“This was the sport, my lord. When Publius shot,
The Bull, being gall’d, gave Aries such a knock
That down fell both the Ram’s horns in the court,
And who should find them but the Empress’ villain?
She laugh’d, and told the Moor he should not choose
But give them to his master for a present.”

Marcus Andronicus in Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus 4.3.71-6

Horoscopes by the Fishing Guide to the Stars starting 10.1.2015

Libra:

Watch the children. That’s the whole secret to understanding how to best cope with things the way they are, especially now. Take delight in the children. I was watching, from across the courtyard, at a busy tourist spot, while the younger of two boys marched along, making sure he was stepping on the sidewalk squares in some perceived order. Doing it one way for some perception of martial order that had to be observed. Brought a smile to my face, as a slightly exasperated parent was trying to corral the kiddo. Some perception of an order that must be maintained, or what? I’m unsure of the consequences of failing to step on each little square, but the kid made it clear, there was order and reason.

To impose order where none seems to be? To make sense of insanity in an insane world? To make this a better place? Watch the children. Maybe, like I was doing, perhaps that’s best, from a safe distance. Some of those kids are just little Petri dishes full of infection, breeders, as it were.

Scorpio:

In the previous horoscope, for Libra, I used a simple admonishment, “Watch the Children,” as in be observant. Following that advice, I found a perfect image for Scorpio. See, I was being quietly observant, not creepy, so the tide of people ebbed and flowed around me.

One guy was obviously a dad, and slung over a big shoulder like case of beer, was a kid. Looked like daughter, passed out cold, might’ve been all of about two years old, I’m not sure, unless I ask, I’m not much good with kid ages. Looked in that area, though, maybe 2 or 4 possibly 6. Kid was passed out cold. The guy walked into a store, acquired a tall, cold beverage, still summer-like in South Texas, even though this is now October, and sauntered on his way, the kid none too observant about what was going on. Safe ride with dad. Safety with much larger adult male. Sure, that’s what it looked like. Detail might not matter.

As the lucky Scorpio, you need dad’s shoulder to ride on, a safe, comfortable place to pass out. We’ll get with the plan of action, later. For now? A good nap. Maybe, there’s a good dream to be had. Something about last week’s idea?

Sagittarius:

Ever come a little unglued? It’s the opposite of being stuck in one place, an anathema to a Sagittarius, usually. The unglued feeling is sort of like not being too connected to reality. Which in my case, seems to be a constant state, but there are times when we do like to be rooted in some kind of consensual reality. The unglued feeling, the sense of being only partially connected to reality, or not really? That’s a problem because there are some times when — like driving a car — when being rooted in the real world helps. I get this “off in the distance” stare, and I pause. Most folks assume I smoked too much pot back in the 60’s. Wouldn’t be the case, as I’m not old enough, but never mind that, now, what I’m usually doing is chasing up patterns, symbolism and recalling where the planets are at this moment, but I do seem a little unglued. Rather than being “stuck?” Unglued might be preferably, unless, of course, this involves interaction that requires interaction. Mercury’s position lets us, as a general group, feel unglued. The solution, in as much as there might be one, is to stay firmly rooted in the moment. Good luck with that.

Capricorn:

There are vague, undocumented stirrings, deep within the Capricorn’s soul. Something is cooking along, might mean something. There’s a subtext, an undercurrent, a feeling, perhaps it’s an image, that seems to be right below the surface. Something’s there, and we’re not quite sure what this is.

Mercury, in his current position, pushes up the weird stuff that’s floating, just beneath the surface of the Capricorn Consciousness, and Mercury begs us to look at this material. Good? Bad? Humorous? For ill? Awful? Disturbing?

Oftentimes, this is viewed as disturbing, and that’s not always the situation.

Might be disturbing to some, but with a proper set of Capricorn-only eyes on this, I think you will find the situation, some might call it “disturbing,” but a good Capricorn way of looking at this is to think about as “darkly comic.”

Works well for me.

Aquarius:

I’ve never quite understood the term, “A shot across the bow.” No, don’t try to explain it, I get that it is a warning shot from a cannon, fired ostensibly in front of an approaching watercraft, a man-o-war sloop, to warn the approaching vessel that social interaction might be met with violent repercussions. No, I get that part, it’s just, as a naval term, the idea of naval engagement in “boat to boat” combat is pretty limited these days, and the term may no longer serve a valid purpose.

Archaic? Sure, but then, there’s always a sentimental portion of Aquarius that loves the good, archaic turn-of-the-phrase, and that’s what this week’s message is about. There was a shot, fired across the bow of the good ship Aquarius, and that was a warning that possible naval combat could ensue, if the good ship Aquarius doesn’t deviate from the current course selection. You’ve been warned, and this doesn’t necessarily mean a brawl, could be any number of situations, but the important part?

Did you heed the warning?

Mercury, you know, letting you know that there is a possible action facing your Aquarius self.

Did you heed the shot across the bow?

Pisces:

“It’s the principle, dammit!” That’s the expression I expect to hear from more than one Pisces in the next few days. I understand the political ramifications, the extenuating circumstances, and how this works, but the more common expression?

“It’s the principle, dammit!”

Loathe as I am to resort to profanity, as Mark Twain once observed, “When angry, count four. When very angry, swear.”

That’s our situation, now. The average Pisces won’t stand on principles, but an above-average Pisces will. You’re reading this, so do the math, you’re obviously above average. Here’s the trick, yes, it is the principle, and yes, you are right, and yes, this should be addressed quicker by the responsible parties, and the potential issue is that no one is answering the Pisces call quick enough.

