Eoywin

Meanwhile, let's take a look at Eoywin's chart. Which is very very pretty (I am sometimes such a Libra). She's born March 19, 1977 at 1:50PM in BayCity, Michigan. This makes her a double Pisces (Sun and Moon, in absolute conjunction: she was a new moon baby) with Leo rising. Her sun and Moon are living in the 9th house, and Mercury (in Aries) is also in conjunction. Sun and Moon are in very late Pisces, Mercury in extra early Aries, and so they get to play happily together. She has a Grand Trine that makes a Kite. The Trine is--oho!! Well, she has what looks like a Grand trine but is sneaky and isn't really. Very interesting. It makes, actually, the coolist fish pattern imaginable, so apt for a Pisces. And actually--yeah, let's throw in the Midheaven and we get a trine too. So the points in the Grand Trine I have just created, being all powerful like that, are Saturn in Leo, Neptune in Sagittarius, and the Midheaven in Aries. There are also some other trines going on as well. Neptune trines Venus and Saturn trines the Moon. And the kite...that's a sextile from both Saturn and Neptune to Pluto in Libra, which is snug to the start of the 4th house (though at the end of the 3rd) and thus opposite the midheaven. Whew. So this is pretty fascinating-- a double Pisces (water energy) who in fact has a ton of fire going on, and reads that fire--that will towards action--through intellectual air sign Libra. But let's try to be all rational and zip through the houses, 1 to 12, and peek at what's happening in each of these. Leo rising comes across with great warmth, drama, flair. "Here I am, now we can have fun". But when Saturn is in Leo and in the first house, as it is here, there is a bit of a..hesitation..to that Leo brightness. Leo rising without Saturn, Leo all happy by itself, always reminds me of a pretty little child rushing into a room and dancing about, demanding attention, but in a very charming and engaging way--so that everyone stops, and does what that child wants. Or it's like sunlight breaking through (and Leo is ruled by the sun). But when we have Saturn at the ascendant (and actually, Eoywin, I have Saturn in my first house too, in Leo, but with Pluto leading the way and complicating my life)--there is a bit of--oh, seriousness. Sobriety. Must be good. Must behave. Must make certain that the world is in order. First house Saturn kids often end up having a ton more responsiblity early in their life than others their age. And a first house Saturn person will generally appear, when you first meet them, as reliable, trustworthy, serious. Saturn tells us about our fears and how we gain security; what we most want, what we most fear we can't have or will throw away. Saturn in Leo craves recognition, admiration, appreciation. This can go as far as "I need to be famous" or simply be a question of wanting to be recognized as the beautiful special soul they are. Saturn in Leo people believe in their hearts that they are special, that they are destined for something great or wonderful; it is a conviction they have from early childhood on, and they get surprised by (and upset by) situations in which they aren't recognized as being the best. At the same time, a Saturn in Leo person will rarely cop to this, or will kind of joke about it. When I was in my twenties, before my Saturn return, I would sometimes joke about "sure, what I want is fame and fortune". It wasn't a joke, though my definition of fame and fortune is pretty odd. Saturn in Leo people may fear to fail, and therefore not take on things that they aren't already pretty good at. When I was entering school I already knew how to read (I think I was born knowing how to read--well, not really, but I was a freakishly early reader)--but I didn't know how to write the beautiful Spencerian hand my mother wrote, with exquisite shading and perfect letter formation. And I was so afraid I would be mocked for my total lack of ability. It was a great relief to see that we were going to start with shaky block letters, and that none of my classmates had a clue that Spencerian handwriting existed. That sort of fear, which is based I think on pride (a big Leo thing)--is quite Leo Saturn. Leo rising is supposed to grant gorgeous hair...like, gosh, a mane. Very Dallas (perhaps before your time, actually: very Big Hair). I blame Saturn for the baby fine quality of my own hair, but it did have its moments (I just realized I cut my hair at key Saturn transits. Whoa.That's so interesting--it was long, long, long and blonde and the first time I cut and changed it--drastically--was during the Saturn opposition--at around 14 years old. And the next time--another drastic chop--at my Saturn return. I've gone through my second Saturn return and--yep, my hair is very short and henna-red--but at the start of my second Saturn return I cut it absolutely short to go back to my natural color, after years of using henna--it's a mid-mouse-brown naturally, I discovered. Amazing; I never correlated this before). Leo rising also gives an air of natural nobility. Eoywin has her Saturn conjunct Pallas in Leo in the first house. Now, having Pallas in the first house makes other people expect you are going to be a problem solver, and it does give a wonderful ability to do that, to see patterns, to figure things out. But Saturn here makes it a little hard to realize you can do that. People with this pattern need to work on their self confidence, a lot, and when they are learning or trying out things they need to practice a lot. But once they have learned something--they've got it; it is theirs and they can build on it strongly. Saturn/Pallas trine Neptune give a great ability to take visionary or poetic or compassionate and imaginative projects and give them form, work with them, make them real. The second house here is also Leo cusped, and having doubled signs makes us realize (well, makes me realize, anyway, and a bit late in the game) that Eoywin must have intercepted signs as well. And those are *peers at chart* Sagittarius and Gemini in the 5th and 11th houses. We'll talk about that as we get there. Meanwhile, having Leo as the sign on the 2nd house tells us that she really, really treasures those Leo attributes: nobility, warmth, courage, generousity. The best in herself, the best in others, the best of whatever it is she most wants, most values. Drama, passion. Nothing pallid, nothing all humdrum. And this can be on all sorts of levels--from the mundane (in which she might well have expensive tastes--or at least an eye for the very best. Well, of course she does, she's involved with Black Phoenix for goodness sakes)--to the very--esoteric, in which she may wish to actualize a life that is centered on leadership for the good of others (her "loyal subjects"). Virgo is the sign on the 3rd house. Here we find Ceres and Pluto, both in Libra. So there's a fine mind, and a devotion and care towards siblings or people like siblings in the life; there is a discernment and precision in her communication and learning style (she probably is very fond of books). Intellectual, a bit earnest, very charming. Takes her relationships to those close to her quite seriously. She may have taken care of her brothers and sisters, or she may well have been cared for by siblings more than by parents in her childhood; the sibling relationship, for her, is a source of strength. (this can be true even if one doesn't have actual siblings; one will then enter into sibling-like relationships with friends, and often long term ones; life long). Someone with a 3rd house Ceres may find she can communicate in a very nurturing fashion, that her words and her manner of communication soothes others, makes them feel loved and secure. (and back to books--a 3rd house Ceres would be nurtured by literature or other forms of communication). Pluto in the 3rd house gives tremendous power to words. If you have Pluto in the 3rd your words--writen, spoken, whatever--have the power to heal, and the power to harm. Even a casual comment may strike to someone's heart. Now, this is a great thing for someone who is a writer of course; but it works for anyone, and the Pluto person needs to be aware of it. No, you don't have to go