The energies of this week are all set up by the planets at the beginning of the week and especially the opportunity for the expansion of consciousness brought about by today’s trine between Mercury and Uranus, so that we are then left to enjoy, or work with them.  As the beginning of next week (Monday 15^th) brings a trine between the Sun and Jupiter we have a positive force field for this week between the two aspects, we do not have tension building, we can literally work with what has been set up, and possibly even have the luxury of living in the Now.  Our beginning standpoint is Mercury trine Uranus today.  The foggy clouds of yesterday (Mercury square Neptune) which may have lost you some of the day (e.g. through a hangover) are fading and we can step into the mental clarity that is Mercury trine Uranus.  This is a wonderful aspect to take through the week with us, and in fact is the only aspect, because tomorrow’s astrological features are changes of zodiac sign, and not inter-aspects between them.  So you can make the most of this and build on it throughout the week.  It’s a good week to cultivate mental acuity, and telepathic transmission, and to keep your higher antennae out for messages from the Universe.  If you have this aspect natally, you have an intuitional mind, which can sometimes by-pass logic, and cut through it to the real truth.  So we can all have flashes of intuition under this aspect, and it’s a good week to hone the connection between the lower mind and the higher self.  If you want to work with the Fixed Stars*, Uranus is connecting with the position of Scheat in Pegasus, and Mercury is connecting with the position of Alpha Centaurus.  This will expand the power of your work with today’s trine.  Alpha Centaurus can enhance conscious meditation or guided visualization for the mind, while Scheat working with the transiting Uranus can enable the transfer of energy to the Crown Chakra.  Regarding Scheat, Rubenfeld and Smulkis offer the following information: “Those who are having a little bit of trouble with this time of great change on Earth and wish to see the larger picture by attuning with cycles to see how things unfold appropriately will do well here.”  Remember in your meditations to project for the whole week.  So today is a launchpad for the week, and tomorrow is a reorientation possibly as a result of utilizing today’s trine.  Neptune and its confusions are standing still today, prior to moving forwards.  You may have a moment of “Oh I see where I have been going wrong, and now I see where or how to go!” on a subtle level.  The rest of the week will be able to respond to this moment of clarity, and a subtle new light can fall on everything.  Today is like turning on a switch, a lot can be sorted out today, to enable the rest of the week to fall into place.  Tomorrow’s events (Monday 8^th) are a change of sign for Venus and Mercury.  Venus retrogrades back to Libra from Scorpio, a chance for her to regain her equilibrium after the arduous challenges of being in Scorpio.  She can waltz a little after her Paso Doble…For all of us there will be a little re-tracing of steps in relationship.  And the last stage setting for the week is Mercury entering Sagittarius, also tomorrow.  Mercury leaves the more exacting rigours of Scorpio and is allowed freer rein in the wider fields of Sagittarius.  This allows even more expansion of the mind, and if nothing arrests this development we may all have an expanded outlook by next week, which will then be able to shift up yet another gear, provided you have been laying solid foundations this week.

