For the Week Starting: 9/11-17/2003
“Shall in these confines with a monarch’s voice
Cry ‘Havoc!’ and let slip the dogs of war;
That this foul deed shall smell above the earth
With carrion men, groaning for burial.”
Shakespeare’s Antony in Julius Caesar [Act III, scene i]
Yes, I’m afraid of the dogs of war, and yes, I’m afraid of what we have–and have not–learned from our past mistakes. Mercury, Jupiter, and the Pisces contingent of planets, though, it serves well to bring back our memories, just to make sure.
Virgo: I had dinner and drinks with a Virgo friend, a couple of days ago, just in time for her birthday. She was in the mood to get “lit up,” and seeing as how she’s originally from Louisiana, she can partake with the best of them. It hadn’t been a spectacular week, in fact, it hadn’t been a good week at all. It wasn’t so much that there were big problems as there were a whole host of minor troubles.
More or less, it was the usual Mercury stuff, communications that didn’t get interpreted correctly, a missed phone call, one boss who was just being a [words synonymous with difficult person], that sort of week. As she ordered up another alcoholic concoction for herself, she looked at me, and seeing as how the last one was strong enough to singe my nose hairs–and I wasn’t even drinking it–she took one long, tired look at me, and suggested, “If it’s not strong enough to start my car, then I’m not interested in drinking it.”
Libra: I had the boys in the backroom program up a slick little piece of code that would update the webpage automatically at midnight, every Wednesday night. It only took about six or seven years to get around to doing it right, finally. A few months later, a serious little bug occurred, and the data wasn’t ready for publication on the schedule. The problem with computers is that they can only work from existing data structures.
If there’s no information, then nothing happens. The results are a blank page.
You’re operating like that, right now, like that cool piece of code I had done, it can only make something that’s scheduled to occur appear. It can’t shoot something out that’s not available. I’ve oftentimes been accused of making something out of nothing, but then, my poetic license is up-to-date. I would suggest that you need to be careful about trying to fabricate “something out of nothing” as it’s not always your style. Plus, there’s the problem of not having all the facts in hand. Before you start making up stories, consider the source of your information. You might want to check a few facts before you jump into something.
Scorpio: I was listening to one of my good friends do a bit of holding forth. He was trying to humorously make a point about what’s stupid and what’s not, “There are certain levels of ‘stupid’ I won’t cross–that’s one of them–however, other levels of stupid, I’ll just jetski right on through.” Given the time, the date and the tone of the world, yes, there are certain levels of stupid my fine Scorpio friends need to be aware of. That being suggested, I’d also like to call your attention to the second half of the quote, and it’s supposed to be delivered with a degree of humorous lilt in your voice, about how there are some events that just look like too much fun, or like a target you can’t resist taking a potshot at.
In a situation like that, yes, it’s okay to jetski right on in there and blast away, making an annoyance of yourself. Two guidelines, though, make sure you’re on a fast craft, so that you can escape the clutches of the stupid gang. Also, be aware that you doing something that might not be in your Scorpio-enlightened best interest, but you know it’s just too much fun not to do. “So I know it wasn’t very bright, but it sure was fun at the time.”
Sagittarius: Some of us aren’t having a whole lot of fun. There’s the onerous and overbearing weight of what has gone before, and this sort of memory has been etched in our collective subconscious for the last couple of years. Lest you think I’m addressing a specific event triggered by the date, consider that Mars is basically on a two-year cycle, and he’s reminding us to look at a few things.
I’d also suggest that that goes a little deeper, and perhaps a little further back than just “two years ago” today. Look back, as a matter of fact, all the way back to the spring of 2001. That’s probably the source of the problem. That’s also a little farther back than you really want to dig, too.
Now, let’s jump up to the present. Mars, Mercury, and several other planets are arrayed in such a fashion as to make your life a series of unrequited reminders of your previous mistakes. What’s important, though, is to sort through this and figure out what you can do about one issue. If you’re like me, and you arrive at a conclusion that this particular issue can’t be attended to at this point, then skip it and move on. It’s one thing to remember our past indiscretions. It’s something else — altogether not healthy for Sagittarius — to dwell in the past and let those thoughts rule our mind.
