The strange thing is that Neptune is a planet of uncommon sense and cosmic knowledge. This suggests that Neptune is going to try to have you integrating all sorts of information that you’ve acquired over the years into some sort of big picture understanding of how daily life works. He’s a compassionate planet, too, and he may urge you to think more about other people and their problems and to become more sensitive in your daily encounters. Neptune’s a big, important planet and this indicates that what you learn during the next 14 (14!) years will be both valuable and significant in your life.

Meanwhile, Mars in Virgo continues to travel through your sector of advanced knowledge, the 9th house. Virgo is a practical sign, like your own, not all that cosmic. If you are going to delve into advanced knowledge during his stay (until July), and he’d like you to, he wants it to be knowledge about tangible stuff–things, objects, useful items. He’s the sort of planet that will encourage you to research things you’d like to buy so you can become an expert and get the best deal by knowing exactly when prices will be at their lowest. He likes to plan, and if you have big ticket items to purchase, he can be very helpful if you use him and don’t purchase on impulse.

The 9th house is also a travel house, which brings me to Valentine’s Day. Jupiter, the travel planet, is in your solar 5th house of romance, and he’s in a decent mood with Mars in your travel sector. Combine these two influences and you possibly get a romantic trip this month, which would be a wonderful way to celebrate the season and either escape winter or embrace it with a bit of downhill skiing or the like.

I can’t leave without also mentioning Saturn in your career house. He stations this month on the 7th, and then starts retrograding. Sometimes you will see a development in the affected area when a planet stations and changes direction. Saturn’s been in your career house for a long time, and he’s traveling over old ground for the final time before he leaves in October 2012. Look to the time period between very late October 2011 and now for clues as to what issues he’ll be revisiting.

If you’d like any of these potential ideas to pay off in a financial sense, then January is good for that also. You have quite a number of planets in your solar 2nd house of finances, including the sun when it moves into Aquarius on the 20th. You’ll need to plan and set goals that can be developed reasonably quickly (by mid-February), but you can do that. Aquarius is a team-oriented sign, so collaborations are especially favored from the beginning of the month (because Venus is already in Aquarius as the month opens). With planets in all the earth signs and Neptune moving into environmentally conscious Pisces, “green” projects seem promising. Note that Jupiter in Taurus also relates to activities involving your children, so don’t feel you have to be scraping around for money-making ideas if that’s not your interest.

The other big earth sign energy of the month is Mars in Virgo, which stations on the 23rd and then starts moving backward. Mars is a restless planet, and he’s spending a lot of time in your solar house of travel. He gets claustrophobic and itchy when he can’t get out and move, so you may need to accommodate him either via actual travel or by just getting outdoors and into some nature or some sports activities that will let him burn off a little energy. Mars stays in this area of your chart for fully half the year, so expect the need for movement and action to continue throughout much of 2012.

Now let’s talk a little bit about the rest of your year ahead in 2012. We’ll start by talking about your house. Your literal physical house. It’s represented in your chart by the sign of Aries, the sign that Uranus is currently inhabiting and not planning to leave any time soon. In 2012, Uranus spends a lot of time challenging Pluto. Really challenging. You can see this in world affairs in a multitude of countries wherein people are standing up to government or authority in one way or another, including in places like Syria, where doing so is really really dangerous.

Pluto is in your own sign, and it may annoy you greatly to see Uranus trying to challenge a planet in your own sign. You may consider what Uranus is doing potentially dangerous to your habitation. Therefore…you might want to take Capricornian precautions against damage to your house in 2012–by getting things inspected, repaired, fortified, secured, and generally made less potentially dangerous. Uranus may not affect your physical house so much as your family or the group of people you live with. The time to watch is mid-July, which is when Uranus stations.