*Interpretations from “Starlight Elixirs” by Michael Smulkis and Fred Rubenfeld

Today’s aspect Venus sextile Pluto is well-matched for Halloween events.  If you found last Tuesday’s Sun sextile Pluto constructive and meaningful, today’s aspect is like a different tone of the same colour.  Whereas Sun sextile Pluto was balancing life and death, today’s aspect balances love and death.  Our dinner party conversation last night was about Halloween being a U.S. import.  Our guests were a few years younger than us, but none of us could remember it being celebrated in the U.K. in our childhoods.  Our Yorkshireman remembered they celebrated “Mischief Day” (e.g. scrumping apples) which was then replaced at that time of year by Halloween.  By the time we had our children, tricking and treating on the Scorpionic date of 31^st October had become a way of life.  I don’t have a natural understanding of Halloween, but as far as I can see it is about our relationship with fear and beliefs about death.  We need to become our own Most Haunted mediums or exorcists to negotiate it.  There is also an increasing tradition of celebrating the old celtic festival of Samhain merged in with this.  Oh well, the supermarkets are staffed by witches and warlocks this weekend, and stocking plenty of scary cakes and jellied objects to sink our teeth into…I might just succumb.  Tuesday (2^nd November) is the day of the U.S.A. mid-term elections, and I apologize in advance to the Tea Party in that I am not qualified to speak.  But, we are what we read, and like the Observer leader today, I would like to urge patience to give Obama a chance: “Faced with impossible expectations, Obama has done astonishingly well – on paper.  In two gruelling years, he has delivered on three of the five promises he set up as the pillars of his ‘new foundation’ in a speech of April 2009: healthcare, education reform and financial re-regulation.”  The Saturn-Uranus opposition of his election has now morphed into a square between Jupiter/Uranus and Pluto, more complexity and challenge.  He has been up against this Cardinal Climax, for goodness sake.  Of course I wouldn’t extend the same understanding to our own P.M. David Cameron, who is not in that league of social idealism, having skipped the Saturn-Uranus opposition and come in on the Jupiter/Uranus square to Pluto.  On Thursday (4^th) Mercury trines Jupiter which is a good day for doing business, and for positive thinking (if you believe in positive thinking, that is).  For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, and there are current ideologies which point out the disadvantages of positive thinking.  For example if employing an affirmation, and if the subconscious backlash is not acknowledged, you might get the opposite effect you were intending.  I once affirmed for a part-time job to be not in front of a computer screen, and landed up with a full-time job in front of a computer screen, for instance.  But, assuming that you like positive thinking, and it’s for you, it’s the day to do it.  On Friday (5^th) Chiron is stationary prior to turning direct, and this favours healing initiatives, and miracle turn-arounds, which might reinforce any positive thinking you may have decided to do on Thursday.  Saturday (6^th) brings a New Moon at 13 degrees Scorpio, a good day for intensive psychotherapy whether in a conventional set-up or your own home-grown version.  And shortly afterwards Mercury squares Neptune as if to test out how well your new psychological structures are holding up, by putting in front of you a litmus test for reality versus illusion.  If you feel that positive thinking is not suited to Halloween week, then you can cut your teeth (not just on jellied spiders) on the conjunction of the North Node and Pluto in the month of November.  These become conjunct at different times according to whether you take the Mean Node or True Node.  If the Mean Node, then 27^th is your date.  If the True Node, then the 10^th and the 22^nd are more pertinent, and may be more spiritual in focus.  [Quote from hubby: “My brain is turning to jellied spiders reading this section”] Basically this conjunction provides an intense focus on karmic and psychological challenges (in combination) in one area of your life (depending on which House it occupies in your natal chart).  You may already know what that is, even if you do not know your Ascendant.  Some deep navel-gazing is called for, seriousness about your karmic mission and the mission of the planet as a whole, and possible past-life researches.  If you do not have time for these ruminations, then life is likely to present appropriate challenges anyway on an outward level, so that you can see what this is about.  Scary stuff?  Ha-ha-ha Halloween!

Shapers of finance last week in the UK were George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Wayne Rooney who obtained a pay rise from Alex Ferguson, the Manager of Manchester United Football Club.  Under the harmless sounding title of “Spending Review” last Wednesday, Osborne outlined the most savage programme of cuts to hit the poorest members of our society possibly ever.  This came on the day of the appearance of green Comet Hartley, which hardly enhances the reputation of comets.  Mercury also entered Scorpio that day which intensifies cutting speech.  What is it in George Osborne’s natal chart which enables him to be so ruthless?  It may be his Mars square Mercury (also cutting speech), or it may be his Moon square (difficult relationship with the public) North Node (karmic consequences).  On the day of the cutting speech Saturn was transiting his Uranus (bringing out his capacity to shock), and Uranus was opposing his Pluto (extreme action and psychology). …Wayne Rooney has innate talent as a football player (the precision of Mars in Virgo exactly sextile his Saturn) but in estimating his value to the world there may be a touch of arrogance (a T-square between Jupiter, his Sun/Pluto, and his North Node).  In his dialogue with Alex Ferguson he was taking on a shrewd man (who has been called the greatest football manager in the world).  Alex’s natal chart has a close trine between his Mercury and North Node (karmic mission as a Teacher) and Moon conjunct Jupiter (a motivator).  The astrological story is that Rooney was expressing his negative feminine side, in that Saturn was transiting his Venus (his feminine side, and money) and Venus currently in Scorpio (financial desire) was transiting his South Node (karmic habits).  These negative feminine wiles (manifesting last week as a sulk) may have come through from past life patterns therefore.  In calling in his cash karma, he is also creating cash karma for the future.  Alex Ferguson has karma with Wayne Rooney as a benefactor (his Sun trines Rooney’s North Node).  For both scenarios, Osborne’s and Rooney’s, time will tell the consequences.  Today Mars trines Uranus, a go-ahead, sparky day.  If you are meeting a friend, conversation will be lively.  If you are kicking a football around, you could make some surprise success moves.  Tomorrow Mercury conjuncts Venus at 7 degrees Scorpio, which is good for communication, negotiation, and rich descriptive writing.  Conversation will flourish in terms of mutual understanding.  On Tuesday (26^th) the Sun sextiles Pluto, another positive aspect but one which doesn’t pull any punches.  Everyone will have an agenda, and progress can be achieved, but in making your bid you will have to justify your cause.  A minor aspect is worthy of mention for Wednesday (27th) and that is Mercury semi-sextile Saturn.  Dialogue on Wednesday has to be realistic, and if it is, minor gains can be achieved.  However, some could use avoidance tactics under this aspect.  Mars enters Sagittarius on Thursday (28^th) which is another highlight of go-ahead energy.  You might sense an energy shift from ruthless (as in Osborne and Rooney) to beneficent, or at least more straightforward and upfront.  You will feel, in engaging in a group for instance, that you know where you are much more easily, and that hidden agendas are not lurking in the background so much.  In a week where all the aspects are pretty friendly, we end on Friday (29^th) with a lovely conjunction between Venus and the Sun at 5 degrees Scorpio.  If it is your birthday, your cup runneth over.  If it is not your birthday, it is a good day for marriage proposals, engagements and romantic dinners.  You might also try your luck sulking for a pay rise…unless your karmic status has risen above this level, in which case it’s a good day to create your own wealth authentically and with integrity, from the heart.

