At my nativity
The front of heaven was full of fiery shapes
Of burning cressets, and at my birth
The frame and huge foundation of the earth
Shak’d like a coward

Owen Glendower in Shakespeare’s Henry IV part 1, 3.1.13-7

Horoscopes starting 1.18.2018

Venus enters Aquarius. Sun enters Aquarius, 1.19.2018 at 9:09 PM.

Aquarius

I tend to have a feed that delivers Shakespeare material, current articles, research, academic, and recent performance reviews. It’s an Internet Interest of mine. Less along the lines of real scholarship, and more like a serious hobby, would be the way I look at it. The problem being , the software pulls in online articles based on keywords. The other afternoon, in the middle of my Shakespeare materials was an article about a hamlet someplace on the globe, and careful perusal will reveal there are two Shakespeare words in the story, “Hamlet” and “Globe,” but the story had nothing to do with what I was looking for, or how I tend to use that feed.

The machine can only read and parse the material as a machine. It can’t differentiate the subtleties of language with its nuanced meanings. There are days and weeks when human discernment is required. This is one of those weeks, especially, for Aquarius. Be amused at what the machine feeder reader pulls in, material that is not really what we’re looking for.

Pisces

“Neural Pathways” are the little electronic pathways, the biological—slash—electronic routes that signals travel through the human body. In some disease instances, the routes are disrupted. Like a broken telecommunication cable — the wires that hold the inter-webs together? Like having a break. Air-gap, to some.

There is a slight disruption to the way the fine Pisces Pathways distribute information.

“Is Mercury still Retrograde?”

No. But the Pisces Neural Network is not delivering the correct data in the proper format. To be clear, the data is useful for Pisces and Pisces-Centric tasks, but that’s all. Any contact with other, non-Pisces people can cause frustration because the apparent disruptions in those Pisces Neural Pathways

Knowing about this? It should help.

“Blah? Blah! Bla-blah-blah.”

Good Pisces will read that code with no problem.

Aries

“Process is my secret ingredient.” I was asked about what works, and for that matter, I was willing to look at what doesn’t work, as that’s part of the process, assessing failure as possible way to find what does work. I know a number of fine examples of Aries flesh, excellent people, don’t get me wrong. But to a letter, each open desires a simple set of instructions that outline the way to get from here to there, with a minimum of problems.

Process is my secret ingredient.

The way this works, for me, and for Aries? It’s not about individual steps, but how the steps are taken, in what order, and what the underlying elements are, and how that works together. It’s not just a simple set of instructions. It’s far more like heading in a general direction, and seeing where it goes. I’m letting Aries in on my little secret ingredient to make this mix work.

Process is my secret ingredient.

Taurus

Waldo Tobler’s “first law of geography” states “Things that are near each other are more related than those that are further apart.” Yeah, sorry I don’t have reference for that, but enterprising souls can dig around on the inter-webs to figure it out. There was something about the idea behind the that, “First Law of Geography,” made me wonder if the statistics people looked at that, and had data to back up the claim. Where’s a good Virgo when you need one?

This next few days, look for the groupings, the pairings, the way that stuff lands next to each other. There’s an inherent, inherited, planet-borne energy that suggests looking further afield is not the way to find what Taurus seeks, and my job is to reel you back in a bit. Not so far away. Not so distant.

Sure, there’s always the worry that “Familiarity breeds contempt,” but that’s not what this is about.

Taurus: stuff that is nearer is more likely to be similar.

Gemini

Buddy of mine has an eye for art. Over the years, he’s been instrumental in a number of logo designs, redesigned for signs, online images, and “Ink.” The term “ink” refers to tattoo ink. Funny to me, as Gemini such a mutable sign, and tattoo art is so permanent.

Over the years, one of his specialties is taking “bad ink,” and layering on a new design that incorporate the old image, and then, adds to it. According to him?

“Usually, it’s, like, an old girlfriend or former wife’s name,” and he smirks.

There’s the superstitious tattoo lore, I’ve heard, too, that getting a name means it will end, sort of a curse.

This isn’t about ink, but it about Gemini and permanent decisions at a time like this, when using an eye for art, to redecorate might be better.

I might add, my buddy has a Sagittarius symbol, the arrow, as an homage to me. But know, not name.

This next week, it’s more about

Cancer

Pause and think about how we allocate resources. Pause and consider where you spend precious Cancer (Moon Child) time. This isn’t a long, mediative kind of expression, but more than a decade of my life was spent in an idyllic setting where I had a fishing pole in hand. The way it should be. These days, I’m more likely to have a keyboard in hand rather than a fishing pole. Not that I’m complaining, and as a Cancer, you shouldn’t complain, either. More than one will, and I can’t help that.

But a pause, a moment’s cessation of irrelevancies, just a second or third deep breath, then moving forward, that does much more to help ease the suffering, and maybe even prevent the problems in the first place. Which is what this is about.

It’s about building in some time for any kind of contemplative exercise, and that helps make a better route more clear.

Pause, and parse, how we allocate resources.

