Fishing Guide to the Stars
by Kramer Wetzel
(c) 2005, 2006 by Kramer Wetzel for astrofish.net
For the Week starting: 12.21.2006
“If we offend, it is with our good will,
That you should think, we come not to offend,
But with good will.”
Shakespeare’s A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream [V.i]
Welcome to Capricorn!
Aries: There’s a frantic rush to get everything done. Suddenly, your Aries world turns from slow motion to high-speed entertainment, and not necessarily entertainment that you’re looking for. Doesn’t mean it’s bad, per se, but I’m not so sure it’s working exactly as you’d like it. The moon is going to slide into position as this scope is rolling over, and from that point forward, all I can suggest is to be prepared. Be prepared for the normal holiday delays. Be prepared to find yourself, close to midnight on Saturday, stuck in a department store while trying to fetch up one last item. Be prepared for any number of similar events. That department store, I was there, once. Maybe even last weekend. Trying to find a shirt for a friend, I knew the size, but I couldn’t get quite the right color, and the sales clerks were none to helpful. Almost closing time. trying to work in one last item and then consider the holidays done for. As we all start to get comfortable in Capricorn? Consider that there’s going to be a delay. Right shirt, right price, correct size even, on sale, to boot, but not a color I would pick. Good thing it’s got one of those “gift” receipts I can tuck in the package. Like me, you can always leave yourself a way out.
Taurus: I got a holiday picture the other afternoon. It was a mild day, and I was wearing shorts. The image was one of a fake, inflatable snowman, about ten feet tall, parked in a little garden, right in front of some prickly pear cactus. I was going to use it as a true to my hometown kind of image, a photo of Xmas in Texas stuff, the holiday cheer, but the image isn’t complete unless you realize that I was in shorts and sandals because it was warm enough to warrant such attire. Then, with the big snowman, and cactus right in front? Then the image is complete. Like I’ve said, the problem is that the image of just the snowman and cactus doesn’t do the whole scene justice. Likewise, with Taurus, there’s a scene that just doesn’t quite measure up to what you’re trying to get across, not with the image itself. There’s something missing, perhaps, it’s just the material behind the scenes that is as important as the scene itself. I’m not sure how to include the material in the image, though, but as a Taurus, I’m sure that the goal of getting it all into the picture? I’m guessing, as that’s your destination? I’m pretty sure you can work it out.
Gemini: Cold winter’s night. I was done with most of my duties so I spent the evening putting a drop of oil on some fishing reels, and, in one case, putting new line on a reel. Next afternoon, I stepped out to the river’s edge and gave that new line a spin with a heavy nice, heavy lure attached, something destined to carry far, and in doing so, stretch the line out. Lure landed in the water, sunk like it was supposed to, and the line from the reel kept paying out. I had a few extra yards of fishing line, starting to pile up around my feet. I stretched it, reeled it back in, then reeled in the lure. I gave it another heave. Same thing happened again, the lure landed in the water and the line kept leaving the reel. The problem? In my haste, I’d over filled the reel with fishing line. Slick fishing line. Fishing line that wanted to keep going, even when the reel, the fisherman, and the lure all said to stop. As I was undoing my tangle, as the lure was getting snarled on the bottom of the lake, as the fish were undoubtedly laughing at me, I thought about Mars and Jupiter, in Sagittarius, then Gemini, my opposite. Overfilling the reel is natural event on cold winter’s night. I can save my frustration if you don’t overdo what ever it is that you’re doing at the moment. Too much isn’t always better.
Cancer: I stopped at a hot dog stand, push cart, really, and had myself a hot dog. A day or two later, I stopped at the “fine, Chicago-style” hot dog place. The day after that, I went back to the hot dogs roasting at the convenience store. That gourmand kind of a hot dog, sure, it was a colorful presentation, but it wasn’t really, not to me, worthy of its inflated price. Cost too much for what was there. To be sure, the presentation was artful, but there was some kind relish on it — and that relish was a not a color that occurs in nature. The peppers were none too fiery, either. The push cart offered a veggie dog, but I wasn’t in the mood for that, and to be honest, the chopped onions were fresh, more or less. And, at least, that push cart vendor offered real jalapenos. But dollar for dollar, I cold get three or four of the convenience store hot dogs for the same price as one gourmet — or two push cart — dogs. There’s something special about a forlorn wiener roasting on the burner at the drive-in store, and there’s something special about that loan dog who’s been back there from the day before. A slightly stale bun, a squeeze of cheap mustard, and a price that can’t be beat? I’m not suggesting that you follow my culinary advice, but I’m pointing out that there are occasions, like these days in Cancer, when the cheapest alternative is sometimes really the best. Hot tip: that one store? The dogs are half-price after 5 PM. Even better (because astrology is all about timing).
