This post comes with a lots of words and technical terms ahead warning…

The summer holidays here in Australia, are when thoughts turn to the beach, the cricket and…DIY.

And what better subject for your DIY efforts than yourself?

At this time last year, I taught you how to use an ephemeris– and why you’d want to. I also showed you how I map my transits each year. Here’s a refresher.

It takes a couple of hours (depending on how heavy your transit year is) and gives you a pictorial representation of what’s going on.

The year that I had all the biggies happening, I painstakingly marked on my calendar the dates when certain transits were exact- Pluto square Moon, Pluto square Saturn, Uranus conjunct Ascendant, Saturn opposite Mercury, Uranus conjunct Sun, Saturn opposite Mercury, Pluto square Saturn, Saturn opposite Mercury, Uranus conjunct Sun, Saturn conjunct DC/opposite ASC…and so it went. It was a big year- the nature of these transits and the congestion of planets in Pisces meant that it was a busy 3-4 years- and I was exhausted by both the plotting and the worry of what would happen.

Nothing did. Not on the surface. Plenty did below it. At the time, I couldn’t wait for the year to be over. It changed me forever- in a good way, I think.

Everything in those few years was taking place in the 1st, 7th and 10th house of my chart. My entire life was changing. When I plotted it, I could see that- I could see the forest. On their own, the transits were like individual trees- only part of the story. By looking at them in isolation, I lost perspective. By plotting the rest, I could see the big picture.

So this is what I do.

You’ll need your chart…

Of course. If you know your birth time, follow the instructions here to get your own chart. If you don’t know your birth-time, you can either use 12pm, or use the Solar format- this places your Sun in the first house.

You’ll need an ephemeris…

This is so you can work out what planet is doing what and where in the sky. I popped the link in above.

The Tools

I use an excel spread-sheet that I drew up years ago.

I divide the month into 4- one for each week. I eyeball the ephemeris and take a near enough is close enough approach. It’s a big picture I’m after, not paralysis by analysis.

This is what mine looks like for this year. I have a template now, so it took me less than an hour to complete.

The Colours

I select a colour for each transiting planet and graduate it:

• The darkest shade for the same degree as the natal planet being transited
• The next shade up for 1 degree out.
• The next shade up for 2 degrees out. I don’t go any further than that.

I’ve found that most of the “action” (if you can call it that) tends to occur at the degree or 1 either side- although Saturn transits, in my experience, can have long tails.

In my example, the orange is Pluto, blue tones are Neptune, the green is Uranus, the red/brown is Saturn, and the purple is Jupiter.

The concentration of colour on your spread-sheet will give you a good idea of what’s going on and where there are overlaps.

In 2015, most of the influence in my chart will be coming from Uranus and Jupiter.

How far?

I tend to only track the outer planets and Saturn transits- these are the game changers- but include a rough look at Jupiter as well. Unless he’s approaching his station, Jupiter moves just a little too fast for it to show up well on the grid.

Faster moving personal planets and New and Full Moons can, of course, trigger these big picture events.

Whilst I keep an eye on the transits outer planets make to each other, bear in mind that this will be happening to everyone in your age group- what makes it personal is the bigger picture.

The House Positions

To make it easier to see how the transit will manifest and any patterns:

1. Note the natal house position of the transiting planet
2. Note the house the planet is transiting through
3. Note the house/s the transiting planet rules natally

As an example, Jupiter is in my 5^th house natally, will be transiting the 5^th, 6^th & 7^th houses in 2015, and rules the 10^th and 1^st (traditionally) in my chart.

This means that all Jupiter transits will begin with 5^th house issues, will be felt (mostly) in 6^th house issues (depending on the month), with an impact on both me, my body, my health, my behavior, my outlook and my career.

Another example?

Pluto is in my 7^th house natally, will still be transiting my 10^th house in 2015, and rules my 9^th natally.

This means that in 2015, Pluto transits will begin with a 7^th house slant- my relationships. My 10^th house, career zone is where most of the action is happening, but the outcome will be in 9^th house matters…coincidentally where Saturn is in 2015.

Check for any patterns- is one area of life receiving more attention than another?

This year for me, the houses 1,5,7,9,10 and 12 are active. I’m paying extra attention to the 12^th as this is where I tend to come undone.

Check also for transit combinations that mimic natal combos. Eg, in 2015 I have Uranus conjunct Venus. I have Uranus natally in the 7th house of relationships, and also Uranus and Venus are natally inconjunct. This one will be important in the overall scheme of my Uranian story.

Natally I have Pluto opposite the Ascendant. In 2015, he will sextile the Ascendant..and give me a little reminder of what it all means in the process.

Progressed Moon

I look at what house and sign the Progressed Moon is in.  This gives you a backdrop for the period in question.

I take note also of the “terms” that the progressed Moon is in, as it adds an additional layer of info. Don’t worry about this too much if you don’t know what I’m talking about!

You can find your progressed Moon on astro.com…but that’s a whole other topic on it’s own!

Astro T accounts

I knock out a quick set of what I call astro t accounts:

• The natal position of the planets involved (where the action is initiated)
• The house being transited (where the action is occurring)
• The house/s ruled by the planets involved (where you’ll see the outcome)

I tend not to worry about all of them- these days I do enough to get an idea of any repetitive themes. It’s the pattern that I’m after.

What’s the Moon up to?

I mark up any close transits being made by the New or Full Moon, taking special note of eclipses. I take note of any falling in date ranges that have heaps of colour…these will act as trigger points.

I’ve popped these dates and degrees onto a page for you. In my case:

• The 2^nd Pisces New Moon and eclipse is within 2 degrees of my Pisces Moon
• May’s Taurus New Moon sextiles my Moon
• June’s New Moon in Gemini squares my Moon
• August’s Full Moon in Pisces is exactly conjunct my Mercury
• September’s Solar Eclipse falls in my 7^th exactly opposite my Sun and conjunct Pluto
• October’s Full Moon in Taurus falls exactly opposite my Pluto ruled Scorpio Mars

Can you see the patterns? The Moon rules my 5^th house, Mercury rules my 7^th, and Pluto is also involved. There are those houses again.

Retrograde Dates

I eyeball the retrograde dates and station points to see if any are occurring at key parts of my chart. If so, I’ll make a note of it. This year I have Uranus stationing just a degree past Venus, and Jupiter stationing a degree past Uranus. Given that the Uranus/Venus conjunction is the biggest single transit I’m having in 2015, that can’t be a coincidence.

I’ve also made this part easy for you

…and then…

I pin the charts on the cupboard door in my office and then worry about what’s coming… No. I. Don’t!

Yes, I pin the chart on the cupboard door, but most of the time, I put it to the back of my mind and simply observe as things happen, or if things happen. I used to worry- especially that year when I had so many transits- but these days I try more to dwell on what the possible positive outcomes could be, and what I can do to help the transit along. Note, this isn’t me trying to control the outcome or predict the future. It’s more about me attempting to work with the transits and maximise my good day ratio.

Try it for yourself. Don’t get hung up on making it perfect- do as much or as little as you like. What you’re after are patterns. What you then choose to do with them is up to you. Tomorrow we’ll talk about how you can use this to help you set your 2015 goals.