The second thing to know is that Neptune moves out of your solar second house of assets early next month and doesn’t come back. Neptune’s been concentrating for well over a decade on typical material assets like possessions and property and so on. Now, however, he’ll concentrate on a different type of asset–assets of the mind and character, such as skills, talents, physical and mental capabilities and so on. That doesn’t mean you’ll lose all your material assets–it just means you should be conscious of husbanding them because Neptune won’t be focused on trying to endlessly expand them anymore.

Pluto in your own sign will continue with his general mission of taking you on some sort of a journey that you’re pretty sure you didn’t sign up for on purpose. He’s still concentrating on those folks born in December, so if you are a January birthday Cap, you can breathe a sigh of relief. If you’re a December born Cap, it may help to remember that the point of a journey is to actually get from one place to another. Pluto is not trying to take you any place that you don’t actually want to go. What you didn’t realize was that the route to the place you want to go wound through such unfamiliar territory. Pluto knows what he’s doing.

Pluto’s an extremely competent guide. He knows more than you do. It sounds facile to say ‘trust in the process,’ so I’ll say something perhaps a bit more to you liking. Trust but verify. Hang on and don’t give up. You’ll be amazed at where you end up.

Jupiter will move from your solar 5th house to your solar 6th house in mid-June. This will move Jupiter’s areas of attention from creative projects and children to work and health.

Finally, we can’t wrap up without mentioning your ruler Saturn, who has perched his risk-averse self at the top of your chart where he can put his nose to the grindstone of your career and eyeball the specifics of your professional life with incredibly detailed attention. Saturn will leave this spot in October and you may find the change to be a real liberation. Saturn in the 10th house can be productive but also quite discontent without quite being clear what you can do about the problems he points out. Once he leaves this spot, you may well be able to take judicious risks again, be more assertive, more playful, and more powerful. Put bluntly, a Saturn transit often pays off when it’s over, not while it’s in progress. So you have something to look forward to.

This is part chicken soup for your soul and part just the kind of useful energy your sign likes. How to take advantage? Well, start by indulging in good old-fashioned down home pleasures like hearty food, a roaring fire, a brisk walk. Feed the senses. I’m not saying overindulge in holiday madness; I’m saying make pleasure a priority.

The second thing you can do is give of your time, money, or energy to those less fortunate. Volunteer at a homeless center or church, donate to a toy drive; feed the soul with giving. Particularly after December 20, your chart will get a real spiritual boost from those kinds of activities, thanks to a couple of planets in the idealistic sign of Aquarius.

Besides, you may or may not know it, but you Capricorn folks have a natural talent for volunteering. For the next number of months, Mars is in Virgo, the sign of volunteering, a placement that highlights your gifts. It really is just your kind of month. Plus, your birthday new moon wish day is December 24.

There is one teeny tiny (hopefully) potential bit of waters roiling in the skies in December. It occurs on December 10. On that day, there’s a lunar eclipse in Gemini, your sign of job and health. If you haven’t already lost co-workers due to changes in your workplace, you may this month. That may make you kind of sad.

Also on that day, Uranus stations in the part of your chart that deals with home, family, living situation. Some change you’ve been trying to make in that area of your life may finally come about, perhaps even in an abrupt manner. It would most likely be a separation of some sort, although that’s not guaranteed. In any event, it seems to clear the air to a certain extent, and ultimately, that is a good thing.

November is also Scorpio month. Scorpio is your solar sign of friendship, of systems, and seeing the relationship between the parts and the whole. The sun in Scorpio is nicely compatible with your own rational sun sign.

This month also highlights the sign of Sagittarius. Sagittarius is the sign where your solar chart goes to slow down and rest for a bit. There’s a new moon eclipse in this part of your chart on November 25. It may not affect you, but sometimes eclipses in this part of a chart bring previously hidden or buried information to light. Symbolically, Sagittarius is sort of like winter in your chart, the time when the plants are growing underneath the ground, not yet ready to sprout. When planets move into your own sign, it is as though they are then ready to flower.