Leo: In Austin, one is usually no more than two degrees away from a musician. I was listening as one of my neighbors was noodling on his guitar, just the other afternoon. I swiped a riff from him, or a tune, or something that I thought I heard, and given my lack of musical talent, I was going to use as a background noise for an audio track. Didn’t work. What I heard, or what I thought I heard? I toyed with that riff, but then, by the time I got done with the sequence, the reverb, the feedback, and the loops I already had? The music was nothing like what I’d heard. Or thought I heard. I started with idea, and then, after several hours of working with that one item, what emerged was something completely different. It’s part of the process, one idea, a note, a lyric, a simple guitar riff, that can inspire. But don’t’ stop the process, either. That’s the little secret for Saturn’s energy, the holidays, and Capricorn, don’t stop the work process, even if what you end up with wasn’t near the destination that you originally envisioned. Process. It’s all part of the process.
Virgo: I stopped off at a coffee shop, for an afternoon shot of espresso. Less about the actual caffeine content and more about the camaraderie and the feeling that some locations engender, a sense of being, a place where I feel like I belong. At least, a place where I don’t feel unwelcome. Usual pleasantries. Then the sad news, “They were digging next door and cut the water main or something, so we don’t have any espresso right now….” Long face. Sad times. I was offered pre-made iced coffee, café au lait, any number of other libations, but no espresso. Sadly, I turned on my heels and went in search of a coffee shop wherein I could get hot espresso because that’s what the day dictated. Odd how that works, too, as it was an example of what’s going on with my little Virgo friends, one item, one place, one thing in your life doesn’t seem to go right. It’s not all lost, as there are a myriad of opportunities, and a number of possible places to turn, it’s just the main goal might be thwarted. In my little space, there are half-dozen places to get just what I wanted. All I had to do was keep on moving. All you have to do, if you’re shot down at the first attempt? Keep on moving. Next place has got some of what you’re looking for.
Libra: I had to go to meeting downtown, not that this is unusual, but in my pedestrian ways, I get to see people and places that some folks miss. And coincidences that seem to escape the obvious. My first encounter was a Libra lass, chatting on her phone, and she glanced up at me, smiled, nodded, and gave a half-hearted wave. Then she rolled her eyes, presumably at the person on the phone. Next was a Libra coffee maker, as she jumped through the steps to make me a little shot of espresso. A smile, and some banter. Finally, there was third, a Libra behind the counter at a familiar store. That one Libra has the most amazing color of eyes, sort of hazel, and as I was staring into her eyes, I was about to say something about the shape of her cornea, except, I looked again, and I realized I was staring back at myself through her eyes. No, I wasn’t transported into her body, but what I saw was a reflection of my image in her eyes. Trick of the light, the December sun low on the horizon. Or is there a more important message, looking back at myself? In the Libra world, there’s similar message, about looking at other people, the folks you encounter, and seeing yourself there. As the sun warms up in Capricorn, there’s bound to be the tiniest bit of tension from that. But look into the eyes, see what’s really there, or, like me, looking back at myself.
Scorpio: There was anew girl behind the counter at a familiar store, and since I can qualify as a regular, despite my irregular ways, I asked about her birthday. Scorpio. I don’t know why I missed that one, the smoky allure of the eyes, a slight shimmy to her gait, a cold, commanding presence that demands attention yet seems seductively refined and demure, all at the same time. Hint of heat, casual disdain for mere mortals (non-Scorpio people). There were actually two Scorpios working at that moment, and I commented on that. Both feigned ignorance. There was a telltale lilt in their commentary that suggested this was a previously discussed topic, too. Holidays and resultant holiday madness is upon us. Deal with it. Deal with it, and weird people who ask you what your birthday is? Deal with all of us with that telltale lilt that hints at amusement. Like you’re having fun with the answers to our questions.
