Astro-Notes pertaining to the remainder of August 2011

On August 26, when Mercury stationed direct at 18:41 Leo at 6:02 pm EDT, did my daughter get a rental car that matches her previous vehicle and which she really likes to drive. She picked me up after another strenous day at work – strenous, because I was exhausted, hadn’t slept well and felt drained of energy, which made it tough to focus on anything – and brought me to the farm, where we’ve been staying since we got ‘thrown out’ of the house. From there she went to the camp, where everybody else was enjoying some nice time off, while I remained in the house alone with the dog, which didn’t bother me the least, because I desperately needed some ME-time and therefore went to bed early after a large, filling supper. Besides, I had to go to work the next morning. And yes, Mercury stationed in my 12th house – I seemed to be isolated from the rest of the world, sheltered in what had become a ‘retreat’ from civilization as I like to think of it into a lifestyle I personally find ‘nightmarish’. However, that night I was so self-focused with my thoughts centered on healing, on becoming whole again, that I wasn’t even afraid to be there all by my own. The Sun in Virgo was opposite Chiron Rx in Pisces and the Tarot card of the day was the “8 of Cups”. Thus, everybody there had chosen to leave a situation that was no longer wholesome for them and instead to enjoy the good times laying ahead of them as they got away from everything and had even a band organized for their entertainment.

destroyed church in Goderich will be rebuild during Jupiter's retrograde through Taurus - rebuilding our church

On the 27th, when Mercury in Leo formed a sesqui-quadrate to Uranus Rx in Aries and the Sun in Virgo a quincunx, while Venus in Virgo engaged in a sesqui-quadrate to Eris Rx in Aries and Pallas Rx in Capricorn in a semi-sextile to Neptune Rx in Aquarius, change to improve the personal circumstances was stressed and the adjustment made in this regard was practical and convenient as well as serving our self-interests. My daughter asked me in the morning when she drove me to work if I’d like to stay with Sandra’s mother for a while until the windows and carpets in her house might be replaced. In its current state, the house is not the ‘ideal’ place for me to stay or live in. It’s pitch black in my bedroom, because of the patched-up window, which also doesn’t allow for air circulation on the upper level. Once they can actually begin with the repairs (they’re still awaiting insurance and building inspectors), they’ll have to move my furniture around and therefore I would only be in the way, while my always changing work schedule would just complicate things. So I agreed, because she assured me it’s a clean place where I could live a lot healthier and stress free. She brought me there after she had taken me grocery shopping after work and I was pleasantly surprised by my new surroundings. Mary, Sandra’s mother, is a wonderful woman with a big heart and a small dog, who totally reminds me of Ruby, my mother-in-law’s dog – it’s the same breed. Her home is modern and newly built. I have the whole basement level to myself, inclusive my own bathroom. What a treat! The universe is showering me with blessings – there’s no doubt about it. Tarot card of the day was the “Ace of Cups” – a huge cup has indeed been offered to me to drink from. With the beginning of this new friendship I’ve been presented with an opportunity for emotional and spiritual fulfillment. Mary and I have bonded instantly. We’re getting along very well and enjoyed many long conversations in the meantime. This happened in the wake of the Virgo New Moon, which fell on my Ascendant, conjunct natal Mars and opposite natal Descendant-Vesta, heralding a new beginning, which is affecting my self-image and the way I approach the world and includes relationship commitments in the context of  ‘sacred’ space. Unsurprisingly, the Sabian Symbol for the New Moon at 05:27 Virgo befits my personal situation very well as it states:

“A merry-go-round. Keynote: The first experience of the dynamic intensity of life processes and of the possibility of using them to reach a characteristic ego-satisfaction – AN OBJECTIVE APPROACH TO THE LIFE FORCE.”

(Dane Rudhyar, “An Astrological Mandala: The Cycle of Transformations And Its 360 Symbolic Phases”, Pages 153-154)

This symbolical expression is moreover beautifully resembled in the trine between the Virgo New Moon and Pluto Rx in Capricorn as well as in the Tarot card of “The Moon”, which emphasizes the need to go deep into our soul and dredge up our anxieties, fears, phobias and psychic blocks or complexes after we underwent this phase of purging. And even though we are now left in the dark, we will be guided by our inner light and intuition. As we go on, rising from the ashes renewed and reborn, we will gain clarity of perception, which will aid us in improving our personal circumstances. Venus in Virgo’s quincunx to Vesta Rx in Aquarius requires a value adjustment in order to re-dedicate our energies to our individual cause as we’re sorting out our priorities during this process of re-orientation.