33 gold and copper miners were miraculously rescued a few days ago, with Jupiter transiting the Chilean natal Pluto, and the profile status of their country Chile was also raised.   This last week has been a neutral or even creative space without major astrological aspects, the first since I started blogging in early 2007.  What an amazing achievement by the Chileans, and how heartwarming a story!  I felt that with the bringing up of the miners, we watchers were all undergoing the resurfacing of deeply buried emotions.  The astrological story is that the disaster occurred at the peak of the Cardinal Climax or T-square on 5 August this year, when Saturn was square to Chile’s Ascendant, and that all the preparatory work in the last few weeks paid off this week in a perfectly-executed rescue, as though the Chileans were showing us how it should be done, emotionally as well as practically.  Sadly champion of the underdog Aquarian Claire Rayner lost her battle for life during that period, but had prepared well her last words: “Tell David Cameron that if he screws up my beloved NHS I’ll come back and bloody haunt him.”  You may have had a complex project to negotiate the last few weeks, and may have experienced the right space or perspective to tie it up this week.  For myself, I have been struggling with my first Self-Assessment Tax form, and found that the challenging aspects between the Sun/Mercury and Pluto square Saturn in the last few weeks both pinned me down to tackling it, and brought me through my blocks, so that I completed it this last week.  Someone was asking me why people had such difficulty filling in forms, and I observed that 20 years ago a form was about 1 page and now it is several pages long, with an accompanying manual or two of notes, of even greater thickness, to “enable” you to fill it in, if you can stay awake and aware long enough when reading it, and digest and memorize its contents.  When you have filled in a form, you also need a degree or training to work out postage on packets now.  Even the experts in the Post Office seem to need complex equipment for the job, much deliberation, eyebrow gymnastics and pursing of the lips. Not so long ago, you were able to just put a stamp on an envelope with confidence, swish your hair and go.  These are the rantings of a pensioner, bear in mind, and perhaps the youth of today find it easier.  So we are back to normal aspect services from the planets this coming week, but have learned how valuable such a space can be.  On Sunday 17^th Sun conjuncts Mercury at 24 degrees Libra, perfect for concentration on legal forms, or equal exchanges of information such as through conversation.  Monday 18^th brings a trine between Neptune and Mercury and inspiration may flow, plus it’s a good day for dance training (take note contestants of Strictly Come Dancing).  Neptune is still in a tight conjunction with Chiron, and therefore there is also a trine between Mercury and Chiron, making it easy to access information about alternative healing, and bringing together different types of healing.  On Tuesday 19^th the Sun trines Neptune, and inspiration allies with creativity.  Perhaps the inspiration which occurred earlier translates into a creative project.  Following on, the Sun also trines Chiron, enabling more healing to come through from whatever source. I am currently reading about “Theta Healing” subtitled “An Introduction to an Extraordinary Energy Healing Modality” by Vianna Stibal.  I am finding it an enjoyable, though slow read, worth looking into.  There are 3 Chiron aspects altogether in this week, so such explorations may be assisted and enhanced.  Mercury enters Scorpio on Wednesday 20^th, and the day sees an intensification of mental processes.  Another are of cosmic activity is provided by Green Comet Hartley that day.  The Guardian reports: “It is only a small comet and lacks any appreciable tail.  Instead, a small knot of greenish luminosity surrounding its icy nucleus is set within an extensive circular glow.  The latter is hard to see unless the sky is free of light pollution and moonlight.”  Comets were always regarded with awe and wonder in previous centuries, and to some extent still are, and if you experience a state of awe and wonder that day you may possibly re-trace it to comet Hartley.  On Thursday 21^st Mars trines Jupiter, a wholeheartedly positive aspect, especially if you need energy to get things going.  If you have been trying to get a project off the ground, or wonder why good quality sleep is eluding you, you may wake up on that day raring to go and finding others also bubbling with energy (Mars) + enthusiasm (Jupiter) = the green light.  Mars squares Neptune on Friday 22^nd, and it is “hold on there is something not quite right here, we need to investigate”.  A red light in some cultures, or maybe amber, or blue.  Not a day to continue rushing ahead, but a day to sensitively feel your way through and take account of any interpersonal complexities, or even any extraterrestrial information which may be coming through your antennae.  Mars also squares Chiron, so healing initiatives may also be problematic temporarily, and energies will be awkward.  However, later that day assistance is provided by Mercury sextile Pluto, important information coming through and important conversations, real communication being exchanged.  A Full Moon on the border of Aries and Taurus occurs in the early hours of Saturday 23^rd (and the evening of Friday 22^nd for the U.S.).  This may provide understanding about the intensity and complexity of the build-up in energies of the last few days, and you may feel a sense of relief like a cool gentle shower of rain after mugginess.  The Sun then enters Scorpio and we feel that we are on track, what we are doing is important and has meaning, and that more people are singing from the same hymn sheet.  Just refer back to the Chilean miners if you need perspective.

