A Tribute to the Cosmic Muffin

It is with honor and respect that I write about Darrell Martinie, the Cosmic Muffin, and extraordinary Boston astrologer. Darrell made astrology a household word in New England. He was dashing and witty, extravagant, outrageous, and at times irreverent. He did not do sun-sign astrology, and yet his astrological "weather reports" were the talk of the town. He reported what was going on in the heavens and people listened. He talked about Mercury retrogrades, Jupiter squares, eclipses and the myriad of things that astrologers know so well, but are a mystery to the public. He talked about these things so that people understood them, and his listeners made astrology their conversation during lunch, dinner, and breaks at the water cooler. People got a kick out of what he said, and yet they followed his advice. He made astrology fun, useful, and memorable for everyone.

Darrell's life was like a who's who of astrology. For 25 years, he greeted commuters as they made the morning and evening trek to and/or from work. His radio program was syndicated across the country, and he was appointed the Official Boston Astrologer by Governor William Weld in 1993.

Last week The Lynn Item reported, "a star fell from astrology's firmament Wednesday, when the Saugus resident succumbed following a three-year illness." We astrologers know a star has been born in the firmament. Go Darrell!!

My heartfelt thoughts go out to his family, friends, and fans.

Hollywood Goes Aquarian

There’s an ongoing battle among astrologers. When does the Aquarian Age really start? Without a doubt, we’re at the bridge, if we’re not there already. The signs of Aquarius are everywhere, in the technology of computers, medicine, world rebellion, and Hollywood fashion.

Hollywood reveals current and up-coming trends. In days gone by stars and starlets wouldn't be caught dead looking the way celebrities look these days. Fabrics, couture, and tailoring were all exquisite and flattering. Compare the way they dressed back then with the paparazzi photos of current stars. Just to be nice, I’ll say today’s clothing is unique and eclectic, but eccentric and rebellious is more like it, and shockingly dirty.

The trend of outrageous flash, skin, and more skin came in with Cher, but beauty and glamour were still there. After that, glorious fashion went downhill, now celebs put things together looking like they came from yesterday’s rags that barely cover the butt. If you go into a restaurant, make sure you carry some antibacterial spray.


A hint of change started in the mid 50's with sexy James Dean, the rebel without a cause in his worn jeans, rolled up T-shirts and race cars, and Marlon Brando looked pretty hunky in his tight, white T showing off his powerful biceps.


Prior to the 70’s, a female star would never walk out the door in torn, mismatched clothes. You wouldn't catch them in their backyard looking slovenly and improper. This was still the time of matching bags and shoes. Our mothers taught us the importance of matching, and don't ask me where they got that. It may have come with the Pluto in Leo generation. Leo is about proper, stylish clothing that improves the appearance.

These stars are paying top dollar for these rags. Imagine paying more for dirty, holey, jeans than your new car?

Some stars are trying to fit in with the times. It’s the Aquarian cry, “I’ll dress any way I like, this is the real me.” For some this is rebellion. But, for most, it’s a marketing tool. Some marketing wizard, (or the latest clothing designer), convinced them their adoring fans want them to be real.

The way they dress does give them notoriety, and a photo-op. One of these days they’ll wake up and find out it isn’t working. Box office records are down. Just like Aquarius, these stars will be gone in a flash, yesterday’s news. The fickle public moves on in the blink of the eye.

To get a better idea of celebrity gauche go to Go Fug Yourself

Click here to a good example of trendy designer jeans

Astrolology is a Friend

I ususally like to come up with a snazzy title to catch your eye, but Mercury is retrograde and must be off messaging for someone else. Nothing would come to mind.

Latley, I'm seeing something wonderful happen in my consultations. Most of my clients want to learn how to do astrology. Yes, they want me to interpret their chart, but they want to know what astrology is about, and how to do it for themselves. They don't want to sit there like bumps on a log during the reading; they want to participate. Don’t get the wrong idea about "my" clients. They aren’t bumps on the log, I meant that as a general comment. My consultations are turning into mentoring sessions, as well as forecasting. I had already advanced to astrological coaching, but this is a new level.