Capricorn: There’s an odd kind of strength you have. One of the observations I’ve encountered from time to time, about Capricorn, is that they are noted for their physical stamina. It’s an ability to persevere when no one else has the physical — or emotional — fortitude to keep moving in a forward direction. I’m calling on all my good Capricorn readers to do just that, right here, right now.
You’re faced with a situation, probably at your place of employment, and that requires you to overcome an obstacle. You can shoulder your way through this, if you’re just willing to show a little grit and determination. I didn’t say it was going to be pretty, and I didn’t want to suggest that it would be easy. But a little patience goes a long way in making most of this start to work better for you. Persistent patience pays. Use some of that stamina to get to what you’re trying to get to. You’ll be surprised — even amused.
Aquarius: There are whole volumes written about the implications of retrograde planets. After doing this gig for so long, though, I’ve found that there’s other information, not always available, and some of this is from my own observations. I still recall one [now ex] girlfriend getting really irritated with me because I wouldn’t engage in a spirited argument during a time like this.
I made it through a three-week cycle of similar nature without ever taking her bait. I didn’t want to debate a point because, no matter how right I was, the message would hopelessly get garbled. I wasn’t interested in taking my situation with her from bad to worse. Didn’t matter that I was, in fact, right. Didn’t matter that I did have a better command of the facts. Didn’t matter that there was a huge hole in her logic. The very idea that I wouldn’t debate the point just irritated her. I was some sort of supercilious smart-aleck astrologer boyfriend who was hiding behind his planets instead of jumping into the fray. I’m reminded about a timeless piece of wisdom, handed to me via a thin book from Ma Wetzel, “There are two theories about arguing with a woman. Neither one works.”
Pisces: I was fishing with one of my buddies, and he was getting a little upset because we were in a good spot, we could see the fish, and they weren’t even giving us the time of day. He got upset, moved to the back of the boat and sat down to have himself a sandwich. No problem, so far. I was running the trolling motor, almost, but not quite, drifting aimlessly all over the lake. I veered away from the creek’s entrance, and I was pointed towards a tall stand of rushes along the water’s edge. I did a wild cast that landed just about in the middle of nowhere, and I was reeling it back in pretty fast, not expecting anything from mistake.
Wham! I got a strike. Better yet, it was fighter. Took me several minutes to reel that one in. I had fun playing the line back and forth, my buddy, sitting in the back of the boat, grousing about the way I’d caught that one on a wild cast. “So Mr. Fishing Guide does know what he’s doing. Ha.” To be honest, I didn’t expect that fish. To be honest, I didn’t think I was heading in the right direction.
When you least expect it, events like this occur. You can any one of the three elements in this fishing tale. The guy sitting in the back of the boat, complaining. The guy aimlessly running the trolling motor, with a degree of unplanned luck. The poor fish who put up a good fight — I don’t think she was expecting a fishing lure where she was. Now, if you could pick which one you wanted to be, what would it be?
Aries: I was in El Paso not too long ago. It’s place that I like even though it doesn’t always return the same favor and degree of affection. I was brushing up on my pidgin Spanish, such as it is, and I was exhausted from working. I let slip a comment that my hostess seized at the moment, and just wouldn’t let go of. The waiter had asked if everything was okay with our meals. I answered, a little worn out from too much work, “Toro Bien.”
I’ll never hear the end of that one slip of my tongue. “The bull is good!” In fact, that comment will probably haunt me the rest of my born days, and I was just trying to be nice, and I was trying to be accommodating, making a valiant–if somewhat vain–attempt to answer in the language of the place.
Sometimes, you try really hard to be nice, and sometimes, no matter how hard you try, folks just spend an inordinate amount of time making fun of you. From looking at the charts for the next couple of days, you appreciate what I’m talking about here, one little slip–an honest mistake–and they never seem to let go of it. Doesn’t mean that your Aries self has to hold onto it–whatever “it” is–as well.