Juno in Libra’s quincunx to Jupiter in Taurus on the 29th shifted relationship dynamics in a way that ensured steady growth onto which we can build on. Accordingly, the Tarot card of the day was the “10 of Pentacles“, indicating a sense of permanence and security and that things were on the upswing.  I had a job interview on that day. Although it didn’t lead to a job offer, it was a first sign of progress after all that time of sending 0ut resumes and hearing nothing back. It also made me feel better in this regard. With the New Moon triggering my Ascendant, I’ve become more ‘visible’ – opportunities are coming my way now (or so it seems).

Prior to stationing retrograde at 10:21 Taurus at 5:17 am EDT on the 30th, Jupiter received a trine from Venus in Virgo, providing us with a sense of tangible security and effective stability. As Jupiter retraces his steps to 00:21 Taurus, where he will turn direct on December 25, we’ll be rebuilding beliefs, viewpoints, concepts and principles. Tarot card of the day was the “10 of Swords”, recommending to let go and be accepting of our current circumstances as we no longer resist change, but allow it to happen. We’re picking ourselves off the ground, reflect upon and learn from what the experience teaches us. Subsequently, we’re turning a corner and leaving behind one of the worst chapters of our lives. My daughter and her boyfriend moved back in the house as their hydro and gas was finally back on. I went to the mall after work to pick up the mail at a post station they have temporarily set up there. At night I started writing on this blog post, but then was too exhausted from the early shift to finish it.

Today Mercury in Leo is sesqui-quadrate Pluto Rx in Capricorn and trine the North Node in Sagittarius. I couldn’t continue writing, because we had to drive out to Sandra’s place to help her packing her stuff and then brought Dusty, her youngest son, back with us. So, I’ve been only on the computer for a couple of hours and shortly, I’ll leave for a late evening shift. However, it looks as though this blog post will get published after all (Mercury trine NN). Tarot card of the day is the “4 of Pentacles”, suggesting a need to control our environment so that we can manage the things on our personal agenda (Mercury sesqui Pluto).

Personal Update

I’ve had a blog post prepared with an astro overview for the last couple of days, but then a tornado came along on Sunday afternoon and had us evacuated. We’re staying at a friend’s house right now, who let me use her computer, have a shower, something to eat and drink and wash my clothes. The roof, the windows, siding and porch of our house are damaged and so is the entrance to the garage. My daughter’s car is buried underneath the trees and her backyard looks like a disaster zone with all the stuff from the neighbors’ backyards blown into it. There is almost no tree on this street standing anymore, the hydro lines are down and across our street is a major gas leak. It is a miracle that only 1 person got killed. A few are injured though. I’ve seen photos from the “disaster zone” on Facebook and we watched it on the news too. The centre of this beautiful small town, which is known as ‘the prettiest town in Canada’ is totally devastated. What a shame. As of now, we have no idea when things will be back to ‘normal’ again and when we’ll be able to go back home. So, you might not hear from me in a while. I want to thank my friends Melissa, Angie and Sharon for their generosity. They were going to pick me up and to provide us with shelter and everything else we need, but since I can go back to work tomorrow, I’ll be staying here on the farm for now with Lucia’s and Mike’s friends Rick and Sandra Thom. It is in those moments that I know in my heart how much I am blessed. I cannot even begin to express my gratitude and appreciation for all the support we’ve received. This was the Third Quarter Moon for us, with the Taurus Moon falling on my natal MC (opposite IC – home and family) and in square to natal Saturn in Aquarius in house 6, accompanied by Venus’ and the Sun’s ingress to Virgo, a sign that teaches us about being humble, practical or pragmatic, effective and of service. A lot of our energy will certainly be dedicated toward damage control, repair, fixing and making things work. As both, Venus and the Sun opposed Neptune Rx in Aquarius prior to their ingresses, the ‘surreal’ toke hold over our lives. We felt as though being part of a movie – in a way, we couldn’t believe what has happened. It took the tornado 12-15 seconds to turn our lives upside down and to twist everything in it’s wake or path. Nobody was prepared for that. After we had watched a movie together yesterday afternoon, the hydro went off and we got pounded by hail. As my daughter looked out of the living room window, she remarked: “That looks strange outside.”, which caused us to look for ourselves and seeing the leaves swirling in a funnel Mike just said: “In the basement” and we started to RUN. I was about to close the basement door behind me as I heard the first window shatter and screamed “HURRY” and while we ducked down the same moment, grabbing onto each other and making it farther down into the basement, we heard the tornado rolling over us. This was when we truly realized what was transpiring and freaked out for a minute. Mike was the first to return back upstairs and just said: “You guys won’t believe that.” Once we saw what had happened we inspected the damage and eventual danger and then went outside to check on the neighbors. Greg came over, blood running down his face, but fortunately, he was ok. He had been sitting on his porch and had jumped into his closet just in time. His porch with everything in it is now decorating our front lawn. We were trying to walk into town to find out what to do, but police had put up barricades everywhere and declared a state of emergency. So, we began with the cleanup when 5 officers entered our house and property and urged us to evacuate due to the gas leak. Because of the dog we couldn’t go to the public shelter, but walked the 3 miles to 4 miles to Mike’s parents house, where we staid overnight.