This week is a creative space, and could be anything you make of it…There are no major aspects (I considered having the week off) and you may fall into a natural rhythm.   Meditations this week may be very spacey, light-filled but non-specific in their messages.  Today is Sun Day, for the number 10 is the number of the Sun, and may be a day of renewal, or at least transition into newness.  So, there being no substance to grasp in terms of interaction between the planets (aspects), I will follow the Moon’s aspects this week, the fluctuation of our emotions, plus some semi-sextiles.  Today the Moon is conjunct Mars (initiation, new energy) then trine Jupiter (hope for the future) then square to Neptune (possibility of delusion) and lastly trine Uranus (vivid imagination, hopefully not in combination with delusion).  All the while, the Moon is in Scorpio, providing a background of emotional intensity.  Before the evening is out, the Moon enters Sagittarius, lifting the mood again and keeping it buoyant for the next few days.  Mercury also forms a minor aspect, a semi-sextile, with Venus, so there may be some playful communication, a few lines of poetry written (but not likely a whole poem).  For the new working week sport Sagittarian colours: purples and turquoises, but not necessarily together unless you are very subtly able to combine different hues.  If you are working in an office, you might find that people turn up in the same colours on the same day, and this is often the colour associated with the Moon sign of the day.  Tomorrow the Moon is sextile Saturn (constructive emotional restraint) but the Sun is semi-sextile Mars, so male energy may be fiery.  Talking of the red planet, last week’s terrible ecological disaster in Hungary coincided with Mars transiting the natal Pluto for the 1989 chart of Hungary.  Saturn is also squaring Hungary’s Saturn (testing times) and the North Node transiting the Ascendant of this chart (a karmic element).  For the 1918 chart, the North Node is conjunct the natal Pluto (soul-searching).  However the Mars aspect for the later chart is more graphic for its destructive effects and the connection with the colour red, rendering the use of the 1989 chart perhaps to be more accurate.  On Tuesday 12th (still on Sagittarian colours) the Moon sextiles Mercury, the Sun and Neptune (mental alertness, harmony and emotional sensitivity) but squares Jupiter (exaggerated emotions).  On Wednesday you can wear your Sagittarian colours and cheerfulness up until  4.17 a.m. UK time (so that’s florid nightwear), then switch to a more sober mood and earthy colours for the next few days while the Moon is in Capricorn.  Wednesday also brings a square of Uranus to the Moon (unpredictable emotion) followed by a conjunction of Pluto to the Moon (emotional depth and seriousness) continuing by ending the day in a similar vein with the Moon squaring Saturn.  After a night’s sleep in your beige nightwear the mood is more congenial on Thursday morning with Moon sextile Venus (good for ladies who lunch), then the Moon squares Mercury (conflicting the imagination with the rational point of view).  Ladies may have agreed at lunch but at tea time their views may be more at variance with their companions at table.  Some fiery but harmonious debate (Moon sextile Mars) is later followed by disagreement (Moon square Sun) by bedtime (still wearing neutral nightwear, pale green at best).  Agreeing to differ would be the way to go, but the next morning there is a brighter outlook with the Moon sextile Jupiter (buoyant emotions) topped up with the Moon sextile Uranus (new tricks).  Another lunchtime, not just ladies, definitely divisive with Mercury semi-sextile Mars, with possibly memorable soundbites.  If you’re out, take a change of costume as early afternoon the Moon enters Aquarius and the colours and styles become more adventurous, a bit like Cheryl Cole’s contestants on the X-factor.  You’ll be very “current” and “relevant” and possibly sport amazing eye-catching futuristic headgear.  Clothing by the Moon can be quite exhausting…Even with Moon still in Aquarius you will be wanting to tone it down a little by Saturday (16^th) and eyeshades might be appropriate with Moon trine Saturn and squaring Venus.  You might want to shop for a new batch of nightwear on Saturday, too.  You may also want to tune into a couple of prominent and bright Fixed Stars which are aligned with our Sun at the end of the week:  Spica (from the constellation of Virgo) and Arcturus (from Bootes).  According to Michael Smulkis and Fred Rubenfeld (authors of “Starlight Elixirs”) these two stars represent clarity (including lucid dreaming) and healing respectively.  For recommended reading Jose Arguelles wrote a book “The Arcturus Probe” in 1996 which contains a fascinating map for those who wish to explore such pathways.  In the nature of Arcturian healing there is a resonance with that of Chiron, and I would like to end this somewhat skittish account of the week with a look at a more spiritual representation of Arcturus from “Starlight Elixirs”:

“The Arcturians had discovered that a question and its answer being separate was an artificial condition.  For this reason they also influenced the way in which the Law of Help is modulated and worked out for humanity.  It is as if the angelic beings, many guide beings, and many non-physical  beings have studied and worked with Arcturians specifically to know this deeply so that when it is time to work with someone asking for help, these guides will be aware that a question and its answer are created together, and that this help will be given in great amounts”.

Mercury enters Libra today so the day may start with a cool rational look at life.  Certainly our Libran Prime Minister David Cameron appeared on our screens this morning ahead of the Conservative Party Conference urging a cool rational approach to politics.  That may at least get us through the major part of the day.  This evening however there is a conjunction between Venus and Mars at 12 degrees Scorpio (people with birthdays on 5 November be particularly aware).    This aspect is about balancing our male and female sides in the best of zodiac signs, but in Scorpio it is positively tantric or even gender-bending.    If the question a couple of weeks ago was “Who do you think you are?”, today’s question is “What is your sexual identity?”  First time regression clients are sometimes surprised to have found themselves in a session in a body of the opposite sex.  They may not have thought deeply about that possibility before.  Feminists may find they have contributed to the oppression of women in past lives, and peacemakers may find they were conscripted onto battlefields before.  For men are from Mars and women from Venus, aren’t they?  And if Mars = Red and Venus = Blue then Mars + Venus = Purple, and purple can come in different shades depending how pink or blue the emphasis is.  We lost Geminian Tony Curtis this week whose most famous role was as a cross-dresser in Some Like it Hot.  In his private life he was a womanizer who later in life went to Hawaii for inspiration as a painter.  Thus he blurred in my mind this week with Paul Gauguin whose new exhibition opened at the Tate Modern this week, who was also a Geminian, a womanizer,  a big drinker, and who loved and painted in Hawaii.  Art is one of the main expressions for the planet Venus, and you could do worse than take to the paintbrush this evening, and forego the absinthe.  On Tuesday morning Mercury squares Pluto, and later in the week it conjuncts Saturn: a mental mirror of last week’s aspects with the Sun.  The Venus/Mars conjunction and the New Moon lift this week, and though we have repetitions from last week, the energy is not as stagnant (hands up anyone who found last week stagnant!  I found the exercises in Anne Jirsch’s book “The Future is Yours” helped me out of it).  If you are buying and selling, you’ll find things easier to understand this week, though there may still be difficulties moving merchandise.  Mercury squaring Pluto will urge you to look at the meaning and ethics of your business practices.   Tony Bennett’s voice has been hauntingly blaring from our televisions this week as he sings “I walk along the street of sorrow The boulevard of broken dreams Where gigolo and gigolette Can take a kiss without regret So they forget their broken dreams” all to advertise the glorious return of “The Apprentice” with Sir Alan Sugar on Wednesday.   But the Mercury square Pluto will be too late to inform the hapless contestants as the series was filmed a while ago and delayed because of a political controversy just before our Election this year.  The New Moon in Libra takes place on Thursday 7^th at 14 degrees Libra (people with birthdays on 7 October itself be particularly aware).  In relationship, it could be a day to propose or renew vows, if romance has not been vanquished.  One’s relationship with oneself of course is of utmost importance, and will also be renewed that day.  Renewals of love and gestures of affection are especially urged for action on Thursday, as on the morning of Friday 8^th Venus stands stationary, prior to moving retrograde.  This means that Venusian activities (love, art and money) could take a turn backwards from Friday, and until 19 November.  It depends how securely rooted in reality the love actually is.  Whether it is coming from the heart, the mind, or elsewhere.  The second setback on Friday comes from a conjunction of Mercury and Saturn at 8 degrees Libra (people with birthdays on 1st October be particularly aware).  The conjunction of the Sun and Saturn last Friday encouraged us to concentrate and train our consciousness, and this conjunction highlights a need for mental focus.  If there is a skill which has eluded us in the past, it urges us to keep at it and keep working on our blocks until we “get it”.  We may not necessarily “get it” on Friday, but our steps will be part of the process.  In contrast, the evening gives us a semi-sextile between Jupiter and Neptune.  This signals a change of emphasis philosophically, seeing things differently and in a wider way which may not initially be comfortable for us, until we realize we are adjusting to the bigger picture.

