Midlife Transits

When I started thinking a few years ago about what Pluto in Capricorn would bring, I thought about the fact that Capricorn is considered a symbol of government. Pluto as a planet makes things more powerful and it also destroys them. So I was wondering, would Pluto in Cap make government more powerful or destroy it?

My money, at least as far as the US goes, was on Pluto making government more powerful. I thought things like government bonds would be a good investment and that we’d see the federal government become more powerful. It certainly seems to be the case that the federal government is becoming more powerful.

However, Pluto in Capricorn is also starting out by making a vigorous effort to destroy a lot of local governments at the same time. Cities, states, and counties are all facing horrible budget deficits in this country. I’m staggered by the things these local governments (e.g., state governments) are having to do just to try to survive. Arizona is seemingly considering selling off its state capitol building. California’s problems are now legendary. So are Detroit’s.

Supposedly, Pluto destroys to reform and remake. Local governments would therefore rise from the ashes, phoenix-style, born anew and in a better form. Maybe that will happen. But I’m not entirely sure that all such governments will be reborn without significant scars.

After all, Pluto was busy during the Sagittarian era doing the same thing to journalism and publishing. The rise of self-publishing, especially via the Internet, has been obvious and you could say that there’s an element of rebirth in a new and improved form, or at least a form with more access and blunt Sagittarian freedom.

But newspapers don’t look to be anywhere close to a rebirth at present, and given the public’s distrust of the media, it’s not entirely clear yet that journalism has been improved exactly. Maybe it has and it’s just hard for the public to tell!

Meanwhile, Pluto’s busy working his destructive or constructive magic on big corporations as well. Big corporations are another thing that Capricorn symbolizes. I thought the big blue chips would do well in this era, but big names are keeling over, dropping like flies, or at least their profits are.

Still, I have to think that some big corporations will only get more and more powerful as the era wears on.  Consolidation will kick in and we’ll see an economy with fewer but bigger giants. I think.

Governments around the world will also see pressure from the world economic troubles and from the coming Uranus in Aries push for more personal freedoms. Some won’t make it I think.

It’s said that there’s an ancient Chinese curse that goes “May you live in interesting times.” We live in interesting times.

There’s good news and bad news in August. Good news–the long and brutal run of Saturn in your solar 2nd house is nearing a respite! The financial pressure you have been under for almost 2 solid years is going to subside for a while. Bad new–before it does, you have to run the gauntlet of an opposition between Saturn and Uranus next month. Prepare a contingency plan now in case difficulties arise next month.

On the positive side, once you get past September, you should know more about the real truth of your financial situation after a long period of uncertainty. Next year, Uranus, another planet that’s been trying to give you financial fits will even move out of Pisces for awhile and into a spot that’s easier for your chart to handle.

More good news. August marks the final eclipse in Aquarius (on the 6th) and that means less pressure on your primary relationships once that final hurdle is cleared. You may feel a bit more certainty on that front as well (unless you were born during the last week of the sign).

In fact, as we look ahead to the next 12 months in your chart things become more and more positive. Planets will move out of signs that are hard on your chart and into signs that are more compatible for you. Jupiter moves into Pisces (more easing of the financial pressure) and then Aries (good for your sign). Saturn moves into compatible Libra. And Uranus moves into compatible Aries.

There will be plenty of bumps and false starts along the way, but at least things are moving in the right direction.

Creative insights are likely to be yours for the having in August, Aries. First off, you’ve got the sun and then Venus in your solar house of creativity. You’ve also got Uranus (Mr. Insight) in the creative sign of Pisces rumbling around the backroads of your mind, looking for interesting stuff to toss up to consciousness. He’s been doing that for awhile, but his energy is gaining strength in August. That’s because he’s preparing for a showdown with Saturn in September, and it’s usually the time before the actual opposition when the interesting stuff happens.