around giving sermons and never saying a cross word--but be aware. Relationships with neighbors, siblings, those like siblings are never lukewarm if you have Pluto in the 3rd. Very intense: love or hate (or both ). The Pluto in Libra generation, as I've said dozens of times here, is remaking our concepts of beauty and marriage, of justice, of harmony. And they seem to be doing a marvellous job of it, really. They were born as this energy started surging in the world, and they are exemplifying and extending it (and I love the Pluto in Libra generation--but that may be because I've got a lot of Libra in my own chart, and they stir me up ) Pluto is close to the start of the 4th house, house of home and where we build our foundations, of our roots, the start and end of life. Being here Pluto is also opposite the midheaven, and the energy may permeate both the home and the career. Power, and perhaps power struggles in both arenas. Libra is the sign on the 4th. Eoywin has her North Node of the Moon in Libra in the 4th house (the south node is in Aries in the 10th house). She also has Uranus in Scorpio in the 4th house. So, if you have a sense of Libra you will know that someone with a Libra 4th house would like a lovely home; beauty is the heart of what Libra needs and loves and with her Ceres in Libra Eoywin is nurtured by the beautiful; when all else is terrible in her life--which I certainly hope doesn't happen much--something beautiful can lift her heart. This is true of anyone who has some strong Libra in their chart--and someone with Pluto in Libra will be able to find that beauty in unlikely places. But Libra also needs justice like the air she breathes--so a Libra 4th house person is going to want to have things harmonious and fair within her household. And she is likely to want to have books, art, the "finer things" around her. And--if possible--a dear partner in the home. But she also has that Uranus in Scorpio in the 4th (we'll talk about the nodes of the moon later) which makes it kind of likely that--well, there's a couple things here. People with Uranus in the 4th may have had kind of unsettled childhoods (moving a lot, or kind of eccentric or unsteady people in the home)--and people with a 4th house Uranus may have a lot of ease with the world of computers, technology, new ideas, new concepts: they feel "at home" in that world. Uranus in Scorpio is very very difficult to shock (and doesn't mind being a bit shocking herself). May have (in the 4th house) a fondness for very odd people, who become "part of the family". Uranus makes only one connection to other planets in the chart--that is a square to the first house Saturn. So Eoywin may feel a kind of pull between her need to be "responsible" and structured and her need to be wild and untamed and not boxed in, not bound by how other people want to define her. As with all Uranus/Saturn connections, the way to work with this is to either do things that are based on tradition in new ways, or to take wild new concepts and put strong structure around them--thus getting the best of both sides. Might also be a case of being more--apparently sober and straight in public and in the privacy of her home being really a bit wild and eccentric. Sort of.."oh, if they only knew!" icon_twisted.gif Scorpio is the sign on the 5th house, and Sagittarius is in interception here. This is where the nice Neptune in Sagittarius is. So, this is the house of children, falling in love, fun and games, creative expression, etc. And Scorpio here certainly gives a lot of intensity and passion to all that--but with the intercepted Sagittarius there may be a tendency to get swamped in the emotional flow, in the personalized intensity of life--and not see the--huger perspective, how the personal connects to the grand scheme of things--and not to know quite how to get from "I feel this deeply" to "I can act on my passions in this way..." The location of Jupiter in the chart (the Sagittarian ruler) will give some key as to where she might indeed act on those passions, and we find Jupiter in the 11th house in Taurus. (so perhaps with a little help from her friends...*cue old music* or in groups of some sort, or when she is clear about her life goals. Interestingly the 11th house is where the other intercepted sign, Gemini, is...but we'll get there). Neptune in Sagittarius, beloved of animals everywhere, so idealistic, so intuitive, so sparked with the fire of good intentions, does make connections out of this intercepted sign--so Eoywin's imagination and sympathy are likely very strongly expressed in her life; at first meeting her, and through her public image or career (the midheaven) as well. Neptune is trine Venus, and this is one of the signs of the romantic, the dreamer, the poet (of course, a double Pisces is all that and more, and we haven't even reached the sun and moon yet). Tends to idealize her beloveds; sees always the best in them and since Neptune in the 5th is also about how we see our kids or those in our lives who are like our children, is likely to be very sympathetic towards her children (or those in that place in her life), seeing them in the best possible light. Sometimes in spite of "fact". (it's a charming trait, I see nothing wrong with it, but Neptune and Venus are conjunct my Sun, so of course I see this energy as very positive. And of course I have been a bit gullible in my own life sometimes...but I'd rather see the pretty rainbows and the excellence than settle for thinking everything was terrible and seeing the worst in my loves. So there.) Capricorn is the sign on the house of work, health, service to others. Here's where the responsibility we see in the first house Saturn comes out very strongly: in work, or when others rely on her, she is solid. She is going to follow through; she's in for the long term and you can really count on her. Can be ambitious, and isn't afraid of things that might take a while. And even though she has all that floaty magic Pisces stuff going on she is probably quite well organized in the work situation, or when people are counting on her. (she could be all fuzzy and living in piles of interesting projects in her personal life, but if others need her she will come through for them, and take charge, often.) Aquarius is the sign on the house of marriage and partnership. Someone with an Aquarian 7th house, however romantic they may be, needs to have a rather unusual degree of space in her partnerships and marriage/s (or marriage-like situations). This is not the "I want always to be with my partner, oh, cuddly-wuddly sweetums" sort of energy. Needs intellectual partnership as well as emotional/physical; will not stay in a relationship long if it doesn't engage her mind. And may have kind of unusual, eccentric, very bright people as partners. This house is about all sorts of partnership--doesn't have to be simply marriage/romance. (with Uranus in the 4th house I'm wondering if her husband--assuming she has one--has a bunch of Aquarius in his chart; that wouldn't be surprising). 8th house is also Aquarian, and has Mars in Aquarius within it (another indication that she could be strongly drawn to Aquarian guys in her life). Someone with an Aquarian 8th house is very--curious and unafraid of all the primal energies, the themes of death, karma, sexuality, the occult, inheritance, etc. "Wow, that's so fascinating!" It can be a pretty intellectual approach--though having Mars here will give some passion. Mars in Aquarius is really--well, if you are having a battle (usually of wits, not of cudgels) with someone with Mars in Aquarius, you don't know where the next blow is coming from. They strategize amazingly and in ways no one else would possibly imagine (and thus, they often win). Mars is square Jupiter, which could lead to some overenthusiasm: whee!!! I know, let's go have fun jumping around the cliffs of doom. (again, probably more in a virtual world here, or in intellectual sorties than in actual physical risk taking. But it could be physical too.). Might be impatient, with Jupiter increasing the Mars energy. 