The Leo

As the Sun crests the horizon for The Leo, as the planets crawl their way from one house to another, there is a detectable shift. There is a change. A very palatable change occurs. You can feel it. There’s a motion, some kind of detectable movement, I was thinking about a buddy’s “Deer Camera,” as it get triggered by motion, it records whatever is out there. Supposed to be a big buck. I was thinking about the way that camera’s chip catches the littlest of motions, even just a stiff breeze, and that gets recorded, in addition to the buck, and the rest of my buddy’s prey.

It’s the tiniest of motions, but that tiny planetary motion triggers the majestic Leo. Be aware of the tiniest of motions that can lead to getting what you want. What The Leo deserves? Lots of good things. To make that happen? Be aware of the finest of motions that can serve to trigger the action required.

A Little Leo Action goes a long way in making everything better.

Virgo

My various gear bags for work are an odd assortment. One bag, sort of lived in El Paso for years, I was digging through it the other morning, looking for the various props and pieces I use. One pencil-case, it held a tiny Buddhist monk figurine, a rosary, and an assortment of tacks. There was a time when I would use thumbtacks to affix temporary signage to the wall. Rather convenient, as it made my gear very portable. I had a roll-up banner that lived in — and out — of several cases over the years.

Eventually, hotels and conference venues stipulated “No tacks,” as the constant usage probably perforated the walls. One conference room, I was seated against a metal-clad folding wall, and no way my tacks would penetrate the surface. Time to change it up. Eventually, I started to use a series of collapsible, free-standing signs. Works just as well, if not better, and the signage was almost as portable.

Seeing the tacks reminded me of what used to work, and what works now, and adjustments we make, as need be. As Virgo? Clearly you’ve made some discernible progress, and now? I dropped those tacks in the trash.

Libra

In retail, or in the old-school “brick and mortar” land, I’m pretty sure the term was, “shrinkage.” It referred to stock and merchandise that disappeared. Theft, usually, although, in some businesses, it could be spoilage, as produce age. Especially, like food, that could be hugely problematic, less due to theft, and more due to material going sour before it sells.

“Shrinkage” is this week’s term for Libra.

Shrinkage is a natural part of the process, and some items either get sour and rotated out, or they seem to disappear.

“Guess the little bugger just sprouted legs and walked off. Huh.”

I’ve warned your sweet Libra self about this, for this next few days, so you’re well-aware, moving forward. Shrinkage, can be some part that naturally cycles out, or, it grows legs and walks off.

Scorpio

Where I live has a rich, deep vein of historical lore. Portions of Texas have been some of the longest inhabited areas in what is now known as North America. Moving from eons to a much shorter time frame, as any good Texan will let you know, we’ve been a country before we were a state.

In San Antonio, with the World Heritage missions, there’s also the Alamo. So it wasn’t really far fetched visual to see an Alamo-era “re-enactor,” dressed in full historical gear, complete with an inoperable firearm, but still, full battle-dress from centuries passed — and the guy was gripping a Starbuck’s branded cup of coffee.

Such jarring juxtaposition, caused me mirth, but I’m so not a Scorpio. You’re reading this, you might be a Scorpio, and the jarring juxtaposition that this week poses? You might not find it funny.

If you can borrow my sense of humor, dark, twisted, off-beat, left (or right) of center? Your Scorpio self is much better served.

“That is so weird!”

I know, right?

Sagittarius

Supposedly, one of the best places to buy optometry services is at the big warehouse store, Costco. I have no idea, as I haven’t shopped there for glasses, yet. I tend to use “prescription” reading glasses, and cheaters are easily just about as good, but the eye specialist suggests that cheaters are only good for a short time; I tend to follow doctors’ orders. So it was funny, to me, as I was passing the eye glasses station.

“I’m returning these glasses.
Why? He/She still doesn’t see it my way.”

I do respect some privacy issues, but it was in a relatively public space, so I'll use it. Perfect example of what our Sagittarius selves can avoid right now: glasses that don’t make us what we think we should be. Or a failure to correct some other person’s understanding of how we, as mighty Sagittarius think it ought to be. Rather than how it really is?

Yeah, see the problem, now?

Capricorn

One of the problems of a prodigious library, like I have had at times, is that I feel like I am not really that well-read. Sure, I’ve been through some of the acknowledged classics, and I own, plus I’ve read — at one time or another — the majority of greats in the Western Literary Canon. Still, one the problems, is there is always more books, and so little time, so it seems. Reading is how I continue to educate and learn, and great fiction, in many different guises, helps make sense of our chaotic world.

My library has grown, shrunk, doubled in size and then, after another move, gotten smaller, and more manageable these days. There are a few collectible first editions, maybe a rarity or two, and some paperback that resemble pulp fiction, from a long time ago. There’s current, popular fiction, too, but not much of that.

The problem being, “more books/big library” doesn’t mean “well-read.” Conversely, a few books doesn’t mean a simpleton, either. As a Capricorn, the danger this week is a watch-phrase, “false equivalency.”

“Dude’s got a lot of books, so he’s really smart.”