FULL HARVEST MOON TONIGHT!

How many ways can you say emotional? Tonight the Full Moon is in Pisces and is in conjunction with the wounded warrior Chiron. A Pisces Full Moon is always an emotional time as it occurs in the month when we go from the full bloom of summer to the dying process of autumn. While this is indicative of the entire birth-death-rebirth process of life, there is something sad to many of us when we see it materialize before us. Pisces is the dreamer sign and the sign that tends toward feeling victimized. It is easy to just pout and dream of the recently gone summer days then get on with life during this transit.

The Moon with Chiron, the asteroid of the wounded warrior, where we keep our deepest pain submerged from ourselves, creates a lot of stick our head in the sand and dream of a prettier world type of energy. Chiron in Pisces stirs up painful memories of the long ago and far away, that we would rather keep buried.

Those people prone to depression, drug dependency and other escapist temptations should be very careful for the next few days. This is a highly emotional time of balancing deep feelings and can be too much for those easily effected by this type of upheaval.

If you need to keep your eye on something for stabilization use that Virgo Sun. Virgo is the worker of the zodiac, the practical, Earth Keeper. Hey, there is a good idea, get out of your sadness and go do something good for Mother Earth. Harvest the last of your garden; go buy some winter rye to protect it this winter. If you do not have a garden then visit a farmers market, get some mums for your front door. Go dig up your mother’s favorite autumn recipe and balance the sadness with fond memories.

Speaking of a good and happy autumnal recipe check out my:

Zucchini, Chocolate Cookies

Makes about 3 dozen large cookies

1-cup applesauce

2 eggs plus 1 egg white

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups coconut flour

1-cup chocolate chips

½-cup coconut flakes

1-teaspoon baking soda

½-teaspoon salt

1 3/4 cups grated zucchini

2 teaspoons nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray cookie sheets with cooking spray or line with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, mix well the ingredients except the zucchini. Once well mixed, fold in the grated zucchini. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

These freeze well!

A Full Moon Rising – Tomorrow!

A full Moon brings what has been in the dark – your subconscious – into the light. With the Sun now in Cancer, the opposite sign, the sign of the opposing Moon is Capricorn. (For the Moon to be “full,” it must be as far away as it can be from the Sun.) Cancer and Capricorn are the “mommy” and “daddy” signs. Cancer is the epitome of traditional motherly, nurturing energy and Capricorn is more the authoritarian father energy.

This full Moon is a good time to balance that yin and yang energies – the male and female polarity that exists in everyone. This might be a good time to analyze where you are giving up to much of your power and energy taking care of others as opposed to nurturing yourself (having authority over yourself.)

Masculine and feminine is not really about sex – it is about balancing those two halves that need to be healthy in all of us. Are we compassionate and nurturing enough without harming ourselves? Are we self-assertive enough, can we express our anger properly? These are all questions we need to ask during this wonderful full Moon.

The Moon will be “full” at 7:24 AM EDT so you have the whole day on Saturday to balance that Moon energy! Enjoy

Everyone Breath!–

As my dear friend, artist extraordinaire, Arlene Weinstock, would say – breathe!  The Moon is in quixotic Aquarius right now. Aquarius is full of highly charged, changeable energy.  Right now, the Moon is conjuncting Neptune. Moon in Neptune regardless of the sign placement always gives me a little bit of start because high level of unreality that surrounds Neptune.

I always describe the effects of Neptune by asking people to think of a great whale in the ocean. In the water – the whale glides with grace and beauty through the water. Take it out and it clomps around – flaps and dies on land. Neptune wants to be in the ocean of the spirit. On Earth, it devolves into a web of illusion and escapism – it wants to go back to spirit.  

So when the Moon, our emotional barometer, is in hinky Aquarius and is next to confusing Neptune – well, you can see it is a pattern for blow ups, upsets, emotions being brought up that are deep in subconscious. So, therefore, everyone – breath!

Full Moon Time!

