks/commodities, currencies etc. I highly recommend his weekly reports.



Friday was not only the day of the surprisingly strong payroll reports that sent stock prices soaring, but it also marked the day that Neptune begins its 14-year trek through Pisces, the sign it rules. Neptune pertains to Alan Greenspan’s famous quip about markets and investors being irrationally exuberant. It is as pertinent today as when he said it several years ago.


This week we may get a dose of reality. Saturn, the planet of hard realities, turns retrograde at 29° Libra on Tuesday, February 7. This cosmic event has coincided with important crests in stock prices several times in the past decade, and it is poised to do the same this time too. Its orb of influence is historically up to 11 days, but in most cases, if a reversal occurs, it is within only 4 trading days (see Volume 3 of the Stock Market Timing series).


Another change in investor psychology is likely around Wednesday, February 9, when Venus leaves the blissful domain of Pisces and enters Aries, the sign where it tends to have psychological issues. Venus wants to share and be fair. Aries wants it all, and to hell with fairness. That’s a weakness, especially as it joins up with ruthless Uranus in Aries the next day. It’s a good bet that both parties will actively engage in credit for the jobs recovery. It’s also a good bet that the good feelings of Venus and Neptune in Pisces at the end of last week will give way to hostile debate and combat by the end of this week, and the markets could easily take their cue from that. These are all signatures of a sudden reversal in several markets coming up.


And speaking of Venus, we note that it will begin a hard aspect translation this week to the forthcoming Uranus-Pluto square. On February 8, Venus conjuncts Uranus, followed by its square to Pluto on February 15. Something’s got to give by then. Venus wants harmony, but in Aries it goes about it all the wrong ways. In hard aspect to Uranus and Pluto, it may be painful to watch, and more painful to take a side.

Go to the link for the rest of his thoughtful and insightful post.

Saturn Retrograde In Libra

February 7 Saturn turns retrograde 9:03am
Oh, you too, Saturn!


And just because God has a sense of humor we also get Saturn turning retrograde on this cycle. “My goodness what’s left?” Saturn in Libra is just pushing us all to get our relationships straight. If we have aligned ourselves up with someone who is not really in sync with our core then we may see the relationship strain. A retrograde Saturn is not unusual it happens about every 18 months and gives us another shot at getting stuff right.

Saturn turns retrograde on Feb 7 and then turns direct on June 25 where it picks up speed and by November it will have left Libra for Scorpio. When it moves into Scorpio it will be focused on resources, sex, taxes, power and death & rebirth but before we get there we need to finish up our business with Libra. What is going on with our commitments? What is going on with our relationships? Who are our partners? Are we in sync? Have we outgrown each other? Or are we tired of the fluffy superficial people and we are drawn to our relationships that are meatier and more real? Are we confused who is real and who is not?

All of this will get cleaned up between now and the end of June. For those people with planets between 21 and 29 degrees Libra, Aries, Cancer & Capricorn you are going to feel the pressures of Saturn more than the rest of us.

Remember, he is the ultimate father in our chart. He comes in and cleans up the crap. So, whatever planet is at those degrees you should be prepared for a little ‘whoop ass’. Not the end-of-the-world whooping but just the, ‘Yeah, I should’ve known this was coming” kind of bump. Saturn is not a surprise planet. He is the writing on the wall. So, try to get ahead of it if you can and do the work yourself before Saturn gets in there. By the way, this is ‘doctor heal thyself’ I have got a planet or two at those degrees. I’m in the mix myself!

The Week Ahead

2/4: Gibbous Moon
What are you forgetting that involves your siblings and neighbors? What are your neglecting that could help your communication? How are you communicating to groups of people that supports them and supports your uniqueness? What research do you need to do that gets you on track with your future and breaks away from past?


2/7: Saturn retrograde until June 25 (See other post)

2/7: Sun conjunct Mercury spirited and inspired, clever, smart and exacting

2/7: Full Moon (see other post)

2/8:Venus enters Aries http://astrology.about.com/od/astrologyandrelationships/p/VenusAries.htm
2/9: Venus/Uranus –Weird financial stuff. Watch the window 2/9- 2/15.

