Saturn Return Can Bite Me

One more roundup of today's eclipse posts

• Planet Waves, part one: "In other words, this aspect pattern is about willful progressive decision-making, with the freedom to let go of what does not work (represented by the lunar South Node, the locus of Thursday’s eclipse) and integrate what does work (Chiron). Nobody has any excuse to claim being stuck at this point — the power of decision is right in your hands. You can think consciously and choose progress, which is the message of this aspect pattern.....The moment for planning your steps will come; but first, get your vision and your values in line, and get busy making choices. You know what is no longer serving you. You won’t disintegrate if you let it go; you’ll just be getting into the swing of things and opening up the space to choose again."
• Planet Waves, part two: "Eclipses are portals, and exploration during this one can help clear the deck on plenty of outdated ideas around what has worth in our lives."
• Libra Seeking Balance: "I doubt if there is a better time to start working on a long term project demanding endless patience than this New Moon Solar Eclipse at 19° 54′ Taurus on 9 May 2013 05:29 PM PDT."
• Silverwheel Astrology: "If you’ve had your head and heart in gear at all over the past weeks during pondering and decision-making time, a way forward will have been slowly getting your attention, a path emerging that stands you toward a specific direction, and this eclipse is the marker point if you like, of realising that this path has worth and value precisely because YOU want to follow it."
• Lara Owen: "Eclipses come in familes: this eclipse is part of Saros Series 138 South 15. Berbadette Brady in her book “The Eagle and the Lark” says that this eclipse series “is about release of tension. A situation which has been lingering will suddenly clear. In the clearing of the problem there is also a sense of grief or loss, which is not so much personal but belonging to the collective”.
• Aquarius Papers: "This New Moon in Taurus is stabilizing, mobilizing, opening new discoveries and views and pointing the way to radical shifts in resources, relationships, sense of purpose, and understanding our individuality. This will solidify what we began in April while taking away all those things and people that no longer are a part of our value structure. We are rapidly entering the end game of letting go of ghosts of the past that’s been going on for almost two years, and so as we are “gaining through loss,” trust the God within you and still your mind so you can receive impressions from higher planes."
• satori on ElsaElsa:  "Unlike your average New Moon, a Solar Eclipse typically involves an ending, revealing what we have to let go of, what needs to die, to clear space for a new start. Because this Eclipse is conjunct the South Node – old patterns that hold us back and block our evolution – there’s an especially strong focus on releasing the past, and in Taurus, we’re looking at issues around self-worth, self-love, over-attachment to material security and the status quo, and resistance to change (the famous Taurus stubbornness)."
• Virgo Magic: "The last new moon eclipse on the south node took place in May of 1994. At that time, the only planets in Taurus were the Sun and Moon. Thursday we have a stellium of personal planets. These are extremes of similarity and disparity. Expect that a similar issue to the one at the time will arise now, but expect that it will have a distinctly different twist. It wouldn’t hurt to look back at how you handled whatever crossroads you encountered back in the day. Whatever you learned then has a great likelihood of being knowledge you’ll build on now."
• Ruby Slipper: "There’s still going to be a new chapter. It’s unavoidable; eclipses set the agenda, like it or not. But the SN energy suggests you’ll be revisiting a past habit (Taurus) or scenario. This could mean unfinished business (and a chance to do it right, this time). What’s unfinished may or may not be obvious; depends if you’re tuned into the transiting South Node. But remember this: the area of your chart where the transiting SN is only represents the apparent issue that you need to release. The actual issue is represented by the location of your natal Venus (not transiting Venus)."
• Moonkissd: "If new moons herald endings and new beginnings, solar eclipses are super new moon doorways, heralding far bigger endings and beginnings. As we revisit what’s keeping us from tapping those peaceful, easy feelings of pleasure, the abundance and self-worthiness we most want in an area of life, we can flip the switch, seize the opportunity to advance 10 steps forward in that same area.  Since the days following a new moon are potent for intentions, make the commitment to value and increase your personal worth over the next few days. If you’re on the ledge of truly valuing your self – of taking a leap on your gifts, taking that risk, making that decision that will pay dividends in self-worth – as the old saying goes, “It’s time to put your money where your mouth is.”

Ghost Central?

That sounds...interesting...

Argh, How I Met Your Mother

Come ONNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!

