‘Mt. Fuji Behind a Spider Web’ By Katsushika Hokusai 19th century {{PD}}

“Oh, what a tangled web we weave…when first we practice to deceive.” Sir Walter Scott

Even if we don’t set out to mislead anyone, we may get tangled up in our own lack of understanding, fuzziness on details, or over-idealistic notions of what is what. We go forth not realizing we don’t really know the outlines of things; we think we have them, but when we come to the point when specifics are required . . . suddenly it’s just indecipherable. What does work? Focusing on ambitions, and our own unique or original or innovative approach (don’t allow old wounds, contrary instincts, or erraticism make you needlessly skittish). Creating comes easily, and rather quickly coalesces into something meaningful, if we don’t try to pin things down or demand a specific material result.

This image reminds us that Cappy isn’t just a goat, he’s a sea goat! By Unknown – http://www.enluminures.culture.fr/documentation/enlumine/fr/visites_00.htm, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1492320

Today’s word image is the month of January 2018. I kept trying to write ‘January’ today, every time a month was called for. Looking ahead, what jumps out at me is the 9th. On that date the Sun, Pluto, and Venus are all at 19 Capricorn; with Earth in opposition, all square Zeus at 19 Libra, and, for a few hours, the Moon as it conjoins Zeus, forming a T-square. This suggests dynamic, permanent, possibly traumatic or dramatic change that affects relationships or finances via the mechanism of friction within the ambition or desire picture. What will change for you? If you have anything at 18-21 Gemini, you’re looking at someone acting, or you acting or choosing, in a way that brings results related to the apex natal placement in Gemini, with the Capricorn gathering sextile Mars as the base of a Finger of God. For everyone else, the most likely manifestations are around subjects of the Houses where the Cappy group sits in relation to subjects of the House where Zeus sits at 19 Libra. It may play out as who you are and what you love interacting with others who have the ability to aid you with, or block, ambition fulfillment. Of course there are other potentials, as well–but it very well may be a day to take note of, probably in terms of change and what it will cost, or what profit it’ll bring.

Votaire By Agabaranska – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=24783153

Today we show our stuff. We’re naturally strong, coordinated, expressing our most original Self, able to do and say just the right thing, and we proceed with eyes on relationships and finances and their future potentials, so we choose with what we want to develop in mind. That’s all wonderful, but as usual, there are a few places we may trip up. We may feel so confident we become aggressive, believing it’s our right to make demands–no. Any missteps rise straight out of an injured sense of Self, wounded identity, memory of lost status, or out of shame or anger from events in the past. Our gifts are at our disposal, but it may be our wounds that make us flex our muscles, unless we do our best to be conscious of our own foibles, and to consciously direct our energies into the positive, natural forms we vibe to most strongly. Though revelations about what has hurt us are possible, and expunging an injury from the psyche could occur, it’s not really a day for sorting that out intentionally; instead it’s prime time for controlling, directing, and making the most of our own impulses, no matter the source.

By Carroll Jones III, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=50337932

Today’s word image is a door, specifically a back door to a house. The front door is often reserved for facing those we don’t know, people who approach our house for their own reasons, or for greeting guests on formal occasions. We think of the back door as much less formal, used by family members or those familiar with the house and its residents, often a means of entry and exit used by those who come and go as they please. Sometimes it’s used by those who work for us, rather than by social intimates, in which case we see it as a door of necessity, just as we do if it’s how we typically enter or cart in our groceries. Using the back door is a statement: this is my house–or, I’m close with the people who live here, and welcome. This image could suggest we need to pay attention to those we have a close relationship with, maybe so we can discern the right call in some matter they’re presenting us with (for instance, someone we consider close who asks for something, but when we think in these terms, we realize we don’t feel that chummy, after all, and may not be comfortable with what they’re asking). We may also want to consider who we feel sees us that way–and whether we reciprocate. Or maybe it’s to think about how comfortable we truly are in our current relationships or living situation, or even to remind us of a recent dream or vision involving a door. In any case, a consideration of intimacy, familiarity, and the ‘proper’ interactions within our relationships.