My mother-in-law recently unearthed a magazine interview from 1978 when I was writing a regular column for “Good Life” magazine.  I was prepared to cringe throughout the re- reading of it but will let it pass except for a slight airbrushing of my throwaway opening comments, to include the concept that over time you learn more and more to work with the planetary transits.  Feel free to remonstrate with the ideas expressed by my 28 year old self as you take this trip back in time.  A website is a handy place to keep something you do not want to mislay again.

The interview was written by Rob Lowthian

Can These People Really Predict Your Future?

[My interview was preceded by interviews with Astrologers Jilly Collings and the late Patric Walker]

Lana Wooster doesn’t watch her own stars too closely.  “I just bear in mind where the planets are generally,” says Lana, who compiles Good Life’s stars column.  “I don’t think it’s wise to do your own…you could become neurotic.”

Lana is a thoroughly modern astrologer.  There’s no hint of the gypsy or crystal ball at her North London home.  One concession is the teacups, decorated with signs of the Zodiac.  By coincidence (?) Lana handed me one bearing my own Sagittarius sign shortly after I arrived.  Nor is her background what you might expect for an astrologer.   After studying for a degree in history and psychology at Nottingham University, she worked in a psychiatric unit.

Astrology, like psychology, is a way of dividing people into types, says Lana.  Her interest in the subject began when she picked up a compendium for beginners.  “It slotted into my personal philosophy of life.  My life and those of other people, formed a basic pattern.  When you look into it, astrology is a very logical system.”

It played an important part when she met her husband Mike. “We were just casual acquaintances when I first looked at Mike’s chart,” says Lana.  What she discovered was a striking link.  “His chart looked like an upside down version of my own,” she explains.

Compatibility of signs is very important in relationships thinks Lana.  “But” she warns “you can only tell a limited amount from the sun sign alone.  You must look at both people’s birth charts to judge compatibility.  However, there are strong links between ‘opposite’ signs.  These she lists as Leo and Aquarius, Gemini and Sagittarius, Aries and Libra, Taurus and Scorpio, Virgo and Pisces, Cancer and Capricorn.  We are also compatible with people of the same element.  “Relationships should be fairly smooth and easy if a couple have their sun sign in the same element.” Says Lana.

If you’ve had a bad forecast, don’t feel too downhearted.  “You can turn bad aspects to good account” says our astrologer.  “I don’t look at it in such dire terms as some people do.  A large element of will is involved in what happens…life is not completely fatalistic.  Personality and character shape events to a great extent.  If you know how to control your personality, and change it if necessary, then you can have some influence over your destiny.”

People often expect astrologers to be able to spot a person’s sun sign instantaneously.  Lana is often asked to do this at parties and has found that “to some extent” it can be done. “Someone’s outside appearance is usually governed by the ascendant sign rather than the sun sign, making it difficult,” she explains.  “But some have a lot of their sun sign in their make-up.”  Sagittarians like myself look  “sporty” according to Lana.

Before one of the biggest events in her own life, she could not resist a quick consultation of the charts.  When her daughter Rebecca was born in January she knew the date of the induced birth in advance and had all the ascendant signs already worked out for the possible times.  The moment Rebecca was born Lana could make certain pronouncements.  “She’ll be a very artistic child.  Born on a cusp she will have a complex character with a lot of contradictions in her make-up”.

Final word from Lana: “People shouldn’t let astrology influence them to do anything they wouldn’t normally do.  They should analyse what they’re doing and take responsibility for their actions.”