I will, but I’m the only one. And there’s only one of me. I understand the way this plays, too, how it’s all about the “Principle.” Ethics, and this is not a gray area. However, be forewarned, I know you’re right, you know you’re right, the rest of the world? They might not get it, not this week.

Aries:

One editor I worked with, he had this very-Aries way of dealing with editorial work. He would read until he hit typo/mistake/error and he would leave an editorial mark, think, big red circle, and he would send the material back to the writer, oftentimes, a reporter.

Correct the very first mistake, then submit the story again. Editor would read until the next mistake, stop, circle, send it back.

As a writer, I got better about editing my material in advance because that turned this into a less labor-intensive project, if I would catch the mistakes he would catch and stop the constant back and forth action.

I’ve carried this method of working with me, reading through my own stuff, and stopping, even if it’s just a single correction, making the correction, then proceeding onward through the fog.

Consider this plodding, pedantic, painstaking style of working as the way things are for Aries at the moment. Won’t last long, but no more “Broad Brush Strokes,” what is needed most? Attention to detail.

Taurus:

Get out a blank sheet of paper. Write down a couple of goals, a few ideas. Draw a circle. Maybe connect a few dots on the page. Crumple it up, and set it aside. Get a fresh blank piece of paper. Sketch what looks kind of like a flower on it. Loose, freehand sketch, maybe just with a mechanical pencil or dull, felt-tip pen, whatever medium you like, or whatever seems handy. Now, after you’ve brain dumped on both those pieces of paper, wadded them up, get out third sheet of paper. What is the essence of the idea? What was the solution you were sort of, not quite, but sort of working towards?

This is a time for ideas, hatching ideas, playing with notions, formulating theories. This is not a time un-crumple one of those pieces of paper, copy down the idea, then implement that as a new rule.

“We have a new policy: no new policies.”

That should work well. It’s about ideas and kicking around possibilities, not about hard, cold facts.

Gemini:

It’s not the little things, it’s the big things. No, it’s not the big things, it’s the little things. Or, in the Gemini situation, it’s either a big deal or a bunch of little deals, but something gets in the way. These are cleverly disguised obstacles that are really learning blocks. Building blocks to make you a better person. It’s all about how you go about solving the problems. Understand that the main Gemini planet, Mercury, is retrograde in a compatible air sign (Libra), and understand that Mars plus Jupiter are in a less compatible, except in certain situations, mutable sign (Virgo), and these elements, wind and earth, conspire to place learning objects in the Gemini’s way. It’s all about how you go about tackling these objects.

Me? Id’ suggest we slow down, then clamber over the first object, cheek by jowl, stand up on the far side and look at the next obstacle. One at a time. Break it on down. The big things can be broken into little things and the little things can be mastered by Gemini, just bit by bit. Not all at once.

Cancer:

Ever watch one of those fishing shows on TV? Guy makes a cast, and wham! Fish hits the bait, epic struggle, big fish. In a typical half-hour show, there will be half-dozen to a dozen fish caught. Sport fish and off-shore, maybe the numbers are a little lower, but not by much. In the real world, last time I fished? It was one fish per every hour and half. Three fish, total. Almost six hours on the water, three fish. Not necessarily good numbers, but not bad, either. Much more realistic. Plenty of time between fish to ruminate on the reality of fishing versus the TV version of fishing. What it looks like, in the real world, much different and, at times a much more bucolic pace.

With Mercury where he is? You want the fast-paced action of the TV version.

With Mercury where he is? You get my version. It was a good trip, just not that action-packed kind. 1 fish every 2 hours instead of 6 fish in 22 (and half) minutes.

The (mighty) Leo:

My very first response to the majestic Leo’s outrage with this current situation? Mercury in its retrograde pattern? That, pitted against the majesty of the Leo, The Leo? I had a dirty joke. One popped through my mind, off-color, insensitive, and possibly offensive to some spectrum of society. I give up. “Man, if you can’t piss them off, then why bother trying?”

Because that was my first, instinctual reaction? Not always good to lead with what pops up first. I’m not known for tact. I’m not known for tack. I’m not known to keep my mouth shut when I should. I’m also a perfect example of what NOT-TO-SAY in the next few days. Like I suggested, rather lewd, possibly offensive joke was the first reaction I had to your chart. I didn’t print the joke, I didn’t write it down, it flashed through my head, and I thought, “That’s funny, really applies to Leo, but…”

As soon as you hit that “but…” that’s the sign. That’s the clue. Discretion. Or, in simpler terms, wait until you have a private audience before you tell the joke. Not everyone will be amused.

Virgo:

Buddy of mine, fishing buddy, he’s a got a son that’s 2 or 3 years old. I’m not sure, yes, I did the kid’s chart, but that’s not part of the question. When that boy was, I think, 3 years old, my buddy got his son an electric jeep-like toy car that was big enough for the kid to drive. Little electric motor, jeep-looking wheels, kind of a toy monster truck. Daddy was proud, his son’s first monster truck. Out in the front lawn, the driveway, the kid would tool around in that jeep, but he didn’t have all the details figured out. He would basically run around in a circle, not familiar with the idea that he could’ve driven off. Crank the steering wheel over, and around and around, the kid would go.

I was over one time, and his daddy was trying to coach the kid on going in a straight line, not just spinning around to the left, all the time. Around and around the kid went, happy as could be.

Donuts on the lawn, and maybe this could be a warning for the future, I’m not sure. As Virgo, though, that’s what’s happening, around and around in a circle. I know it’s kind of fun, but wouldn’t you like to try to, I don’t know, maybe go to the end of the driveway, if not half-way down the block?

Or, with Mercury, Mars and Jupiter? Sure, around in circles if that pleases you.