This year, Mercury goes retrograde in Sagittarius, which means it is in this sign all the way from November 2 through the first week of January. The upshot of this is that whatever plans you are hatching are seemingly not going to be ready to bloom until early January. You’ll need to bide your time for a couple of months. The one exception to this is that a full moon in Taurus on the 10th may bring matters to a head in your love life.

One more thing. Assertive Mars also moves into Virgo on the 10th of November for an unusually long stay–until July. Virgo represents your solar house of travel. You may find yourself traveling a great deal during the next 8 months, ostensibly to promote your own interests.

What might not be so solid is your finances. Neptune is slowing way the heck down these days so that he can ooze his way toward stationing next month–and then finally turn direct and leave your financial sector for good next year. Neptune’s influence on your finances can be quite good or just maddening. Neptune morphs all over the place at the slightest provocation and refuses to commit himself to any particular form of action.

Mars, meanwhile, is kicking up his heels in your sector of joint finances. Mars in Leo has virtually the opposite personality from Neptune in Aquarius, so financially speaking your solar chart doesn’t know if it’s coming or going. This too shall pass.

You’ve also got career energy this month. Saturn in Libra has hopefully been helping you build up experience in your chosen career and giving you opportunity to observe how things are done at the top. That experience could pay off in at least a minor way during the first week of the month, when the sun, Mercury and Venus are in your career sector along with Saturn. Beginning on the 9th of the month, emphasis gradually shifts toward your interactions with reliable, trustworthy friends. If you can avoid financial problems, it’s actually a pretty decent month.

Neptune likes easy money. When Neptune is good financially, it can be very very good. Think of all those dot.com millionaires and even billionaires. However, when it’s bad, you can lose a bundle. Think of when the dot.com bubble went bust.

Lately, the stock market’s been about as speculative as you can get. I’m not advising whether you should or shouldn’t put some money into speculation. I’m just pointing out that your chart is eyeing the possibility of big profits and that you can make your own decision using your sharp Capricorn brain. With Venus (money planet) in your house of international affairs during the first half of September, this could have something to do with foreign investments, but you’ll want to get specifics as Virgo doesn’t like to do anything without specifics and cold, hard analysis.

If you don’t want to turn your attention to practical matters (unlike Capricorn, but just in case), the first part of the month sees a lot of energy in your solar 9th house of philosophy and contemplating the meaning of existence. This may not be exciting but it can be restful.

On the 14th, Venus moves into Libra, which represents the most visible sign in your solar chart. This is the sector of your chart where you get attention, where you are watched, listened to, where your words are given authority. Given that Saturn has been hanging out in this part of your chart for quite a while, you may be viewed as an admirable figure or a cautionary tale. In either case, Venus softens the perceptions of you a bit. That’s probably good because Saturn in the solar 10th house is kind of a heavy placement.

Saturn can do big things for you and your reputation, but generally not easily. The sun joins Venus and Saturn in this sector on the 23rd, and Mercury makes it a foursome on the 25th. If you want to make changes in your career or reputation, the time to do so is around the time of your annual career new moon, which this month falls on the 27th.

Switching gears, Pluto stations and then turns direct this month, making him especially potent right now. These days, Pluto is your personal planet of heavy changes. If your sun is at 4 degrees Capricorn (you were born 4 days after the start of the sign, right around Christmas), then Pluto is at its peak of power in your chart. Fortunately, that means a turnaround is in the works and whatever heaviness you’ve been undergoing is about to lighten up. If you’re not a December born Capricorn, Pluto’s switch in direction will probably manifest in a more muted way, but you will still probably feel a bit of a shift.

So far, we’ve been focusing on money, career, and heaviness, but Jupiter in the 5th house can also signal a good time to begin a new relationship. If you’re in the market for love, it’s time to advertise yourself.

There are disadvantages to this outlook, as some will point out, but for the moment, the idea is simply to get these things or enjoy the fact that you already have them. That’s not too terrible. Speaking of possessions, this month Neptune slips back into the sector of your chart that symbolizes the tangible kind, the physical stuff you own. You’re almost finished with Neptune in this sector of your solar chart but not quite yet.