9th house is Piscean, and this is indeed where the Pisces Sun and Moon are hanging out. Also where Mercury in Aries is trying to tempt the sun and moon into adventures. So this is the house of exploration and travel (travel in the mind, travel through education, travel that actually involves hopping a train somewhere). It's the house of searching, pressing the boundaries, trying to figure stuff out. Spiritual search, advanced learning, that sort of thing. Where our Sun or Moon is gives us a sense of where and how we figure out our identity: the Sun having to do with our conscious self, and the Moon with our inward, emotional qualities. And where our Mercury shows up tells us where our mind expresses itself freely, tells us a bit about the quality of our mind and what gets our interest and attention. So, for Eoywin, all of these are within the realm of exploration,travel, learning. And with a Pisces twist, which would mean that it probably isn't a question of "must memorize all the facts I can find" so much as it is "must let my imagination soar, must use my intuition". Pisces on the 9th house is all about imagination, illusion, poetry, tales of yore, dragons and magic and mythic, mystic sorts of adventures. If travel is important to Eoywin, as it is likely to be--actual travel--then the astrologers would say that she might enjoy best of all travel near or on water--a vacation in the Greek isles would be very pleasant. Oh, Pisces. So lovely, so sympathetic, so talented and poetic and interesting. (so much the fatal attractions of my life, oh dear). I think the water signs in general are misunderstood or overly simplified by pop astrology--you know, scary Scorpio, mommy Cancer and drunk and self destructive Pisces. (maybe you didn't know a thing about pop astrology and are now stunned, sorry!). Pisces is Neptune ruled, and Neptune is all about illusion and fluidity and mists and things not quite being as they seem, about magic, about fey energy. People often get very confused by Pisces, because it can be a very chameleon and shifting sort of sign, kind of will o the wisp, kind of like the rainbows in foam on the seashore--you try to hold onto them, they vanish. Pisces rules the feet, and you will often find that Pisces people or people with strong Pisces elements in their chart are fine dancers and enjoy this a lot (Nureyev, the wonderful Russian ballet dancer was a Pisces). Pisces has a kind of...faraway quality to it; you may have your Pisces friend right in the room, but look--her eyes are unfocused, she is staring out the window...she is really somewhere else entirely, in some dream or some fantasy or some interesting and strange thought. Lots of empathy in Pisces, and you will often find Pisces involved in helping others (sometimes in so called "helping professions" but in any case, if there is a heart torn by the sorrows of the world, it is probably a Pisces heart--wanting to reach out and care for the unfortunates). Pisces can be maddening to people who don't quite understand the fluidity and sensitivity, because...well, you can have a nice conversation with a Pisces and go away believing you've agreed on something and later find out--nope, the Pisces was fascinated by what you were saying or planing and didn't want to hurt you or disappoint you, so...better to not directly say a thing. It's that empathy; you have to really work with a Pisces Moon person in particular to get them to up front say "no, that's not happening" or "hey, your idea sucks" (well, they might not put it like that). And they might resent being put on the spot, actually--why are you making them make you feel bad?? (disclaimer: note fatal attraction of astrologer to Pisces and fill in many experiences that ended in tears. Usually Piscean tears, actually. Oh lord, the flashbacks). Imagination is the life blood for Pisces; to use imagination, intuition, to dream, to connect emotions and learning, to tell stories, to understand stories...this is what Pisces needs and thrives in. Now, for Eoywin, the addition of an Aries Mercury to her strong double Pisces nature adds some interesting zap. She may be more able than most of her sign to cut through the tenderness and just blurt the truth; certainly she will have tremendous intellectual drive, and possibly a strong need for physical expression as well. Mercury in the 9th house gives a mind that loves to go very far, to ask questions and more questions. Mercury in Aries wants quick understanding, quick answers, gets impatient if she has to wait around. Saturn is trine the Moon and the Sun, and this may well indicate (besides an underlying ability to keep going, and to try to get everything right, to get the foundation down well) that Eoywin may have some strong older friends and mentors throughout her life, who help her become the wonderful person she truly is meant to be, who draw out her best abilities, who help her remember her courage, her strength, her vitality. Aries is the midheaven sign, the sign that starts the 10th house. In this house of public image, career, calling (oldtimers sometimes called it the House of Fame, and doesn't that sound promising?) And we have Venus in Aries here, and Chiron in Aries. Venus is conjunct the South Node of the Moon. So, in public, Eoywin is viewed as something of a leader (what with Aries here) or as a solitary, an independent--rushing ahead, getting involved in new things, having new ideas. With Venus in the 10th house whatever she does in public looks good (literally and metaphorically) and she herself looks good doing it; public scrutiny brings out her most attractive side, and a lot of her affectionate nature. Venus in Aries can be quite, um, forthright about her passions (far from the delicate maiden that Pisces is supposedly--supposedly, mind you; Pisces can be quite, ahem, passionate). Very "hi, you are sexy, let's go do something....fun." There is a healthy glow of sexuality to Venus in Aries. No, not that the Venus in Aries people are out there dragging everyone off to ravish them--but they could now and again entertain the thought, and they give off a great, healthy glow. Chiron is here just a couple degrees away from Venus (well, 5 degrees.) Usually I use a 2 degree orb for the asteroids, but with Chiron I sometimes give a bit more room--it just feels as if I should (most astrology programs use a 10 degree orb overall--sorry if this is sounding like jargon. It should, because it is). When Venus and Chiron are conjunct, particularly in the 10th house, right in open view of the world, it is very seductive, very tender, very appealing. There is a fragility and an innocence and a wistful longing that surrounds the Venus/Chiron person. It's sort of like "oh, you'd be so much fun to besmirch and corrupt" in a way--like bad Victorian porn with damsels with pale skin and bruised eyes. So you can see how this combo could sometimes lead to...problems or adventures, and particularly in the chart of a tender Piscean soul with strong Neptune contact to her Venus; this energy might attract people for really the wrong reasons (okay, that is uncharacteristically judgmental for my nice Libra soul--but really, sometimes it does attract people who do not necessarily want the best for the Venus/Chiron person). Kurt Cobain had this, and so did Marilyn Monroe (and my darling mother--I know it very well; darling mom was born the same day and year as Marilyn). So if you think of that quality they both share--that sense of beautiful woundedness--you'll get a feeling for what this can be like. Aries Chiron has this odd feeling of nonexistence. Chiron tells us about the bruised points in our soul, where we learn, from which we might be able to reach out to others. For the Aries Chiron it's all about "where am I when I am not involved with/doing things for/being seen by--others" and especially "my dear partner". So an Aries Chiron will kind of look for confirmation; there is this inward..unsteadiness. But, the great thing about these people is that they are magnificient at getting other people to believe in themselves. These are the "you can do anything!" people who are great coaches, great mentors, excellent friends and guides. They can pour out so much enthusiasm, so much confidence for other people. Chiron in the 10th house people (like Ceres in the 10th) are often