“While she is here, a man may live as quiet in hell.”
Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing [II.i.241]
Aries: My musical tastes are obscure, to say the least. See that opening quote. To wit, I’ve become a minor legend with my road tripping buddies as “the one not to rely on for musical selections.” Buddy of mine bought a new car, new truck actually, and it’s a little smaller, a probably a lot more efficient than the old truck. When cleaning out the old one, a few of my infamous Road Trip CDs turned up. They were returned to me. “Eclectic” is not the word I would use to describe these selections. While the diverse musical collection is, indeed, a bit odd, the selections that are sandwiched and layered together on those CDs? They really do not belong together. I did those CDs, over a period of a year or more, way back, say about three or four years ago. Having something your Aries self did, three years ago, returned to you? That’s what liable to happen. Is it a good thing or a bad thing? Personally, I was amused at some of the music I’d put on those CDs. Weird stuff. But the beats, genres and samples really don’t blend well. I’ve gotten a little better at mixing. Plus, being as bad as I am at it, I don’t get called upon to play DJ as often. Take a look and see where you’ve been as someone dumps something out of the old truck, an item or reminder of how far you might — or in my situation, might not — have improved.
Taurus: I got in habit of clipping a sprig of Rosemary whenever I passed a healthy bush. There’s some on the way to a Tex-Mex place, some more on the way to a coffee shop, and there’s even some growing in my garden. In one reference text, I found that Rosemary was intertwined in the hair to facilitate memory. In another, I found that Rosemary supposedly is good to darken hair. As much time as I’ve spent in chlorinated pools? My hair bleaches out during the summer. But with the herb not just improving my mental facilities, but also darkening it? My poor locks, such as they are, don’t know which way to go. Lighter? Chlorine and sunlight. Darker, due to the herbal infusion. Yeah, which way is up? Mars and so forth? In your sign? You’ve got hair like I do, unsure of which way to go. Lighter, darker, lighter, darker, changes by the minute. Leads to some rather confused follicles. Or a confused Taurus. Some days, there are no good answers. Changes with each passing. If I made herb recommendations, though, I’d suggest Rosemary.
Gemini: Just slow it all down The deal is that the rest of the world doesn’t run on Gemini time. I realize that you’d like the world to operate at the same light-speed that you work at, but regrettably, the rest of us, on certain occasions, just can’t keep up. Between the Sun and the Moon, add in the recent movement of Saturn, and you’ve got a Gemini moving at typical Gemini speed whereas the rest of us are moving at normal speed. Which is like slow motion for the Gemini. What I’m trying to do here is alleviate some of your frustrations. I picked up a copy of a book I wanted to read. Nothing more than light fiction, material I used to call “airport reading.” Something to waste away hours spent while in transit. Not heavy reading, not important reading, just entertainment. You’re going to be stuck with one of us so-called “normal” person, and that person is moving as fast as he or she knows how to. Unfortunately, that’s not nearly fast enough for a Gemini. Whip out that light reading. Carrying around a beat up paperback isn’t a permanent solution, but for the time being? Beats wasting time getting frustrated because we don’t move fast enough.
Cancer: I was looking on eBay for a gift for a friend. It’s like a giant garage sale, or a junk shop, and while they had the exact item I was looking for, in duplicate, I took time to shop a little. Then I popped a fishing term into the search box, and that let me wander far astray. When I got back to bidding on the gift, I found that the first listing’s price had shot up, due to close in an hour whereas the second item listed, identical product, was still sitting at a much lower price. I just bought the second one. Now, I did waste several minutes flipping around, digging through the morass of that interface to find what I was looking for, but I didn’t just rush in and bid on the first item. In fact, look at the terms eBay uses, “you’ve won an auction,” is what it says. What it means is that you’ve earned the right to offer the most money for an item. Tricky. Watch the sales, watch the words, pay attention to the details of the transactions. I’m not saying that you’re in a shopping mode, but it’s serves you best to shop around to insure that the “deal” is really a deal.