Neptune by its nature makes it difficult to seize and hold things, because it’s too darn passive to be very firm about anything. If you are greatly affected by Neptune, this symbolism could be fairly literal. Things may slip out of your grasp. I’m sure there’s a metaphysical lesson in all this, but hopefully you’ve learned it already, whatever it is.

In August, planets in Leo will be opposing Neptune and you can either take that as a caution to hold on tighter to your money and your stuff or decide you’ll just go with the flow and not worry about it. The bulk of the Leo influence (except for Mercury) will be over by the 23rd. The upside of this aspect is that it can also be simultaneously romantic and sexy.

In fact, with Jupiter in sexy Taurus, sexy Mars in your relationship sector and Neptune opposed to Venus in your solar 8th house of sex, you could have one of your sexiest months of the past dozen years! Admittedly, Mars will be getting grumpy with all kinds of planets this month, but a little passion could more than compensate for fleeting irritations.

By the 23rd, we’re in Virgo season, which is about development. This could be personal development, project development, idea development, whatever you’d like. The idea is to point yourself in the direction of a desired outcome. It’s also about looking at the relationship between the parts and the whole. A great time to ponder all this and initiate something is around the time of the new moon in Virgo on the 28th.

Mercury does go retrograde this month (until the 26th), a time when astrologers traditionally say that things go wrong. The hype is overblown because, as every good Capricorn knows, things can go wrong at any time and Mercury is not usually to blame. If anything, the squares between Mars in Cancer and the angles of your solar chart would be more likely to make things go not as intended in your home or career life. Nevertheless, it can be comforting when you or someone near you is saying “what the heck is the matter with things today” to murmur “Mercury retrograde” in an authoritative voice. Hey, it might as well be good for something! Things will return to normal around the middle of next month.

And now one final enigmatic tip: stillness is healing in August.

If the bottom line doesn’t reveal itself  automatically, you can use the energy, especially around the 9th, to force the issue and get some clarity. It’s also possible that someone will give you some surprising news in the four or five days before and after this date. Whatever the issue in your life might be, it should get first dibs on your attention, and the lines of communication need to stay open.

Other December born Capricorns will be dealing with Pluto more directly, and some of you will be dealing with both Pluto and Uranus simultaneously. Pluto can bring a person pretty low, and it is one deep planet. There’s nothing to do but go deep with it. Even if you were not born in December, having Pluto in your sign can be pretty deep, and it’s good to remember that it’s okay that you are gaining depth. With these outer planet transits a lot depends on the specifics of your chart and your situation.

The Plutonian depths may make the relatively superficial energy of Mars in Gemini in your 6th house of work and health a relative relief. This is not a long transit like those outer planet ones. It lasts all throughout July, though and could bring some energetic variety to your workload. Or it could have you trying out new exercises or sports to keep yourself both entertained and in shape.

Even better, Jupiter has moved into your solar 5th house of fun and love. Jupiter’s a traveling planet, but you might be better off to put the summer vacation on hold til next month and enjoy a little romance right where you are. Because…speaking of romance, there is one last solar eclipse in Cancer taking place this month, on the 1st. This kind of an eclipse almost always refers to another person coming into your life.

Typically this means a new love interest (unless you have recently embarked on a new relationship or are previously committed). Sometimes it means a new best friend or a new business partner, someone that you like, that you would be happy to choose to be with. At any rate, it represents a bit of potential good news, an advancement in the trajectory of your life. Venus will also be in Cancer for much of the month, adding to the pleasure associated with other people.

If things go well in the first part of the month, you may be in a prime position to take advantage of the nice Leo energy in your house of sexuality as the month develops.