called upon to take care of others when they are in public, and may have careers that include healing or an element of "yes, I will make it all better for you". Sometimes 10th house Chiron people seem to end up taking care of everyone--except themselves. They can be very ambitious, but there is sometimes a block--you will see the person who meant to be a great singer, but who needed to attend to the needs of family; or the person who left school because someone needed them. This isn't always the case, but it does turn up. Now, for Eoywin, her south node is here in the 10th house conjunct Venus; there is an ease with being in public (even though she is a lovely floaty Pisces soul, and sometimes the Pisces people don't like being stared at overmuch--but then, there is that Leo rising and Leo Saturn--so sure, give her the spotlight). And there is a sense of "my love is my destiny" when Venus is conjunct a node; at the south node sometimes there is a need to really cling to the beloved, a fear of loss here: omigod, something is going to take this away. Insecurity. The lesson and challenge of the north node in the 4th house is one of achieving security and delight; making one's place in the world, understanding what true partnership is about, claiming space for oneself and for those one loves so very dearly. And understanding (with a Libra north node) how justice and partnership and beauty mesh. What's the sacred marriage in the universe? The 11th house, house of friendships, group activities, and life goals, has Taurus as its cusp sign. Gemini is intercepted here. In Taurus are the Black Moon Lilith and Jupiter, and they are in conjunction. A Taurus 11th house person is very loyal to her friends and her groups, wants solidity there. Lilith in Taurus is the earth mother personified; the inner power that Eoywin carries is very much sensual abundance and "come and eat and see that the world is good" energy. Very tactile, very much sensory, very much the Empress (do you know the Tarot at all Eoywin?). And this energy is most apparent in her friendships and group activities. It is amplified by having Jupiter conjunct. Jupiter in Taurus can be quite--material girl--but at best is generous and full hearted and in touch with the wonders of the world. Often good with plants, good at getting all sorts of things to grow and bloom (in reality or symbolically). And steady. This Taurus energy is very steady. However there's all that Gemini just fizzing and bubbling and wanting to get out: the need to communicate, the need to connect, the need to move around and not be required to stay in one place all the time, the need for freedom of expression and freedom of thought. When Gemini/Sagittarius is intercepted it is movement and communication that are sometimes hard to get going in the life; it is a question of knowing when and how to make one's move, when to just jump into things, when & how to communicate what one has so carefully learnt. With the double Pisces in the 9th house some of this may be about spiritual search and knowledge; a double Pisces in the 9th might be quite tied to a spiritual sense or religious base; the self may be connected to that sense of the divine or whatever one wishes to call this, to the identity of the soul (does that make sense?) and the question in the interception is...how do I express that best? Cancer is the 12th house sign and Vesta is here. The need for one's own nurturing might be put aside by a 12th house Cancer person--as with that Venus/Chiron link there is a desire to care for everything, everyone--but to sometimes ignore ones own deepest needs. Vesta in the 12th house (Vesta in Cancer gives a lot of what used to be called "domestic arts" skills)--Eoywin needs to make sure she gets out, gets into wide places, doesn't get trapped even in places she loves. For her mental and physical health she requires time outside and time away from the demands of other people. Vesta in the 12th house people have a tendency to kind of hole up, and this tendency gets worse if they are under stress--and that's the worst thing for them ("I will never ever leave my little cubicle, it is safe here"). Just remember this. (might not be a problem now, but tuck it away, okay?) I mentioned early on that there is a Kite in this chart. That is the Grand trine plus two sextile connections from Saturn and Neptune to the Libra Pluto. This bodes very well for a sort of transformative and--kind of dramatic--self expression. Might be excellent for a writer. So, Transits: (I'm slow to see these things, btw--I'm not a great "oh, look, next weekend you will win the lottery" sort of astrologer). The most significant one I see coming up, which is already starting to shift Eoywin's world a bit, would be Uranus in Pisces in her 9th house. Transiting Uranus is currently within orb (getting close to) her Sun/Moon/Mercury group. When Uranus hits either our Sun or our Moon (and most certainly if Uranus hits both at once!) our sense of identity gets shifted. Who are we, really? How do we know that? Sometimes people make actual physical changes during this transit, from the very trivial to the very large, but mostly it is at an inner and emotional level. Certainly originality and downright oddness are part of a transit of Uranus, but it can also feel kind of challenging and unsettling; the ground is shifting, the old assumptions are changing, who are you really? Knowing that Eoywin is currently pregnant--this makes a lot of sense to me, because it looks as if the actual spot on conjunction of Uranus to her triad there is going to coincide with the birth of her child. And, believe me, nothing shifts your identity quite so much as the transition to motherhood. (or it was so for me, at any rate). (If in fact the transit of Uranus and her baby's birth are in sync, the child is going to definitely liven up her life). The other thing a 9th house Uranus transit might do is change her beliefs, or challenge them. The current Mercury retro is happening in her house of friendship, life goals, etc. Neptune is, with Chiron, at the edge of her 8th house, moving back towards her 7th: idealism and healing around partnership (7th) and inheritance, sexuality, karmic things (8th house). (*counts on fingers to see when baby should be here*)...I think maybe Neptune will be shifting direct around the birth time, that should be quite interesting. It will then be coming conjunct the natal Mars, which always has a kind of destined feel to it "oh, this was meant to be"; often with love affairs (but one's children are a love affair of a different sort). Saturn is opposite Mars right now, might be a sense of having energy held back, not being able to do as one wishes, needing to be more careful than one wishes. Saturn's in the 2nd house, so financial issues might be at the forefront too. Transiting Mars is trine Neptune in the chart; again the sense of being at a time of destiny, having things change in one's life in good ways mostly, but there is this sense of being--pulled along by the changes. Pluto is currently squaring the Sun/Moon/Mercury group. This one is pretty challenging--you can have other people thinking you are just on the top of your game, but you yourself are full of various inexplicable pangs and pains and worries and insomnia (insomnia is very common with this one). Yet to others you appear so powerful, so in charge, so vibrant. It's a frustrating transition--it does indeed get you in touch with your own power, but the process can feel like being thrown against a wall a bunch: lots of bruising there in the emotions and sometimes actually in the body (maybe not bruises, but real aches). You need to use all your life management skills to get through this one--baby steps, little things: eat, drink, take frequent breaks if you can, try to care for yourself in every possible way. The transit will pass, you will be stronger, but for now you need to treat it as a day by day process of caring. Jupiter is midway through the 6th house, expanding, giving opportunities in work and in health. This would certainly be a help with basic wellness. So, one of the prettiest and most unusual charts I've seen, Eoywin; ask any questions you like. wub2.gif

