“Summer’s lease hath all too short a date.”
Shakespeare’s sonnet 18 [line 4]
Summer’s lease, so it looks like from my book, starts June 22, 2002. Sort of a mid-weekend launch date for the next official summer. ‘Course, here in Texas, it’s been a hot one for a while now.
Aries: I got a confused email from a regular Aries reader, asking for clarification about Texas. “Is it jungle, beach, desert, mountains, forest, lakes, hills, flat lands, or what?” Best I can suggest is that it’s all of those things, all that and much, much more. We’ve got a little bit of everything the world has to offer, in one little slice of real estate. I’ve seen ice on the ground in August, I’ve seen sun and shorts weather in December, we have a place called “Alpine” because it is situated close to some mountains, Houston, at the other end, is a jungle. Instead of trying to stuff one particular thing in your Aries life into a single box, instead of trying to use a simple definition to explain one item, treat it as if it were Texas. Whatever it is your trying to create a definition for, whatever it is that trying to fit into just one little box, figure that it’s like Texas, and it can’t be so easily described by just one word. If one label won’t work, don’t worry about it. Some things in the Aries life defy such categories.
Taurus: In the academic circles I once called home, there’s the old saw about, “Publish or perish.” Since I didn’t ever have anything worthy of publishing, according to my academic advisor, I got kicked out into the “real world.” It was there, I discovered that if you give a man a fish, he’ll eat for a day, but if teach a man to fish, he’ll be gone all weekend, telling lies and probably drinking beer. Making up stories about the size of the catch. In fact, the greatest recorded growth spurt in most Texas-caught Bass occur after the fish has been placed in the live well, but before that catch makes it to the weigh-in. Okay, what this means is you need to tone down the stories you’re inclined to tell. I know you would never, ever exaggerate any at all. Never. Never, ever tell a story about the “fish that got away,” or how “it was this big!” If you’re smart (you’re reading this, you must be one smart Taurus), you’ll leave the tall tales to an expert like myself. Go easy with the stories, too. You’ve got a lucky break where you get some attention, but don’t take advantage of a too-gullible audience and make up anything that just isn’t true. Publish the facts, not some fiction.
Gemini: One of the problems I’ve encountered is that a good Gemini tends to identify with what is owned, especially now. What you own, the stuff you’ve collected, that doesn’t define you in way, shape or form, not really. I’ve suggested it many times before, but money won’t buy you any happiness. [But money will rent you happiness, but that’s not the same thing.] Take a look around, the birthday bash for Gemini is now over. Sort through what’s left over, and maybe try to put some of this in perspective. Accumulating stuff isn’t the goal. As much as some other astrology lore would suggest this is a good time to gather up things and put them away, I would suggest this is a time to sort through what you’ve got, and figure what there is that you need to unload. Be a good time for garage sale, you know. The term “garage sale” has a slightly different meaning around here, though, as no trailer I know of really has a built garage. But you get the idea, time to consider what’s really important, and what you can recycle. Extra hint: Garage sales down right as the moon gets toward full? You make more money off them.
Cancer: Last week, I was commenting about the way the office manager [my cat] snores. Quiet snores. Not a big noise. She was doing it again this week, when I was working on this, asleep on the couch. It’s just too cute: little, quiet, demure cat whiffling noises. In order to hear these soft, reassuring noises, though, you have to be silent for a moment. These next few days depends on how quiet you were last week. The quiet noises, the little voices, the smallest of reassurances, those are dependent upon you being able to hear them. You have to put yourself in a position where you can make the finite details. It’s the little things that add up. It’s the little things that add up to a better and better time. While we’re at it, it’s the little things that are so important, like that small shift as the sun gently slides into your sign. Saturday, more or less, and that means it’s time for a good time. So if you’re quiet enough, you can hear that there’s a big party coming along soon enough. Whether or not this is a party in the Cancer Trailer, or if it’s party that’s elsewhere, be prepared to start celebrating your birthday. Ever been dining out with friends, and suddenly, at the end of the meal, a cupcake with a sprinkler appears, and the kitchen staff gathers round your table to sing “Happy Birthday”? I told you to listen for this stuff. Make the most of Mars (he’s in your sign, in case you didn’t notice.)