Always having a Pluto transit

"If you’re doing a Pluto transit at the moment, you’re also doing a Uranus transit. You’re a Pluto Tripper walking embodiment of the Zap Zone. 11 degrees of everything are being zapped, bigtime, but especially 11 degrees of anything cardinal: Aries, Capricorn, Kataka, Libra."

This month's Astrology Zone

I haven't checked out Scorpio for this month yet...

"As the month opens, a gathering of heavenly bodies in your opposite sign of Taurus is about to take place. The "guests" - the planets to this grand party in Taurus - have already arrived, including the Sun, Mars, and Mercury, and they are all awaiting the new moon solar eclipse in Taurus to set off the festivities on May 9 / May 10 (depending on your time zone). They are all meeting in your partnership sector, where all your attention will be drawn. Scorpio likes to have ultimate control, but this month that won't be possible, not with so much energy in signs opposite yours. This month, it's clear you may have come to realize that one plus one equals more than the sum of the parts - in other words, more than you could ever do staying in solo mode.

You now have Saturn in your sign, so you are taking just about everything seriously, for Saturn is urging you to stabilize you life and to develop a plan for the future. Mars is opposite Saturn, so the buildup of cosmic energy in your opposite sign seems to have you wondering if the idea of collaboration or commitment to a partner is a good one. As the month starts, you seem temporarily stopped in your tracks, because you are thinking deeply about how best to move forward, or even if you should do so. That's because Mars is all about taking action, but when opposed to Saturn, now in Scorpio, you might freeze temporarily. Mars will move on, and that feeling should pass, but there is certainly no harm in going slowly and thinking through all you need to do. From where I sit, forming a partnership seems to be the right idea, dear Scorpio, but you can know for sure.

Eclipses are very important to pay attention to, as they work differently than other aspects. Their job is to get you moving, to shake you out of complacency, and to help you find the weak links in your life, whether that will relate to an important relationship, or to certain conditions or your own assumptions. The May 9/10 eclipse will affect you if you have been dating and you hope to marry - it appears that your partner is ready to commit if you are, and you might be, too. Eclipses mark big life events you long remember and that form the structure of your life.

I'll bet...though the relationship thing is not a factor here.

You just had a lunar (full moon) eclipse last month on April 25 in Scorpio 6 degrees, and if your birthday falls on October 29, you likely felt the effects of that eclipse quite directly. Saturn orbited close to that eclipse, so your mood may have been somber, or the message that came may have been weighty and serious. If your health is not good, you must see a doctor this month to keep you feeling your best, as occasionally an eclipse will show up a latent illness that you had no idea you had, and should go to a doctor for advice (only a small portion of Scorpios will feel that manifestation of the eclipse.)

Ergh....of course, I'm reading this while I wait to hear back from the HMO about a prescription snafu that I hope isn't as bad as it could be. I have woken up too early the last couple of days freaking about it, but of course you can't do shit about it on the weekends. Plus I got the "Thunderbolt" (yup, Tower again) card as a daily draw in tarot, so...gaaaaah.

As for the 25th, my mood wasn't somber, anyway. Though like I said, someone else Taurean had a hard go of it.

That eclipse of April 25 also had you seeing yourself in a new light, from your talents and desires, and asked you to think about what would you like to do in the future. Part of the mission of an eclipse is to shift your perspective and see conditions, and your own capabilities, in a new light. Often a puzzle piece comes out of the sky, and once put into your overall puzzle, changes the whole complexion of what you know - and suddenly certain mysteries make sense. Eclipses bring a big floodlight of truth.

 Good!

f you are in a relationship, you began thinking late last month about your future together, and whether you are ready now to commit. The partner you thought about, and will continue to think about this month, could be a partner from your career, say, a business partner, collaborator, writing partner, agent, or other expert you work closely with to do your job, and hopefully, to get ahead. A solar eclipse brings your career strongly into the conversation because Leo rules the Sun, and Leo is the ruler of your solar tenth house of career. It seems you do need a partner of some sort this month to get ahead professionally - a lawyer, headhunter, or other human resources expert.

That figures...I've had people indicate as such to me before. No wonder I'm stumped-nobody's been around for that sort of thing so far. 

Maaaaaybe soon?

 "Eclipses speed up timetables, so no matter what you had planned on previously, you may have to change that now. If you see no future, you may have left last month as a result of the April 25 eclipse, plus or minus five days. If you needed more time to think, you will likely make up your mind before May is finished."