The uncreative, uninterested in insight part of your solar chart (Saturn), the part that wants to know where you left your keys, is scheduled to get blasted by the part (Uranus) that doesn’t give a damn about the tangibles and only cares about the life of the mind. The result is that you may lose your keys but get a great idea.

In other news, Pluto is slowing to a crawl as he starts to wrap up a long transit that’s been pounding Aries folks born on the first day of the sign. Pluto’s trying to kill stuff that he thinks you’ve outgrown in your career or reputation, and he’s got eclipse energy on his side. If you didn’t let something go or watch something die in that area of your life in July, you may do so in August.

I know this may not sound good. It may not even look good when it happens. There may be layoffs or cutbacks in your field. But in the long run this is fortunate for you. Really it is.

You’ve also got energy affecting your home situation in August, so you probably need to attend to that as well, and it may not be easy. Last but maybe not least, you may need to let go of a friendship around August 6. On the upside–great month for dating. Good Leo energy for your love life, pretty much all month long.

So…to summarize. All you gotta do is lose your keys, get a great idea or some creative insight, find your keys, let go of something in your career or reputation, straighten out your living situation, evaluate your friendships, and go on a bunch of dates. Piece of cake!

There are two different kinds of energies going on for you in August, Taurus. One is called a Grand Trine. This means that there are planets in the two other earth signs that are compatible with yours. This is a happy thing. It’s especially good for your love and sex life, as the sun will be in Virgo in the sector of your solar chart that deals with love. This energy is prominent from the 22nd on.

The other kind of energy is called a T-Square. That means there are planets in two other fixed signs that clash with your sun sign. These signs in August are Leo and Aquarius. This can be good or bad depending on your point of view.

You’re being asked to give up something in your career, and you may not be thrilled with that. Of course, if  that’s the case, you’ve got plenty of company since this economy has had plenty of folks giving up something in their careers, including sometimes a portion of their salaries. That won’t necessarily happen to you of course. In fact, you could just be giving up something like a burdensome duty, belief, or goal. That would actually be a good thing.

That’s the Aquarius energy. The other energy is in creative Leo and it relates to your home. Dealing with home stuff can be stressful, but there can be an upside here too. Let’s say you recently moved (possible, since there’s been energy around that possibililty this year in your chart). The Leo energy could have you coming up with creative decorating solutions or insights into mundane but important matters like how to manage your storage space.

It’s Leo month, Gemini, and that means it’s time for living large. It’s also an Aquarian year, and that means it’s a year for thinking large. Transiting Chiron’s been working with Jupiter and Neptune to scrub your mind clear of limiting and narrow plans. If you’re still clinging to a limiting or fearful belief, let go of it around August 6, time of the lunar eclipse. Your chart wants you to think, plan, and dream big.

Depending on your personality that could mean anything from attempting to be more saintly, understanding, compassionate and healing in your dealings with others to a big push toward being a millionaire. And a whole bunch of stuff in between.

Now that big-hearted Leo energy is adding fuel to the fire, you can translate some of that big dreaming energy into your daily life and activities. Best time for turning over a new living large leaf would be around August 20, time of the Leo new moon.

Final random note: Leo’s the sign of the back, the spinal column. If you’ve got problems with yours, this is the month to get it fixed.

August is money month! The vital and energetic sign of Leo is lit up for most of the month, and in your solar chart, Leo means money and all things related to it. Numerous opportunities are likely to present themselves. Now, I grant you, it may be numerous opportunities to spend money rather than opportunities to bring it in, but hey–we all know how fun spending can be.

If you really do need to increase your cash flow, maybe you could consider having a garage sale or an eBay selling fest. You’ve probably got great taste and a ton of wonderful items around the house that you could exchange for cash if you needed to.

Speaking of money–there’s also Aquarius energy this month. Aquarius in your solar chart relates to other people’s money or joint assets. There’s an eclipse in Aquarius on August 6, and it’s lunar. Lunar eclipses mean getting rid of something or letting go of something that just does not work for you.