Leo: As the sun starts to warm up the Virgo section of the sky, you’re going to feel a little relief. I want you to look around the old Leo trailer, and figure out what things need to be jettisoned. Old baggage, debris, a dead houseplant, old boyfriends (or girlfriends), the litter box needs to be scrubbed out, you’re getting a clear picture here? Mercury is done with its tirade and rampage through your sign. But that doesn’t mean that there isn’t a mess that needs to be cleaned up. That’s the chore for this next couple of days. See? Mr. Saturn is in for the long haul, or so it seems, and rather than letting someone (or something) get the jump on your Leo self, what I’m suggesting is that undertake the work yourself, before someone comes along and makes this a necessity. House cleaning, literally or figuratively, is what is required.
Virgo: While I do love the open road, Bubba’s truck has a bad tire. That means, what he does, is crank the sound system up. Drowns out the noise. Sure, that’ll work for a little while. Avoiding a problem rather than doing something to fix the problem? Yes, it’s a classic maneuver, but for the time being, that’ll work. The deal was, out on the road, the windows down, the music playing loud, he had to turn down the music to make a point in the conversation. That meant he could hear the tire, the sound of radials de-radializing, or the sound of tread that wants to separate from its present location. “I’ve been meaning to fix that,” he was saying, and then his conversation wandered off to the point that he wanted to make. Then he cranked up the music again, as a form of punctuation. Not more than six or seven miles further? Tire blew. Didn’t come as a surprise, as I could detect that shake, then the shimmy, then I knew what was about to happen next. You’re getting an audio warning about something coming up. Fix it now, or fix it later. It’s an old truck, in this example, and there were actually two spare rims, one with a good, used tire on it. He was ready. Listen for the warning and see if you can keep from being interrupted.
Libra: “Want to bet on this one? How long before a snag gets it?” I was chatting with a neighbor and he was making fun of the fact that I’d hung three jigs in trees. I was working my way through tackle, the way I see it. It’s hot, it’s August in Texas, and the fish like to stay on the bottom of the lake, where it’s the coolest. So I was tossing jigs and bouncing them off the bottom. Good idea. But two of the last three jigs that morning wound up buried in snags on that bottom. The other one? Tree got that one. I was trying a little too close to shore. I wasn’t worried about it, this is the cost of fishing. I tied a smaller jig-head on, and before I cast, I asked about that bet. I was aiming sideways, right up next to the shoreline, and the bait goes flying right over a branch. “Should’ve taken that bet.” “You hung, again?” Incredulity from the neighbor. I laughed, yanked on the line, and the lure fell free, right into the water. Some days, the fish win, or, some days, the trees win. And some days, especially now, when some fishing person, or other person of similar ilk, offers you a bet, go ahead and take it. I was three for four on losing before, the trend is likely to continue. Take the bet.
Scorpio: The website, astrofish.net, is basically the only storefront I’ve got. No office anymore, no big desk and receptionist, none of the trappings that are associated with big business, or even small business. The site has grown and contracted over the years. It was, at one time a sprawling mass with an ornate and arcane graphic interface. The design changed, mutated grew, and I’ve had to keep up with the plethora of browsing environments, the way the end user sees it, trying to hit a happy middle ground. Buried deep, there are still fragments of the code that I hammered together when it the whole mess first went live. The foundation, the core code has changed, but there are still text files in the archives, material that dates back more than a decade. When I was paging through some of the older material I had an image of the foundation being built on pebbles, loosely strewn about. In a construction project, I suppose that would make for a weak foundation. Layer after layer of material is added, year after year, and each layer gets more refined as web standards change and update. Those archives are still alive and online. Weird to see the background, color selection, and designs that have changed over the years. It’s quite all right to go back over the old material, but remember, you’re also looking at a foundation. This week, this month, you’re building a foundation. The question is, will it stand the test of time?