Leo: Major and minor astrological influences are at work in your sign right now. Tease a little bit of the astrological lore I scatter around and look at it. Venus is not really that big of an influence, but it works pretty well. If you just settle in a little, rest your weary Leo brow for a minute, and let the good stuff flow around you, you’ll be ever so much happier. It’s not the big things, it’s the little things. It’s not the big news, it’s the stuff that’s buried back in the second section of the paper. Or the third section. Or maybe, in my case, it’s the stuff on the comics page. Don’t knock it, either. Sometimes the comics — something for pure entertainment — carry an element of truth that is more true than the news itself. Plus, the comics never claim to be an objective version of reality therefore, the stories, comments, and editorial opinions expressed are sometimes more truthful than any “factual” news story. Don’t look for the big signs, it’s the little signs that all point to this being better than usual for Leo.
Virgo: For the longest time, just about every Virgo who contacted me was sure I was heartbroken about what one particular Virgo did to me, and, inferred from the correspondence, I was accused of taking it out on the whole sign just for the behavior of that one particular person. Ain’t so. There was some rather difficult energy (specifically: Saturn oppose Pluto square Virgo) floating around. If the equation doesn’t make sense, don’t worry. Rest assured, too, that I’m not picking on you, just trying to give you a decent heads up about what was going on. It’s not a problem anymore — or it shouldn’t be. Plus, there’s some good stuff just now starting to unfold. It’s like watching a Hibiscus flower on my patio. Yes, trailers have patios. It’s more like a small set of steps knocked together out of two by fours, but you get the idea. This one plan doesn’t have the usual bright red flowers, the petals are a delicate shade of pink with yellow edges. The flower also opens almost in the blink of an eye, in plant time. It was just a bud yesterday, this morning, it’s open and growing. Likewise, you’ve got stuff that was just nascent bud yesterday, and growing out of the previous astrological tension, you’ve got a flower, which, if you’ll allow it a little time, it will bloom right before your very Virgo eyes.
Libra: I’m sure you’ll agree with me on this single point: “work” is a four-letter word. While I’m merely stating the obvious, the obvious needs to be stated right now. When I’m in a boat, looking for the places where the fishes hide, my colorful use of language is a sideline form of entertainment. Invectives, curse words, anatomical situations that are a bit of stretch, and, of course, the judicious sprinkling of scatological references is all invoked. We’re on the lake, in a boat, it’s okay to cuss like sailor — in effect, we are sailing. More or less. However, outside of the boat, I certainly don’t condone the use of such language. It’s more like a form of entertainment — fishing language as performance art — rather than really tough talk. Work is important right now, but it’s also turning quickly into a four letter of word of the unprintable type, as well. It’s not a popular topic with you. Here’s what I’ll promise: things will be better pretty soon. And in the meantime, while everyone else is planning a summer vacation, you can plan something a little different, like how to use that special four letter word “work” to your best advantage now.
Scorpio: The time around the Full Moon, according to what I’ve seen in the fishing magazines, the time around the full moon is a good time to fish. It’s about a three day period, and oddly enough, even the most diehard fishing journals suggest a tide-sun-moon table that backs this up as astrological data. Few, if any, of my fishing buddies really pay much attention to the astrological signs, though. Just one of them strange coincidences I track. I don’t know what Scorpio is fishing for right now — I wonder if anyone besides a Scorpio ever really knows what you guys are fishing for. Doesn’t much matter, though, whatever it is that you’re trying to catch, the odd portents, the Zodiac, the various movements of Heavens and Earth, all that lines up for a little bit of good luck. I’d suggest this is something you’ve been patiently working towards, and I’d suggest that you actually get what you’re looking for. It’s long overdue, and I know you’ll agree with that. Now, you have to be a little careful. I was working with a buddy, and he wasn’t having very much luck, but he was using a “Pig’n’Jig” lure [“with real bacon flavor” as the ad says]. I was getting lots of small fish, but he was after a big daddy bass. You know, he did get what he wanted. At the weigh out, I had more fish by volume, but his Scorpio bait netted him the single biggest fish. Depends on what you want, but you’re going to get it. Three days of good luck.