The full Moon this month will be on June 13 at will take place at 22 degrees Sagittarius.   I love Sagittarius full Moons perhaps because my North Node is in Sagittarius. However, it is more than that. It is June, everything is in bloom, and everything is growing and expanding. Isn’t that the essence of Sag: growth, breaking our borders, reaching beyond our roots?  I always think about Sagittarius as a shooting arrow into the world – just like the flower and vegetable seeds are sprouting outward and upward.

If you have Sagittarius prominently placed in your chart – either North Node, rising sign, sun sign, use this time to feel that energy. Where do you have to get out of your safe zone? Where do you need to grow? Where are you stagnating?

The positive aspects of Sagittarius are optimism, adventurousness, generosity, and intellectualism. Use them!

It’s June, it is a Sagittarius full Moon – go for it! Grow.

Contact me for a review if you want to explore the Sagittarius aspects of your chart.

Corn Planting Moon in Scorpio - May 14

Happy Corn Planting Moon (or Flower Moon.) I love these Moon names because they remind us of the days when we were really connected with nature and the energy of the Universe.

This Moon will be in the sign of Scorpio - the Sun, of course, is in the opposite sign of Taurus. A Moon is "full" when it is furthest from the Sun. If you have been following along with me in the past month when I spoke about the change that the "grand cross" brought to us, hopefully for the better, then view this Full Moon as the final brushstroke of that change.

Scorpio, ruled by Pluto, is the sign of change of transformation. Use this full Moon for a time to take the changes that you worked on during the "grand cross" for a test drive. What is working? What do you need to "tweak" and where are you falling back on your old ways?

The Moon will be at its fullest at 3;16 PM so while you won't be able to see it then you can still tune into the energy.

Happy Full Moon and get the rows of new habits planted just as you would your corn!

The Blood Moon - April 15!!

The pink or “blood” full Moon* will take place during the lunar eclipse (you have to have a full moon to have an eclipse) on April 15. There is no doubt this is a very active astrological time (see my blog entry on the Grand Cross.) If you are one inclined to be spooked, the fact that this full Moon will occur when it is entering the constellation of Scorpio, coupled with the Grand Cross can make you a wee bit nervous.  A blood Moon in Scorpio during the Grand Cross – lions and tigers and bears…

Fear not my stargazers. Think of the energy of an eclipse – bringing new energy. Combine that with the energy of Scorpio – the sign of personal change and transformation and you have all of that cardinal energy of the Grand Cross. Don’t bury your head in the sand in fear – use this time to make huge changes in your life. Come on!

In addition, if you are one who can contact the “other side” with some ease you will find that talent enhanced at this time.  Scorpio is all about contact with those who have gone on before us. Even if you do not think you have this talent – sit quietly and concentrate on those who are no longer here. You might be seeing signs or hearing their voices.

*A blood Moon often happens during a lunar eclipse because the eclipse action scatters a lot of colors but not the red.  That is a really shorthanded explanation but you get my drift. 

Worm Moon and Updates on the Grand Cross.

On March 7, I wrote about the grand cross that will peak on April 20 -21:

Of course, there are elements who are prone to anger and attack. I personally think that these retrogrades will cause someone or some faction we are not expecting, to cause the biggest problem. Saturn and Mars retrograde are anger and aggression turned inward.

The next day the sad and still unfinished saga of Malaysia flight 370 began. The grand cross makes the buried anger out in sad ways. Now we watch the Ukraine but with this we must always expect the totally unexpected.

On a more uplifting topic, enjoy the Worm Moon today. No really, that is one of the names of this phase – the Worm Moon. It is a time in spring when the robins are to start pulling worms from the thawing ground. Of course, we are expecting six inches of snow in Washington, DC tonight. Hey – the unexpected!

This Moon is “full” when it is the furthest it can be from the Sun – and this one happens when the Sun is in Pisces and the Moon in Virgo. Pisces/Virgo is the victim – martyr axis. These signs are classic at being self-defeatist and self-deprecating to a fault. So take this time to find out where you are playing the “don’t worry about me” grandma in your life and find a little balance.

