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As I mentioned yesterday, Neptune is retrograde and will be until November.

Being the planet of spiritualism and delusion can be exhausting. All those artists to inspire, all that illusion to create, all that intuition and psychic ability to enhance.

The downside of a Neptune transit, however, can be an increased need to escape, self-doubt and paranoia (very often for no reason) and an absent minded “whatever” attitude.

In love, Neptune casts a fog. Neptune transits of Venus can send the recipients into a romantic haze that can lift as quickly as it descends. There are stories of people who fall madly in love during a Neptune transit only to drink the last bottle and walk away as the transit ends. I have a close friend with Venus at 0 Pisces who I know will be especially susceptible to falling in love with somebody Piscean or Neptunian at this point in time. Whether or not I warn this person is immaterial…it will happen.

Neptune transits are a time of heightened awareness, amazing mini series dreams and an unconscious need for spiritual growth of some description- this may be religious, it may be something else…but it will be true to your soul.

When Neptune turns retrograde, all of this turns inwards and intensifies. What can you do? Your focus is off, your judgement is off, your intuition is heightened and your sense of reality is distorted. as i wrote yesterday:

But what does this mean? Key words we associate with Neptune are intuitive, deceptive, fantasy, dreamy, highly sensitised, escapist and delusional. Yep Pisces characteristics all wrapped up in a single planet.

During the retrograde period, Neptune becomes more Neptunian. Your intuition will be heightened and you may suddenly get insights into something you have been struggling with. Seeing things clearer, you may no longer be able to deny truths that you have been…well, denying- something that I personally do an awful lot of. Sometimes it can be hard to listen to what we need to listen to- and that is where the escapist nature of Neptune may also come into play. During the retrograde period you may be more inclined to run away into whatever is your favourite way of escaping. Not a great idea- you will have to emerge from the self induced alcoholic haze (or is that just me) at some point & see reality for what it is.

The answer? Go with it. But make your lists, identify what is really important and try and stay on game.

Pisceans will be more Piscean now. Anyone with Neptune closely aspecting the Ascendant, Sun or Moon will be more Piscean now. Anyone who has personal planets or chart points at or around 28 Aquarius – 0 Pisces will be particular susceptible to the very special charms of this planet. You are even more at risk if you have planets at either end of this range- the stationing points are the most deliciously dangerous.

Personally speaking, I have made some of the most spectacular mistakes of my life under Neptune transits, but it felt oh so right at the time. As painful as it all was, these were lessons I had to learn and, whilst painful in the aftermath, whilst under the influence I would do it all over again. Neptune can be like a siren call and just as irresistible. I told you so’s are not only unwelcome but irrelevant- under the influence you do what you do.

Neptune is now retrograde- and as usual, that has taken me by surprise. But then again, I am naturally illusional & delusional…. say nothing!

For some reason I almost miss the Neptune retrograde every year- which is weird given that Neptune is the modern ruler of Pisces, so (with Jupiter) jointly rules my chart. Anyway, Neptune is currently stationary and will be retrograde until the beginning of November.

But what does this mean? Key words we associate with Neptune are intuitive, deceptive, fantasy, dreamy, highly sensitised, escapist and delusional. Yep Pisces characteristics all wrapped up in a single planet.

During the retrograde period, Neptune becomes more Neptunian. Your intuition will be heightened and you may suddenly get insights into something you have been struggling with. Seeing things clearer, you may no longer be able to deny truths that you have been…well, denying- something that I personally do an awful lot of. Sometimes it can be hard to listen to what we need to listen to- and that is where the escapist nature of Neptune may also come into play. During the retrograde period you may be more inclined to run away into whatever is your favourite way of escaping. Not a great idea- you will have to emerge from the self induced alcoholic haze (or is that just me) at some point & see reality for what it is.

Who is affected? Pisces, Pisces, Pisces. Anyone with a Pisces Sun, Moon or Ascendant will become even more essentially Piscean. At this point I should issue a general warning for anyone & everyone who knows me! Also impacted are anyone with lots of planets in the 12th house and especially people with planets at around 29-24 degrees of Aquarius, Leo, Taurus and Scorpio.

The Moon is currently in Cancer- a time of the month where Moon types (in particular, and others to a lesser degree) turn their attention to the comforts of their home & the fullness of their tummy.

In line with that sentiment, rather than going out tonight the neighbours & us are doing one of our special pantry combo dinners. Essentially this is where none of us can be faffed going out or even to the grocery store, so we have the mother of all invention tests.

My contribution is my fabulous fruit crumble- which I can only eat the fruit bit of at present, but thems the breaks!

Anyways, here is the recipe:

For the fruit:

I use about 455g of mixed fruit- whatever is in the freezer eg frozen berries, & usually a few chopped apples. I toss through a touch of lemon juice & some cinnamon. As long as berries are in the mix, any extra sugar is overkill.

I don’t cook it off at all, but rather just throw it in the bottom of my favourite crumble pot.

For the crumble:

225g plain flour/traditional oats- any combo of the two

115g chopped cold butter

90g soft brown sugar

Pulse the crumble mix together in a food processor & spoon on top. Cook in a pre-heated 200C oven for about 30 minutes or until it is all golden brown & bubbly.

It has been a few weeks since I have sent one of these out.