First, we have to understand a bit about the role of competition in the Capricorn solar chart. The basic idea is that part of the Capricorn character is formed by an experience of having to contend or compete, during childhood or at home, with other people for the kind of basic acknowledgement that all people need. This is just something Capricorn internalizes so that it forms part of the Capricorn approach to life and then the Capricorn forgets about it and doesn’t even realize how much he or she is always competing for acknowledgement. In the past couple of years, Jupiter and Uranus have come along to inflame that particular part of the Capricorn experience and bring it back into play. In June, Jupiter moves on to Taurus, leaving Uranus by himself to figure out how to connect with family members or at home so that the vital acknowledgement keeps coming from the people most likely to take you for granted.

To add to this, Pluto in your own sign is ready or even itching to fight for you. Now that buffer Jupiter is out of the way, Pluto is gearing up for a knock-down, drag-out battle with whoever is not giving you your due. Fortunately, perhaps, during June, you can use some of this building energy in your chart in an area that Capricorn finds comfortable–work. There’s a lot of energy in your solar work sector, including an eclipse.

Eclipses represent shocking events or news and the first one of the month is in Gemini on the 1st of June. Typical events in this sector would a very surprising job offer (even if you’re out of work). Since Gemini also represents your solar sector of health, an eclipse could signal a scary piece of health news that propels you into getting into shape permanently. Even if you don’t get any eclipse news, you can use this new moon to start some healthy habits.

There’s also a rather flammable lunar eclipse in Sagittarius on the 15th. This is the type of eclipse that can bring hidden enemies or hidden information to light and make your chart mad, as it is in no way in a mood to see you dissed right now. It will be up to you to set the record straight.

Because Uranus will be in your home sector for many years to come, it’s important to learn how to manage this craving your chart has for fresh air, literally or metaphorically, in your domestic life. Other possibilities for using the energy include making connections with your neighbors to bring new and potentially compatible people into your life. If you’re already friendly with your neighbors, the first half of the month might be a good time for a get-together. The dates around the 11th of the month are especially good for this, as Jupiter is just dying at that time to crowd a bunch of people into your home for a festive time.

Another good day for festivities occurs during the week before Memorial Day, around the 25th. An early holiday barbecue would fit the bill just fine and usher in the summer vibe the planets crave. The one thing the planets are not in the mood for this month is having you be alone. Speaking of which, after the first half of the month, the planets move toward a focus on love and personal relationships and intimacy.

In May you can get a deliciously fiery spark going in your love life. If you are single, it’s a chance to play the field. The action may actually start earlier in the month, as early as the 30th of April. Mars and Jupiter connect at that time and on the 1st of May, and there’s a new moon in your love life sector on the 3rd. This a very hot energy; use it wisely.

The Taurus energy that lights up your love life can also relate to things and material items. On the 20th, Pluto makes good aspects with Mercury and Mars in Taurus, giving you a chance to focus, if you’d like on the stuff you need to get and/or throw away. Be specific and organized in your lists of things to toss, replace, or acquire.

On the 21st, the sun moves into Gemini, centering your chart around work and health matters. But Pluto and Venus also make a nice angle, which is a very sexy aspect. Enjoy.

The truth is, you may already know what’s up on the family front. As the month opens, the sun, Mercury, Jupiter, and Uranus are already in Aries, the sign of family for the Goat. With Mercury retrograde until the 23rd, maybe you will be dealing with some ongoing situation with a sibling. Another possibility with Mercury retrograde is that words said previously led to a misunderstanding or anger that now reveals itself so it can be straightened out. Or perhaps you are in the midst of important discussions with family members about the future. There may even be an ongoing family issue that you’ve been wrestling with since last summer. Whatever the situation is, it needs your attention in April.

Of course, Pluto is still in your sign, so you have your own personal agenda to attend to as well. It’s just that with 6 planets in the domestic sector of your chart this month, the requirements of others take temporary precedence.