See a recent article on the Saturn Return and relationships here—

Like the blog, and want to offer support? Donate, or Read Something Astro-ish–Thanks, and enjoy your weekend!

Weather vane of Fame, attributed to Washburne & Co., New York, circa 1890. Exhibited in the American Folk Art Museum, New York City, New York, USA Thanks to the anonymous photographer who provided the pic {{PD}}

We meet what feels like a contradiction today: that which empowers us messes with our relationships, or with our earning power. You’d think being strong and effective in expression would bring just the opposite, right? But what we find at this time, despite an unusual harmony between thought and action, is that power roles, those things we do to make ourselves and our wishes felt, don’t deliver more Love or Money–in fact, they seem to leech it away in subtle and often inexplicable chain reactions. We must console ourselves with the certainty that what we want at this moment isn’t healthy for us, one way or another; and we should be reassured that the actions we do choose to take (those that we’re able to implement) will support our autonomy and our ability to be Self-determining. This mixed bag of influences may show us, more than anything else, that what we think of as empowering, those circumstances we pursue because of the power we think they’ll confer, are not what will deliver our potency at all–that will come from more modest actions, choices made out of need, and firm guidelines provided by those people and things we value.

Today’s word image is a weather vane, spinning in a storm. Sometimes it’s almost impossible to know which direction to head; this is one of those times. Just keep in mind that the storm will move on, and then ‘which way the wind blows’ will become abundantly clear.

John Singer Sargent c1883 {{PD}}

So much is sotto voce this weekend, tendrils of sub-sonic sound that reach into the mind (wrapping most particularly around the wisdom and practicality functions), throwing off balance, affecting the solidity of our values and the sureness of our identity. We are troubled, thinking others are remarking on us, a hint of paranoia covering us like a shroud. In reality, we are aligned with our instincts; that suggests that if we can stop believing we just need to think about it first, we can function without too many negative consequences. It’s really the pervasiveness of Mars conjoined retrograde Mercury in Leo trine Uranus in Aries that fuels any upset. If not for this need for action, the impulsiveness and burning desire to be original, to pursue our own viewpoint, what we imagine might remain un-acted upon, ideas that simply remain ideas, abandoned tomorrow (or maybe after Merc’s direction) as just too too! Today, if we can take out the middle man (in this instance, that troublesome brain!) and have the instincts direct the muscles, that would be ideal. As it is, we may feel those whispers exerting themselves in some leap-before-we-look action. Choices will have a bigger or more long-lasting effect than you anticipate, so avoid any commitment that might last longer than a movie or a meal.

Lazarine Baudrion, the artist’s wife, with the Rose-breasted Cockatoo. By József Rippl-Rónai Before 1927 {{PD}}

Today’s word image is a parrot with bright plumage, riding on a woman’s shoulder as she moves down the street. How do you feel about keeping birds as pets? I love them, used to have some, but don’t want to put them in cages anymore (we’ll ignore the fact that some birds, long bred by humans, would not find life in the wild survivable, much less sustainable). Is there something you used to love, that you now don’t feel the need to relate to in the same old way? What does this change in attitude say about you, and has it changed what you do or how you behave?

Henry Herbert La Thangue – ‘The Return of the Reapers’ 1885 {{PD}}

The mental processes take on a particular tone today for the Merc retrograde review: we are inclined to look closely at either our power and status situation, or at our health, with strong potential for inspecting those areas where they overlap. It all takes on a highly Virgoan cast, where we closely peruse detail, inspect methodologies, and in some way try to ‘balance the books’. This is likely successful, leading to a nice equilibrium between trimming and getting more, expanding and contracting, and between taking an optimistic approach and a realistic one. Remember what you conclude today, and write it down if you have to–realizations seen at this point will be invaluable post-Mercury direction.

Today’s word image is a woman who sits alone in a darkened movie theater, watching the show for hours. What do you imagine she’s watching? And what does that say about what’s ‘playing’ in your life right now?