An example would be letting go of a seemingly worthy goal to control your husband’s spending. An eclipse can make you realize that is just unrealistic and that the best way to handle things is to give him his own damn account to play with and just keep the real family budget away from his vague and spendthrift habits. Less stress for you; less stress for him. That’s just an example; your results will vary and they may have to do with things like debt or taxes or insurance or even inheritances. But the bottom line is — if it don’t work, let it go.

The big news is that the sun and Mercury move into your sign this month. Mercury does so on the 2nd, the sun on the 22nd. That makes three placements in your sign this month, cuz Saturn’s there too as he has been for a long time. There are also 3 placements in Aquarius (Jupiter, Neptune, and Chiron) in your solar 6th house, the house associated with your sign.

That puts a really big emphasis on the service-y side of your Virgo nature. Virgo lives to serve, and you happen to have been born under the most useful sign in the zodiac. You people volunteer like no other sign does, are constantly busy, usually helping others, and you’re responsible for a big chunk of the good works of any society. Plus, you never really take credit for it!

The skies have put a spotlight on all your service-y tendencies this month in an attempt to get you to un-sign up for one of your many exhausting activities. Maybe you need to quit going out with your work friends, so you can have some alone time. Maybe you need to un-volunteer for something. Maybe you need to give up some duties and control on the job. You know better than I what you need to relinquish.

Relinquish now to gain some energy and some of the time you need to replenish–so you can live to serve another day.

There’s a lunar eclipse in Aquarius this August, on the 5th. Lunar eclipses are usually a signal that something needs to end. This eclipse takes place in your solar 5th house of love affairs and creative projects, so those are two of the most likely areas to see an ending. Sometimes an eclipse will not affect you directly but someone near you and that will indirectly impact you. In that case, the most likely people in your life to be affected would be your children or your lovers.

There’s a possibility that you already experienced this ending or that you will experience it instead during September. Some won’t be affected by the eclipse at all, although this one is likely to be energetic as it is the last in a series in this sign.

The purpose of an eclipse and of the ending it can bring is to help you develop new alternatives in the affected area of your life. For example, if you lose a boyfriend–he probably wasn’t good enough for you anyway, at least in the universe’s opinion. The universe often tends to be right on these matters, although this is not always obvious at the time.

In other words, eclipses help you correct course. Since this is the last eclipse in the series, one good thing is that this area of your life is likely to settle down and become more stable now. Whatever needed to be changed will change now or has already changed and the universe won’t be bugging you about any more.

In the long run, you have excellent energy in your love life sector, so just let go of whatever needs to go, so that you can let new light in.

Saturn

Obama may not be an astrologer, but he’s fairly savvy about timing. One of the reasons, if you care to look at things astrologically, that he’s in such a hurry for health care legislation is that Saturn is due to leave Virgo at the end of October. Virgo is the health care sign in many ways, and Saturn is the government sign. If government is going to do anything about health care, then this time period is the prime opportunity.

Of course, Saturn is also the planet of delay, tight-fistedness and restriction. (Perhaps it’s not a surprise that the planet of delay is also a symbol for government). So legislators are doing their astrological part to delay things and worry about tight-fisted considerations.

Contrast this with the Medicare prescription drug benefit law that President Bush signed into law when Jupiter was in Virgo. Jupiter is generous, expansive, and doesn’t give a damn about costs. Hence, we got a bill that passed relatively easily, in spite of opposition, that substantially and perhaps permanently expanded benefits and increased health care costs.

Saturn’s not Jupiter, and it will look suspiciously and perhaps fairly meticulously at any legislative reform efforts. They may be more restricted than Jupiterian folks would like. But Saturn, once it throws its weight behind something, usually comes up with something solid and generally enduring. Obama, perhaps instinctively, wants to get something done within the window that will allow Saturn to give the effort a stamp of approval.