The Moons of February - Get Ready for Pisces Energy

YES! There was a full Moon on Valentine's Day and it was in Leo. I didn't post that information and heard from a few people about that. Sorry! So for your planning  - there will be a new Moon on February 28th and it will be in Pisces. For those who do new Moon manifestations - this is a very spiritual Moon.  Not only will the Moon be in Pisces, but it will be conjunct with Neptune, the planet the rules Pisces. There is no better time to let the imagination and your spiritual awareness soar.

Jupiter, which in the days before Neptune made its appearance to us, was given ruler ship of Pisces, will be making a harmonious aspect to both bodies. Jupiter's energy is one of expansion and reaching beyond our borders. Moon dreams, Neptune spirituality and Jupiter growth --- it all sounds like a wonderful combination!

Yes, Jupiter will still be in retrograde for another month. So you will have to do a little more work to tap into that energy. Half the fun is in getting there isn't it?

Full "Moonth" in Cancer January 15

“Every ‘Moonth’ the Moon travels around the Earth through the whole circle of the sky. The Moon’s Old English name was Mona from that name we acquired the word ‘month.” The Old Lady’s walkabout was 29 ½ days. If you have the patience to watch her journey night after night in a single month you will see that the road she travel is the same one she traveled last month and she will be found there the next and the next and the one after that. As she walks the Road in the Sky she stops to visit friends and family, i.e., she meets up with the stars that live alongside the Road. Her visits are brief for she has a long way to go – clear around the sky – so she must hurry on.”

I love that quote from Wendy Ashley’s “Paleoskies.”  Wendy is an astro-anthropologist who watches the planets (from the word wanderer) make their seemingly endless journey around the skies. She is part of wonderful movement to bring us back to the sky – to make us remember what is going on in the universe as we busy ourselves with our “important” Earthly work.

This week, on Jan. 15, the Moon will have “walked” furthest away from the Sun – and thus we will have a “Full Moon.” Freed from the Sun’s brilliance the Moon shows us her full light. This Full Moon will be in Cancer. The Sun is in the opposite sign of Capricorn. This is a typical Mommy – Daddy battle. Cancer is the sign of the nurturer – vibrates to the fourth house -typical assigned to Mother, home and roots. Capricorn is the taskmaster – the uber-father. 

This is a perfect time to work on the balance between how you are nurturing themselves – and others – and how much you are being too hard on yourself or others. I always say Capricorn is where we “should” all over ourselves. “I should be doing this – I should be doing that – I am not good enough.” Cancer is the active but nurturing Mom that offers us that other cup of tea to relax.

So at this full Moon time think of the balance you are or are not striking between those two in your life. We often forget that we can have the second cup of tea!

Major Gemini-Sagitarrian Activitiy TODAY!

The question of today is where is Gemini at 27 degrees in your chart?  Let me explain.

Every year at this time, the Sun passes over the Galactic Center - the rotational point of Milky Way. The Center is at 27 degrees Sagittarius - so 27 degrees into the constellation of Sagittarius is the center of the Milky Way.  (The Sun is at 25 degrees Sagittarius now and will be fully at 27 degrees on Thursday.)

Today we are going to experience a full Moon - (when the Sun and Moon are opposing one another in the sky. The Moon is "full" because it is far away from the Sun and its natural light flows uninhibited.  That full Moon is in Gemini at 27 degrees. 

Gemini and Sagittarius share an astrological axis. Gemini is the ruler of our thoughts, the way we communicate. Sagittarius is where we go out into the world and explore to hone our truth and expand our knowledge. Both deal with expressing ourselves. 

This is a perfect Moon placement to expand our perceptions, explore our beliefs, and examine how our mental tapes are running. From now until the Solstice on Saturday, we should be tuning into those energies to help clear out our mental cobwebs, finding, and expressing our truth! 

To help this new mental energy flow even better we finally have Uranus (rebellious, new energy) out of retrograde. It is at station direct - meaning it is sort of appearing to stand still in the sky but it is not heading backwards. Use Uranus - set that goal to be honest with your thoughts and honest with others.

