Prithee, be gone, and bid the bell knoll for me:
I have had one foot in the grave some time.
Camilo in Shakespeare’s Double Falsehood (III.iii.62-3)
Horoscopes for 9-21-2022
- Retrograde Mercury conjoins the Sun 9/23
- Sun enters Libra 9/23
- Retrograde Mercury enters Virgo 9/24
- New Moon in Libra 9/26 at 3° Libra
- Venus enters Libra 9/29
- Mercury turns direct 10/1 at 24° Virgo
Libra
Real Estate companies that use picture from high school, maybe 20, 30 years old? I understand that, now. While I endeavor to have current images on my various sites? I get why older promotional images are easier to use. I was asked for a link to a web-safe headshot, and I realized, other than some recent fishing images, I usually pointed people to material that is is at least 20 years old. Not that I mind, but I get it, now, why the those real estate companies were using out-of-date images. I looked a little bit better then, and I’ve been too lazy to get any new promotional material whipped up since that date. I updated the autobiographical material, but about the only variation is duration in the business, and whether I leave in the Shakespeare bit. I keep mailing addresses up-to-date, contact information is current, but that’s about it. It’s about keeping it simple, and right now? Those out-of-date biographical headshots, the promotional pictures? Might want to leave them. I get it — now.
Scorpio
There’s a bland kind of smile that is most useful. It’s not a huge, “Oh baby I am so glad to see you!” No, it’s not that effusive response. A smile, perhaps a vacant smile, maybe that works best. The one I’m thinking of, a Scorpio, sure, but she is warm without being cloying at all. Seems like a wan smile, a blank look. “Light are on, but no one is home?”
That’s it — exactly. “Lights are on, but no one’s home.” Sums up how a good Scorpio — like yourself — should face this next few days. It’s a function the planets, but also, the phase of the moon, and that energy is best expressed as a smile, but no investment in the outcome. Be happier like that. I’m sure.
Sagittarius
Mars in Gemini, opposite from Sagittarius and Mercury Retrograding back into Virgo, a point that creates a tension angle? None of this is a excellent. I paused, for a moment, to seek inspiration. Ostensibly, I was going to research this predicament we’re in, but what I did was spend a half an hour clicking around on a social media feed, and I accomplished exactly nothing. I was not entertained, and I was not educated. I read some political points, but that’s opinion, rather than fact. There was some amusing anecdotes, in short form, that short-attention-span theatre that is social media in various feeds, but that was about it. No good jokes; no good answers; and no solutions to current conditions. Back here Sagittarius? I wasted — not wasted but not usually useful — about half an hour. I came away with an appreciation that the various feeds reveal nothing enlightening about the nature of the world, other than the dumpster fire that is social media. At the beginning of this year, though, I got the coolest sticker, and maybe that’s what we should concentrate on — The strongest steel is forged in the fire of the dumpster.
Capricorn
When Mars is in Gemini, like it is? There’s a bubbly, excited energy in staid Capricorn. Almost effervescent, but not quite. Balanced against the relative position of Mercury and its machination, movements? It’s a perfectly imperfect time to sweep up the remains and sift through what you just swept up to see if there’s anything useful. There could easily be something useful out of the shattered mess, but gather all the fragments together before trying to piece that back together. Figure what parts you need, and what parts might either be too shattered, too fragmented, or the otherwise no longer serviceable. First, this week under that dualistic Mars and (backwards) Mercury? Gather up the shattered parts. Sweep everything up.
Aquarius
There is the burgeoning hegemony approaching downtown Austin, rolling up from the south. Crest the hill in Buda, the town immediately to the south of Austin? Crest that hill, and the first of the gleaming towers of modern Austin in the morning light? There’s hope, there’s outrage, there’s the unlimited potential ahead, and then, no sooner is that visible when the traffic stops. No real reason, road construction, accident, possible weather event, or a stalled vehicle in the center lane, sure, seen it all. Sometimes, though, just flow dynamics, and there’s no reason for it to stop. “Look, downtown Austin,” and the screech of tires on pavement, with a hurried stop. Never did figure it out. Wasn’t weather, wasn’t traffic density, wasn’t anything I could tell. That’s what this is like, for no reason, “Look, the bright lights of the big city!” And traffic flow rolls to a stop. Either plan extra time for traffic, or use my worn out excuse, “You know, Mercury was retrograde.”
Pisces
There’s a trick and this year — so far — and no end in sight? This year is about Pisces and relationships. What’s happening, with Mr. Mercury and his apparent aberrant aberrations? We’re dredging up past mistakes. Past Pisces errata. Most, if not all, of my printed work contains a typographical mistake — or two. Not dating a Virgo so no one to correct me. What this does, though, brings up all the mistakes of the past, and passes them in front of the copious Pisces mind’s eye. Kind of a Pisces problem, at the moment. The trick? This is a review. Not a condemnation. Acknowledge the past, but don’t dwell in it. No time for that, as there’s new stuff ahead, but this is a long year that’s all about reviewing relationship material. We’re not done with it, either, but this next few weeks are the Pisces penultimate. Look up the definition of the term, “penultimate.”1 You do know what it means?