On Feb 9 Venus conjuncts Uranus then on April 15 Venus squares Pluto. Venus rules things that we value and is why it is connected to love and money. A couple times a year Venus gets into it with these planets. However, we’re on a slow build to the first square between Uranus/Pluto in June and during this Feb week we may get a taste of the future. Will Venus get pushed around? Will the stock market take a tumble? Or will currencies get chopped? Uranus rules the internet and new technologies so will there be a cyber failing? I don’t know but I do think this is an auspicious week between the 9th and 15th. Keep your eyes on the news. And watch your own values. See if they go through some odd change. They may not. But just keep an eye on them.

Leo Full Moon

Full Moon Leo
Feb 7 2012 4:53pm EST

Leo begs us to love. Not a little but a lot! Leo begs us to be creative. Not a little but a lot! Leo begs us to shine. Not a little but a lot! On the other hand, and we have to say ‘other hand’ (because a full moon is an opposition with the Sun) Aquarius begs us to love humanity. Aquarius begs us to be creative for a group, not the individual. And Aquarius begs us to shine hope and vision for the whole world, not the individual. Leo thinks the parts are better than the sum and Aquarius thinks the sum is better than the parts. They are both correct it is just a teeter totter. One is up, one is down the key is to find balance.


On a personal level, back on Aquarius New Moon we planted seeds that celebrated our individuality. Now we need to build upon it and shine. But not for ourselves, instead for the group. What does that mean? Well, if there is a hurdle in our work place and we need someone to get past a personal injustice and just step up and do something good for the group---then do it. Or if someone has a genius idea now would be the time to say, “You’re right, let me help you expedite that idea.” If there is a rub in the neighborhood that has got everybody in a tizzy, this would be the full moon to step up and stretch and work as a group to fix it. Solutions are possible no matter the problem, just work for the group.


Globally, because Aquarius rules social causes and unrest this full moon could point to issues similar to last winter’s Arab Awakening, perhaps a bit bumpy. I am wondering about Syria, which in theory has a parliament but for all intents and purposes when one family rules one country for over 30 years it smells more like royalty than democracy. The teeter totter of “people (Aquarius) versus ‘king” (Leo) is ripe for strife during this three day cycle.


Also on this Full Moon chart there is a snarky aspect with Uranus and a conjunction with Mercury. Both of these planets put emphasis on communication. One of them, Mercury, cares about the conversation we have with a friend, sitting next to them at a restaurant sharing this and thats. The other, Uranus, cares about communication on the internet, facebook and between groups of people. One is intimate the other is broadcast to the world. A computer virus or hackers could be in the news. High Tech will be in the news. Probably a bunch of high tech gifts will be purchased for Valentine’s Day.


But we all should take care on this full moon that we share communication that is helpful, true and authentic (Leo). And that we don’t let our personal fiery passion burn all over the place and hurt the greater world that we share with others (Aquarius).


Additionally, a few hours before Full Moon Saturn turns retrograde in Libra (see other post) and will be retrograde until the end of June. All of our relationships are about to get a big, fat tune up. What comes up on this Full Moon could just be the beginning of the shifts and changes we will be making for next five months.

Questions to ask:
Focus on: How is your ego hurting you? How is your self-esteem helping you? Do you know the difference? How is your cool intellect in synch or out of synch with your authentic nature? How is your fiery nature out of step with your intellect ? Are you proud of your unique individual nature? Or are you ashamed? Why?



Bottom line, be brilliant, be generous and be supportive of others, celebrate your own talent and the talent of others.

A curious week.

