Me Me Me

It was my 74th birthday on Friday, and it seems to be my turn to be under the astrological spotlight!

Last Sunday evening, I discovered that I had correctly predicted the finalists for this year’s series of Strictly Come Dancing, from weeks back.

On my actual birthday, I visited the David Hockney exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, which took me back to the blog I wrote back in 2012 about his exhibition of scenes of nature in his native Yorkshire.

I couldn’t sleep that night following my birthday, and wondered if my new book had been published, and found it on the Amazon website.  Needless to say, I continued to be sleepless.

Strictly Come Dancing – Correct Predictions

It has been a bumper year for my correct predictions about Strictly Come Dancing.  It is possible that my training on predicting for Wimbledon is paying off…

In my first batch of four, written on 17th September, I picked out Bobby Brazier as the only one capable of getting to the final.  I wrote:

“At the end of the tournament, Saturn is still on his Uranus (ouch!), but the North Node will be exactly trine his natal Pluto to the day (which is powerful and karmic!), so if he survives until then in the contest, he stands a good chance at the final.”

In my second batch of four, written on 15th October, I picked out Ellie Leach as the only one capable of getting to the final.  I wrote:

“For the final she has: Neptune still on her Sun, but exact to the day!  She will also have Chiron on her Venus (poignant) and Mars close to its Return (her energies on point), Mars on her Pluto (accentuating her powerhouse of energy, with slight danger of injury) and Chiron trine her Pluto (powerful healing).  These are powerful transits, so she could go from strength to strength, all the way to the final.  I would not underestimate her!”  This was before the judges started to see her potential, and before she appeared at the top of the leaderboard.

In my final Strictly blog, written on 19th November, I picked out Layton Williams as the only one capable of getting to the final.  I wrote:

“At the final he will still have Uranus trine his Sun (a great asset), Nodal Axis square his Uranus, Uranus trine his Neptune and Neptune trine his Pluto.  A strong set of transits.”  No prizes for tipping him, by that time.

Two other predictions stand out.  On 15th October, I wrote about Amanda Abbington:

“Her transits for the final have the Sun on her North Node, Saturn on her natal Mercury, and Neptune square her Nodal Axis still.  Not especially good transits…Despite my high hopes for this couple, the astrological picture does not look great.  Perhaps Amanda will have too much going on in her private life, and she will not be in a position to make the most of her potential.”  I strongly felt that she would withdraw for personal reasons, and she did, but we still do not know the reasons.

Again on 15th October, I wrote about Nigel Harman:

“Looking at the picture for the final, he will have Pluto square his Mars (dangerous!) and Jupiter square Jupiter (adventurous!).  Could it be that if he gets to the final, he will display his explosive side to the max (no pun intended for his name in Casualty) which has triumphed so far when unleashed in the competition?”  When I wrote that his later transits were “dangerous” I meant injury-prone, and he went out towards the end of the contest with a fractured rib.

So after last Sunday, people were asking me who I tipped to win, and I unhesitatingly said Ellie, purely on astrological grounds.  As you may see, from the above, her final transits were over and above the best.  However, I can’t prove that I called it for Ellie this week as I wasn’t blogging, so if any of you heard me say that, just put “yes you did” under comments!

David Hockney Exhibition

So for my birthday, I went to the David Hockney exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London.  Do consider a visit.  Here’s the blurb:

“The Gallery’s autumn programme will see the return of the five-star exhibition, ‘David Hockney: Drawing from Life’, which was staged for just 20 days before the Gallery’s closure due to Covid in March 2020. 

The exhibition explores the artist’s work over the last six decades through his intimate portraits of five sitters: his mother, Celia Birtwell, Gregory Evans, Maurice Payne and the artist himself. His familiarity with the sitters enables him to work with a range of mediums and styles, from pencil, pen and ink and crayon, to photographic collage and the iPad. The 2023 exhibition will also debut a selection of over thirty new portraits. Painted from life they depict friends and visitors to the artist’s Normandy studio between 2021 and 2022.”

I loved his work on nature from the 2012, and here is some of what I wrote then:

“David Hockney has Sun conjunct Mercury in Cancer, so he very much processes through his emotions: even his mind processes through his emotions. The colour in his artworks is an attempt to express the emotion he feels.  In the current exhibition, his landscapes and love for his native Yorkshire are on display.  Rosie Bramley, Head of Art at local school Driffields has said: “He’s an incredibly talented observer but when he introduces colour he’s clearly capturing his feeling about a place – and I think that does relate to how we view the Wolds.”  His ruler the Moon, also governing emotion, is trine Saturn, so he is a shrewd operator, and is able to turn his emotion into practical use.  This aspect would also give him proficiency in drawing, and his artworks are very clearly delineated, sometimes almost cartoon-like.”

But portraiture is my first love.  I enjoyed watching the commission for the winner of the Portrait Artist of the Year 2023 last week.  The subject was the 89-year old conservationist Jane Goodall, and the artist took the trouble to find the character within, with beautiful results.  So I was able to see the actual painting, on Friday’s visit.