So back to my first question - where is Gemini at 27 degrees in your chart. That is the area where this activation vibrates most for you. For me it is in 9th house - the house of Sagittarius, which happens to be my North Node. Wow, I have no excuse not to pursue and live my truth now. I had better get to work!

A Few More Retrogrades Bite the Dust...

Did you feel the shift this weekend? Besides the full Moon in Taurus we had last night, this weekend saw the movement of Neptune and the asteroid Chiron into a direct motion. They had been retrograded for a good part of 2013. Pluto led the way earlier this month and Uranus will follow next month. Then once we have Jupiter heading forward things will be smoother - once we get over the horrible Grand Cross in April - but let's not dwell on that so close to Thanksgiving.

This will be a bumpy week emotionally as the Moon makes a quick pass through Cancer on Wednesday and Thursday squaring Uranus and then opposing Pluto along the way. Moon and Uranus interactions are a time of high and changeable emotions. It is best to stay away from "jumpy" or "high strung" people at that time. Pluto will be anything but excitable and will bring on sadness and a questioning of our emotions. The good news is the Moon never tarries! So just breath and think of the big guys going direct! We need some good energy from them for a change.

Scorpio Eclipse November 3 –See it or FEEL it?

OK ready or not here comes the eclipse! What does this mean astrologically? All eclipses give as a great possibility to initiate change in our lives. Solar eclipses are a new beginning – because we are seeing the coming together of the opposite forces – the yin and yang – Sun –fire and Moon – emotion. It is a great time to make plans, commitments, and decisions and say I am going to do this. It is like one big New Year’s resolution but with cosmic energy instead of ten martini’s to back it up. What I find funny is so many people want to “see” the eclipse (NOTE: watch your eyes – there are correct ways of doing that) but how many people want to feel it – to live it – to embody the energy of it? This eclipse is in Scorpio – a very transformative energy. Scorpio demands that we dig deep within ourselves, overcome our secrets, fears, and taboos, and find a new sense of power. The questions that we should be asking are where does this eclipse interact with my chart – where should I be feeling the energy of change?

DOG DAYS AND BLUE MOONS

As a kid I always remember hearing about the “Dog Days of Summer.” I didn't have a clue what it meant but it ws hot and humid and the dogs were panting and lying down more than usual so it must have something to do with it - so I decided dog days are hot summer days in August. Little did I know that, of course, had roots in ancient astrology. It is the time of year when the star Sirius (called Canis Major, or the Dog Star) can be seen in the eastern sky just before dawn. Dog Days! Of course!  Well we are now in the dog days and watery days they are. 

All the big slow guys,  Jupiter, Saturn and Neptune in water signs and will be for the foreseeable future. You know water loves to delve deeply into the emotional issues and with Neptune being in retrograde - you can expect those emotional issues to be backing up on you - particularly if you are not getting in touch with them. Use the time to assess emotional issues - don't keep pushing them under the rug. 

OK now August 21 is going to be a hum-dinger because Jupiter, Uranus and Pluto will be in a t-square  - that is a bunch of oppositions - Jupiter - Pluto and then a square to Uranus. Emotions will be ragged - oh and did I mention that Pluto is also retrograded. You will feel "picked on" and judged and can find yourself and others lashing out at each other for reasons that are not the real ones. "You made the door slam again could be a cover up for "Why don't you ever listen to me?" on the 23rd and 24th Venus and the Moon get hung up in this mess. Oh great the goddess of love and the one of emotions in a vast, difficult square with the watery big guys. Everyone remember to count to 10 please! 

It might not be a good time to tell you this but there will be a "Blue Moon" on the 20th - the second full Moon of the month it that unique and rebellious sign of AQUARIUS.  Yeah folks - hold on to your wigs - this is going to be a bumpy week. Better go outside and play with the dogs! 

Full Moon Royal Baby - Born to Bring Change!

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I get a strong feeling from his chart that the new royal baby is going to use his Capricorn Moon to brood over the power and luxury he was born into and then, when he takes control of the throne, and with that force of his incredible 7^th house – modernizes, changes and brings his country into the new century in a way that is remembered for a very long time.  