Aries
Momentary relief is around the corner, but I’m depending on a very un–Aries type of response. Pause. Instead of the usual, headlong, forward rush towards oblivion, taking a minor mess and making it a major catastrophe? Just stop until that pesky Mercury slips backwards into gentle Virgo, who, I might add, is having a much worse time than you are. So there is that. But the Virgo attention to details will drive you to desperate measures, if you’re not careful, which is why, when I started out, I suggested s very un–Aries type of response. Just hang on for a second. Just hang back for a second. Just, “Here, let me see, I need to check something,” and look down at your phone. Or glance at your notes. Better yet, look at my horoscopes, and remember, you just need to wait a second or something. Maybe two seconds. Maybe a minute? Just an un–Aries pause.
Taurus
When Mercury is retrograde, I have a handful of “Mercury is retrograde” projects, ongoing, endless, limitless, review, renew, revise, and most important? Revisit. There’s one I’ve been toying with for years, and this is as good a time as any to delve back into it: greatest hits. I have almost 30 years of horoscopes, and out of that, at least 27 years of weeklies — all online. My challenge is sorting through, and cherry-picking the “best of” those horoscopes. Then again, how to divide this up, and there’s a simple, logical progression at work within those decades of work. Organize by sign? Years? Decades? Influences? Kind of did that with the Portable Mercury Retrograde, but it fails, too. The idea, and this is an ongoing project, how to organize the material? I’ve taken several runs at it, and nothing has stuck — so far. While Mercury is Retrograde, and seeing how this is picking through the remains of a career, it’s the perfect time to go picking greatest hits from our collective past.
Gemini
Sooner or later, one learns to work within the framework of the stars. The exigencies foisted by the usual mercurial mayhem? Can’t say it was a surprise, and can’t say it was unexpected. The extra layer of tumultuous behaviors is due to the Virgo influence, but again, can’t say it was unexpected. However, there is certain lack of precision, and therein is the question — and answer — to our Gemini troubles. In as much as that vaunted precision is most desired? And how that desired precision is mostly lacking? Work with approximates. Work with approximations, estimates, good guesses, and inferred data sets. “Inferred data sets” implies information derived from observation then analyzed and applied, which makes it all more derivative, and as such, this gets a little tenuous at best. Like I suggested, though, we’re all working from approximations, so keep that in mind as Mercury slides backwards towards — and into — Virgo.
Cancer
I dig through several pages of material to arrive at the conclusion. “Recent studies,” and similar phrasing suggested that “happy employees are more productive.” No link. The article was too heavily leveraged with advertising and up-sell for more books and paper journals that guarantee success. Besides, I have to wonder, does that really require peer-reviewed, fact-checked, numbers-crunched information to prove the obvious? My original search was an answer to link bait about “What makes for better work environment.” So if happy employees are more productive, what can I suggest to move the meter over towards Moon Children, Cancer happiness? Mercury’s mistakes can lead to accidental happy discoveries. And like the article suggested, “Happy employees are more productive.”
The Leo
The biggest problem with a yeti-style coffee tumbler? I can’t pop that in the microwave and warm it up. My first one, still have it, it works well as long as I snap the lid on it, and that tumbler keeps my coffee hot long into a full shift. There are occasionally breezy mornings, and I’m still on a partial commute to Austin, and that tumbler of hot coffee is helpful. The original brand, Yeti, was known for really working, and really keeping the beverage hot, or cold, but the real secret? The lid. The biggest problem, though, is I can’t pop that yeti-style tumbler into a microwave. Or a dishwasher, if the warning labels are to be believed. I miss the convenience of microwave reheated coffee, but then, if I’m the least bit observant, I never have any cold coffee that needs to be reheated.
Virgo
I think, I knew, from a very young age, I wanted to be a writer. However, that desire, the yearn to create and express? That was thwarted, early on. Genetics, behaviors, family histories, and the tone of the times, all contributing factors. The delay was inevitable, and yet, that usurpation of my power? Turned out to be a large benefit because it gave me space to grow, experience, and be a part of bigger historical events. In turn, those detours enriched what I do. I learned from my mistakes, and those scars I wear with a degree of pride. But I eventually figured out how to turn mistakes, detours, missed cues, and liabilities into useful resources. What this is about, for Virgo, is it a Mercury Mistake, or can this be just a data point for future Virgo?
astrofish.net/travel for appearances
- penultimate — last but one, next to last, &c. ↩