Pluto squared the Sun this morning, which may have increased the depth of your experience, whether in joy or suffering or a mixture of both.  There is bound to be emotion today, but the emotion may be cathartic.  It is a tricky week, because the planets are just being plain awkward, for an astrological blogger who likes an easy aspect or two to work with.  The aspects may just be enabling you to see your own processes, and to examine your coping strategies to see if you can do things in a more meaningful way.  The next aspect occurs on Friday 1^st October (Thursday 30^th September in the U.S.) and is Saturn conjunct the Sun in Libra, forcing a focus on a particular aspect of our relationships.  This can be a battle with our own negativity, and possible exhaustion, as we look to see what is behind it, for instance emotional toxicity such as guilt, or the drain arising from the weight of expectation from others.  All the excitement of the Labour Party leadership contest is over, and I never did get my thoughts together for a blog on it, despite a lot of preparation – that may be due to some of my own negativity.  A grim reality may set in for the Labour Party this week at their Conference if power is what they immediately hunger for.  Alternatively, some constructive insight may be theirs if they are willing to look at their recent history and learn from it.  The winning brother, Ed Miliband (his Sun in Capricorn being in the sign opposite that of his brother David who is Cancerian) is the man of the moment in that Pluto is exactly conjunct his Sun and therefore his own story embodies the recent Saturn-Pluto square and its examination in his life, and that of the Party.  Saturn has now moved on a few degrees, but the lessons need to inform the way he takes the Party forward.  He will also need to rebalance the relationship with his brother.  Natally, Ed Miliband has Sun square to his Chiron (he is always on the alert to crisis and opportunity), and his Chiron is intimately linked with the Cardinal T-square, being situated at the beginning of Aries. So he may see himself as a healer of the Party (that may have been what drove him to stand against his brother David), and his route to healing is through having the Vision (Chiron in Aries).  This is something I suspect he now needs to work towards, having put all his energies into fighting the contest, rather than something he has already arrived with.  But he will have the time to look at this, as he will not be in a position to challenge David Cameron in a real way electorially for some time.  The Labour Party now knows what the vision was not.  Late Friday evening Mercury opposes Jupiter, which though again not a barrel of laughs may seem to pep up a flat week.  People will be in the mood for a prank or two, and manufacture a laugh if there isn’t some real humour forthcoming.  Nevertheless, it may come over as light relief, and lift the mood.  Mercury opposite Jupiter is saying “Let’s make merry”.  If you come across any good jokes earlier in the week, save them up for Friday.  The mood is reinforced late lunchtime on Saturday (2^nd October) by Mercury opposite Uranus, adding the trickster to the prankster and saying “We have ways of making you laugh!”.  There is a need to attend to health and safety issues, but the potential combination and mental ingenuity of the two aspects may invite us to take a step out of our usual mental context, to see life differently, “forget your troubles and just get happy” or even to take a walk on the wild side.  Final comment of the week goes to John Prescott in his assessment of the outcome of the leadership battle: “Well done.  Now let’s all unite together and stick it to the coalition.” Over to you, Ed!

Another baby was born to a celebrity this week, as Choirmaster and TV personality Gareth Malone became a father for the first time, to baby Esther, part of a flurry of newborns coming after a peak of the Cardinal T-square.  He writes on his home page: “We are thrilled but exhausted. It’s great to be a parent.”

In Part 3 of this abridged astrological analysis of baby Florence Cameron, I look at the placings of her planets within the Houses.  The planets in their spheres of activity form a basic life pattern.  This may or may not be thought of as having originated from past lives.  What is true though is that this pattern can be changed, whether by will power, spiritual growth, or rising above any unwanted tendencies. All part of the ongoing Soul evolution, and the birthchart reflects the starting point for this lifetime. Not all houses are occupied, and some are heavily emphasized.

Florence Rose Endellion Cameron b. 24/8/10 midday Truro

3^rd House – Communication and Education – (Pluto/North Node) – As well as having a controversial streak in speech (obviously this will take time to come out!) she also has a depth of expression so that she speaks in order to express something she considers important and truthful, or to express deep feelings and emotions, sometimes with a desire for dramatic effect!  This could be combined with her words having real effect and consequence, due to the North Node being combined.  A possible Shakespearean wit.

4^th House – Home and Family – (Neptune/Moon/Chiron) – The home is an area of sensitivity and spiritual awareness.  A strong spiritual link with the parents which is subtle and beautiful.  Emotion and healing are also strong elements in this family ambience.

5^th House – Creativity and Leisure – (Uranus) – She may have some unusual hobbies, and especially like water sports (as Uranus is in Pisces).  Creatively, she will be able to receive inspiration, which will mark her out as especially talented and inventive in her creativity.  Her creations will be truly original.

6^th House – Health and Working Conditions – (Jupiter and Part of Fortune) – The 6^th House is only one indicator of health, but generally speaking Chiron trine her Ascendant and Jupiter in her 6^th House are very hopeful in terms of health matters.  Part of Fortune also brings good conditions for this area of life.  In terms of working conditions, she will do work that she enjoys, as these placements could bring traditional luck to her working conditions.  She may well set up as a businesswoman like her mother, but training as a Counsellor would also be a good route to achieving her potential.