To be honest, I have been doing a reasonable amount of flat-lining, although hopefully have been faking reasonably well through it. Not that things have been really crap (except for when I arrived at work Monday before last and had to flush the fish), just a general air of shittiness and fatigue. The world has gone from its normal technicolour to what photographers call 18% grey- a neutral nothingness. I haven’t even been feeling anything with the same level of intensity that I usually do. But in amongst that some real beams of light have come on through, and I am starting to see through the nasty grey veil that Saturn has been casting over my Moon of the last few weeks.

I was in Melbourne last weekend with hubby reclaiming some brownie points after having been away so much this year. For some reason that city recharges my batteries both physically and emotionally… and always has done. I don’t know whether it is the air or the shops or the wine or the walking or the being out of Sydney that does it, but it makes me think about stuff that I usually try to bury.

The one real lesson is that of dreams. I have a lot of dreams and trust me, you never want to get inside me head- it is a fantastical place. But the thing about dreams is that they stay as dreams until they are brought out of the bucket marked “Bucket List” and put onto the table. Once they are out there in fresh air with dates and milestones around them they can’t be called dreams any more- they are real. They have become goals. That sounds so Saturn.

I have been thinking a lot recently about everything that is in my bucket list and why many of those items have never seen daylight. My BMF scored a direct hit on a bucket list item the other day & I was so happy for him I cried. If he had been near I would have been there to hug him as he crossed the finish line.  I have to admit, though, to being just a wee bit jealous that he had succeeded while I was still busy making excuses and feeling scared & inadequate. I don’t usually get inspired by what other people do, although I may be inspired by them on a personal level. This time he has made me even more determined to succeed.

Back in January Saturn went retrograde. At that time I wrote the following:

Saturn rules the supports, structures, rules and responsibilities in our life. In theory, Saturn is the fun cop who says “no, it is time you went home young lady,” when every part of you is crying out to say yes. When Saturn is retrograde, he is sending you back to your room to think very carefully about what you are doing, goals you have started working towards and the commitments you have made. It is sort of like a planetary cooling off period when it is OK to re-assess and change direction or re-assess and say “no”. This is not the time to make new commitments or start new projects, but great to sort out just what you want out of existing goals.

In true Saturn style, he is giving you until the end of May to sort your shit out, get rid of any frustrations and re-think the viability of any promises you have already made.

Saturn retrograde can be (& has been) frustrating as we go inwards rather than externally. I have to say that my goals now, and I do for possibly the 1^st time in many years have a concrete personal goal, are very different to how they may have appeared at the start of this year. In a way the direction is opening up. As is usual for me, I am still having a lot of “not good enough”, “will never be good enough” moments, but I am trying not to listen to those and concentrate instead on the absolute possibility.

On the Blogs

I have been mixing it up a bit lately with some foodie blogs and some travel stuff (my guide to Melbourne my way). To be honest, I have been creatively flat as well recently and not been writing half as much as I need to. I have especially been rebelling against the posts that I am supposed to be completing. Anyway, I am in the process of updating Gemini posts, so keep an eye out for them.

Here at Chez Tracey we are addicted to Masterchef Australia, so have been doing our own little pressure tests at home and trying to replicate the Masterclasses. Don’t be surprised to see a few more of these turning up on the blog over the next couple of weeks as the show progresses.

Astrologically, the big deal is around the ingress (thats a fancy astrological technical word for sign change) of Uranus into Aries. This has not happened since the 1930s, so is a pretty big generational deal. I will join the blogging bandwagon and post something over the next few days.

Uranus in Aries brings to mind the Madonna song Jump:

There’s only so much you can learn in one place
The more that I wait, the more time that I waste

I haven’t got much time to waste, it’s time to make my way
I’m not afraid of what I’ll face, but I’m afraid to stay
I’m going down my own road and I can make it alone
I’ll work and I’ll fight, Till I find a place of my own

Anyway more on this over the next week. Uranus does go retrograde early in July, so will go back into Pisces in August where he will have one last shot at shaking up the fishies before leaving for good in March 2011. Personally, I will be glad to see him join forces again with my Pisces Moon without the over-riding responsibility of Saturn watching.

What’s happening up there?

For some reason I almost miss the Neptune retrograde every year- which is weird given that Neptune is the modern ruler of Pisces, so (with Jupiter) jointly rules my chart. Anyway, Neptune is currently stationary and about to turn retrograde until the beginning of November.

But what does this mean? Key words we associate with Neptune are intuitive, deceptive, fantasy, dreamy, highly sensitised, escapist and delusional. Yep Pisces in a planet.

During the retrograde period, Neptune becomes more Neptunian. Your intuition will be heightened and you may suddenly get insights into something you have been struggling with. Seeing things clearer, you may no longer be able to deny truths that you have been…well, denying- something that I personally do an awful lot of. Sometimes it can be hard to listen to what we need to listen to- and that is where the escapist nature of Neptune may also come into play. During the retrograde period you may be more inclined to run away into whatever is your favourite way of escaping. Not a great idea- you will have to emerge from the self induced alcoholic haze (or is that just me) at some point & see reality for what it is.

Who is affected? Pisces, Pisces, Pisces. Anyone with a Pisces Sun, Moon or Ascendant will become even more essentially Piscean. At this point I should issue a general warning for anyone & everyone who knows me! Also impacted are anyone with lots of planets in the 12th house and especially people with planets at around 29-24 degrees of Aquarius, Leo, Taurus and Scorpio.

Plenty of action coming up in the next few weeks with Mars (finally), Jupiter and Mercury changing signs…but more on those later!

 Sunday night is Masterchef Invention Test (& ironing night… I reckon there is a 3 glass load tonight!), so I better keep moving. Until next time,