The astrological situation is complicated though. Saturn will leave Virgo at the end of October to enter Libra. There it will probably worry about foreign relations, diplomacy, and tensions between nations. Saturn in Libra often doesn’t play nicely with others, so there could potentially be a lot to worry about, especially since Pluto in Capricorn and Uranus in Aries are in clashing cardinal signs.

However, Saturn will slip back into Virgo to finish up its Virgo business from April through July of 2010. So the final trigger on potential health related legislation will not be pulled until then. There will be another chance.  Obama, with his cautious Saturn in Capricorn natal placement, probably doesn’t like leaving things to the last astrological minute though.

He’s also got his own personal chart to navigate around. Neptune in Aquarius is now opposing his Uranus in Leo. That goes through August 20. One translation of that transit would be: the vagaries of democracy (Neptune, Aquarius) thwart efforts at bold change (Leo, Uranus). Round about the time that ends, Uranus in Pisces will move into good angle with his natal Saturn. One translation of that could be: systemic holistic change (Pisces, Uranus) works well when implemented conservatively and cautiously (Saturn).

To complicate things, Pluto in Capricorn (extreme conservatism) is trying hard to punch Obama’s popularity (Venus in Cancer) in the face. In this effort, it is probably succeeding–although Obama has shown the power to bounce back from previous Pluto punches (Jeremiah Wright affair). Pluto is scheduled to get tuckered out from its punching efforts–also in August.

To make matters more interesting for Obama’s personal chart, Uranus in Pisces is scheduled to try to make his Mars in Virgo real real mad in November. It didn’t seem to succeed during its last attempt to make him blow his cork, although it certainly tried during the presidential campaign. This time he’s in office, though, and it will be uh, worth watching to see how Uranus tries to throw him a curve ball later this year.

Overall, whether you like him or hate him, Obama seems to have gotten more done or at least done more things that I would have predicted from looking at his chart. He may not get health care legislation by August, but he may get it not that long thereafter.

For Sagittarius people, Leo month is the month that highlights your thinking, your attitudes, your beliefs. You may be a very flexible sign, Sagittarius, but you tend to be very fixed in your beliefs, uncompromising, maybe even a bit self-righteous in your attitude.  You get your annual chance to re-assess all that from July 22nd to August 21.

Prime time for such reassessment, if you’re interested, is the week of the 16th, when Neptune and Jupiter and Chiron will be trying to soften up your attitudes toward the environment around you. On a lighter note, you could just use the energy to take a vacation!

Those of you who have just moved or are planning to may be a bit stressed this month by hecticity especially during the last week of the month, but the upside is that you should have plenty of energy to beautify your home in a creative or natural way.

There’s also a lot of energy around your career this month, as Virgo mode is in full swing thanks to Mercury and the sun. It’s like you are very very close to reaching your goal and yet there’s just one more test you have to pass before you can pick up the keys to the executive washroom or whatever it is that you want. It’s a bitch of a test, though, so do not give up this month. You are so close to getting a break from the pressure in this area of your chart.

Good news in August is that there’s a lot of nice earth energy in the sky this month, thanks to 3 planets in Virgo, a sign compatible with yours. Virgo represents the sign that your chart uses to plan out your future. What it wants in that future is stability. If you’ve already stabilized your life, then Virgo will be happy this month–although I must warn you that Uranus is going to try to de-stabilize it again next month.

Virgo is also your vacation sign, so don’t spend August sitting around the house. If you can’t get away for a long vacation in some faraway spot, settle for a short one nearby. Crowd a few people into the car and hit the road for a few days. Next month, it will be almost impossible to do so, so take advantage of the chance to sneak away while you can.

At the very end of the month (from the 25th on), you’re scheduled to be more visible, due to the entry of Mercury into Libra. This would be the time to put forth your professional ideas, as others are likely to like and approve of them.

Final note on the eclipse in Aquarius on the 6th. If you do travel, keep a close eye on your belongings as a lunar eclipse in your solar second house can be associated with a loss of possessions. Also, if you happen to be trying to sell your house, this eclipse may help you do it. Good luck!