Yesterday, my husband and I went to Nashville to meet one of our favorite wrestlers!

We got up very early on Friday morning, ran a couple of errands (Todd had to go to the bank and we got breakfast at McDonald's), and were on our way. The journey itself was rather uneventful - it's very easy to get to Disney from NC. It's nearly a straight shot. Unfortunely we hit Orlando just at rush hour, so it took us longer than it should have to get to our resort. I amused myself by taking pictures of the disney billboards. Finally we made it through the traffic and we entered Walt Disney World property! We managed to find our resort, Caribbean Beach Resort, and found the place to check in. The line to check in was kinda long but moved quickly. When we got up to the counter, I was very excited, so I told the lady who waited on us that we were on our honeymoon. She gave us pins that said 'Just Married' (which isn't exactly true, but we guessed that it was close enough ). I was a little surprised when Todd put his on right away. I, of course, did too We got our 'Keys to the World' which was our room key, our park tickets and how we paid for the dining plan, and our room number, so we headed to the room. Our section of the resort was Jamaica - which I was pretty geeked about because I had read that it was one of the best 'islands' to be in. We found our room with ease, and we unpacked and vegged out for a bit. Here's some room and resort pictures! After we got unpacked we headed to the building that had the food court, gift shop, and the sit down restaurant, Shutters. It was called 'Old Port Royale'. I didn't make reservations for this night because I wasn't sure how we'd feel after that 9 hour drive. We asked if we could get into Shutters without a reservation, and they said we could, but it would be a 45 minute wait. We decided to wait and it gave us time to browse the gift shop. Once we got seated, our server noticed our pins and said congratulations - we got a ton of people saying this throughout the week. Mostly cast members, but some regular guests too. We got sparkling wine for free, because we were on our honeymoon, which was neat (though it made me a little tipsy). We were on the dining plan, which gave us 1 counter service (like fast food), 1 sit down meal, and one snack each day. With the sit down meal, we got an appetizer, an entrée, a dessert and a drink (non alcoholic). That is a lot of food! Our dinner was very good - we both had prime rib, and we were so stuffed we had to take our cheesecake back to the room (we did have a mini fridge so it didn't go bad). We went back to the room, vegged out, and went to sleep fairly early. Next time - Magic Kingdom and Ohana!

