As I write this a thunderstorm is crashing around my part of Sydney. After a hot humid summers day, it is great to just stand out in the rain…

On the Blog

Venus in Pisces has been moving across all my 1st house Pisces planets for the last few days & aside from some faintly mellow feelings & a weird reluctance to argue fights I know I can’t win (although the actual war is, of course another story), nothing really nice has happened. The good hair days I would normally forecast for a Venus transit have also been missing. Perhaps we expect too much from transits that simply don’t have the power to deliver? Check out my piece on Great Expectations.

Most weeks I declare to my family that this week we are going to be healthy. The reactions I get vary between raised eyebrows, a “whatever” from my daughter & a lacklustre wag of the tail from the dog. But this week is different. My BFF & I are doing this 12 week body transformation challenge thingie which, in theory, after 12 weeks should have the world unable to tell the difference between Jen Hawkins & the two of us- except that Jen Hawkins is taller, 20 years younger, blonder &, well, a gorgeous supermodel. What also makes this very different from my weekly declaration every Sunday night as I am sipping the Ironing Wine in front of the weigh in for The Biggest Loser is that my girlfriend told a mutual friend about our commitment- someone who I will not be able to fail in front of. In doing so, the “it doesn’t really matter because no one knows I tried” excuse was wiped out. I am glad she told him. And now I am telling all of you…here.

On Your Career & the Cosmos a couple of relatively nothing posts:

•  A recent story in the Sydney Morning Herald reckons that Aussie employees have built up an amazing 121,000,000 (yep that many noughts) days of annual leave. Given that I am in arrears, who has all of this leave… and can I get some?
•  How are your New Year resolutions going? Am I imagining things or has the beginning of 2010 been the absolute worst year to set a goal and stick to it? Find out why here.

As for all of my posts, if you don’t know where planets fall in your chart, simply go to www.astro.com, enter your birth details and a computerised chart will be drawn up for you. Alternatively, follow the links on my site.

What’s happening up there?

A Full Moon on Monday 1/3/10 at 10 degrees Virgo at about 2.39am Sydney time (that is 6.39pm Sun 28/2 if on GMT). This is another “Super Moon”- one where the Moon is extremely close to the Earth & one which will bring higher than usual tides and a similar pull on the fluid within our own body. I don’t usually write much on lunations because there are much better astrologers out there than I doing Moon stuff. But I did this week- in super organised Virgo fashion.

 Mercury very reluctantly joins the Sun, Jupiter & Venus in Pisces- more on this placement during the week. Venus just as reluctantly moves into Aries the following week, and Mars (finally) starts to move in a forward direction from March 10. All of us in some way have been feeling this frustration & the resultant frayed tempers. Mars ruled signs (Aries and Scorpio), in particular, have been having a rough time. More on what this means too during the week.

Anyway, off to prepare a last ceremonial meal of macaroni cheese & red wine before 12 weeks of self imposed deprivation begins (heavy sigh)…

My clean-ish desk

I love food, I love wine & I like to cook. I work fulltime and write in my spare (?) time. So it is hardly surprising that by the time I have done the work thing and the commute thing and the running to & from to swimming thing that my level of enthusiasm for creating something brilliant & creative for dinner hovers at around the “can’t really be faffed” mark. And yet, I am really quite lucky. As long as I do the hunter gathering bit, my husband is quite happy to execute the vision in the kitchen, so to speak. My daughter will eat anything & everything I put in front of her without complaint & all 3 of us like to experiment with spice & taste.

I start every week with great intentions. In true sweeping Piscean style I declare most weekends at least one of the following:

•  Next week we are eating more at home
• Next week we are eating more at the table
• Next week I am cooking at least one new recipe out of the multitude of foodie magazines & cookbooks I have
• Next week I am taking my lunch to work
• Next week we are eating healthy

 My ever lovin’ family usually exchange raised eyebrows and despite their disbelief will say things like “Absolutely, we love salad” or “Are you giving up wine too?” or (usually) “whatever Mum”.