The various sketches of intimate friends of David Hockney, going back decades, are well worth seeing in the current exhibition.  But the crowning glory of the exhibition are the friends and family he painted in lockdown during the covid times.  He paints in vivid colours which delight the inner child.

The Quiet Office – Volume II

Well I can hardly believe it!  In fact my paperback copy will be arriving tomorrow, so I will hopefully believe it then.  As described, I knew publication of Volume II of The Quiet Office ( ~ The Search for the Now) was imminent, but it was confirmed to me at 4.30 a.m. yesterday morning.  So I will take that as the birth moment, and that finds Venus exactly on the Ascendant in Scorpio in its chart.

Here is the blurb I have chosen for the cover:

“In this second volume of a trilogy, part-time astrologer Sharon continues her chronicle of the cloistered world of The White Rose magazine office in Cambridge in the noughties. She introduces new players and breathes life into some of the original characters. Having explored her past lives in Volume I, she begins a new adventure in consciousness, that of the search for the Now, via an uneasy relationship with an austere mentor. The story maintains gentle humour throughout and celebrates the art form of the mandala.”

and my bio:

“Lana Wooster has been an Astrologer for 53 years, having picked up a book on the subject while at Nottingham University studying History and Psychology.  She has worked in a variety of offices throughout her life, among them magazines.  She has written a weekly blog

since 2007 which has regularly featured in the top ten of U.K. Astrology blogs.  She now holds a Diploma of the Philosophy of Creativity from the Institute of Continuing Education at Cambridge University, a study which accompanied the writing of the book.  She specializes in Karmic Astrology, and also practises Future Life Progression which will be the subject of Volume III.”

During the writing of the book, I painted a mandala for each chapter, and the set will be available to purchase.  If you are interested, you can contact me by email from my Contact page here.

The book is just in time for Christmas! For those who enjoyed Volume I, you will find it a fitting companion to the first. For those who haven’t read it, you may wish to binge-read the two together!  It is available on kindle, though for me there is nothing like the form of a book.

And my own transits are very apt.  Jupiter is exactly trine my natal Mercury in the 9th House of Publishing (also being a Mercury Return to its natal position in my chart).  And Uranus forms an exact Grand Trine with my Saturn and Midheaven (Careerpoint).  It is also still part of my Solar Return, because the Sun was still in its natal degree.  Enough about me.

Aspects

In the early hours of this morning, Neptune squared the Sun, and you may have dreamt deeply.  This aspect may bring some impractical elements to the day.  You may hit a snag in the implementation of your plans, or see through the illusion of a project.  Once you are through that looking glass, you may see how you can remedy things.  It may require some refining of details or technique, for instance.

Late lunchtime tomorrow (Monday 18th) Mercury trines Jupiter.  This aspect will help business transactions, and expand our horizons, minds and philosophies.  This is an upbeat vibe mentally, one that takes in great wads of information, produces good ideas and may incline one to travel, train strikes permitting of course.  There may be media opportunities, for those so inclined, and it could be a productive day.  A cause for optimism may be found.

Uranus opposes Venus on Thursday (21st) at breakfast time, so any attempts to persuade another of your point of view may lead to intransigence or detachment on their part.  Someone around you may be displaying skittish behaviour.  There may be strange social encounters, too.  Be clear from your heart, to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings, as cross currents and crossed purposes can occur.

At lunchtime on the same day, there is a more stabilizing aspect: that of Mercury sextile Saturn.  You may have taken in all the facts for dealing with an issue or project, and are ready to put in serious and solid plans based on sober thinking. This aspect favours exacting mental work and documentation.  Progress can be made, including possibly for health related checks.

The Winter Solstice arrives in the early hours of the morning on Friday (22nd).  For many this will be a relief, and a sense of a new dawn, especially for those who suffer from seasonal affective disorder (S.A.D.).  The Sun’s entry into Capricorn is a return to practicality, after the aspirational month of Sagittarius.  It is a time to look at the general structure and order of things, and your relationship with authority and the institutions which govern our society.

In the early evening that day, there is a conjunction of the Sun with Mercury, bringing an extra quality to the day.  It is a good time to apply your mind with clarity,  concentrate and focus,  and make important statements.  The focus may be on career, your work in the world, and relations with authority.  Mentally you may be able to see things clearly from the point of view of the structure of society. That may involve seeing things from a larger perspective than you are accustomed to seeing the issue in hand.

On the last day of the week, Saturday (23rd), Mercury in its retrograde motion re-enters Sagittarius from Capricorn.  This gives us a more cheery mental outlook coming up to Christmas.  We may be still very much aware of the problems in the world, but we may, in our seasonal spirit of good will, be more supportive of charities and be more innovative in thinking of ways we can help.  Mercury in Sagittarius brings more lightheartedness and expansion.  There’s an opportunity to hone your sense of humour, sarcasm-free; quick-fire wisecracks could bring a laugh a minute.

The week in bullet points:

  • Today – confusing
  • Tomorrow – mentally upbeat
  • Thursday – strange encounters; stabler communication
  • Friday – return of the light; mental clarity
  • Saturday – mentally upbeat

 

Date: Dec 17th, 2023 · Comments RSS · Tags: Art · Astrology · Book Review