I'm a bit of a writer and here is a new story I've been working on the last couple of days. It's based on a very vivid dream I had last week, and it does involve Bpal, so it's kinda like a fan fic, but not really since the story and world are mine (pretty much). I thought some of you might be interested in reading it. If you are, let me know and I'll post more once I have it written: Ashley Frogert was a fairly normal young woman. She was a blonde, blue-eyed college graduate who worked at a good, but boring job as an admin. assistant at a big auto manufactor. Her life was a steady routine of work, home time, weekends with friends and then more work. It was a beautiful day, as Ashley sat at a little outdoor cafe, soaking up sunshine and drinking sweet tea. She looked around, watching the bustle of people who were shopping in the small downtown area. Her eyes were drawn to an oddity in the crowd. A man with black hair and piercing grey eyes started to move in the direction of the cafe. He looked so out of place because he wore a long black trenchcoat despite the heat out. Ashley continued to watch him, as she sipped her tea and was quite startled when he stopped and sat at her table. "Can I help you?" she asked, as a frown came to her lips. He wasn't looking at her when he sat, but when she spoke his eyes turned on her. A shiver went up her spine when their eyes met. "I'd just like to sit here for a moment, if you don't mind," he said softly. She just gave a nod, finding his gaze made it hard for her to breath, let alone speak. He looked away, surveying the crowded. After a moment, he nearly jumped to his feet, saying "Thank you for the use of your table, ma'am." Without giving her a chance to reply, he darted away, melting into the crowd. Left alone, Ashley was surprised to realize her heart was racing. "Who was he," she mumured to herself. She took a few moments to collect herself before she finished her tea, paid her bill and made her way back to work. She sild into her chair, back at the office, and resumed the project she had been working on before lunch. After a few moment, she noticed her boss, Anne, walk up with a scowl on her face. "Why did you take such a long lunch?" Anne asked, her voice sounding very angry. Ashley looked perplexed. "It was the same length as always. An hour on the dot." "It was longer than that. You need to pay more attention or your job could be in jeopardy!" Anne nearly shouted, then stormed off. Ashley just blinked with a rather shocked look on her face. Anne never raised her voice to anyone and was usually very cheerful. And lunch breaks were never something that was exact, even on Ashley's first day she was told that she could take as long a lunch as she wanted, just to make it about an hour. She just tried to shake it off and concentrate on her work. But as the afternoon went on, she became increasely more uncomfortable as all her co-workers seemed to be angry, like Anne was. And oddly enough they all seemed to be watching her every move. At five, she slipped out of work and was more than a little freaked out to see a pair of large men following her. She hurried her pace, darting into a side street trying to lose them. She stumbled a bit when she saw that she hadn't lost them, but they were gaining on her. She sped up to a full run, moving out of the alley and into the busy downtown street. Ashley was running as fast as she could, but the men were now also running and still gaining on her. She was paying more attention to her pursuers than what was in front of her. She was only a few blocks from the police station when she crashed into someone and tumbled to the ground. "I'm so sorry," she said, scrambling to her feet, then she got a look at who she ran into. Her eyes widened as she saw it was the man from lunch. He grabbed her by the arm and began to run. They ducked in and out of alleyways and busy streets until Ashley felt completely lost. After a while, they managed to lose the men who were after her. "What is going on?" Ashley demanded, after she had caught her breath. "I'm sorry, it isn't safe to talk here. There is a safehouse nearby," he replied, "I know you have no reason to trust me and I'm really sorry you've become involved." "Involved in what?!" Ashley exlaimed, "And yes, I don't trust you! I'm not going anywhere with you!" She turned to walk away but he grabbed her arm and pushed a few small vials into her hand. "I understand, but you won't be safe. If you throw one of those at them, it will slow them down," he said, then told her the address of the safehouse. She pulled her arm from him and watched as he strode away. Once he was out of sight, she looked down at the vials he had given her. Each had a little paper lable with different names. The names were Vice, Bliss, Dorien and Grog. They also all had the name "Black Phoenix Alchemy Laboratory" on the back of the label. She put them in her pocket, glanced around and started towards the direction they had come from. She was all turned around, but her plan was to find the police station. It took her a while but she finally found a street she was familar with. She hurried in the direction of the police, feeling relived when the station was in sight. As she walked into the station, she felt a shiver go up her back. She turned and saw the two men who were after her earlier. All the police had angry looks on their faces. Chief Adams walked out of his office. "You gave my boys quite the chase, Miss Froegert. Now if you'll follow me we have much to discuss," he said, giving her a smile that made him look very sadistic. "What do we need to talk about?" she replied, as she moved one hand very slowly into the pocket with the vials in it "I've never broken the law." Adam's smile widened "You have something we want and we will have it." Ashley pulled out the first vial she could put her fingers around. She threw it at the Police Chief's head who laughed until the vial fell to the floor, breaking. Everyone in the room except Ashley began to act like they couldn't breath. Ashley felt confused since all she smelled was the lovely scent of freshly baked brownies. She didn't linger and ran out of the station feeling utterly bewildered and scared. Since she had very few options, she turned the direction of the safehouse. The walk was a long one, nearly ten blocks, and a nervous one as well. She kept looking behind her and tried to keep her head down at the same time. When she reached the address that she was given, she found herself in front of a small store she had never seen before.