Taurus: I kept running into a Taurus archetype, and I couldn’t shake it. Some of this data goes back 20 years or thereabouts. Chinese Food. What’s Chinese food got to do with your outlook for the next week? Maybe nothing. Maybe a lot. There’s that familiar joke about being hungry half an hour later, but that’s not what I was looking at, not directly, anyway. Seems like there’s more there. Something else. Perhaps it’s a deeper, more involved metaphor than a cursory glance reveals.
There’s something exotic, something rather appealing about some cuisine that has its roots in another part of the world. It’s hard to understand that a whole culture can be wrapped up in a single bowl of noodles, but it’s worth a try. The unusual side of life is calling. In fact, this is like persistent message that you’ve been, in all Taurus integrity, avoiding for the last (however long) it’s been. What? Two-three weeks? Yes, there’s a yearning that’s been bugging you and I suggest you scratch that itch. It might not be a desire for Chinese Noodles, but it could be something. Similar. Some familiar foodstuffs, or maybe, it’s a particular person you want to get in contact with again. Go ahead, give it a try. See what happens.
Gemini: Under my bed in the trailer, there’s a cardboard box full of old computer diskettes. It’s really just dead media because some of those things are 400K 3.5 inch “floppies” which was a misnomer because they did have a solid plastic exterior, giving those diskettes the illusion of permanency. I had to dig out an old laptop to find a disk drive that would read those diskettes. I’m not sure what I was looking for, I just figured there was something in there because I’ve saved those things for well over a decade now.
The beauty of digital media is that it just doesn’t go away that fast, and it’s all easy to store. The problem with digital anything is the rate at which we upgrade, it’s sometimes not worth the effort. One set of the disks contains a rudimentary graphics program that was quite advanced for its time. I held onto those disks for purely sentimental reasons. It’s not like a pair of diskettes take up that much room. Why delve into sentimental old digital memories, archives and such?
Is this a worthwhile use of good Gemini time? Yes. There’s something in your own digital archives, maybe it’s in paper notes, more likely though, it’s in the electronic form, and buried deep in there is something you need to go back over. Mercury, Mars, even Uranus triggers this trip down memory lane. See what you can discover. It’s not all bad.
Cancer: I’ve been getting a little weird lately as I haven’t had enough time to go fishing. I’m not talking about any kind of a metaphorical fishing, I mean, I haven’t had a chance to get my poles out and toss a few plastic worms in the water. I miss that activity. It’s remarkably rejuvenating for me. There’s something about the action, and all its concomitant details, the going to bed at an unreasonably early hour, the waking up in the predawn splendor, the “Oh-dark-thirty” call to get in the boat, the way the sun breaks across the lake, the smell of the lagoon around the dock with its fishy aroma, and the camaraderie, plus, the gentle chiding I always get.
Can’t do a thing about the planets, but I can do something about fishing. Like, instead of moaning about the way I can’t get any time off, I can just call in sick–wait, I’m the boss here–I can just take a little extra time and do what I want to do. You might not be the boss, although I think you should be, and you might not be able to just drop everything and do exactly what you want to do. That doesn’t mean you have to put everything on hold, though. Look at rearranging your schedule some to accommodate some of the activities that you enjoy.
Leo: My CD player just shifted gears, or rather, it shifted disks. I went from some fancy European high-tech dance music that had no instruments that I would recognize. Next up was a local “cowboy” singer/songwriter, moaning about that lonesome highway. Doesn’t phase me a bit, although, some of the yodeling seems to intrigue the cat.
Such a shift is usually pretty difficult for a gentle Leo to absorb in the short span of time it takes for one of these players to shuffle its disks. The planets are in evil disarray. That’s the bad news. It hits other signs worse than you. That’s the good news. But you’re also going to be running into those shifts like my CD player sometimes dishes up. Get used to it. There are still some rather abrupt shifts coming, and some of it, if you take in good Leo stride, will be acceptable. Mostly, anyway, as the cat might howl some at the shift.
