Starcodes horoscopes for July 17 - 23, 2009
By Heather Roan Robbins
This week starts light, then deepens into some intense family karma slogging and ends upbeat and extroverted. Mercury enters Leo for the next few weeks and increases our enthusiasm and bravado; we may have a harder time talking about our deepest feelings, but can tell a great story in the meantime. It can get hard to share the spotlight, to listen as much as talk, but we’d better try. Just watch the kickback if someone feels ignored.
Mercury in Leo helps us perform for the public, whether that means greeting relatives at a picnic or performing in a camp talent show. We may not take criticism too well, so directing the budding actors or the rowdy relatives may be tricky. Just pour on the compliments for anything you’d like to grow.
Friday and Saturday are gossip central as the verbal Gemini Moon conjuncts Mars and Venus now both in versatile and adaptable Gemini. A multiplicity of feeling can leave some thinking we love more than one person or needing to juggle opposing relationships or balancing work and social life, yet it won’t really test committed relationships. We need to cross pollinate, may flirt like crazy with old loves and new strangers, but don’t necessarily need to touch. So let’s enjoy the crowd, trust our beloveds and give them plenty of room to connect. Adaptability and multi-tasking are the name of the game, but we can hold onto our center in the process.
Sunday through early next week bring a moodier, broodier time. Though feelings are a deep river, we’re also running a lot of nervous voltage with Venus and Mars in Gemini; this can diffuse the situation with humor and keep us from getting stuck in a problem, but we still can get snappy under stress. Family matters come to a head and require a less anxious, more mature response. People’s feelings are easily wounded so they’ll tend to walk away instead of stay and work things out if they feel scraped. We need a kind and compassionate approach to self and others.
Late on July 21 a solar eclipse in the last degree of Cancer can signal a turning point in our lives as it triggers endings and beginning, changes that are long overdue, thought they can be a surprise at the time.
It may be time to lay to rest a tough memory as Venus squares Saturn. It’s time to take a break from the fluffier energy of summer and tend to responsibilities; practice good relationship skills, and be there for loved ones. Watch a quick defensive trigger, it’s probably is not the wisest approach.
Strong emotional undercurrents swirl as we conclude some outstanding family or domestic patterns, whether this means getting over an old incident that still rankles or a reevaluating the household budget. We may dream of people who once were part of our life, need to attend older relatives or have to answer tough questions from the younger ones.
With this domestic focus in play the politics of our own country may take precedence over international affairs, though that may reverse next week. The eclipse will be seen in the southern hemisphere through India and Asia and can stir the coals of history throughout that part of the world.
Luckily the Venus and Mars conjunction in versatile Gemini can help us keep the lines of communication open and keep our sense of humor close to the surface. Our moods may go deep but can shift quickly; we can find something funny even in the most inappropriate places, but this doesn’t mean we take it lightly. Humor relieves stress and helps us dance with and metabolize change.
Midweek the mood changes profoundly as both the Sun and the waxing Moon enter outgoing Leo. People will tend to dramatize what they feel in to order to get their point across whether they’re rehearsing opera or working on attending a family picnic. They may feel less flexible, more opinionated, and pretend they’re being rational when it’s obvious that emotions and egos are driving the decisions. If so, we need to accept them if not the rationale behind the decisions, with acceptance comes an open mind. A Jupiter-Chiron conjunction can ask us to step up our game and believe in ourselves, take a risk and find more talents than we thought we had.
Friday, July 17 rolling transits bring moods and circumstances that shift like a summer storm, quick and intense. This is more challenging where we’re busy; otherwise we can just kick back and coast through. It’s harder to focus before lunch but the haze can be delightful in a hammock by the water. This afternoon luck cooperates; late tonight we can understand or communicate something important though still need to keep it spacious to keep our audience.
Saturday, July 18 morning brings potentially tough or confusing news or difficulties in getting where we want to go as Mercury quincunx Pluto. If a power trip tweaks our tails, it quiets down over the weekend but need attention next week. A fresh wind blows though midday as the Sun trines Uranus and precipitates a helpful change. Moods shift, we’re encouraged to drop our plans and try a different tangent, but need to make sure we change what’s needed and don’t avoid the one inconvenient thing that will really make the difference. Nervous energy runs high; communications comes in funny sound bites. Evening is phenomenally sociable as long as we keep it light and spacious, a wonderful time to meet new connections as the Moon conjuncts Venus and Mars.
Sunday, July 19 overnight difficulties or doubts can nag us as Mercury semi-squares Saturn, but vanish quickly if we stay light on our feet; life does not go as planned, but the changes may be an improvement. Thoughtful reminiscences and heavier responsibilities need attention; we go deeper if we go with, humor and a healing intention. Early evening bubbles and then takes a deeper or more melancholic note later as the Moon opposed Pluto; honor what is left unsaid as well as what’s spoken.
Monday, July 20 comfort and safety calls us and we’d rather not deal with anything more emotionally taxing. If we feel supported and safe sharing emotions, unspoken bonding and trust is built. If we don’t, we’re tempted to throw up a smoke screen with edgy defensive words. Midday, we’re still emotionally sensitive but can comfortably tackle practical solutions for familiar problems. Work on the home base and keep the home fires burning under the waning Cancer Moon. Wait a few days to request a favor, as people are feeling decisively self-protective while Mercury sextiles Mars. We can hide behind old stories but get impatient if this is pointed out; think of this as an exchange of feeling and not new information.
Tuesday, July 21 hold hands and don’t take anything personally, this can be an emotionally trying time. Do what’s right by one another as our memories of the past, rather than our awareness of the future, run the show as Venus squares Saturn. The situation may be trying enough, as so let’s not test one another or give into an inclination to demand attention. Under this New Moon, solar eclipse in Cancer we all may feel the page turn.
Wednesday, July 22 enough with the family, we need to jump into the river of life and worldly doings as the Sun and Moon enter Leo. Just leave them feeling loved. Adventure awaits and life becomes a performance art. We want to do things in grand style; if at rest, let it be in a sybaritic hammock by the sea, if at work, we may up the ante and grandstand. If sad, we’ll tend to make it melodrama. And heaven forbid we feel taken for granted. Circumstances may require us to team up, but a team works best if each one has their place to shine.
Thursday, July 23 petty logistics seem beneath our notice but need attention or they can really cramp our style. Midday, if inflated opinions try to pass as philosophy, just be entertained and look for the real issue underneath. Watch a lapse in judgment, a tendency to overspend or over do, but do honor an expansive desire to forgive as the Moon opposes Chiron, Jupiter and Neptune. Pressure releases tonight making it a wonderful night to celebrate and have a party.