The new British royal baby boy who was born today at 4:24 PM London time just shy of a total full Moon. Had he waited a few more hours it would have been complete but with the Moon just 2 degrees away from Aquarius and the Sun already 0 degrees Leo - well it is close enough. 

We consider the Moon "full" when it appears totally lit and round.  This is because it is the furthest from the Sun and is out of the grasp of the its rays. The Moon is always "full" we just can't see it when the sunlight is normally hogging a lot of the space.

Full Moon babies sometimes have a hard time connecting to their  emotions. Expressing their emotions, understanding them, feeling and channeling them will all be hurdles to conquer. During those times when the Moon goes "full" every month, if it is a constellation that activates his Natal Moon, he is going to be a bit off kilter for a day or so. 

I find it interesting that his Moon is in Capricorn. Capricorn Moon people are more serious and might even be prone to depression and with his Moon squaring Saturn I would alert the family to watch for depression and because the Moon is in the 2^nd house of self-worth he might have to learn that he is “worthy” of the office he has been assigned to a birth. Still a monarch with a serious Capricorn Moon will serve him better than a more loosey-goosey Aquarius Moon. 

Speaking of Saturn – what issues is he going to have with daddy? He has Saturn right on the North Node – which again makes him more serious but also makes him more prone to have daddy issues.

However, that Saturn North Node placement is even more important in light of his profession! Follow me here.

Nodally speaking, he has his past life indicator of the South Node in Taurus in the 5^th house and his North Node – where he should be going to in this life – in Scorpio in the 11th.  He shares that placement with such luminaries as Charles Darwin and Abraham Lincoln – not too shabby.  Taurus South Node people are comfortable relying on their physical self – they withhold, withstand and are as stubborn as all get-out. His Venus (ruler of Taurus) is in Virgo – so you want someone who gets a goal in his head and never budges – well watch this baby as he grows! No one will get him off course!

Scorpio 11^th house North Node people are fulfilled when they bring about some great social change. Now back to Saturn on the North Node. Saturn represents all male authority structures – like say a 1000 year old monarchy for instance!  He will fulfill his North Node if he stubbornly sticks to his guns and brings about vast and lasting change to the monarchy.

Like his late grandmother Diana, the baby has Sagittarius rising. This is good for several reasons. Sag. rising people are outgoing, athletic, inquisitive and good at people skills. The ruler of Sagittarius is Jupiter and his is right in the middle of a powerful stellium in the 7^th house. In his 7^th house, the house of intimate and contractual relations, Jupiter is joined by Mars, Mercury, Lilith and Pallas Athena all in the compassionate water sign of Cancer. This is where he will excel, with leading people by his action and his words – to take up the causes of the down-trodden or showing people how they can help and nurture people.

Pluto is still in retrograde and his is again on that tricky 2^nd house – so he is going to work hard on feeling that he is doing something to earn his position. As long as he doesn’t beat himself up that should be OK.

The retrograde that I find really funny is Uranus in the 4^th. That is an indicator of being born into a unique and rather odd family and having an interesting and even difficult childhood. Well , yeah we can all see that can’t we?

Full Moon Tonight

Tonight, February 25th is the so called "Ice Moon," the February full moon. Of course, if you live in the D.C. area  you get no snow or ice or winter...but I digress.

A moon is "full" when it is furthest from the Sun. As you can see in the chart below, the Moon is tucked away in the 12th house and all the way across the chart, the Sun is in the 6th. When the Moon escapes the light of the Sun it can shine most brightly over us.

The Moon is in Virgo in the 12th, the house of secrets. Remember too the we are in a state of retrograded Mercury. So please, please watch for communications missteps, words not said or words expressed in anger instead of peace. This is the time to think twice before criticizing and bringing up old hearts and to really, really think before you speak!

Hanukkah Chart

Hanukkah always falls on the same date in the Jewish calendar. It is when we mesh that calendar with the Western calendar that the days move around. This year it begins tonight....by the way, next year it starts on November 27!