So we’re going to talk money, work, and romance for August. Then we’ll talk eclipses. First, money.

I don’t know if you have nostalgia like I do, Aquarius, for the days when the stock market was higher and gas prices were lower. If so, at the end of August, you’re scheduled to get some time to sit down and devise your plan for building and growing your resources, or, at the very least, not seeing them slip away in today’s economic climate. Take advantage of the chance to do that planning because September will bring another vicious assault from the skies on your financial houses. After you get through September, you’ll finally catch a break in that department, and in 2010, you’ll catch another substantial break.

As far as work goes, you’ll need to put on your productive hat because with Venus in your solar 6th house, August provides a prime chance to score some brownie points. If you have health problems, this is also a month when you can seek solutions and maybe even get some pleasing answers.

As for romance, we’ve got three things going on. The beginning of the month sees Mars in Gemini potentially adding fuel to the summer romance fire. Mars is also the planet of energy, and when it’s in a favorable to angle to your sun, as it is now, it should boost your vitality and perhaps your sex appeal. Planets in Leo all month also put a focus on partnership and coupledom. Things get even better in the love department after the 26th when Venus leaves your work sector and slides into Leo and that partnership and love sector.

As for the eclipses, August 6 marks the final eclipse in the series that has highlighted your sign. It’s a lunar eclipse, so it’s a goodbye eclipse. Whatever personal journey of evolution (most likely in your life direction) you’ve been on since early 2008 is supposed to wrap up. You may get a realization that tells you what you can let go of as you work your way toward your life path. After this final eclipse, the skies say goodbye to bumping and bruising you with eclipses and let you figure it out on your own. That may well be a relief! Look for something good to happen because it probably will.

Lots of opportunities in August. First there’s work, which may take up a lot of your time whether you’d like it to or not. The last week in July and the first week in August are the days when traditionally Pisces is supposed to focus on the job due to the sun in Leo.

The rest of your chart, however, is either in play mode, love mode, or wanting to do stuff around the house. It seems your chart needs to rest and rejuvenate itself as well as take care of business.

For play mode, we have a variety of options. There’s the Venus in Cancer option, an option that would love to lazily hang around the house with a delicious member of the opposite sex tasting the fruits of summer. That’s in operation from the 1st of August through the 25th.

There’s Mars in Gemini which can be used for brainy play (’cause Gemini’s a brainy sign). Gemini enjoys things like a good summer read, puzzles, competitive games like Scrabble, poker, backgammon, and chess. Don’t worry if you’re not usually very good at these sorts of things, it’s just a way of recharging your mental batteries and letting off some steam. Besides, your intuitive mind is operating a high level this year (thanks to Jupiter in Aquarius), so you may be better at strategic game-playing thinking these days than you realize. The socializing would be restorative as well.

If you can’t bear the thought of playing games, there’s always spending money on relaxing and health promoting products, especially if they have a beauty-enhancing component to them. Or you may just want to indulge in nice things for your home this month. Venus would be down with both these kinds of things.

If you’re in the mood for romance, August is also an excellent month for that. There’s activity in your love life sector virtually all month long. Pisces with children can also enjoy quality time with the kids this month. The one caution is that when Mars moves into Cancer on August 25, it may bring problems with lovers or children in its wake. Mars will be in Cancer from this date to October 16, so you will have plenty of time to solve the problems if they come up.

If you’re still not satisfied with your late summer options, there’s also a lot of energy around taking care of your home. Mars in Gemini and Venus in Cancer can be used for decorating, remodeling, doing necessary repairs, sprucing up the property in general and just generally getting everything all ship-shape before fall.

There ought to be something in there to suit everybody’s taste.

Well, I should have posted a bit more on the Cancer/Capricorn eclipse series before the lunar eclipse in Capricorn on the 7th of this month. But I wrongly anticipated that the lunar eclipse would be mild and favorable and then the proverbial stuff hit the fan during the days surrounding it.