Asserting yourself doesn’t always bring the results you want. John William Waterhouse ‘Apollo And Daphne’ 1908 {{PD}}

First I want to talk about that prolonged sextile between Jupiter and Black Moon Lilith that lasts through mid-September. I should’ve noted that they stay in sextile as they move on–that means those who have that natal point precise at the beginning of the sextile will see pressure and effect lessen with time, while a whole new set of individuals will find their natal body or point at the apex. Those are 22-25 of Taurus as the pair gradually moves, with Jupiter finally pulling ahead and away by degree after the middle of the month. As pointed out by one thoughtful reader, we do see Saturn enter the mix, along with the transiting Moon briefly, on 30 August, bringing a tendency to either manifest emotions or suppress them, but considering Jupiter-Black Moon Lilith is all about exaggeration, belief, ‘the facts’, and what we have hidden, ignored, denied, or find unjust, we may see both options at work in those who respond to this, with all of us finding either the manifestation of, or suppression of, some Jupiter-BML related matter.

What else do we see at work, pre-eclipse? Saturday the 19th we find we can re-visit in a highly successful way our own thoughts on ‘the facts’, beliefs, what we’ve been taught (or indoctrinated with); we’re likely to see what’s right and wrong about our own ideas, and this offers a moment of clarity vis a vis that Jupiter-BML sextile. If we’ve tried to present our point previously and lacked full success, we should try again today–it will go much better, our manner prone to foster understanding, with a bonus of offering ourselves a sense of freedom from what may have been a pressing need to communicate. What we shouldn’t do is trust instinct to guide us–there’s too big a blind spot around our interests, today–instead be as conscious as possible, and oddly enough, you may want to avoid too many ‘I’ statements; that blind spot shadow takes in the Self-image, which means what we think we see in ourselves may be distorted or immediately challenged by the reality picture.

Winslow Homer – ‘Boy in Boat, Gloucester’ c1880 {{PD}}

Today’s word image is a glum boy waiting alone on a dock for a boat ride. Much depends on how you interpret the picture. Do you see him as sad because he’s alone, or as not looking forward to the boat ride? I saw him as lacking enthusiasm for the activity, and for me that brought up the idea of activities that are presented as ‘fun’ that the individual sees as anything but. Are you subjecting yourself to things simply because someone else thinks you should enjoy it? And on the other hand, if you saw the boy as sad because he’s alone, what loneliness in you needs assuaging, right away?

Sunday the 20th we’ve got an action plan–but in our eagerness to share our originality, our inventiveness, to stand out as unique, we could injure others or our own reputation, and in particular, we could communicate things that might inadvertently damage our relationships or our earning potential. This is a day to step, speak, and share with care, to shine fully aware of what we’re conveying–which can be a tricky thing to do.

Are you expecting that slow-moving thing to get you where you want to go? Illustration by Virginia Frances Sterret {{PD}}

Today’s word image is a pair of turtles slowly approaching each other. Is it romance? A showdown? Will a fight ensue? Will they mate, and how long will that take? Do they even see that they’re heading right toward each other, or is sight not a prominent sense for them? What in your life is moving so slowly you feel it might never arrive, happen, or reveal its true nature? And then what will, or should, you do about it?

Enjoy your weekend!

The eclipse book special is still on: get any two of my books for only $15! PayPal me directly at juliedemboski@hotmail.com and specify in the order or in a separate email which two you’d like and to what address they should be sent. Allow up to 12 hours after payment for delivery of your PDFs. This offer is not good if the books are ordered through Dog & Sunflower Press; offer expires midnight Pacific time of the 21st. Thanks for supporting the blog!

Dream time has been very weird lately, hasn’t it? The images are almost undecipherable, the messages cloaked in emotion and not easily sorted out. Don’t take any of it too much to heart; at least some of it is a product of the Universal vibration at present. Rest easy as you can, and know that these images are prophecy only in the way there’s always something coming–and what we see in dream life now may bear little resemblance to the actual future.