 

Astro-Notes on August 19, 2011 – tough relationship choices

A semi-square between retrograde Mercury in Leo and Juno in Libra demands from us to re-address an issue where our Self-interests in a relationship situation are requiring rectification in terms of fairness and justice. With the Aries Moon aspecting retrograde Ceres in Pisces and retrograde Neptune in Aquarius in the morning, we may have woken up imagining scenarios of strained relationships that raised a rebellious streak within us or having angry thoughts about certain circumstances and relationship dynamics we cannot change. Nonetheless, cooperation and compromise are stressed today. Some might even go out of their way to accommodate others. My daughter, per example, will play the messenger for me and try to hand in a personal letter to the dental office in Exeter after work. However, with Mercury retrograde, it is possible that she won’t make it in time. I looked for the office hours online, but they weren’t listed anywhere. On her way back home, she’ll also pick up a case of water at the grocery store for me if they still have them stocked for the same price as the last few weeks. What myself concerns, I’ll have to go back to work this afternoon for a late shift, which means focusing on this role in my interactions with others again. After the Moon made ingress to Taurus at 08:36 am EDT, where she will engage in a square to Pallas Rx in Aquarius right away, we will feel more sensual and will be seeking to establish a comfortable routine, but have to use a different strategy first that challenges our intellect.

Tarot card of the day is “The Lovers”, indicating choices where moral values are questioned, especially in relationship situations. A decision must be made about which we feel divided. We may be struggling with temptations and need to remember that the most attractive option is not always the best one. Problems can be overcome via reconciliation, through harmony and cooperation.

Astro-Notes on August 18, 2011 – focusing on our needs

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Mars in Cancer’s sextile to Jupiter in Taurus provides us with the opportunity to build upon recent activities and take advantage of this productive time to ensure our steady growth and support continuing success. A trine from retrograde Mercury in Leo to retrograde Eris in Aries marks the completion of a phase of re-centering our mind on authentic Self-expression, that is mindful and creative, to be able to re-focus on our Self-interests from a state of mental resolve.

Tarot card of the day is “The Hanged Man”, coming with the message ‘to rest now to let everything find its own balance’. We need to be still and reflect. Struggling would serve no purpose. Therefore, we just have to hang in there, focusing on our needs. The ability to adapt to changing circumstances (this card follows the “Justice” card I draw yesterday) can bring inner peace. Because we’ve reached a temporary pause, we should stay away from making any sensible decisions at this time and cultivate patience. This card also suggests the notion of sacrifice. Something may have to be given up to gain something else.

Astro-Notes on August 17, 2011 – unfairness

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With both, the Sun and Venus in Leo, engaged in semi-squares to Mars in Cancer, who casts a quincunx to Vesta Rx in Aquarius, we may have had a hard time to express our creativity, enjoy and validate ourselves, as the situation required unexpected adjustments in regard to intentions and activities we wanted to nourish and thus, channeling our energy toward different causes. For me, things didn’t play out as I had hoped due to changes in the weather. It was already a little chill in the morning when I went to the Employment Centre to work on the last part of my computer course and to send a fax away, which is another attempt at finding a better job. After lunch, when I was on my way to the beach I turned around half way and went back to the Employment Centre, because it was too windy and not hot enough. During the afternoon then, the Sun peaked out from behind the clouds for only a few minutes every time. So, I made the right choice when I gave up on my original intentions to have an enjoyable day. Nonetheless, I also encountered problems with the course material due to an upgrade, which was not supposed to be installed. On my way home it looked as though it would start raining any minute, but then the Sun came out again.

Tarot card of the day is “Justice reversed”, suggesting injustice, unfairness, imbalance, delays and poor judgment. There is a chance that we’re overly critical of ourselves and experience a distortion of our idealism. We must step back to view the situation in its entirety and work on being centered and grounded.