The Jewish calendar is lunar so let's take a look at the Moon tonight. The chart above is calculated for sundown, which is 4:28 PM EST today, December 8. Fittingly, the Moon is in Libra, in the 5th house. Since this is a holiday of gifts, fun and celebration, Libra - the sign of friendship and sharing with the other person is a good sign for the Moon to be in. The 5th house is the house where we express our creativity - where we have fun and are kids so be a kid tonight on Hanukkah!

Just beware of gossipy family members! The ascendant is in Gemini - the sign of communications - and it's ruler, Mercury is in Scorpio - the sign that loves to ferret out secrets. Because Mercury is in the 6th house - the house of work and health - be careful not to tell that snoopy old aunt you hate your job or your feet hurt if you don't want it spread around the family like wild fire. Jupiter and Vesta in retrograde on the ascendant will make people want to share a bit too much.

With Juno, the asteroid of loyalty in the 7th house, the house of intimate relationships - be sure to have lots of people who REALLY mean something to you over this year. Show and tell them how much you really love them.

And Happy Holidays all!!!

Lunar Eclipse June 4.

Now that we have just come through the solar eclipse we are gearing up for the lunar one! A partial lunar eclipse will take place on June 4, 2012. Although it will only be visible in Europe, East Africa, Asia, Australia, Pacific and a small portion of the Americas the energy will be felt by all of us. An eclipse of the Moon takes place when the Moon is "full" and can only occur ifthe Moon passes through some portion of the Earth's shadow. The closer the Moon is to the center of the shadow, the more total the eclipse. Astrologicaly speaking a lunar eclipse is a great time for new beginnings mostly because it can bring about some hum dinger of endings. When the Moon is "full" it is opposite the Sun - so there is a disconnect between emotions and action. It can be a time when all of those annoying little things at work or in a partner really hit home. If you are born during a lunar eclipse expect to have some emotional explosions throughout your life as you will be wrestling with this emotiona-action energy during your lifetime. So if you want to avoid fights or lose your job - hang tight for a few days around the eclipse! Then again if you are itching for a fight.........................

Oh Stop Grumbling

I got a call from a friend yesterday. "What the heck is going on - it is a horrible day for everyone here?" Well calls like that send me right to my friendly computer to divine the answers from on high - yes, from Microsoft. Well there it was in black and white, sort of. The Moon is now conjuncting Saturn and it is "full" too boot.

Look to the left of the chart. See the crescent shape of the Moon sitting right next to the funky H, the symbol for Saturn? They are conjunct one another - meaning the influence of Saturn is all over the poor little Moon. Now is a "bad" thing but it does constrict things and can have a very depressive influence. So if the Moon rules emotions and Saturn is beating up on it - do you see where grumpiness can ensue? Don't worry the Moon is a fast mover, it will be pulling away in a day or two. P.S. You can tell when the Moon is "full" when it is across from the Sun - the Sun is the circle with a dot in the middle. The further from the Sun, the more the Moon can "shine."

I just love relgious holidays that follow the stars...!

Happy Easter and Happy Passover. I do just love religious holidays that have their roots in the movements of planetary bodies! Easter is calculated as the first Sunday after the paschal full moon that occurs on or after the vernal equinox. If the full moon falls on a Sunday, then Easter is the following Sunday. The holiday can occur anywhere between March 22 and April 25. Of course, since Passover came first it too follows an astronomical path. Passover begins on the night of a full moon after the northern vernal equinox.

While you are enjoying your Easter meal remember that the word derives from Eoestre the pagan celebration in honor of the young goddess who would shower d the countryside with eggs during the vernal equinox.

Which ever Spring celebration you partake in have fun and remember they are wonderful connections to the universe and the stars above us.

Full Moon

Don't forget to catch the full Moon! It is so pretty over the Ocean here in Maine! The Moon is "full" when it is directly opposite - or the furthest away from the Sun -- because it isn't competing with Sun energy we can see it at its maximum.....