A Story Made for Today

This morning I was reading the NYTimes and I found myself drawn to an article entitled "Wonder Dog". As I read the story about the boy adopted and the problems that slowly started to emerge which pointed towards fetal alcohol syndrome I could feel the big astrological move for today--Neptune in Pisces. The boy's adopted parents were heartbroken but still committed to their son and tapped all resources to help him. The father is a rabbi and his congregation had words of encouragement "He's all boy" but slowly they too had to admit there was something wrong. Several painful years later, the mom has an intuition, a strong feeling goes through her that their son would benefit by a dog--a service dog. The father was way resistant to bring in a pet but the mom would not give up this strong vibe inside her. This was new territory for the service dog world-- Children with Fetal Alchol Syndrome have not been recipients for service dogs. What Chancer the dog did for Iyal is a loving, tender and inspiring story. And double downing in the tenderness story, is the fact that Chancer had been dumped by a family before the service dog agency picked him up and trained him to take care of people.


Read this story and you will see the Pisces and the Neptune.



In May 1999, Donnie Kanter Winokur, 43, a writer and multimedia producer, and her husband, Rabbi Harvey Winokur, 49, beheld the son of their dreams, the child infertility denied them. Andrey, a pale dark-eyed 1-year-old in a cotton onesie, held in a standing position by a caregiver, appeared in a short videotape recorded in a Russian orphanage. If the couple liked the little boy, they could begin the legal process of adopting him. They liked the little boy very much.



Four months later, the Winokurs flew to Russia from their home in Atlanta to adopt Andrey, whom they renamed Iyal, and to adopt an unrelated little girl two days younger, whom they named Morasha. All four appear in another orphanage video: the beaming new parents on the happiest day of their lives, the toddlers passive in the arms of the strangers cradling and kissing them. In August 1999, the family arrived home to congratulations, gifts and helium balloons.

“Sometime after their 3rd birthdays, our wonderful fairy tale of adopting two Russian babies began to show cracks,” said Donnie Winokur, who is now 55.

the story continues on the link.

Neptune---A little list

This morning I read a story about a tribe of indigenous people in Peru who have a history of very little to NO contact with the outside world. Lately, they have been poking around with modern man (if I can use that word), which has scientists wondering 'why?' Could be issues involving logging of their forests, airplanes flying over head looking for gas and oil or maybe they are ready to get their cable TV so they too can watch Jersey Shore. Who knows? But the whole thing reminded me of the last time Neptune was in Pisces and how it inspired explorations.

Just for sport I went to Wikipedia to look at a list of explorations and other significant highlights between 1848 and 1861 which was the last time Neptune was in his home sign. I bolded a few that might strike a familiar bone to today's events. Take a look:


1846–48: The Mexican-American War leads to Mexico's cession of much of the modern-day Southwestern United States.
1846–47: Mormon migration to Utah.
1847: The Brontë sisters publish Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and Agnes Grey
1847–1901: The Caste War of Yucatán.
1848–1849: Second Anglo-Sikh War
1848: The Communist Manifesto published.
1848: Revolutions of 1848 in Europe
1848: Seneca Falls Convention is the first women's rights convention in the United States and leads to the battle for suffrage and women's legal rights.
1848–58: California Gold Rush1849: The first boatloads of gold prospectors arrive in California, giving them the nickname 49ers.
1849: The safety pin and the gas mask are invented
1849: Earliest recorded air raid, as Austria employs 200 balloons to deliver ordinance against Venice.
[edit] 1850s
1850: The Little Ice Age ends around this time.
1850–1864: Taiping Rebellion is the bloodiest conflict of the century, leading to the deaths of 20 million people.
1851: The Great Exhibition in London was the world's first international Expo or World's Fair.1851: Louis Napoleon assumes power in France in a coup.
1851–52: The Platine War ends and the Empire of Brazil has the hegemony over South America.
1851–60s: Victorian gold rush in Australia
1852: Frederick Douglass delivers his speech "The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro" in Rochester, New York.
1853: United States Commodore Matthew C. Perry threatens the Japanese capital Edo with gunships, demanding that they agree to open trade.
1853–56: Crimean War between France, the United Kingdom, the Ottoman Empire and Russia
1854: Battle of Balaclava and the Charge of the Light Brigade.
1854: The Convention of Kanagawa formally ends Japan's policy of isolation.
1854–1855: Siege of Sevastapol; city falls to British forces.
1855: Bessemer process enables steel to be mass produced.
1856: World's first oil refinery in Romania1856: Neanderthal man first identified.
1857–58: Indian Rebellion of 1857. The British Empire assumes control of India from the East India Company.
1858: Invention of the phonautograph, the first true device for recording sound.
1859: Charles Darwin publishes On the Origin of Species.
1859–1869: Suez Canal is constructed.