There is one area of your chart that’s not so duty-oriented this month, that requires no heavy obligations. That’s the Neptune in Pisces sector after the 4th. Neptune encourages you to vent your feelings in words, maybe a journal, a few scribblings, a chat with a neighbor, a casual conversation with an acquaintance that allows you to process all the domestic drama. Feel free to take advantage of Neptune’s help.

You can start on the 9th, when Mercury moves into Aries by setting up an orderly and goal-oriented process for handling your domestic affairs. Jupiter, already in the Arian home and family sector of your chart, will help. You’re going to need this orderly, goal-oriented process because on the 11th Uranus enters Aries. Uranus is not the least bit orderly and it often doesn’t seem very goal-oriented either. As a Capricorn, you need the physical structure of a system to back you up while you accidentally explore the spiritual and emotional highs and lows that Uranus will bring over the next 7 years. You need to be organized so that you can deal with the disorganization to come. May sound paradoxical, but it will help.

Of course, you always have Pluto in your own sign to deal with too. Pluto is also an emotional and spiritual influence, or at least often a subconscious one, which frequently amounts to the same thing. In your own sign, it can affect your body, so you need to be organized with that too. Don’t slack off on the exercise, the sleep, the nutrition, etc. In other words, if you can get your own systems in order, then you will be in an excellent position to uncover all sorts of interesting spiritual and emotional depth in yourself. If you let your systems decay or get chaotic, the Aries influence of Uranus over the next 7 years can be a bit more, uh, harrowing than it really needs to be.

There’s also plenty to enjoy in February. You’ve got Mercury in your sign for the first couple of days and immediately following that, you get Venus in your sign for the rest of the month. Having Venus in your sign can be like being temporary royalty.

The other ongoing influence, of course, is having Pluto in your sign. Pluto will be actively working to transform you this year if your natal sun is at between 4 to 7 degrees of Capricorn (December-born Cappies). For the rest of you, the influence is more subtle. Transformations can be mysterious and not seemingly all that momentous. To give an example, Pluto in your sign can make a dedicated meat-eater decide to go vegetarian or coax the flat-footed into taking up dancing. These are simple changes that can have a more profound effect than you might think. Go with the flow if the urge to change a habit comes upon you; it could make a positive difference in your life.

Jupiter’s move into Aries on the 22nd signals another form of changing direction. Jupiter turns his attention away from your communication sector and toward your family and domestic life sector. Eventually Uranus will come along for the ride (in March), creating a double wallop of family-oriented energy in 2011. For the moment, though, Uranus and Jupiter will conspire to quicken all your thoughts. It may be sort of like riding an intellectual roller coaster during the first third of the month.

Additionally, either Mercury or Venus or sometimes both will be in your solar 12th house all month.  One thing to watch out for though when a couple of planets are in your 12th house is the possibility of illness. This is especially true since the eclipse on December 21, 2010 fell in your 6th house of health and may have weakened your defenses. Take care of yourself!

As for your year ahead, well it’s a Piscean/Neptunian year in many ways. That’s because Neptune will move out of Aquarius and your sector of material objects and possessions into its own sign Pisces. Neptune is super-strong in Pisces and it will be there from April through July 2011, basically.

Neptune in Pisces for Capricorn is the sort of influence that tries to mush all your neatly organized separate thoughts into one big mashup of incoherent holistic wholeness. It will take awhile to get used to thoughts that do not want to organize themselves or explain themselves, but rather that want to float about your psyche as vague impressions, intuitions, and wordless knowings. This is not a bad thing; it’s just a new thing.

Other than that, you had a taste in 2010 of the combination of eclipses in your sign and in Cancer, of Saturn in your career house, plus Jupiter and Aries in your domestic sector. A fair amount of 2011 will be like the summer of 2010. In June, though, Jupiter moves into Taurus and your love life/social life sector. That should make you happy. If you were born in December, 2011 will be a rocking and rolling year, with plenty of thrills and chills. If you were born in January, it will be a bit more mellow likely and you’ll have time to adjust your soon to be expanded capacity for super-big thoughts.