I do this thing where I close my eyes and ask for symbols for different astrological happenings. When I asked for a symbol for Jupiter in Libra, I got an image of a jolly fellow with arms spread wide in welcome to his friends who were near. It turns into a nice little rhyme, actually:

“Arms spread wide, with friends by your side”

I suggest you adopt this as a mantra starting Friday, September 9th and carry it with you all the way through the end of the year and beyond (Jupiter will go retrograde in Libra next year, but I’ll wait until it’s closer before I say anything about it).

Libra is a social sign and Jupiter is all about expansion. So, go ahead and increase the time you spend in social situations. Been meaning to start up a potluck? Go ahead! Been wanting to start some new educational program? I bet you’ll make friends there! Changing jobs? Perhaps your new colleagues will be more your style! Any way you slice it, it seems Jolly ol’ Jupiter is waiting with open arms. Go ahead and join him!

Well, my dream of hosting a podcast has finally been realized! And, may I say that it would not have been so timely (nor, perhaps, even POSSIBLE!) without the support of Kristen McKee of Insideout Savvy.

May 9 Marks a special point in this current Mercury Retrograde when we get a fantastic little breather! How nice. :) The reason for this is what is called an occultation (explained below- easier than it sounds). Meanwhile, there is a juicy Grand Trine in Earth and some other things going (including a powerful New Moon in Taurus this weekend) that all align to mean big power potential in Earthy matters (money, health, body, wealth, food, etc.). There is so much going on! I won't go into all of it, here, but below is an article of mine that was published in the Astrological Association's January/February issue of The Astrological Journal. Check out the horoscope section to see how YOUR May 9 is shaping up (note: if you know your rising sign, look for that, but if not, your sun sign will still give you some insight!). Without further ado....

It turns out that I have a Sagittarius butt. And as a matter of fact, so do YOU! Well… sort of.

In Medical Astrology, each sign ‘rules’ a different part of the body. Sagittarius (as you can see in the photo) rules the rumpus and the thighs. Now, if you have a planet in Sagittarius -particularly a ‘luminary’ (the sun or the moon)- this area of the body may be ‘highlighted’ for you, as it is for me… And my sister, as it turns out: we both have the same butt! That’s genes you say? Well, yes, certainly… AND it’s Sagittarius (my moon, her sun)!  Our other sister has a similar butt, as a matter of fact (genes?!) and she doesn’t have a luminary in Sagittarius (I knew it! Genes!!). However… She DOES have Venus in Sagittarius!! (Haha! Astrology!)

Anyway, enough about butts…

Let me just go ahead and say that this whole Venus thing is not panning out as initially imagined. I had thought that it would be a Project (note the capital P), but it turns out to be more of a personal practice (lowercase... twice). At any rate, it continues to delight and inspire. If it is true that things continue as they are begun, then this Venus project is right on schedule! The very first ‘event’ was an invitation broadcast to many, though it was only myself, my child, and my close, witchy friend who also has Venus in Leo who showed up! It was a delight. Perfect! Though, considerably different from what I had imagined. No matter. Venus doesn't seem to mind. She keeps on working.

So, though it has not been the outreach vehicle that I had first imagined, it has certainly fed me and my friends!

With this ‘confession’ out of the way, let’s move on to the latest couple of signs Venus has gone through and how it showed up for me (and maybe for you, too? Let me know! I’d love to hear YOUR Venus stories!!!).

You have an interest in de-cluttering, but: Where to begin?! And: How to know what to let go of? Let me share with you my fun little secret. It's so easy and fun and feels a bit like playing with a Magic 8 Ball back when you were a kid! ;-) Only this tool is one you can make yourself, or probably even already have, in some fashion or another! It may be considered a woo-woo, new age, magical, witchy thing, but let me tell you: IT IS TOTALLY PRACTICAL!! and available to ANYONE!! :)

Have you guessed what it is, yet?

It’s a New Year AND a New Moon! What a great time to set intentions - whether you set them for the year, the current moon cycle (culminating at the next full moon), or the extended moon cycle (about 9 months- culminating when the Capricorn New Moon becomes a Capricorn Full Moon!), or just in general (“From now on, I’d like to…”).