Sagittarius: Slow down and take a deep breath. There’s an image I have of a particular used vehicle sales person, and this one guy, he was rushing around with about 14 different deals all “pending” at one moment. He’d stop, slurp a big gulp of coffee, shuffle some papers around on his desk, then out the door of the car lot again, as he saw a fresh customer roll up. The problem being, my fine Sagittarius sales friend, he had one too many deals that needed “closing” to move them from “pending” to the “done deal” category. The way I see it, it’s not really a done deal until there is an exchange of cash from one hand to other (not from the left hand to the right hand, that’s too much like shuffling cards.) Until the right signature is attached to the bottom of the contract, until the cash has switched from the customer’s hand to the dealer’s hand, until the check has cleared the bank — and the deposit is good — until some variation on this theme of closure has occurred, and not until then, can you call this a done deal. A salesman will always tell you how great is can be. A good salesman will show you how great it can be. A really good salesman will do that, and take your money — as well as deliver the goods. Starting this weekend with that perceptible shift in the astrological signs, starting right then, get around to closing the deal. Enough talk, more action. Pony up the cash, sign on the dotted line, and ride off in that new car. Or get your customer lined up, but most important, deliver what you promised. Finish what you’re working on before you launch off into something new.
Capricorn: You can’t decide whether to play, party, or work. I’ve got a little helpful hint: turn work into a play. In other words, go and have some fun at work. Easy enough for me to suggest, but it works. See: in your big Capricorn heart of hearts, you know that work is really more important than pleasure right now. Doesn’t mean you don’t want to have some fun, and it doesn’t mean you won’t have some fun, but in that selfsame heart, you know there’s the pull of work that is far more important than playtime. The solution is simple, have fun at work. Now that fishing has become a serious business, and now that folks get so earnest about it, the sport of fishing seems more like work than play. With most of my fishing buddies, diet coke and bottled water have replaced beer as the preferred fishing beverage. Consider adding just six-pack to your list of things to take fishing. You need to put a little more fun back in the work thing. Do what you have to do, but make it look like you’re enjoying it. You might actually have a good time at this, in spite of yourself.
Aquarius: Some folks I know, I’m not pointing a finger at a certain Aquarius, but you know who you are, some folks thrive on clutter. A desktop that looks like junkyard. No comments about what my desk looks like, thank you, we’re discussing Aquarius right now. Anyway, in order to bring about some happy change, consider this a good time to sweep that workspace clean. Not that this has ever happened here in the Fishing Guide to the Stars office, but imagine that you just pull up a big cardboard box next to the desk, and you sweep everything into that box. It’s an instant change, too, as suddenly you can see the desk, you can actually see where the pencils and fishing lures should be, you can get some work done. Now, that box full of half finished deals, old contracts, and the odd magazine with article you want? You just tuck that cardboard box under your desk, right next to your feet. It’s complicated filing system, but it works. You know that if you need any of this stuff, you can get right back to it. You know it’s in that box, under the desk. Makes for a much happier Aquarius though, to have some of that stuff out of sight. The only problem occurs when you want to stretch your feet out under your desk, that box gets in the way. You’ll need to attend to its contents, but only when you’ve got the time.
Pisces: If this were a perfect Pisces world, then long about Saturday night, everything would slide into place. Too bad not enough folks are perfect Pisces, and the world doesn’t quite fit with your plans. That doesn’t mean that you won’t see some improvements, and when you look back, afterwards, you’ll see that everything started to change on this coming Saturday, when the Sun shifts into Cancer, marking the official start of Summer in the Northern Hemisphere. [Folks down under, what, this is the beginning of winter, I guess. Still gets better for the Pisces down under.] Contrary to popular mythology, I’d suggest that this is still going to be a good time. Feeling good, looking good, except for my own Pisces friend here, she’s suffering a little from the summer’s heat already. But other than that, the stars are promising that something is coming around, and I think this is a work project, one which got delayed, put off, forgotten about, then, like magic, it’s back. Time to turn your Pisces attention to this one little project, see if you can’t effect some happy resolution. The weekend promises a breakthrough towards an ultimately happy resolution.