I really don't like Mother's Day since I don't have a mother. My mom passed away on August 8, 2002 from cancer. Every since then, Mother's Day really makes me sad. This year hasn't bothered me too much until I just read a post about a mom surprising her daughter with a visit. Reading that made me want to cry, because that's something my mom would have done. I was 25 when I lost my mom, an adult, but barely. She didn't get to come to my wedding (or my sister's), and she won't be here when her grandchildren are born. My dad remarried last year, and I'm super happy for him. But I barely know his wife, mostly because their entire courtship happen after Todd and I move to NC. I like Todd's mom okay, but we will never be close because of the distance and because she is really, really opionated, and I don't share her views all of the time (we had several fights about the wedding because she wanted to do things different). I'm sad because I'm not really close to any of my family. My sister is so self absorbed that she never returns my phone calls when I call, stating that she is always too busy to have a phone conversation. She doesn't reply to emails often either. Todd's brother is married, but his wife is super shy, and even though I try to talk to her when we are together for family get together's, she never really responses. If anything happened to Todd, I don't know what I would do. I don't really have much of a support system, at least as family is concerned. Anyway, I'll stop being emo for today

As some of you know, I live my life in pain. I have pain every second of every day, and it's been like this for nearly 4 years now. I've been called a faker, a whiner, that I bring people down, etc, etc - both on the internet and real life. My former friends thought I was pretending to have headaches to get attention, and my dad has thought I was pretending to skip out of work, and doctors who thought I was crazy and chemically depressed. I'm actually a pretty happy person. I'm married to a wonderful man, got a great job, great friends (online and off), and live in one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. This doesn't change the fact that I'm in constant pain, and it does to a degree rule my life. I did decide, after a very bad incident involves the Hard Rock Cafe in Detroit and the smell of raw onions (one of my headache triggers), that I wasn't going to let the headaches totally rule my life. After the aformentioned incident, my doctor told me that I shouldn't go out to eat, or to concerts, sport events or any place loud. I was all of 26 at the time. My doctor pissed me off so bad that I came to two conclusions: 1) Trusting doctors is a bad thing for anything more than the flu or a cold - all they did was push drugs on me (that didn't work) and tell me I'm depressed (which if you were in as much pain as I get, you'd have bouts of depression too) and push more drugs on me for that. 2) I can't let the headaches totally rule my life So, I found things that work for me - cold packs, and lots of sleep. I also kept a journal to figure out what my triggers are. Though some days there is nothing I can do to prevent the onset of a really bad migraine. Like today - weather is a trigger and we have been having thunderstorms since this afternoon. I really don't want sympathy (except if your name is Todd and you are married to me ) just understanding. Sometimes the pain is really bad, and I need someone to talk/vent to, and venting online does help. I'm not a down person - I'm actually a pretty up person. I can have a horrible headache, but still have a smile on my face.