 My Piscean vision may be grand, but disorganisation and lost focus usually sees me queuing up at the food-hall for lunch on Monday & tearing into the grocery store between swimming drop offs and pickups. I need to take a lesson (or two) from my Virgo opposite.

But this week is different. No, really it is… My BFF & I are doing this 12 week body transformation challenge thingie which, in theory, after 12 weeks should have the world unable to tell the difference between Jen Hawkins & the two of us- except that Jen Hawkins is taller, 20 years younger, blonder &, well, a gorgeous supermodel.

What makes this very different from my weekly declaration to husband & child every Sunday night as I am sipping the Ironing Wine in front of the weigh in for The Biggest Loser is that my girlfriend told a mutual friend about our commitment- someone who means a lot to me & who I will not be able to fail in front of. In doing so, the “it doesn’t really matter because no one knows I tried” excuse was wiped out. I am glad she told him. And now I am telling all of you.

All of which means I need to somehow organise myself well enough to avoid the excuses which will come at 6pm on Monday night when I am racing against the clock to think of something nutritious & quick to cook before daughter does boot camp & I go to gym.

The plan we are doing comes with menu suggestions, recipes & calorie counts, but I have a real aversion to being told what I can & can’t eat (the rebellious Sun/Uranus opposition) and like to take either full control or no control (Sun-Pluto opposition). Also, I tend to think that if things are being done for you, you never really unlearn the bad habits. Finally, I have neither the time nor the inclination to play short order cook, so my family will be eating what I am eating- although possibly with a few more carbs.

So, I spent yesterday afternoon getting in touch with my inner Virgo. I organised my desk, I went through magazines & cookbooks & I substituted my own menu items in place of stuff I knew my family would turn their nose up at- all within the same calorie guidelines.

my really cool magnetic board

The weekly menu is now pinned to a magnetic board on the door to my study, a shopping list beside it. I got all the groceries today (except the fish, which I like to buy on the day). My workouts for the week are in the calendar. I spent some time this afternoon cutting up vegies for afternoon dip snacks & whipped up a bean & tuna dip which I separated into portions (boundaries are another challenge of mine). My friend & I have declared our goals to each other & broken them down into lovely Virgo bite sized (excuse the pun) portions.

Tomorrow morning we have a Full Moon at 10 degrees Virgo (at about 2.39am Sydney time, 6.39pm Sun 28/2 if on GMT). This is another “Super Moon”- one where the Moon is extremely close to the Earth & one which will bring higher than usual tides and a similar pull on the fluid within our own body. Jupiter will be conjunct the Sun in Pisces (to the degree). Jupiter is the traditional ruler of Pisces and close to being a sun in its’ own right, so plenty of heat here. Venus (representing unconditional and all encompassing love in Pisces) and alternative Uranus are also about to join forces- exciting times ahead! In short, this is a Moon where it is OK to dream big, but a reminder that in order to make your dreams become reality, a little planning, organisation & a lot of hard work will also be needed. Us Pisceans often tend to forget about that rather inconvenient bit, which is where Virgo comes in.

Check out what part of your chart is being highlighted by this Full Moon.  In my chart, the Full Moon is in the 6^th house- the place where healthy routines are born. So, I now have a plan, some goals (which I have to try very very hard not to be distracted from), a clean-ish desk and a really cool magnetic board. Jen Hawkins should be very worried…

Peacock in KL (Pic by me)

The other day Venus crossed my Ascendant. Nothing happened. Facebook & Twitter friends having a similar transit reported similar momentous events- although one did comment that her hair was good.

The textbook blurb said that I should be looking & feeling good- attractive, loving, sexy & in a good mood. If I go shopping I would find what I need & apparently I would have the power to get people to do what I want… nice in theory…  OK, I went shopping & the trainers I wanted were there & on special & in a really cute girly pink & silver. But as for the power to cajole people into doing what I wanted? I ended up rashly agreeing (without an argument) into doing stuff that I resent having to do- simply because I couldn’t be faffed with protesting something I knew I couldn’t win. To add insult to injury, my hair was really crappy.