Meanwhile, the solar eclipse in Cancer has already affected lots of people in my circle, so the energy kind of jammed up on itself. Some people were even affected by the upcoming lunar eclipse in Aquarius (on August 6). So, at least in my world, it’s all been a bit hard to sort out.

Still, this is an important eclipse series, so now that things have calmed a bit, it’s time to address it.

This eclipse series is scheduled to go through July 1 of 2011. Eclipses typically occur every 5 1/2 to 6 months apart. They come in pairs of opposite signs, two weeks apart. Sometimes two eclipse series will overlap. That’s what’s happening this summer, as we finish up the Leo/Aquarius series and start the Cancer/Capricorn one. So we’re getting 3 this season instead of the typical two.

We’re also getting two different types of energy and that will occur again during this Cancer/Capricorn series. That is, we’ll see mixtures of cardinal energy and mutable energy as the Gemini/Sagittarius eclipses kick in before the Cancer/Capricorn ones are done.

So, what about these Cancer/Capricorn ones? The first thing I note is that cardinal energy. Cardinal energy is represented by the signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn. Cardinal energy started getting a boost last year when Jupiter and then Pluto entered Capricorn.

Cardinal energy will get even more of a boost when Saturn moves into Libra later this year. Then Jupiter will spend time in Aries next year. So will Uranus.

That’s a whoooooooole bunch more cardinal energy than we’ve been used to in the 2000′s.  We’ve had Jupiter in cardinal signs occasionally and we endured Saturn in Cancer during that decade. But the 10 years have been dominated by mutable and fixed signs–Pluto in Sagittarius (mutable); Neptune in Aquarius. Uranus in Aquarius (fixed) and Uranus in Pisces (mutable).

In contrast, the 1990′s saw consistent cardinal action until 1998–and it wasn’t until the middle of 1998 that we had a direct clash between cardinal planets (Saturn in Aries, Neptune in Capricorn). In other words, we’ve gone more than 10 years since seeing cardinal planets face off against each other, and that was nothing compared to the clashes coming up in the years ahead.

Cardinal signs are said to be  initiating signs that take charge and are ambitious, determined, and active. They’re important signs–they’re also bossy. When fixed signs clash, things get bogged down (a la the middle stages of the war in Iraq). When mutable signs clash, things get volatile (e.g., real estate crash). When cardinal signs clash, you can get outright fights that are hard to resolve.

It’s as though everyone at once decides that it’s time to take charge of his or her destiny on a personal to international level and agendas clash. Get ready to fight for what you want.

On a personal level, this series will affect you in a pair of opposite houses. Not all eclipses can be expected to bring anything interesting. Still, I have found that in general eclipse series in Cancer/Capricorn bring substantial changes for a great many people.

Below are the houses that are scheduled to be affected between now and July 2011. Note that eclipses more often seem to affect solar houses (based on your sun sign) than natal ones (based on your rising sign), but you can check out both.

Aries: 4th house/10th house–home and career.

Taurus: 3rd house/9th house–communication, relatives/travel and beliefs

Gemini: 2nd house/8th house–financial and property matters

Cancer: 1st house/7th house–personal goals and committed relationships

Leo: 6th house/12th house–work, health, and hidden matters

Virgo: 5th house/11th house–children, love affairs/ friends, goals

Libra: 4th house/10th house–home and career

Scorpio: 3rd house/9th house–communication, relatives/travel and beliefs

Sagittarius: 2nd house/8th house–financial and property matters

Capricorn: 1st house/7th house–personal goals and committed relationships

Aquarius: 6th house/12th house–work and health/hidden matters.

Pisces: 5th house/11th house–children, love affairs/ friends, goals

There are a lot more to these houses, so if you want more insight, you can look at the keywords and articles on my sister site Practical Astrology. Scroll down to see keywords and links.