Sagittarius: Cure for the common cold? I doubt that. Cure for what ails you? I might have a clue. I stopped at a local South Austin coffee stop, and across the busy street, which was festooned with holiday decorations, there was a familiar visage, waving away at me. I was just thinking about a cup of coffee, maybe a little double-shot of espresso, when I realized that a dollop of ice cream under the coffee would just round out the picture=perfect holiday afternoon. So I dashed, more like loped, across the street, had me a cup of egg nog ice cream, then wandered back to the coffee stand wherein I ordered a couple of shots of espresso, poured over the ice cream. This is sure to induce a few stray comments about abuse and problems can’t be solved with sugar and caffeine. What was more important was the cheery face at the window, scooping the ice cream. What worked was the way the little Scorpio girl pouring the coffee, over the ice cream commented on how this was a perfect concoction. Certainly a lot easier than frothing up some egg nog itself, and it all looked good enough to bring to cheer to everyone involved. Therein is how Sagittarius is supposed to work, spread it around. Maybe those people were all being polite, but I doubt it. I think some of this was genuine glee. Which is part of what the holidays are all about, and part of what Sagittarius needs, as a boost for the week. Spread the cheer around some.
Capricorn: Weird winter weather. Cold, warm, cold then warm again. Weird Capricorn weather, too: warm then cold then warm. Finally, as the sun begins to warm the Capricorn chart, winter’s madness begins to drift away. There’s still a lingering kind of mania leftover from the recent events that are going to put a definite spin on the Capricorn way of seeing things, but that’s not all bad. Capricorns are resilient, if nothing else, and the dark humor helps alleviate some of the discomfort from the current state of affairs. Now, with Mars poking along, still in Sagittarius, what I’d suggest is to turn that Capricorn eye for the absurd away from yourself, and look at what’s going on with other folks now. Quiet observations speak in volumes, really.
Aquarius: Make something of it. That’s a simple exhortation. Just make something of what’s already here. There’s still a preponderance of planets in Sagittarius, which, in effect, lends a gentle strength to the Aquarius camp. To be sure, as this is rolling over and going live, the sun has moved in to the tropical zodiac sign of Capricorn, but there’s still a couple of major players located in Sagittarius, like Mars and Jupiter. What this does is lend a quiet kind of strength. Plus a little mania. Not bad crazy, but good crazy. It’s tickle, a hint, an idea born out of need. Might take a little judicious “fiddling” with in order to make it happen, and that’s the secret. One has to be patient with “creative process” when an Aquarius is at work on fiddling with some item. Some detail, some part, some type of Home-brew project, the pieces are all here, and you’ve just got to assemble the disparate bits to make a new whole. Are you going to succeed? Yes. Of that, I have no doubt. Are you going be forced to spend a little extra time messing with it? Yes, that’s also going to take some time. Just a little extra time, and the Aquarius home laboratory will turn out something that no one’s ever thought of before. See how easy that is?
Pisces: It’s Christmas time, and that goes hand-in-hand with a number of activities, like parties and shopping. There’s a been a frenetic pace foisted on the poor Pisces psyche, though, and that’s caused some trouble, it’s not really too difficult, not if there were about 30 hours in a day. Regrettably, I can’t make days with more hours. Or, for that matter, days with more sunlight. Which could be the source of the trouble. Not one to let this stuff get us down, though, our Pisces Psyche needs to consider activities that help us get into the spirit of the season, if not the all the spirits of the season. Despite this being the longest, darkest night of the year, the sun is gradually shifting positions, and that’s going to lend a small degree of hope. It’s the last sprint from here to Xmas. That’s about to get us off on a good start, and I figure, any kind of sign from the heavens that indicates a brighter future is a good thing. Subtle image, small signs of progress are the central theme. Maybe not a huge step forward, but as the days begin to get a little longer, you’ve got a feeling we’ve all turned the corner, and that’s where the hope is.
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copyright (c) 2005, 2006 Kramer Wetzel, for astrofish.net