Sagittarius: In about a month, I’ll be planting some Bluebonnet seeds. The fall hardly seems like the time to plant seeds, but that’s the way these guys work. Take the seeds out of the package, run them between some sandpaper loosely, then toss them in a well-drained, light, loose sandy loam. Then let those items bake. They get to bake in the late fall sun. Roast, almost. Bluebonnets thrive on abuse. Then, next spring, or rather, late winter, I’ll water them. Soak them. That should do the trick. This is a long range, well-planned planting. Takes time and certain amount of benign neglect. Between the Sagittarius planet (Jupiter) and the Moon’s phase, plus the Sun being in Virgo, it’s time to think about some long-range planning. Perhaps it’s a project just like Bluebonnet seeds. Something that requires a certain amount of neglect, to work properly. Consider the usual metaphor of planting seeds or bulbs? That’s not quite it, unless, of course, they are Bluebonnets seeds.
Capricorn: Off and on, I get to spend a lot week days meandering along the hike and bike trail. For me, it’s mediation, a few good spots for fishing, and the exercise keeps me from going too crazy. There is any number of variation on the pathway, and I’ve established a good rhythm working in necessary business stops along the route. Plus the route I choose can vary, day-to-day. Longer, shorter, creek, east, west, more people, less people, more fishing, less fishing. Certain portions of the trail are heavily trafficked. Others sections show significant less wear and tear. I tend to favor the less populated areas, as it makes my meandering and wandering a little more restful. As the next few days begin to gather steam in the Capricorn chart, or let off steam, as it would really be the case, I’d suggest that you pick the less-traveled pathway. The beaten path might be easier, but it’s also a lot more boring.
Aquarius: The problem isn’t motivation, although, I’m sure I’ll hear from at least one of my little Aquarius friends complaining about how she can’t be bothered to meet with any of her obligations. I was thinking about this in respect to Texas drivers. My observations, even though the Houston drivers get the worst rep, the drivers in Houston have a better command of the underlying zeitgeist necessary to navigate a heavily occupied piece of freeway. The unwritten rules of the road? Those drivers in Houston navigate with a certain fluidity not found in other metropolitan areas. But if you’re not from Harris County and you’re not familiar with the death-defying tactics used in their rush hour? I’m not suggesting that this is a good time to try and learn how they do it. Me? I’m used to wide-open spaces. I’m used to trucks that pull over on the shoulder to let someone pass, typical Texas country-side driving etiquette. The only places I’ve ever been, that compare to Houston? LA and NY both seem to have drivers who understand the unwritten rules of the road. If you encounter, which I’m sure you will, an older model truck, with a Grateful Dead sticker in the window and Rosary hanging from the rearview? Poking along and generally being a nuisance? Remember, not all of us are familiar with the Aquarius rules of the road.
Pisces: One of my little Pisces friends called me up the other morning. The coffee maker broke. The dog got out of the fenced backyard. The chickens had flown the coop. Okay, so I’m making up the part about the chickens. But that was the general tone. Tears and all. Imagine about three events, all happening at the same time. One wouldn’t disturb your Pisces life, but three? Guaranteed to upset your Pisces psyche. I don’t have any control over what the planets do, but I’ll promise that about three items are going to rattle loose, and those items — or events — are bound and determined to upset the way of life, that you have, right now. Permanent and disastrous? Hardly. Painful? Not really. I mean, if the coffee maker spits hot water all over the counter top, you clean it up and go around the corner for some coffee at the coffee shop. Dog gets out? Round him up. Chickens all flew the coop? Alas, I’m at loss on that one as I don’t have the foggiest notion about how to herd chickens. But you get the idea, I hope. The sun is moving opposite Mr. Uranus. Makes for about three items that will not go the way you want them to. In my inbound mail, I’m looking forward to a few notes about Pisces who did have things go the way they wanted it to work. Just consider that’s the exception, not the way I see it happening. I’m not bad, nor is this bad, it just doesn’t go the expected way.