Oh good.

"Still, if you planned to get engaged, say, next year, something may come up to make that happen much faster. Here is an example: your fiance gets a new job in a foreign country - such as London, England - and wants to marry sooner so that you both can go together. Eclipses make us make up our mind, even when we don't feel particularly ready to do so!"

 I am not worried on the sudden elopement thing, but...yeah, making up my mind when I don't feel ready...erk...but probably necessary at this point.

"I like this new moon solar eclipse for you. Arriving May 9/10, in Taurus 20 degrees, it will open a door on a new era for a close, committed relationship, whether you hope to join forces for business or for personal reasons, such as marriage. "

Score!

"Within the days that follow that eclipse, if the relationship is strong, and you feel there's a future by joining together, talk will come up concerning those serious plans. Mars, of your two rulers, will reach the same degree as the eclipse (20 degrees Taurus) on May 17, so it's a day to watch, for Mars rules action, and things may fall into place rapidly."

Hm.... I guess we'll see.  20 degrees isn't a hot spot for me (it's in between mine).

"Pluto will be friendly to this eclipse too, and Pluto is your other ruler, so that's significant. Marriage and business relationships are serious, contractual deals, and fortunately, Pluto is in your third house of agreements and contacts - another good sign of good things to come. It's so hard to get Mars and Pluto to agree on anything, so now that you have both in sync, you really do have an excellent outlook for forming an alliance."

Oookay then!

"An eclipse will always fall on a new moon or a full moon - two weeks apart. New moons are always (without exception) a solar eclipse, and similarly, all full moons are lunar eclipses. Full moon lunar eclipses are much more emotional than a new moon eclipse, as they bring things to a conclusion. Lunar (full moon) eclipses end things, while new moon solar eclipses like you have on May 9/10 begin things. I find solar eclipses (like May 9/10) to be exciting, and lunar eclipses, because they finalize things, sometimes make us a little sentimental.

What is the difference between a regular new or full moon and one that is eclipsed? A monthly, regular new moon or full moon would be powerful in their own right, but when eclipsed, they become much more so, with at least three times the power. Whoa! They become super strong! I have found that memorable marker dates tend to come up at eclipse time: engagements and marriage, births, promotions, the start of a new business, major surgeries, publication of an important new book, purchase of a house, the day to defend a thesis - you get the idea. Big life events, ones that become the pillars that form the very structure of your life, come at eclipse time.

As my mother, who taught me astrology, used to say, you may have wonderful aspects, but without a new or full moon to unlock its energy, it will just be lying dormant, but you won't feel it until you have a new or full moon in a significant angle to unlock its treasures. Typically there are only four eclipses in a given year, but this year we will have five - and three are happening within four weeks, now! As said earlier, you have already come through the April 25 eclipse, and now we have May 9 (or May 10) and one more - May 25. This is a month of great change and adjustment!

The May 25 full moon lunar eclipse in Sagittarius 4 degrees will bring a financial matter to a close. The house that is so strongly lit is your eighth house of income and possessions. You may get a large increase in salary or see your income stem from a new source. You may buy something important - like a house or a car you've been saving up to buy."

That'd be interesting on the car bit.

"You may pay out a sum, too, such as for back child support or a large amount of money you owe a relative, or see it come in, such as a large commission or royalty check. An inheritance may be finally settled, and a check may be dispatched to you. Eclipses tend to bring important events, so paying your regular monthly credit card bill would not fit here - it seems bigger and more important than that."

Hah, what inheritance? Sadly, no tax money is coming in this year, so that ain't it either. Lottery? If I ever actually played it?

"I am not saying that anyone will deliberately deceive you, but with Neptune sending vibrations to your money house, confusion may happen innocently. This is just another reason you need to see all facts and go over them carefully."

Sounds like my usual (Neptune in 2nd) when it comes to that sort of thing. Same diff.

"On the flip side, Uranus will be very friendly and may bring a source of income to you suddenly, quite out of the blue. This would be wonderful, and seems likely, but it will be up to you to respond quickly, to take full advantage! If you are in your own business, a new client may come in, and if you work for others, you may be asked to do a freelance project on the side (as long as that is OK with your present employer)."

Yeah, this would be more likely for the unlikely...hah, there's a sentence for ya. But yeah, I'll keep an eye out!