It's rather ironic that I've been working on a basic astrology book, and only a few people know about it. No one has ever asked about books before, but since I started writing the book my clients have been asking, "do you have a book"? There are many good beginning books on astrology, but they aren't right for novice astrologers of the computer age.

This is another synchronicity, a "pay attention" moment. It fits right in with the lessons on my site and my blogs. I want more people to do astrology on their own. I want them to become interested in the process, and think about using it daily life. The Universe is saying, "Astrology is very much needed now, and must come out of the dark ages. It’s no longer a thing to fear.

What do green beans have to do with Marigolds - or was it Morning Glory?

Astrology is so helpful in daily life. The only exposure most people have is a horoscope in the newspaper, but at least that's a start. The most consistent use by the general public is planting by the Moon. Magazines such as the Farmers Almanac, have been giving planting advice for years. Did you know that “those in the know” are even going further by using astrology to make a superior wine, and that it's working? I think many of the old timers had what we call "mystical knowledge", (to them it was just ordinary and practical good sense). A friend told me a story about her grandfather's wonderful garden. One of his secrets was mixing his green bean seeds with marigolds at a certain time of the month, and they were the sweetest beans she ever had. She remebers him putting them together in a jar; unfortunately that's all she remembered. I may have been Morning Glory seeds.

There are so many wonderful, user-friendly astrology sites on the web. Once you read good articles about astrology in daily life, it becomes a friend, the shades are no longer drawn, and the fear is gone.

Read some great articles at Silverwheel Astrology.


A Stock Story

I've been looking at the astrological signs lately about the financial markets, and I saw that they may be dipping after Friday, so I moved some money around. Even we astrologers know this is a guessing game. Well, I knew that Mercury is going to make what is called a station this weekend, and news is not reliable, even my own. When Mercury stations that means it's going back to its normal forward motion, and in the meantime decisions and outcomes are often put on hold , things are misconstrued, or fluctuate.

Sure enough the US markets went up again and I was kicking myself, and doing the old blame game, telling myself I didn't do enought research, I didn't think it out, I acted on impulse, yada, yada, yada. Then I felt as if there was a little voice smiling and getting a chuckle out of the whole thing. So I asked for a sign that all will be well. In about two minutes, the phone rang and someone let me know that they would be sending money I thought I'd never see. What does this mean? I must have the faith that everything will be OK in the end.

Are you hot?

For those of you who are sweltering inside in the heat, and don't like, or don't have, air conditioning, here's a tip. In the morning close up your windows, draw the drapes, and run a fan, pointing it so that you can feel it. If you have a dehumdifier keep it running. Wear loose fitting, light-weight clothing. Believe it or not, when you go outside it is better to have light-colored, loose, flowing, clothing down past your knees and calves. This lets air circulate, and helps keep out heat. That's a trick the desert people use.

More on the Reset in the Heartland

The heat is finally lowering in many areas of the country, and electrical power is being restored. As I mentioned in the post for 7/24/, electricity is a metaphor for a psychic/spiritual current. Power was lost and is now being restored. This is called a reset. In astrology, the word reset is often used in conjunction with eclipses. The power of the Sun is shut off and returns a short time later.

Power was taken away from three major areas, the Midwest, California, and New York. It is ironic that people in the West, (the new way) were asked to reduce their usage of power. They were overwhelming the system. This is a metaphor for a needed adjustment in personal power. Once the adjustments are made, they will continue moving forward and evolving at the appropriate pace.

Many people lost their stored food (nurturance); past food no longer supports them. Many farmers may lose their crops, they must find a new way of doing things, and they must be creative and open to new uses. Let's give them a little boost by visualizing and asking for new ways. Send thoughts of success. Be the good creator you are, visualize a good outcome and see what happens.

This power reset brings a change of heart for those in the midsection of the country. Because it affected both coasts, and the center, it applies to the entire country. However, if you are reading this, there is a change available for you as well, no matter where you live in the world. New energy is here to be used by those who are aware and willing to believe.

A Reset in the Heartland

500,000 evacuated in St. Louis, major power outage, devastating storms. Mystery power outage in New York. People sent to cooling centers.