1860: The Pony Express started.
1861–65: American Civil War between the Union and seceding Confederacy
1861: Russia abolishes serfdom.

GETTING MARS TO WORK FOR YOU

MY OH MY MARS

On Aquarius New Moon which was a little over a week ago, Mars turned retrograde in the sign Virgo. I mentioned in my New Moon article (see earlier post) that this was an auspicious move by Mars. Not because he is retrograde, that happens about every 18 months, but more to the point that he made the move on New Moon. Remember, things that happen on New Moon tend to color the whole month. I can tell you right now I am totally feeling Mars and I think the rest of you are feeling it as well.

I have spoken on various websites where I visit that there are a lot of grumpy sobs making themselves known (miserably). And people who may have seemed perfectly reasonable have been imploding left and right like road side bombs. And god help us if any of us have people in our lives that are a little unhinged on normal days, they have been exploding like Krakatoa. I started to track the temper tantrums and personality implosions to mid November which coincidentally (if I believed in them) is when Mars moved into Virgo. December and January continued to showcase the nutjob personalities and now with it retrograde it continues.

Of course, it does not have to be this way with Mars retro in Virgo. In fact this could be an amazingly productive period for all us. Remember, Mars is normally in a sign for only 6 to 8 weeks but now we have that weird period when Mars is in a sign way longer than that. In fact, Mars will be in Virgo until July which rounds up to about 6 or 7 months. Well, let's use this period to our full advantage.

Virgo rules your calendar. Mars is a warrior, for god sake put some chores on your calendar every month that you have been 'wanting' to do for a long time. Put one or two of the big things on your To-Do list each month.

Virgo rules daily health and hygiene. Now would be an excellent time to buy a calorie counter Application and put it on your phone. Or go old school and get journal book. Write down every day the calorie intake of your food. And going back to your calendar, put down a trip to the gym or another physical activity. If you are already doing a strong workout then MIX it up. If you have been doing the same routine for the last year or so, now with Mars in Virgo change out that workout. Your body is too used to the routine by mixing it up you will get it to work more strategically.

Virgo rules trips to the doctors. What's going on with all your doctor appointments? Have you been putting off the dentist? The gyno? The prostate? The colonoscopy? Nutritionist?

And what about massages? If you have been skipping them for finances or time, stop it now. Give yourself a massage appointment at least once a month until July. You have no idea what you are missing. You think it is a luxury but it is not. The stresses we are all going through are impossible to gauge but lets face it your body is feeling it. And you know it.

And then there is the clutter in your house. Oh, god, I know this one personally, actually I know all of the above but this is one that is certainly going to be addressed soon by me. That cluttered shelf needs to be cleared. Or if your house is in good shape, what about that drawer at work? Or that drawer in your kitchen? And what about the clutter in your mind and your psyche? Are you obsessed with your effed up childhood? Or lame love life? Or crazy sibling? Crazy child? Crazy parent? Do what you can do to help--within reason. Then let it go. For heaven sake join Match.com or the like, tell your sister she has to figure out a way out of her mess without your help. Ignore your father when he says yet another stupid comment. Don't engage. Go to the spa and get that massage I just talked about.

I am the first to tell you that Virgo is not always a comfortable sign for Sagittarius. Heavens know I get worked up when Virgo friends demand that I focus on some micro business and I sit there and think, "You are missing the big picture!" But having said that, I am looking forward to using Mars in Virgo to the nth degree. I believe it is here for a reason. Heaven knows we have got a lot of tension every day between now and June as Uranus and Pluto start to do battle, perhaps little ol' warrior Mars in Virgo is our ticket to sanity.

Fight the right battle and you'll be okay.