Yesterday Venus opposed Pluto. This one is supposed to be about facing your desires, working out what you want & don’t want in a relationship & acting on that. Well, I did have a nice date night with hubby over a great seafood platter at a local restaurant, so I guess that one counts &, just quietly, I had a better hair day than I did the other day.

Today Venus conjuncts my Sun and I should be feeling worth it and high in confidence. I will remember that as I run my daughter to todays set of social engagements & groceries & work my way through laundry. My hair should be good. Mars is also trine Saturn today, and this one is about feeling productive and goal oriented- I WILL get the ironing up to date. Tomorrow Venus is opposing Uranus possibly making me more highly strung or impatient than usual, and maybe bringing surprises in relationships. Given that my tolerance level is usually pretty low on Mondays, the only surprise will be if I get through the day argument free.

The fact of the matter is, personal planet transits, ie transits by the Sun, Mercury, Venus and Mars are too quick to be life changing. These planets all move too quickly (except Mars at the moment in a definite slow-down on a beach chair in Resort Leo) to have much more impact on us than the state of our hair or our temper. The Moon which tears through each sign in a couple of days has even less impact. The only exception to this is the New & Full Moons, and then particularly when a New Moon or Full Moon falls directly on a point in your chart- that is usually a sit up and take notice time. These transits really just influence your weather & where your mood falls on the scale between manically amazing and black dog storm clouds approach only with chocolate.

What the personal planet transits can do is act like a trigger. The real life changing stuff comes from outer planet transits- Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. These all move super slow and often cross the same part of your chart 3 times. Saturn, whilst quicker, is also worth looking at in this light. Jupiter falls somewhere between the personals and the outers. If one of the big 3 is transiting a particular point in your chart, the energy of transiting Mars or another personal planet may be sufficient to trigger that loaded gun. Any transit from an outer planet to a point in your chart can’t be ignored.

Saturn transits do feel heavy and you may feel like the weight of commitments is more than you can bear- I had a year of it last year as Saturn worked his way in opposition to my Pisces 1^st house planets. The worst was when he opposed Chiron & then my Moon- an old unhealed shoulder injury had me in a world of pain- possibly the Universes’ way of telling me I was carrying too much? Or maybe just shit happening. Either way, he is back for another go in a couple of months.

Pluto and Neptune transits are the slowest & also the most life changing. If Neptune hits your ascendant, you can’t see yourself clearly. If she flirts with your Midheaven, work will be frustrating & crappy with no light seemingly available. Pluto transits are often about control and transformation issues. It isn’t until something else triggers him into life that he will kick in whatever he feels is broken and leave you with the mess.

Uranus is different. Uranus things happen out of the blue- unexpected jolts. Uranus has been playing with my Pisces planets for the last 3 & a bit years, but is due to conjunct my Moon for the 1^st time at Easter.  This will occur the same day that Jupiter crosses my ascendant. Unless my schedule changes, I will be in Hong Kong at that time for work.

The New Moon in Pisces will also trigger my natal Moon and Chiron, bringing to light emotions, and stuff which hasn’t been dealt with or allowed to heal. With Uranus, the more you try to do what you think you should be doing, the more Uranus will push you towards what the Universe thinks you should be doing… and very often the two are poles apart- especially if you have always done what is expected of you.   

On Friday Venus meets my Moon and Uranus is conjunct Chiron & within a degree or so of also conjuncting my Moon. Mercury is also about to conjunct my Mercury. Given that the Moon in Scorpio is trining all the activity, the forecast I would give myself is for a day a day of lively conversation with people I feel deeply and emotionally close to. Time will tell.

How are your New Year resolutions going? Am I imagining things or has the beginning of 2010 been the absolute worst year to set a goal and stick to it? Find out why here- my latest post for astrology.com.

A recent story in the Sydney Morning Herald reckons that Aussie employees have built up an amazing 121,000,000 (yep that many noughts) days of annual leave. Given that I am in arrears, who has all of this leave… and can I get some? My latest post for ivillage is here.