"Only two days after the eclipse, on May 27, Mercury will join with Jupiter in your house of other people's money, so that is a day you are likely to get superb financial news. That day, May 27, is the Memorial Day holiday, so most people are not working in the US. This day has a little halo around it, however, so you may hear news before the long weekend, on May 24, or just after, on May 28.

Speaking of May 28, Venus will meet with Jupiter on that day, an exceedingly rare aspect, making it divine for making a promise to your one-and-only sweetheart, or for hearing good news about money. You may win a contest, for example, or receive a beautiful, expensive gift. There are many possibilities, but the point is this: when it comes to month's end, Scorpio, you will have the Midas touch!"

Hmmm...I rarely remember to check these things later to see if anything actually happens around those days, but I should.

Today's astrobarry

Eclipse talk:

New moons provide us a monthly opportunity to reset our intentions and plant the seeds of that which we'll watch develop… and solar eclipses are the hyper-charged superhero version, bringing an extra life-transforming potency to whichever intentions we ritualize a commitment to shepherding into material being over the months to come. Thursday's Taurus eclipse is conjunct the lunar South Node, indicating that this one carries an energy of past habits culminating.

In the two weeks since Apr 25's Saturn-heavy lunar eclipse, we have become more acutely aware of how our long-repeated behavioral patterns have reaped certain results, which can only accrue over time... and of whether these results have left us delighted or disgruntled. Our recent attempts to alter the less desirable patterns likely reactivated them with renewed potency, as our inner stubborn-reactionary seeks to compensate for the discomfort of change. There is uncanny familiarity to this straddling of past and future. We have been here before. As we feel the attraction of that path-of-least-resistance pulling us backward into old habit, we can passively choose to succumb to its magnetic power—or we can stubbornly affirm our refusal to fall back, no matter the potential losses.

During the eclipse-dominated week ahead, Mercury and Mars will conjoin, an aspect that unites our mind (Mercury) with our might (Mars) for an unconflicted consolidation of personal energy. A Mercury-Mars conjunction means that our words will be undergirded by an attitudinal strength to carry through with what we say—an excellent influence with which to fortify our eclipse-inspired intention-setting. This conjunction also brings serious fighting power, should we need to demonstrate our unyielding resoluteness to those who may doubt us or threaten to obstruct our progress. Its Taurus tone permits us to be patient, should the situation demand that we restate our intent multiple times… but only up to a reasonable point. Once we cross that line to anger and/or discover the attempt to communicate our reality is falling on deaf (or just plain dense) ears, there will be no going back.

Just hours before the eclipse is exact, Venus will transition out of Taurus and into Gemini, a sign with a great deal more flexibility than its predecessor. (Venus stays in Gemini through June 2.) Considering that, as ruler of Taurus, Venus will serve as dispositor for the eclipsed Sun (as well as the Moon, Mercury and Mars), this dash of Gemini color promises to help us find alternatives in any circumstances where we have tired of hitting our head against an unmoving wall. Though our guiding resolve must remain firm if we hope to topple old habits and/or establish new ones, our relational methods of interacting with people who've been somewhat out-of-sync with our recent efforts to change could probably benefit from a bit of experimental tinkering.

During our roughest moments in the transformational process, according to Venus in Gemini, we might reach toward less obvious allies, folks with supportive sentiments we haven't already heard… try different modes of communication, diffusing any standoffs by adopting a 'side-door' manner of opening further dialogue… agree not to continue a dead-end debate, accepting instead the necessary partiality of certain interpersonal connections, learning to appreciate them for their areas of easier overlap while avoiding the touchier spots… and/or to simply turn the other cheek, focusing ourselves only on those social relations that help us get where we want to go and ignoring the others, temporarily or forever.

To consciously set a habit is to adamantly refuse to allow encounters with any complicating obstacle (whether an internal psychological knot to untangle or an external conflict to navigate through) to sap our spirit, discouraging us from believing we can succeed. To set a habit is to preserve our precious forward momentum no matter what it takes, even at certain collateral costs.