I think I’ve figured out why New Year’s Resolutions don’t always work: Our gregorian calendar turns (changing the year) while the Sun is in Capricorn, which is an ideal energy for setting new Aspirations, but it only lasts for a month! It seems to me that a better idea might be to consider what energies will be available when and to try to align our aspirations with them in order to get the most out of intention-setting. So, here is your handy-dandy guide!

Sometimes I have these dreams where I know I'm in a dream and I can't get out and it's really scary. I feel like I'm trapped, maybe forever. Last night I was having a dream like that, and then I realized on the spot and by trial of fire how to deal with it. Here's what I learned (and note what a great set of rules for LIFE my dreamland learnings make!).

How to survive a dream (or life):

• Have fun as much as possible.
• The more you resist, the more it sucks. Keep on moving.
• Stay engaged. That's your power.
• You can't always control it or wonder what it means all the time. But you might find out later if you keep going, and pay attention.
• Even if you feel stuck, know that you are OK. You won't be here forever.
• When you finally wake up, STAY AWAKE.
  

<3

It’s not what you think… She doesn’t ‘take me down’ as in some kind of cosmic wrestling move. Rather, the move is inward and ‘downward’ as in depth-of-consciousness. I have been more still, working my inner world and inner life. Shaping my sacred practices. Working both the sacred and the taboo. More like a trip into the ‘underworld’ or ‘otherworlds’.

Every Venus incarnation surprises me. Many of them have been on-topic for the sign that she is in, but not all of them have been as obvious as one might think:

What is Beautiful Learning? For me, it is about self-development that is deep, practical, and effective and which leads to betterment of one’s life experience as well as the life experience of those affected by each of us, thereby rippling outward, making the world a slightly better place. This is a pretty broad definition and could apply to many things. However, this part of the definition mainly applies to the term “Learning”. Another aspect of what I think of as Beautiful Learning is a bit more magical/mystical/mysterious and applies to the bridge between (or the pathway through) “Beautiful” and “Learning”. It is the part that involves what I like to refer to as the ‘Otherworlds’. Otherworlds is, itself, a vague notion and might be summed up in a variety of ways, but for me it remains at once practical and magical/mystical/mysterious.

 I’ve been wondering what Venus in Libra would be like. All I had to go on at first was the correspondence to the Tarot card Justice. But, I didn’t really get it. It has taken me living into it a little to feel it out and figure it out. Libra is often touted as the harmonious, balanced, social, beauty gal. But, I have also noticed a tougher side to her where she has quite a bit more ‘edge’ than all of those flowery terms would suggest. I sum it up as such: “My way, or the highway.” Which does sound more like that Justice card, doesn’t it? A tough gal with a sword to whom one had better listen (‘or ELSE!’). I have definitely seen this expression of Libra women in my life.

Wow.
They say that Venus is a ‘benefic’ planet, that it brings luck/beauty/pleasure to whatever it touches. Perhaps this is true… in the long run! My recent experience with this planet’s transiting conjunctions (when the real Venus up in the sky goes past the same point that a planet resided at the time of my birth, as shown in my natal chart), is that basically, I cry. Not just little, weepy tears, either. Great big heaving sobs (the uncontrollable kind where you have to pull over and stop driving- for safety’s sake! or the totally-on-the-verge kind where you have to call a friend to save you from yourself…)! (By the way- Thanks, Friend!) My goodness! So, what’s this all about, anyway? Eh, Venus?!?

I have been working with Saturn energy lately, and it has been showing up like this: authority, time, systems, work, responsibility, discipline, boundaries- basically, for me it's all about owning my own 'shtuff' - even something as simple as my personal space; as in just the actual, physical space that my body takes up! I can't believe how something so basic can be given up, but it can! I am finding so many little ways that I give my own authority away. This doesn't even have to look like giving it TO anyone in particular, but can just be not claiming it, myself. This also doesn't mean that to 'recover' or 'compensate,' I have to swing on over to the opposite extreme: forcing my point of view on other people or taking over their personal space or anything like that, but it's just a subtle shift of the quality of my presence and awareness.