11^th House – Friendships and Groups – (Sun and Mercury) – Sun and Mercury in 11^th House denotes a networker.  This ensures that friendships and groups are a main focus in life, and a successful one at that.  Mother and baby groups initially (or a Westminster crèche?!), then working her way up.  Owing to her family situation, the fulfillment of this social side may be hampered by the need for privacy, but she may catch up later in life.

12^th House – Unconscious – (Saturn and Mars/Venus) – When Florence has a block, she would work diligently away at solving it.  There may be blocks in the unconscious mind, e.g. she may find it difficult to remember or express her dreams.  Adults around her need to go gently with this, probe very subtly and encourage expression very gently so that the blocks dissolve easily.  Mars/Venus here connected to and just behind the Ascendant, indicates artistic and musical talents just below the surface, which can be coaxed in a similar way.

It is the day to seize the moment.

“These are days you’ll remember
never before and never since, I promise
will the whole world be warm as this
and as you feel it, you’ll know it’s true
that you are blessed and lucky
it’s true, that you are touched by something
that will grow and bloom in you…”

~ lyrics from “These are the Days” song by Natalie Merchant

Whether you are starting to write a book, or taking part in the Great North Run, the aspects today are the best you will see for a while: Jupiter conjunct Uranus and Mars sextile Pluto.  And the earlier you start the better:  Don’t wait until your mind revisions and dilutes that first chapter, don’t be late for the starting line. The conjunction of Jupiter and Uranus is in a different sign from the first two transits which occurred at 0 degrees Aries.  The planets are conjunct at the end of Pisces, so there is a different, more spiritual and idealistic tone, than the brash introduction we had to this conjunction at the beginning of June.  Jupiter conjunct Uranus gives us the enthusiasm today, and Mars sextile Pluto gives us the physical and emotional energy, to do those things that we envisaged with a passion before we got bogged down with the more difficult components of the Cardinal T-square.  Talking of which, The Pope has swept into Britain this week, in a bid to reclaim our Souls.  As I wrote in my blog (21^st July) on the Jupiter-Pluto square (a square which is still current, two transits down, one to go) the issue is religion and atheism, and the Pope’s herald Cardinal Walter Kasper coined a new (to me) phrase of “aggressive new atheism” to describe our society. It turned out that he meant Nazism and not Richard Dawkins, in using the phrase.  The visit has certainly has stimulated passions both way, from the devout Roman Catholics to those who feel that some of the doctrines have caused damage (Sinead O’Connor’s passion as only she can do, on behalf of the abused, expressing a good bit of Sagittarian hypberbole: “What we want is an admission of the present attempts to cover-up the cover-up.”).  The Pope’s aura in the country certainly has made an impact, with 28 years since the last Papal visit, and stimulated thought here. Even if we are not Catholic in this lifetime, the chances are that we had at least one Catholic past life, and his visit invites us to look at our inner Catholic.  His Mercury (travel) is currently being transited by the Jupiter/Uranus conjunction (pomp and controversy).  The visit truly embodies the dialogue of Jupiter square Pluto.  On Tuesday (21^st) the Sun opposes Jupiter, then Uranus.  If you set up something today, you may see opposition to it on Tuesday.  That is the day to consider the opposite point of view after the flush of action, and the Full Moon later in the week continues that theme.  For instance if you have written a pantomime today (yes it is pantomime-writing season, and only a few months to go before dress rehearsals then actual performance) you may be challenged about what you have written, if you gave your imagination full rein.  And today will be about going all the way.  In my own script, for instance, I made wild claims about the Alkaline Diet, under the poetic licence of being a Sagittarian, and it being a pantomime script.  So on Tuesday everything has to be brought into a wholeness, because there are other viewpoints to consider.  The Pope has mentioned other religions while he has been here, and that is a step forward.  Tuesday has to be inclusive and holistic in order for the results of the Jupiter/Uranus conjunction today to be validated.  There needs to be dialogue and there needs to be higher vision, and in creative terms holistic art forms (such as mandalas).  More consideration of the other viewpoint, and rising above the polarities, has to occur on Thursday (23^rd) when the Sun arrives in the sign of Peace (Libra) at the Autumn Equinox to meet with emotional confrontation (Full Moon in Aries).  Of all the polarities, Aries/Libra has the most personal sense of self and other, and the need to blend or rise above differences.  And of all the degrees, this degree of the opposition (0 degrees Aries Moon and 0 degree Libra Sun) is the most basic and has the most potential for transforming our identities, and identifying our personal needs.  Who are we really?