And horoscopes:

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): This is a lot of energy to be expending on angling for position in relation to that certain someone else. Not that this an unfamiliar role to once again find yourself in, is it, Scorpio? It's almost like you're built for constant preoccupation with the ever-changing psychological state of whoever's co-starring with you in the latest epic… and for constantly bouncing your own varying efforts-of-engagement at them, from one dramatic angle and then another, to determine what might stick the best landing. Interpersonal engagement, of course, is one of the greatest blessings of being alive. The insights into the human condition which you possess, likewise, provide you a shrewd ability to feel into the specific zones where you're likeliest to strike the most charged connection with your target-of-interest. But does that shrewd insightfulness sometimes work against you in relationship? After all, too acute an awareness of what makes another person tick, tingle, or turn on can actually cause you to play to their reactions—as opposed to, say, just doing what you would do regardless of what they're up to. In other words, you could get so caught up in successfully generating desired responses in others, you overlook what you as an individual most desire. Remember your approach to relationships is now actively evolving. To help it along, consider energy conservation as a goal.

I want to make some comments on the Taurus one:

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Thursday's south-node-conjoined super-Taurean solar eclipse is an outstanding occasion for you to bid a firm farewell to self-identifications that just don't serve you. As you well know, Taurus, the mirror-reflection of your sign's steadfast reliability is a fierce resistance to too-much-too-soon change: Why make a move until you're damned sure it's the right one? Yet, after too long, the motivational self-talk about how you want to change your life (but only once this, that, or the other has been completely taken care of or solved) coagulate into hollow words you subconsciously start to doubt, much as a disappointed friend might learn to ignore that one more promise made to them when it's uttered atop a field of broken ones.

Hah. That is so very, very, absolutely true. I haven't the faintest idea how one flies by the seat of their pants on that! 

When I say there is no time like the present to actually make the change, I am not speaking idiomatically: This is literally the most excellent time to force those rooted feet out of the indentations they've eroded into their cushy resting-places, and onto unfamiliar terrain. Ritualize this moment with at least one risky step… an initiatory adoption of some behavior which, though it may go against the constantly-rerunning stories you tell yourself about who you are and what you do, is absolutely essential for enacting the change(s) you already know you want to make. To help this along, I strongly suggest physically removing some material item from your life that symbolizes who you aren't anymore.

Well, I don't have the time to worry about throwing things out of my house, but I am definitely doing one risky initiation step soon...

Today's Michael Lutin

Astrology Class is all about Taurus and your mother today.

Next week in review:

this Eclipse can create a ravenous appetite and/or ferocious greediness to fill an unfillable hole.

There is little point in telling anybody right now that all life is a silly illusion,

EVEN THOUGH IT IS,
mainly because when you do have great needs that imust be satisfied.
you're likely to just chomp away at life till you're full.

Yes, moderation
Yes, self restraint.
And all that.

But too many people have missed too many meals, literally and otherwise.

So we tend to substitute one thing or another to allay our hunger and thirst.
Yours can be found below.

TAURUS AND TAURUS RISING You’ve got to fight for independence now. Asserting yourself and covering up all your doubts and insecurities could be a full time job, especially because anybody looking in from the outside sees what’s going on with you. Compensating for the fact that you are, for the moment anyway, being asked to participate in playing a more, dare we say it, traditional “female” role only allows others who support you to show you that you need to be grateful to be able to be on the receiving end for a change.

SCORPIO AND SCORPIO RISING
Promise yourself you won’t forget the fact that the magic of infatuation is fun but gets dangerous if you go overboard and idealize another person to the extent that you blind yourself to their human flaws. Naturally you can’t play cop and keep the lights on all the time. There is no sin in allowing yourself to be infatuated from time to time. When you have so many responsibilities and everybody needs or wants something from you, is it so wrong to look for comfort in the arms of a stranger?

Death in a tarot reading

Okay, so this isn't a tarot blog, but I want to post it anyway. If you've ever wondered what death in a tarot reading would be indicated by, this entry (in vague terms, not pinpointing any cards, but I'd guess 10 of Swords would be among them), and especially HOW TO HANDLE IT, this is what you want to read.

"Is THIS dating in your 40's?!"

"Dating in your 40s is basically Uranian Dating as it’s after your Uranus Opposition – and it’s not so much the Saturn dating you do earlier on, when you’re move looking for a father/mother of your possible children and/or responsible co-financial household partner person. Apres 40, you’re presumably individuated, able to function healthily as a solo unit and after more companionship, sex, intellectual rapport. So it’s wilder by definition."

In time or through time?

This is a pretty cool read. I am so clearly a "through time" person.