Electricity outages always indicate circuit problems, a flow problem. The number five is always a turning point. St. Louis and the Arch is known as the gateway to the West. We think of the west as progressive and ahead of the time. From a metaphysical viewpoint this means more than just the weather. A big change is up for the midwest, the heart of our country. For several years now they have been in the news as the conservative part of the US. Now, with a circuit reset on the heart level, they will reach a balance of left and right and no longer be just conservative. They are now open to progression, but they have to be open or they’ll be left in the dust, or should I say dustbowl.

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7/22 The Higher Reality

We are in a time when we are going back and forth between dimensions. The back and forth feeling is coming up now because of Mercury, who also goes back and forth. Mercury was retrograde in Leo for just a few short days giving us a glimpse of the creation ability available to us up ahead. Mercury then retrograded back into the Cancer the sign of the home, the sign of what we are comfortable with because we are used to it. Finish up your business and be ready to move on when Mercury in a few weeks when it goes back into the creative sign Leo. At that point both Mercury and the Sun will be in Leo. Think of this as double creative energy. Allow yourself to dream of what you want and be ready to receive it in just a short time. Allow yourself to go back and forth between worlds, with the pleasure of the new world in your mind and on your heart.Horoscopes are out today at http://www.theastrologypage.com/horoscope.htm

7/21 Mercury retrograde is definitely in trickster mode.

It seems everyone I've talked with in the past two days is re-doing something.

I've spent the past two days redoing my website. I had this planned ahead of time, but I've gone overboard on the re-doing. I made changes, posted them, decided I didn't like them, then I thought of something better, did more changes, uploaded them again, ad infinitum. Actually it got to point of "ad nauseum".

People say I'm grounded, almost too grounded. Wasn't I surprised when someone said to me today "when I first talked with you I thought you were a little spacy." I almost fell off my chair laughing, once I got past the poor me feelings. We both decided the word to describe me is mutable. This gives me a chance to redo my personality. I am now going to be mutable. I've been telling myself to go with the flow for years. Maybe this is a signal things are starting to flow, at least in a mutable fashion.

So my friends, now is the time to learn to be mutable. An apt description for a Mercury retrograde.

Mercury was always running back and forth delivering messages between the gods and humanity. Mercury definitely knew how to go with the flow, and milk it for all it's worth. Now we mortals run back and forth between web sites, and blogs, and get to ftp to our hearts content.

I've just learned something new. The RSS feed. Don't ask me to explain it. I'll just send you off to this link http://www.toptensources.com/about/ You can then click on her link to the explanation. This is leading up to my apology. If any of you are on RSS, I'll try to keep my changes to a minimum in the future. I may be able to limit them to once a day, although that will be difficult at first. I'll have to wean myself off making changes. It's become an addiction lately. Yup, that's mutability for you.

7/19 The Mars Jupiter Pull

The pull of Mars and Jupiter are being felt now, and they'll be in exact alignment on 8/8. We're leading up to this to this powerful day on which will occur many other many other celestial events. Be aware that everyone is out of sorts and restless as if waiting for something to happen. Mars is about to change signs and this adds to the feeling that something must be done now. Jupiter is still in its after retrograde lull. By now week things will be moving along at a faster pace. Jupiter rules religion and that is in the forefront of conflicts in the Middle East, or I should say the ready excuse. It's a good thing that Mars is making a sextile to Jupiter or religious fanatics would rule the day.

7/15 Xena retrograde T- square Woes

Jupiter has triggered the T-square in the Summer Solstice chart and we see the reactions around the world especially in the Middle East. At the same time Xena, the warrior planet is at the retrograde point. Not much is known about her yet, but it seems that war may be a fitting characteristic. On the 18th, Mars will square the Nodes, a sign of violence and treachery. Let's hope that things have calmed down by then.

7/13 A Kiss and a Head-Butt- Vladimir Putin and Zinedine Zidane

I thoroughly enjoy synchronicity, and I got a big chuckle when I heard a news commentator on MSNBC talk about Putin and the "kiss". Then he called on Mo Rocca, an "expert" from Hollywood. I almost fell out of my chair when Rocca talked about kisses on the stomach, and in the next breath head butts. Here is another "pay attention" moment.

I was thinking about kisses and head-butts earlier today and decided to look at the charts of Vladmir Putin and Zinedine Zidane. Both of them have been in the news because they touched a male, one on the stomach and one on the chest. Putin was in the headlines because he kissed the stomach of a young boy, and Zidane was the talk of the net when he head-butted Italian soccer opponent Marco Materazzi in the chest during the World Cup final.

It's obvious that Putin is gearing up for the G-8 Summit in St. Petersburg, Russia. By kissing the stomach and patting the head of a young boy in the Kremlin courtyard, he was playing to the crowd and the world, trying to soften his KGB terror persona. Things didn't turn out as he expected, and I think he's somewhat surprised that the media is making him look ridiculous. It's ironic that the kiss did come from the heart, but he hasn't had a lot of practice expressing emotions in public.

Putin's Moon is in the sign Gemini, and when a Gemini tries to express emotion of any kind, it comes off noticeably out of character. Gemini is not a heartfelt sign. His Scorpio ascendant makes the fun-loving antics of Gemini look a little strange and intense, so he comes off as being dishonest. Let's give him credit; it was a good try.

The transit Moon and Mars were both triggering a T-square between Pluto and the Midheaven with Jupiter and the South Node in Putin's chart.A little over a week later, Zinedine Zidane was in the news for head-butting Materazzi in the final ten minutes of the World Cup. He was given a red card, kicked out of the game, and France lost to Italy.

After the World Cup he has plans to retire, and unfortunately this incident may tarnish his excellent reputation, but not for long. It will bring other matters to the surface. As bad as it looks for him, he was doing us a service by pointing out humanity's pot of prejudice. He claimed that Materazzi used devastatingly hurtful words. Lip readers say they were said with prejudice concerning his mother.

Zidane's Moon is in the intense sign Scorpio, and there is no doubt that he was coming from powerful emotions. The transit Moon was opposing the Sun to activate a natal T-square with Jupiter and Pluto. The South Node has also been triggering the T-square by sitting on Pluto. It took the Moon to come along and set it off.In a speech before the press, it was obvious that his Yod had been triggered.

The Yod is considered a fated aspect, often referred to as the Hand of God, or the Finger of Fate. Here are his words. "I tell myself that if things happened this way, it's because somewhere up there it was decided that way,". His Yod encompasses the Sun, Moon, and the North Node. The Moon opposed the Sun, while Mars and Neptune squared the Moon. Here is his chart.From a metaphysical perspective, this has to do with the heart. Heart energy is very strong on our planet, and is being released at all levels. These incidents are bringing heart energy to the world, to be balanced and used.

7/12 Project Runway and Heidi Klum

Fashion in this Saturn in Leo phase is about usability. The reality show Project Runway with Heidi Klum is making clothing out of everything possible in the home from bed sheets and mattresses to chandeliers. Saturn will be in Leo for another year when it will move into Virgo the sign of health and service. Will fashion turn to hospital gowns and aprons?

Leo is glamour and glitter, but Saturn is usability. It's saying that fashion must be practical. I guess reusing a bed sheet is practical, especially if it was involved in the fun and entertainment that Leo loves. Leo is about creation and children so that fits in. Once Saturn leaves Leo, people will see glitz in a new way.

7/10 The Navajo

http://politicalphysics.com/node/1778

Start Greening Americahttp://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13768213/site/newsweek/

7/9 Kids Web Sites

When thinking about the websites that are popular with children, I realized that this is a very vulnerable position for children and it's a little scary. [See my 7/8 post below for Neopets.] Guide them carefully.Madison Avenue is astounded at such fast paced success, and this is a commercial utopia for these magicians of the material world. Unfortunately, it's too enticing to pass by for those who want control. Sales marketing may be overpowered by the need to use it as indoctrination. What a hold this would be for those in power, and when they work with it, watch out. We saw the results of this mind f... in Germany before WW II. I hope that with the integrity that is awakening on the planet, this may be avoided.

Mesmerizing advertising influence has been going on in America for over fifty years. Kids must have the latest sneakers, game, or whatever, to keep up with their peers, and you know the difficulties that presents. Give your children options besides internet games and fantasies. Play with them, read quality books. Give them tools for creation; their senses are starving, they crave touch, the feel of crayons, and modeling clays. If you interact with them before age eight, they'll prefer you to the internet, and that is when they're the most vulnerable, and can't always make decisions of their own.

This craze may be a good or a bad thing, but unfortunately, something like this usually becomes an addiction. It outpaces the real world and makes it dull, with brilliant colors, sparkling sounds that become subliminal, and instant gratification of the internet. It's not just a net; it's a noose.

Even as an adult, I find a powerful pull at times to the net. It's easy to spend hours at the computer writing or playing a game. The time flies by. Writing by hand is so different and so centering. The ideas flow in a new way. The touch, the movement, and sound of pen on paper, goes to a different part of the psyche.

On the computer, the ideas often come in quickly. Like Uranus, which is associated with the computer, they come in a flash, and are gone just as fast. The stimulation makes it easy to go on for hours. Time and reality, don't exist. This is part of the magic, but also the addiction.

It's only been in the last few years that parents have become aware of the influence of the internet. Just like Neptune, it snuck up on them. How easy it is to control a young teen on the internet with a promise of love and marriage by a foreigner. It may be an honest proposal, but for the most part, it's a way to get into the United States. I'm sure you're aware "they don't like us, but they'll move here in a heartbeat."

Whether it's someone preying on young people for illicit sex, or deceptive promises of love, they're both insidious. That is so Neptune in Aquarius, the negative side.

7/8 Transit of Venus is Alive and Kicking

In the summer 2004, there was much excitement about the Transit of Venus. Since news in our society comes and goes so quickly most people have forgotten about it, but the Transit of Venus is still affecting humanity. The focus of this transit is moving to new horizons and communication.

With news about war, terrorism, and Global Warming taking up most of the headlines, at times it's difficult to realize that we are advancing as a civilization, and that many people are working on discovering solutions to our problems. We seemed to have reached the pinnacle of computer memory and there is doubt that computers and chip memory will move any further ahead. Maybe so.

What is happening is that we are finding creative ways to take advantage of the current technology, and do it on a collective level. Thanks to the internet, the world has been brought together and turned into a global village.

In 2004, the Transit of Venus was in the sign Gemini of curiosity, thought, and communication. This is where we will see our biggest advances and changes, and it will involve the collective. Here is a fantastic example from Yahoo StevenHawking

.http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/internet/07/07/hawking.question.ap/index.html

As the market wizards begin to realize that the money is starting to center around people who want to do things to advance civilization, things will start to change at a rapid rate. Presently those in power who run media and marketing are stuck in old ways. They are afraid to move ahead, even when they are losing money. They wait for some young whippersnapper to come along, make a fortune on a new idea, and copy it.

This change in marketing is happening quickly as Uranus in Pisces and Neptune in Aquarius are working hand in hand to boost intellectual curiosity, expand the mind, and rocket communication into the stratosphere. Sites such as Neopets are advancing so quickly it boggles the mind. They claim over 122 million accounts and growing. It used to be considered normal for a company to take four to seven years just to make a profit. Now companies are born and blooming overnight.

7/7 The Kiss - Vladimir Putin

Speculation is hot and heavy, thousands of e-mails are flying. Why did President Vladmir Putin of Russia kiss the stomach of a unknown five year old boy in the courtyard of the Kremlin on June 28? Even the boy was surprised, and refused to wash his stomach afterward.

This has a symbolism. It may have to do with the rumors that Putin has some type of occult knowledge. Whether this is true or not, we'll probably never know. His Scorpio ascendant makes him very secretive. Putin's Chart

Scorpios have a reputation of being connected to deep mysteries, but they may not always be aware of the connection. Nevertheless, even if they know, they won't admit any of this to the public; they are very private, and choose what they reveal to the world. I doubt we'll ever know the true reason behind the kiss. For all we know it may have been some kind of subconscious initiation, or just that he was deeply moved in the moment. Russians occasionally kiss babies on the stomach, but almost never five-year-old boys.

Pluto of the occult, and Mars of passion, co-rule his first house. Mars is in expansive Sagittarius in the second house of sensuality. Sagittarius enlarges things. Notice Pluto is on the angular on the 10th house, the most elevated planet in the chart. Talk about mystery, power, and passion.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2162218http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,19721151-2703,00.html

7/6 Jupiter Direct

I had to step out today to do my weekly errands, and lo and behold the traffic was incredible, but drivers were handling the delays with grace. The whole community seemed to be out.

I wondered "what in the world is going on"? Traffic hadn't been like this in months. I expect this to happen before a major storm, but no bad weather was predicted and the United States holiday is over, then I realized Jupiter is no longer retrograde.

Right now Jupiter is at the station; everyone is trying to move forward but until Jupiter starts to move ahead there will be delays. Did you notice a change in movement today?

Kenneth Lay's Death

Kenneth Lay was pronounced dead 3:11 am July 5, 2006 Aspen Colorado. I doubt the time is correct. The emergency crew was called to the home at 1:48 am. He was then transported to the hospital. Due to liability, it is the rare in the US to declare someone dead at a scene. He was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Emergency crews do not pronounce death. For all we know he may have died before 1:48 am.News of the autopsy report confirmed that he did have coronary disease, but did not state the time of death.

http://inhome.rediff.com/money/2006/jul/06enron.htm

So in this chart, what we are looking at is the announcement of the death, and we must read it from that perspective for the time being.

Go to chart

To me this is another, pay-attention-to-what-is going-on, event. The trial of Kenneth Lay was about the mishandling and misrepresentation of funds of a major corporation, and he was found guilty by a jury. His death is a symbol of the passing of the old ways of doing business; this type of vibration can no longer exist in our world. When I heard about his death, I felt an odd sensation that something is being hidden about his death. On a subconscious level, he may have set himself up for a heart attack by going to a high altitude of low oxygen, maybe not taking medications, or overexerting himself. Freedom was paramount to him, and death was a release.

With the Sun in Aries, this person needs movement and would have trouble with restriction.He was living on a house of cards built on deceit, and the cards were crumbling. That in itself is tremendous stress for a man with dynamic Mars at the top of the chart. In a sense, the final deceit was the cutting out (Mars square Neptune) of his own life.

His ascendant is ruled by a dignified Venus in the 6th house of work and service. The fact that it is trine the 10th house of reputation, status, and achievement brought him enormous success and recognition. Venus is also in a wide sextile to the Moon, ruler of the 10th, another indication of notable success. However, the Moon is square Pluto. The Moon represents the public, and a square to Pluto indicates misuse of power. Since the Moon rules the 10th, misuse will bring public notoriety.Venus rules the eighth house of other people's money. The loss related to pensions and loans comes from Venus conjunct the south node of loss, opposed to the north node in the twelfth house of imprisonment. In a way, the nodes are related to karma or payback, showing that misuse of other people's money could lead to incarceration.

Mars rules the second house of his personal money and is in a square to Neptune, in the twelfth house of imprisonment . This brings the possibility of money coming to him in a very devious and delusional way. The wealth of Enron was an illusion.

The two biggest obstacles in his chart are Moon square Pluto of power and Mars square Neptune of deception. Any involvement with the misuse of power and deception leads to great devastation. Neptune in the 12th house is a perfect example of self-deception and self-denial. Also Neptune in the 12th of confinement co-rules the 6th of health.

Jail was death to him.If we look at transits to Lay's natal chart, we see Neptune, ruler of the 6th house of health, making a hard square to Venus, ruler of the ascendant and his vitality. Saturn of hardening and blockages was going to fall in with Venus and Neptune completing a difficult T-Square in September so the pattern was already set up.

It took Mars to come along and trigger that T-square. The Moon further substantiates the death pattern by squaring his natal Mars. The only other aspect I'll mention ( and there are more aspects) is the progressed Moon, which is a good timing device. The progressed Moon is exactly square by degree to his natal ascendant. When the ascendant is involved, events are always personal and physical.

Chart for Kenneth Lay's Death

This is called an Event Chart. Two things are obvious. Mercury, which rules the media and news, is the ruler of the chart and is located in the third house, the house of communication. It ties in with Kenneth Lay's chart by the fact the Venus, Lay's natal chart ruler, is in the first house of the death chart.The Moon is in what is called Via Combusta which is a bad omen.


Pluto, the planet of death, is co-ruler of the sixth of health.

In death charts, Jupiter often relates in some way. Here Jupiter rules the eighth house of death, and Jupiter is located in the sixth house of health, showing that health and death go hand in hand. Jupiter is trine Uranus of sudden release.

Saturn in Leo is in the 3rd house of news. Saturn is obstructions, Leo is the heart, Saturn rules the 10th of something coming to public notice, so we get a report from the coroner that clogged arteries led to a heart attack.

The square of Venus to Uranus shows death is an unexpected shock. Gemini is a mutable sign showing the fleetingness of the news, which is already gone from most headlines.

Because this is an event chart, and we're not sure of the time of death or the ascendant, we can't tell for sure whether he caused his own death, or if he is involved in a cover-up. If there was a connection between Mercury and the house of death, (which there isn't in this chart), we cannot take it as signifying Lay himself, only the announcement of the death. Who knows, maybe the powers that be in the political world have wised up to giving out exact times.

7/1 Designer Babies

Using astrology to choose the time of conception and birth is getting to be the latest trend, but this must be done carefully, motives should be examined, and it must be done from the heart.

For the Chinese using astrology to help the family has been a long tradition. For the most part, it has been successful because the motives in the East are a little different from the West. The main motive for Asians is harmony between the parents and child, as well as good fortune for the child. In the West, we have a tendency to take something like this to extremes, and focus only on competition, not personal excellence.

There's a story of a couple who used astrology to have the perfect, happy baby. The baby was the happiest, most loving baby the couple could ever ask for. However, the parents had trouble when they learned that the perfection was not what they expected. Soon they were told that the baby would always be happy but that there were physical and mental challenges and the baby would have a short life.

This is a rather unusual and extreme example. Unfortunately, right from the start, they were obsessed about the outcome, and in a way, they were misusing the gift of astrology.As we enter our new paradigm we must be aware that what we want is important, and that we must look at hidden agendas and learn to do things out of the desire for joy, not fear. Click here to read more about asking for what you want in the new paradigm.

6/29 Another misty rainy day in New England.

I've been watching the newscasts of the waters rising down around Maryland and Pennsylvania. I assume Dave at The Astrology Center of America is dry, and our books are safe. He's publishing some great books; check out his website at www.astroamerica.comI just heard from Dave. He's safe and dry after a couple of extremely wet days.

George Bush

Saturn is sitting on George Bush's Pluto making an exact square to his natal Part of Fortune and the news just came out that the Supreme Court rebuked him for his handling of terrorists, and not abiding by the Geneva Convention.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/LAW/06/29/scotus.tribunals/index.html

Once Venus moves on from sextile to the ascendant and the trine to Neptune in his house of communication, we will hear more about this. Note in the President's chart that Saturn rules 7th house of open enemies and the 8th house of death.

Chart

6/26 Good Things are Afoot

Have you noticed a big change in your moods, or even a slight change? Did you wake up this morning with less anxiety? Take advantage of this time, there are no exact difficult aspects, and the Moon is doing her part in bringing good energy our way.

You may have noticed the news was quieter this weekend. One of the things I mentioned in the Weekly Planets is that compassion and charity on a global scale will be pronounced with Uranus retrograde.

Last week Bill Gates announced he is phasing out his work with Microsoft to concentrate on his charitable foundation. This weekend the news was about Warren Buffet giving away most of his estate, which also runs into billions of dollars.

I've emphasized this before, pay attention to what is happening around you, whether its in your personal life, in the world, or in the news. What occurs in the world is a marker for what is happening in the planetary evolution, which is speeding up now. It may seem that the world is getting worse, but that is an illusion brought by the media.

Even the fact that population is increasing so rapidly shows that things are better in most countries.

The USA is expected to pass the 300 million mark this fall. The world is at 6.5 billion. In just 38 years the population on this planet doubled. In 950 AD there were only 250 million people on this planet, and it took 650 years to double to approximately 5 million in 1600.

It has only taken 38 years to double the population by the billions, when from 950 AD to 1600 AD it took 650 years to double in the millions. What an acceleration.