I don't think anyone else is a newlywed. Thing is, she is only a few years older than me, but has been married for 13 years. She got married right out of high school, and she complains a lot about her husband. I think part of the snarky-ness on her part is jealousy - I'm her age, but newly married, and have my whole life in front of me. While she does too at bit, but she has two kids, and has less freedom than Todd & I do at the moment. I can deal for the most part, and I don't want to make waves, because most of the time she is nice, and I really love my job.

Everyone at work thinks I'm a newlywed, because I didn't feel the need to tell them that we got married twice (first time was September 9, 2005 for insurance reasons, the 2nd time was September 30, 2006, which I consider our 'real' wedding date). Apparently since I'm a newlywed, I don't know what it's like to be married, and shouldn't talk about my husband. Several times in the last few weeks when I've brought up Todd in some form or fashion, my boss will add "But she's just a newlywed" This happened yesterday at book club - we had read "Let's Roll" - which is the story of Todd and Lisa Beamer. Todd Beamer was one of the 9-11 heros who was on the plane that crashed on in the field. At some point during the discussion, I mentioned that it was hard for me to read the part of the book that took place during and after 9-11, because my husband's name is Todd. To which my boss said "But she's just a newlywed", to which the other people in the book club just said "Ah" and gave knowing looks. WTF!!!! Just because I'm a newlywed I can't not want my husband to die... apparently I can't talk about my husband or marriage until I'm not a newlywed!! I'm sure after October rolls around, it's going to turn into "But she's only been married a year" GRRRRR!! Oh, my boss also did insult my marriage. We were at lunch one day not long ago, and we were talking about laundry, when I said that our laundry hadn't merged yet (I feel no need to do Todd's laundry, and I'm sure he feels no need to do mine), and she said "Well, since you don't do your laundry together and you have seperate money, it's like you are not even married." Again, WTF!!! So, annoying!!

My very first BPAL love was Hamadryad - I sniffed an imp, and was hooked. It was the first bottle of BPAL I ever had too. Then the "Great Cleansing of 2005" aka "Mandy had to sell all of her BPAL so she could afford gas to get to work" happened, and that bottle go sold (with the rest of my collection ) And of course, Hamadryad doesn't smell like my first love anymore, and I don't like the new hamadryad (it makes me sneeze ) But I was just looking through the imps my switch witch sent me, and there was an imp of Hamadryad, and I opened it up. OH SWEET WOODSY GOODNESS!!! Suddenly I was propelled back in time to the fall of 2004, when I first fell in love with Bpal and Hamadryad. Now I wish I still had that bottle

Thanks I'll have to see if I can find a beauty school in the area!

Well, I would have to say my eyes - I used to say my legs would be up there, but they have gotten chunky on me

Actually, I am frumpy. Mostly because I'm too poor to redo my whole wardrobe, I'm chunky, and I'm lazy. Most of the time, I'm okay with this, because I can throw on a bpal tee, cute pants, and cute shoes, and feel better about myself, and the hubby loves me for me... But it's been bothering me more lately. Partly because we have Todd's cousin's wedding to go to in June, and I don't want to look like the frumpy wife - I want to look like the semi-hot newlywed. Alas, I have no close girlfriends, and the girl who I'm the closest friends with is even more frumpy than I am. And I don't trust my own judgement - I picked out an outfit for my dad's wedding last June, and looking at the pictures afterwards made me cringe since I looked terribly fat and unattractive So, now I have about 6 weeks to find an outfit for the wedding in June, and I'm afraid I'll look like crap again. And don't get me started on my hair - that's been bugging me too. Any help/advice would be appreciated - I love a new hair cut, but I've been burned by haircuts before, and have no idea what would look good on me. And obviously my taste in clothes is not the best.

In the bottle and wet, it is overwhemling cherries... I didn't smell anything but fruit, which is a lot like some other bottles I have. But then it morphed into a sweet, soft sugary scent which I love!!

Today has not been good. First, I was doing laundry earlier this afternoon, and Todd had put our new lawnmover in the laundry room. I had moved it out to get to the dryer, and as I was walking out, I crashed into it - smashed the toes on my left foot, and I was wearing sandels. My toes are still hurting, worse then before, so I'm having a hard time walking. Then the power went out, which irritated me to no end - they are working on the water lines in our neighborhood. It was out for a couple hours, in which time all I could do was find a book and read. When the power came back on, I got a glass of orange pop, the last in the bottle. Which I presided to spill everywhere, by knocking it over. After I had cleaned that mess up, I resumed the laundry, which included trying to get the base dress for my Dragon*Con costume white. I got some RIT color taking away stuff, and it didn't work at all. So I just turned the washer back on and dumped what little bleach we had into the washer. If that doesn't work, I'll buy another bottle of bleach at Ingles tomorrow and try that... if that doesn't work, I'll have to hit some thrift stores, and look for a new dress. Blargh!! Now I have to do the dishes before Todd comes home in an hour, and hope my toes stop hurting soon. And I still have a migraine!

Here's some picture from my birthday! This is a few pictures of my Disney-fied cube (people at my work are big into decorating cubes for birthdays): And here's one from Lunch - We went to a Mexican place, hence the hat. That's my hubby, Todd, next to me: