LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Lately you've been spending time in both the off-
kilter parts of paradise and the enchanting areas of limbo. On one notable
occasion, you even managed to be in both places simultaneously. How'd
you do that? The results have been colorful but often paradoxical. What
you don't want and what you do want have gotten a bit mixed up. You
have had to paw your way out of a dead-end confusion but have also
been granted a sublime breakthrough. You explored a tunnel to nowhere
but also visited a thrilling vista that provided you with some medicinal
excitement. What will you do for an encore? Hopefully, nothing that
complicated. I suggest you spend the next few days chilling out and
taking inventory of all that's changed.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): The painter Philip Guston loved to express
himself creatively. He said it helped him to get rid of his certainty, to
divest himself of what he knew. By washing away the backlog of old ideas
and familiar perspectives, he freed himself to see the world as brand new.
In light of your current astrological omens, Virgo, Guston's approach
sounds like a good strategy for you to borrow. The next couple of weeks
will be an excellent time to explore the pleasures of unlearning and
deprogramming. You will thrive by discarding stale preconceptions,
loosening the past's hold on you, and clearing out room in your brain for
fresh imaginings.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Nineteenth-century author Charles Dickens
wrote extensively about harsh social conditions. He specialized in
depicting ugly realities about poverty, crime, and classism. Yet one critic
described him as a "genial and loving humorist" who showed that "even in
dealing with the darkest scenes and the most degraded characters, genius
could still be clean and mirth could be innocent." I'm thinking that Dickens
might be an inspirational role model for you in the coming weeks, Libra. It
will be prime time for you to expose difficult truths and agitate for justice
and speak up in behalf of those less fortunate than you. You'll get best
results by maintaining your equanimity and good cheer.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): For many years, ambergris was used as a
prime ingredient in perfumes. And where does ambergris come from? It's
basically whale vomit. Sperm whales produce it in their gastrointestinal
tracts to protect them from the sharp beaks of giant squid they've eaten,
then spew it out of their mouths. With that as your model, Scorpio, I
challenge you to convert an inelegant aspect of your life into a fine asset,
even a beautiful blessing. I don't expect you to accomplish this task
overnight. But I do hope you will finish by May of 2013.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): "Interruption" will be a word of power
for you in the coming days. No, really: I'm not being ironic, sarcastic, or
satirical. It is possible that the interruptions will initially seem
inconvenient
or undesirable, but I bet you will eventually feel grateful for their
intervention. They will knock you out of grooves you need to be knocked
out of. They will compel you to pay attention to clues you've been
neglecting. Don't think of them as random acts of cosmic whimsy, but
rather as divine strokes of luck that are meant to redirect your energy to
where it should be.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You don't have to stand in a provocative
pose to be sexy. You don't have to lick your lips or radiate a smoldering
gaze or wear clothes that dramatically reveal your body's most appealing
qualities. You already know all that stuff, of course; in light of this week's
assignment, I just wanted to remind you. And what is that assignment?
To be profoundly attractive and alluring without being obvious about it.
With that as your strategy, you'll draw to you the exact blessings and
benefits you need. So do you have any brilliant notions about how to
proceed? Here's one idea: Be utterly at peace with who you really are.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Be alert for fake magic, and make yourself
immune to its seductive appeal. Do not, under any circumstances, allow
yourself to get snookered by sexy delusions, enticing hoaxes, or clever
mirages. There will in fact be some real magic materializing in your
vicinity, and if you hope to recognize it you must not be distracted by the
counterfeit stuff. This is a demanding assignment, Pisces. You will have to
be both skeptical and curious, both tough-minded and innocently
receptive. Fortunately, the astrological omens suggest you now have an
enhanced capacity to live on that edge.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Acro-Yoga is a relatively new physical
discipline. According to a description I read on a flyer in Santa Cruz, it
"blends the spiritual wisdom of yoga, the loving kindness of massage, and
the dynamic power of acrobatics." I'd love to see you work on creating a
comparable hybrid in the coming months, Aries -- some practice or
system or approach that would allow you to weave together your various
specialties into a synergetic whole. Start brainstorming about that
impossible dream now, and soon it won't seem so impossible.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Unless you grow your own or buy the
heirloom variety at farmer's markets, you probably eat a lot of tasteless
tomatoes. Blame it on industrial-scale farming and supermarket chains.
They've bred tomatoes to be homogenous and bland -- easy to ship and
pretty to look at. But there's a sign of hope: A team of scientists at the
University of Florida is researching what makes tomatoes taste delicious,
and is working to bring those types back into mainstream availability. I
think the task you have ahead of you in the coming weeks is
metaphorically similar, Taurus. You should see what you can to do restore
lost flavor, color, and soulfulness. Opt for earthy idiosyncrasies over fake
and boring perfection.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): It'll be a humming, murmuring, whispering kind
of week -- a time when the clues you need will most likely arrive via
ripplings and rustlings and whirrings. Here's the complication: Some of the
people around you may be more attracted to clangs and bangs and
jangles. They may imagine that the only information worth paying
attention to is the stuff that's loudest and strongest. But I hope you
won't be seduced by their attitudes. I trust you'll resist the appeals of the
showy noise. Be a subtlety specialist who loves nuance and undertones.
Listen mysteriously.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Most change is slow and incremental. The
shifts happen so gradually that they are barely noticeable while you're
living in the midst of them from day to day. Then there are those rare
times when the way everything fits together mutates pretty quickly.
Relationships that have been evolving in slow motion begin to speed up.
Long-standing fixations melt away. Mystifying questions get clear
answers. I think you're at one of these junctures now, Cancerian. It's not
likely you'll be too surprised by anything that happens, though. That's
because you've been tracking the energetic build-up for a while, and it will
feel right and natural when the rapid ripening kicks in.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Homework: Make two fresh promises to yourself: one that's easy to keep
and one that's at the edge of your capacity to live up to. Share at
FreeWillAstrology.com.

For me
"Opt for earthy idiosyncrasies over fake
and boring perfection."

I usually do Mr Brezsny, I usually do.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): The state of Maine has a law that prohibits
anyone from leaving an airplane while it is flying through the air. This
seems like a reasonable restriction until you realize how badly it
discriminates against skydivers. Legal scholars will tell you that examples
like this are not at all rare. Laws tend to be crude, one-size-fits-all
formulations. And as I'm sure you've discovered in your travels, Leo, one-
size-fits-all formulations always squash expressions of individuality. In the
coming weeks, be extra alert for pressures to conform to overly broad
standards and sweeping generalizations. Rebel if necessary. You have
license to be yourself to the tenth power.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): I propose that you try to accomplish the
following clean-up projects in the next four weeks: ten bushels of weeds
yanked out of your psychic landscape; 25 pounds of unused stuff and
moldering junk hauled away from your home; ten loads of dirty laundry
(especially the metaphorical kind) washed free of taint and stains -- and
not blabbed about on social media; at least $5,000 worth of weird
financial karma scrubbed away for good; a forgotten fence mended; and a
festering wound tended to until it heals.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Philosopher William Irwin Thompson says that
we humans are like flies creeping along the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
We literally cannot see the splendor that surrounds us. As a result, we
don't live in reality. We're lost in our habitual perceptions, blinded by our
favorite illusions, and addicted to beliefs that hide the true nature of the
universe. That's the bad news, Libra. The good news is that every now
and then, each of us slips into a grace period when it's possible to
experience at least some of the glory we're normally cut off from. The veil
opens, and previously undetected beauty appears. The weeks ahead will
be the closest you've come to this breakthrough in a long time.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Can you guess which European country has
the best military record in the last eight centuries? It's France. Out of the
185 battles its soldiers have engaged in, they've won 132 and lost only
43. Ten times they fought to a draw. Of all the signs of the zodiac,
Scorpio, I think you have the best chance of compiling a comparable
record in the next ten months. Your warrior-like qualities will be at a peak;
your instinct for achieving hard-fought victories may be the stuff of
legends years from now. But please keep in mind what the ancient
Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu said in his iconic text *The Art of
War*: The smart and powerful warrior always avoids outright conflict if
possible, and wins by using slyer means.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): After consulting the astrological omens,
I've concluded that during the next three weeks, you will deserve the
following titles: 1. Most Likely to Benefit from Serendipitous Adventures;
2. Most Likely to Exclaim "Aha!"; 3. Most Likely to Thrive While Wandering
in Wild Frontiers and Exotic Locales; 4. Most Likely to Have a Wish Come
True If This Wish Is Made in the Presence of a Falling Star. You might want
to wait to fully embody that fourth title until the period between August
9 and 14, when the Perseids meteor shower will be gracing the night skies
with up to 170 streaks per hour. The peak flow will come on August 12
and 13.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You may have to travel far and wide
before you will fully appreciate a familiar resource whose beauty you're
half-blind to. It's possible you'll have to suffer a partial loss of faith so as

to attract experiences that will make your faith stronger than it ever was.
And I'm guessing that you may need to slip outside your comfort zone for
a while in order to learn what you need to know next about the arts of
intimacy. These are tricky assignments, Capricorn. I suggest you welcome
them without resentment.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): My daughter Zoe has been writing some fine
poetry these last few years. I regard it as professional-grade stuff that
has been born of natural talent and developed through discipline and hard
work. You might ask, quite reasonably, whether my evaluation of her
literary output is skewed by fatherly pride. I've considered that possibility.
But recently, my opinion got unbiased corroboration when her school
awarded her with the "All-College Honor" for her poetry manuscript. I
predict you will soon have a comparable experience. Your views or
theories will be confirmed by an independent and objective source.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): The critic Dorothy Parker didn't think highly
of Katherine Hepburn's acting skills. "She runs the emotional gamut from
A to B," said Parker. I realize that what I'm about to suggest may be
controversial, but I'm hoping you will be Hepburn-like in the coming week,
Pisces. This is not the right time, in my astrological opinion, for you to
entertain a wide array of slippery, syrupy, succulent feelings. Nor would it
be wise to tease out every last nuance of the beguiling vibes rising up
within you. For the time being, you need to explore the pleasures of
discerning perception and lucid analysis. Get lost in deep thought, not
rampant passion.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): In your personal chart, the planet Uranus
symbolizes those special talents you have that are especially useful to
other people. Which aspects of your soulful beauty are potentially of
greatest service to the world? How can you express your uniqueness in
ways that activate your most profound generosity? If you learn the
answers to these questions, you will make great progress toward solving
the riddle that Uranus poses. I'm happy to report that the coming years
will provide you with excellent opportunities to get to the bottom of this
mystery. And now would be a good time to launch a concerted effort.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): In the coming weeks, I'm afraid there's only a
very small chance that you'll be able to turn invisible at will, shapeshift
into an animal form and back, or swipe the nectar of immortality from the
gods. The odds of success are much higher, though, if you will attempt
less ambitious tasks that are still pretty frisky and brazen. For example,
you could germinate a potential masterpiece where nothing has ever
grown. You could legally steal from the rich and give the spoils to the
poor. And you could magically transform a long-stuck process that no one
thought would ever get unstuck.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Are there are any weaknesses or problems in
your approach to communication? They will be exposed in the coming
weeks. If you're even slightly lazy or devious about expressing yourself,
you will have to deal with the karmic consequences of that shortcoming.
If there's more manipulativeness than love in your quest for connection,
you'll be compelled to do some soul-searching. That's the bad news,
Gemini. The good news is that you will have far more power than usual to
upgrade the way you exchange energy with others. In fact, this could be
the time you enter into a golden age of communication.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): If you narrow your focus now, the world will
really open up for you in the second half of October and November. To
the degree that you impose limitations on your desire to forever flow in all
directions, you will free up creative ideas that are currently buried. So
summon up some tough-minded discipline, please. Refuse to let your
moodiness play havoc with your productivity. Dip into your reserve supply
of high-octane ambition so you will always have a sixth sense about
exactly what's important and what's not.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2012 Rob Brezsny

... does that means more than usual? drat. maybe I should get myself a bullet-proof vest. the sooner the better ;)

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): If you've been reading my horoscopes for a
while, you know I'm not a decadent cynic who thinks "no pain, no gain" is
the supreme formula for success. On the contrary. I think it's quite
possible to enjoy tremendous growth spurts when you're happy and
healthy. Pleasurable events can be great learning experiences. Joy and
freedom may activate potentials that would otherwise remain dormant.
Having said that, I want to make a suggestion that may seem at odds
with my usual approach, even though it's not. For the next two weeks, I
encourage you to explore the necessary power of decay. Harness the
archetypes of breakdown and dissolution as you put an end to things
whose time is up. This work is key to your future rejuvenation and
renaissance.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): I'm going to ignore the Urban Dictionary's
more modern definitions of the word "yeast," and stick to the original
meaning: an agent of fermentation that brews alcoholic drinks and makes
bread dough rise. Metaphorically speaking, Scorpio, you should be like
that for your gang or crew or tribe. I urge you to stir up group morale.
Provoke deeper thought and stronger feelings. Instigate some bubbly new
trends and effervescent interactions. Be yeasty!

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Sussex is a county in southeast England.
Its official motto is "We wunt be druv," which is Sussex dialect for "We
won't be pushed around." It's not bad as mottoes go, I guess. There's
power in announcing to the world that you're not going to allow anyone
to manipulate you or bully you. But I'd like to see you come up with a
more robust battle cry for yourself, Sagittarius -- one that doesn't focus
on what you *won't* do, but rather on what you *will* do. It's an ideal
astrological moment to articulate your driving purpose in a pithy formula
that will give you strength whenever you invoke it.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): "Most people consider global warming
somewhat of a mixed blessing," wrote Aaron Sankin on Huffington Post.
"On one hand, there's ocean acidification, deserts gobbling up wide
swaths of farmland and the massive die-off of the innumerable species
unable to cope with the effects of the world's rapidly rising temperature.
But, on the other hand, you'll be able to wear shorts for *literally the
entire year."* Sankin is being deeply sarcastic, of course. Let's make his
satire a jumping-off point as we consider some sincerely worthwhile trade-
offs you might want to implement in your own sphere. Would you be
willing to sacrifice a trivial comfort for a new privilege? Would you shed a
small pleasure to gain a much bigger pleasure? Might you divest yourself
of a pocket of resentment if in doing so you'd attract a cleansing
epiphany?

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): I don't expect your travels in the coming
weeks to be like a smooth luxury cruise in a stretch limousine. Your route
is not likely to be a straight shot through breathtaking scenery with
expansive views. No, my dear Aquarius, your journeys will be more
complicated than that, more snakey and labyrinthine. Some of the narrow
passages and weedy detours you'll need to navigate may not even
resemble paths, let alone highways. And your metaphorical vehicle may
resemble a funky old 1967 Chevy pick-up truck or a forklift bedecked
with flowers. It should be pretty fun, though. Keep in mind that your
maps may only be partially useful.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): In medieval times, you didn't need a priest to
get married, nor did you have to be in a church or recite a set of vows.
You didn't even have to round up witnesses. All that was required was
that the two people who wanted to be wed said "I marry you" to each
other. Those three words had great power! In the coming days, Pisces, I'd
love to see you draw inspiration from that lost tradition. Your assignment
is to dream up three potent declarations that, while not legally binding,
express the deepest and most loving intentions you promise to be faithful
to in the coming years. (More info on medieval marriage:
http://tinyurl.com/MedievalMarriage.)

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Do you know what a controlled burn is?
Firefighters start small, manageable fires on purpose so as to eradicate
brush that has accumulated too close to wooded areas. With less fuel
around, bigger fires are not as likely to ignite accidentally and turn into
conflagrations. I encourage you to use this as a metaphor for your own
life, Aries. How? First, identify a big potential problem that may be
looming on the horizon. Then, in the coming weeks, get rid of all the small
messes that might tend to feed that big problem. Make sure it'll never
happen.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Jungian storyteller Clarissa Pinkola Estes
advises us to take good care of the untamed aspects of our nature. "The
wild life must be kept ordered on a regular basis," she writes. One way to
do this is to keep our uncommon and unruly ideas clear and organized. It's
also important to give them respect, and understand that they're crucial
to our spiritual and psychological health. How are you doing in this regard,
Taurus? What's your relationship with the untamed aspects of your
nature? According to my reading of the omens, now is prime time for you
honor and nurture and cultivate them.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): By my astrological reckoning, you're not nearly
wet enough right now. I recommend that you take immediate and
intensive steps to remedy the situation. There should not be anything
about you that is high and dry; you need to soak up the benefits that
come from being slippery and dripping. If you're suffering from even a
hint of emotional dehydration, you should submerse yourself in the
nearest pool of primal feelings. For extra credit, drink deeply from the
sacred cup that never empties.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): In the 16th century, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V ruled over a vast swath of land that included 12 modern
European nations. According to some historians, he once said, "I speak
Spanish to God, Italian to women, French to men, and German to my
horse." This is the kind of attitude I recommend that you adopt in the
coming weeks, Cancerian. Tailor your language to the people and
creatures you're speaking to. Address them on their own level of
consciousness, respecting their limitations and appealing to their
particular kind of intelligence. Of course this is always a good policy, but
it's especially important for you to observe now. Fluency and flexibility will
be rewarded in ways you can't imagine.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Would you like to enhance your relationship with
money? If so, do you have any specific ideas about how to do it? The
coming weeks will be an excellent time to identify and implement those
ideas. Let me make an initial suggestion: Keep your magical thinking to a
minimum, but don't stamp it out entirely; a small amount of frisky
fantasizing will actually boost the likelihood that your more practical
intentions will achieve critical mass. Here's another tip: Imagine the
presents you'd get for people if you had some extra cash. Stimulating
your generous urges may help motivate the universe to be generous to
you.

And then I found the Mayan zodiac symbols that were quite interesting
http://www.in5d.com/mayan-zodiac-symbols-and-names.html

Keanu can celebrate New Year again :) (He's in China, right?)

A lovely and rare astrological alignment happens this week, as the planets move into a pattern astologers call the “grand sextile.” This creates a cosmic hexagram—a six-pointed star—in the heavens. Like two vast interlacing triangles, pointing in opposite directions this beautiful arrangement will involve seven planets, one at each point (with one point sharing two). This very specific pattern, mathematically exact, has not occurred since the 1940s.

All of the planets involved are in feminine star signs and harmoniously blend the elements of earth and water. Perhaps this great celestial star, uniting so many of the planets into one precise alignment, speaks to us of an evolutionary opportunity. If we could seize this moment and connect with this spiritual power, we could direct it toward positive transformation—a living, breathing, manifestion of the Divine Feminine on Earth. This dazzling star-gate invites us to heal our spirits and bring the polarities of masculine and feminine, physical and spiritual into harmonious union.

The moon is in gentle Taurus on Monday, when the grand sextile is at its most focused, which implies that we gain access to this sacred geometric pattern through simple acts of loving kindness. Like honey extracted from a six-sided honeycomb, we should allow for sweetness to be the prevailing and healing power. The stars encourage us to move beyond judgement, asking that we let love be made manifest at the very foundation of our lives, and in the world at large.

This pattern, vast and powerful as it may be, is also delicate; it whispers to us of an exquisite potential and, with a soft voice, invites us to live in a new way. It may be that this rare alignment does not grasp us, but that we may need to grasp it, seizing this shimmering moment with our awareness and intention.

The greatest gift of the grand sextile may be that, in the interstices of starlight, we are offered one of the rarest and purest gifts of all: hope.

The Daily Scope by Kevin Melville Jennings

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): "You cannot use butterfly language to
communicate with caterpillars," said psychologist Timothy Leary. That's
good advice for you to keep in mind in the near future. You might want to
find a way to carry on constructive dialogs with people who have a hard
time understanding you. It's not necessarily that they are stupid or
resistant to your charms. The problem is that they haven't experienced
some of the critical transformations you have. They can't be expected to
converse with you in your butterfly language. Are you willing and able to
speak caterpillar?