Sky Log

Astrological Report for

Tony Blair

Aug 01, 2000 - Oct 31, 2000

by Steven Forrest

Your Chart Data

Name: Tony Blair
Date: May 06, 1953
Time: 06:10:00 AM GMD -01:00
Place: Edinburgh,Scotland
003W13'00" 55N57'00"

Planet	Sign	Position	House	House Cusps
Sun	Taurus	15°Ta22'	12th	01 04°Ge50'
Moon	Aquarius	11°Aq29'	10th	02 24°Ge58'
Mercury	Aries	26°Ar23'	12th	03 10°Ca10'
Venus	Aries	15°Ar01'	12th	04 26°Ca03'
Mars	Gemini	03°Ge27'	12th	05 17°Le28'
Jupiter	Taurus	29°Ta12'	12th	06 26°Vi17'
Saturn	Libra	22°Li21' R	06th	07 04°Sg50'
Uranus	Cancer	15°Ca17'	03rd	08 24°Sg58'
Neptune	Libra	21°Li54' R	06th	09 10°Cp10'
Pluto	Leo	20°Le48'	05th	10 26°Cp03'
Midheaven	Capricorn	26°Cp03'	10th	11 17°Aq28'
Ascendant	Gemini	04°Ge50'	01st	12 26°Pi17'

Interpretation text copyright 1993 by Steven Forrest
Program Copyright 1983-2000 Matrix Software, Inc.
407 N. State St., Big Rapids, MI 49307 231-796-2483

Sky Log
Steven Forest

Traditional astrologers "make predictions." Often they are correct. But right or wrong, "predictions" turn you into a marionette, with the planets holding your strings. And in my opinion, that is not a very inspiring description of the way the cosmos works, nor a very accurate one. You are vastly more powerful than that. You can, to a great extent, shape your own life. That at least is my belief. The future isn't crystallized. It's a wavering, quivering web of possibilities. How will they manifest? Much depends upon how you wield the magical wild card we call your freedom.

So, what's the use of astrology? In a nutshell, it can help you make better choices. The planets never give a definitive answer to the question "What will happen to me?" Instead, they ask the question. But they ask the question in a very specific way: "Given everything you are, all the bridges you've crossed, all the contracts you've signed, there are several possibilities for what you might do next..." In other words, "Here's the menu. What are you having?"

Question mark.

And the question mark is the most important part of the whole inquiry, because that's where the uncertainty -- and your freedom -- lies. But the planets do even more. They offer advice. In a sense, they recommend certain choices over others. They seem biased toward your evolution. They often suggest that you take the less familiar path, the one that moves you into richer fields of your own potentiality. The planets express this rather philosophical bias in a very concrete way. Typically, when you make a less energetic response to a planetary question, the results, while initially comfortable, rapidly turn painful. Sometimes the pain is immediate and dramatic, as in the collapse of an important relationship. Other times, it's more subtle, as in the degeneration of life into deadening boredom and ritual. Either way, sooner or later we know you made a wrong turn somewhere.

In the pages that follow, we will be exploring the coming months of your life from this planetary perspective. There are three parts to the report, and any or all of them may be included here, depending on which have been requested. First, the big questions. In the part of the report called THE INVITATION, we try to get that "mountain-top" perspective that enables us to make sense of the details. In THE MEANS, we turn our attention to some secondary factors that offer suggestions, help, and support in responding to those big questions. And finally, we'll look at the report period month-by-month, day-by-day, to get some ground-level insight into THE DETAILS. Your report may be for three, six, nine, or twelve months and may include any or all three sections just described. For this reason, and because some years in your life are astrologically more active than others, report length can vary quite a bit.

Throughout the following text, I'll be endeavoring to write in plain English, but if you're unfamiliar with the jargon of astrology, you'll encounter a few words that may require definition. A "transiting" planet, for example, refers to the actual, current position of that planet in the sky. Sometimes the transiting planets form critical geometric angles with the "natal" planets in the birthchart, triggering developmental questions in your life. These critical angles are called "aspects."

The "progressed" planets function in much the same way as the transiting planets, but we approach them a little differently. They're like a script that's been built into your birthchart. Just as we know that an oak tree will emerge from an acorn and bring forth its leaves in season, similarly each person's birthchart contains within it the seeds of certain predictable developmental stages. Progressions spell out those stages.

So sit back, open your mind, and engage your heart. It's time to consider...

The Invitation

Some years loom large in our memories decades down the road; others are blurry, easily forgotten. That universal human reality is reflected in the movements of the planets -- astrologically speaking, one year is often far more significant than another, just as in life. Most of the really important celestial factors move rather slowly; thus, it's not unusual to experience a time in which none of them have gone critical, when we can calmly keep on putting one foot after the other, on "cruise control."

Well, for you this is definitely not that kind of year. Something truly pivotal is occurring...

Tr. Neptune is Trine Ascendant
In effect: in progress - Oct 2, 2000
Peak Date(s): Aug 9, 2000

The planet Neptune is presently tinting and shading your biography, adding its dreamlike quality to the existential stew. Close your eyes; there's a world in there. That's Neptune, the planet of consciousness itself. Now open your eyes. There's a world out there too, and it's hard to ignore it. In fact, the outer world has become so pressing in its demands that you've partly lost contact with the inner one. But Neptune, transiting through sensitive territories for you now, is fixing that. Your inner world is so full it's brimming over, overflowing its banks into your daily life. If you resist the process, you'll find a host of Neptune problems plaguing you: losing the car keys, forgetting to pay the electric bill, having the attention span of a three-year-old on a sugar jag. But there's an alternative: trust the process. Slow down. Meditate. Let the images come. Moult opinions. Breathe in, breathe out. Why? Because your unconscious mind has a message for you. It has to do with the possibility of happiness for you over the next few years, about how old sources of joy are drying up and -- critically -- about new ones you must learn to recognize. How do you receive the message? You stop resisting. You simply let it in. That's Neptune in the broad sense. How is it effecting you specifically? Neptune is trine your natal Ascendant: Aug 9, 2000.

Currently Neptune is steering a course through your Tenth House. That's the traditional "House of Career," and any planet passing through that part of your natal chart suggests that external developmental pressures are now arising which have the effect of modifying your place in the world. Something is brewing in your profession or vocation, or in your social status -- the way you look to people who don't really know you very well. What is it? We can't say exactly, but to respond optimally to the potentials and challenges built into this event, you'll need to act according to the spirit of Neptune, as we just described it. But what's the core issue? What part of your own life is at stake? To answer that, we turn our attention to the Ascendant, which is being invited into development by these professional or social openings.

Like the rest of us, you are a complicated, paradoxical individual, full of contradictions and undercurrents. That's human. But another part of being human is that, like the rest of us, you need to get out of bed in the morning and put on a streamlined, simplified social mask that allows you to function in the social beehive. There's no way that you can have a truly intimate relationship with every face you see in your daily life, nor would you likely want such connections. So we all keep much of what we really are behind our astrological Ascendant, which symbolizes that mask. Physically, it is simply the sign that was dawning in the east at the instant of your birth...and symbolically it represents how you "dawn" on people who don't know you very well. When triggered by a passing transit or progression, the Ascendant signals the need to make some adjustments in the way you present yourself in the social world, so that your outer appearance remains reasonably aligned with who you have become inwardly. The work is superficial; which is not to say unimportant. Often it has to do with changing how you hold your body, the way you speak, and the clothes you wear.

As we said, the aspect involved in the event we just described is the trine, which refers to a 120 degree angle between the natal planet and the moving one. Trines are traditionally viewed as positive aspects, and in fact they generally do correlate with opportunities. Additionally, their existence implies that support is available to you, if you are willing to move to claim it. And therein lies the rub with the so-called "good" aspects. They're not very dynamic. Just as pain is a more powerful motivator than contentment, the trick with trines lies in taking advantage of them before the wheel turns and their potential vanishes. With regard to the developments we described in the previous few paragraphs: a door is now open, a red carpet rolled out...but don't count on everything remaining that way forever.

Tr. Pluto is Sextile Moon
In effect: Sep 25, 2000 - continuing
Peak Date(s): sometime after the report period.

The planet Pluto is shading the spirit of your life nowadays, and in a nutshell that means that you are being challenged to heal. Pluto, as you probably know, is the lord of the underworld...or to put it more succinctly, the God of Hell. And it is disquieting, to say the least, to imagine that this deity is currently dining at your table. But take heart! The "hell" inside you needs airing out, and that is essentially what this transit is about. You've been hurt. You've been used, abused, rejected, exploited, lied to...the whole sad litany. And, like the rest of us, you've sometimes had to keep the proverbial stiff upper lip and simply get on with your life. But where does all that hurt go? Down deep into the unconscious mind, where it stays until you're clear enough and strong enough to handle resurrecting it and really going beyond it. Pluto's action is to bring up buried emotions. Its tone is intense. It often feels moody and confrontative. It can destabilize and disrupt the areas of your life that it's touching. The best course is to resolve to go deeper and deeper, truth above kindness and resolution over comfort. It's not easy, but in the end the energizing and empowering of the psyche make the process worthwhile. What is Pluto actually doing? Currently it is sextile your natal Moon. Although Pluto is a slow-moving planet and usually unfolds its story over a period of two or three years, during the period of this report the action peaks sometime after the report period..

Our initial step is to realize that the action and the developmental invitation are manifesting in the Seventh House, for that's the region of your birthchart through which Pluto is currently passing. This informs us that you have come to a turning point in your biography, but one whose successful navigation depends upon your receptivity to counsel, or more simply, your willingness to let another person influence you. "Soulmates" will appear at critical junctions. Recognize them through their resemblance to Pluto, which we just described. But what's the core issue? What part of your own life is at stake? To answer that, we turn our attention to the Moon, which is being invited into development by the advent of these pivotal people.

Astrology is the basic "programming language" of human consciousness. That may seem like a bold claim, but it's easily tested and proven. Pick someone who imagines he or she knows nothing at all about astrology. Ask them what the Moon means. After an initially dumbfounded look, you'll probably get an answer such as, "I dunno...feelings?" Which is quite correct. The mind naturally associates the Moon with darkness, with moonlight...and therefore with ghosts and romance, magic and tears, vulnerability and exhilaration: emotions. Deep inside us all is a subjective realm. Love and hate, joy and sorrow, dwell there. So do our daydreams and our creativity. If we could "average" a person's mood over a lifetime, we'd have an excellent profile of his or her Moon. When the Moon is triggered into development by a passing transit or progression, your inner life is stimulated. You feel stirred up. Powerful currents of emotional energy, for weal or woe, are released into your psyche. The very basis of happiness for you is evolving.

In what way do those notions connect with your present circumstances? Understand that the Moon occupies the Tenth House of your natal chart, an area which refers to issues of career, status, and your public role...concerns which are currently undergoing considerable developmental pressure and change. All positive steps in terms of profession or your place in the community hold one point in common: they move you further and further in the direction of the Moon, as we just described it. Any work that will prove enduringly satisfying invokes the considerable energies of the Moon in you; any work that does not embody them will turn out to be transitory or deadening.

The aspect pervading the event we've just considered is, as we observed, a sextile. Technically, that refers to a geometric angle of 60 degrees between the natal planet and the moving one. Sextiles are traditionally viewed as "good" aspects. Certainly, they're exciting. There is a mood of eagerness regarding the process we're exploring here -- and that's glorious, provided you're wary of the excessive impulsiveness that sextiles sometimes breed. In any case, the spinning wheel of circumstances can be counted on to provide some fortuitous, unexpected opportunities for you during this period. You'll have to be quick to seize them, though. They're real, but they're short-lived.

What we've considered above is the underpinning of this phase of your life. It's truly elemental material -- the stuff of which milestones are made. There's no guarantee that astrological forces of such magnitude will be activated for everyone all the time. What follows is an analysis of some slightly less portentous dimensions of your astrological picture...less portentous, but still powerful enough to qualify as part of this year's "Invitation."

Try to see what follows in the light of all that's gone before...

Tr. Saturn is Conjunct Jupiter
In effect: in progress - Aug 13, 2000
Peak Date(s): Oct 28, 2000

The planet Saturn is currently casting a gray light on your circumstances -- but is it the bleak gray of sorrow or the clear, comforting gray of wisdom and digested experience? That's the choice. Saturn is classically viewed as the "bad" planet, the "Greater Malefic." Don't believe it! Used correctly, its transits can bring dignity and self-respect. Essentially, Saturn is about maturity. The part of your life that's being touched by the Saturnian energies needs to grow up...which, despite the lies we're all told, is not a process one mysteriously completes on one's twenty-first birthday. There is an area of your life where you have simply outgrown yourself, at least inwardly. The task now is to adjust your outward circumstances to reflect the maturity you've already attained psychically and invisibly. It is a material problem, not fundamentally a psychological one. To succeed, there is first a need to face reality squarely, even if it's unsavory. Then to make a hard choice...that is, to reach an emotional bottom line and not be crippled by your awareness of the ambiguities in your situation. And finally, in a spirit of commitment, persistence, and self-discipline, to claim those circumstances in your life which reflect the hard inner work you've been doing over the last few years. That's Saturn in general. Specifically, Saturn is conjunct your natal Jupiter: Oct 28, 2000.

Currently Saturn is maneuvering through your Twelfth House, which is the last house of the cycle and often suggests endings and dissolutions. Your key to success here lies in sorting out what parts of your life and circumstances have truly run their course and are therefore ready to be released. That's hard, sometimes, since like the rest of us you're in part a creature of habit and are therefore subject to getting too attached to the familiar. Of what should you be letting go? Part of the answer lies with Saturn, as we just described it: the part of you that's ready to "die and be reborn" is tangled up with that kind of energy and attitude. But we can go further. There is also some ending and releasing going in connection with Jupiter, which is being invited into development by these essential and apt conclusions -- some of which, by the way, may be forced upon you by outside events if you're slow to recognize their necessity.

Hope and faith are essential to sanity. Without at least a few bright dreams and expansive goals, a person grows flat and dull...becomes a time-server. The same can be said for self-confidence: we need it. And even if such assurance sometimes crosses the line into a sprinkle of arrogance, that's less troubling and limiting than sitting around afraid to take any risks at all. There is a gambler's circuit in your psyche that understands these notions perfectly well. Astrologers call it Jupiter. When stimulated by a passing transit or progression, it encourages you to extend yourself further into your world, to bet on yourself, and to recognize emerging opportunities. Be wary at the same time that you don't settle for glitter when gold may be just around the corner.

The Twelfth House is where Jupiter lies in your natal chart, and it is currently undergoing a lot of evolutionary emphasis. It is critical that you make an effort to get in touch with the energies of Jupiter in yourself at this point. You need them, and you actually do have them available to you, but they've got a pattern of slipping away from your conscious control. Don't let it happen! Meditate on Jupiter! Draw pictures of it and tape them to the refrigerator! Do what it takes to avoid shooting yourself in the foot, which is what will happen if you let circumstances bamboozle you out of these healing, balancing energies.

When Jupiter interacts with Saturn, you experience an odd confluence of providential fortune (Jupiter) and daunting impediments (Saturn). Essentially, something very good is available to you now, but to attain it you must undertake a herculean effort. More profoundly, that effort itself will crystallize a very specific transformation in you: it will grant you the dignity of your advancing maturity.

As we mentioned, the aspect involved in the event we just described is the conjunction, which refers to a precise alignment between the natal planet and the moving trigger. Thus, the process emphasizes fusion, integration, and synthesis. Of all the possible aspects, the conjunction is the most intense. The explosion rattles your outward circumstances; but it originates inside you, and puts you in the driver's seat. It is appropriate for you to claim some new level of power, of self-expression, and of autonomy. If you don't, no one will do it for you; and the opportunity will evaporate.

Tr. Uranus aligns with the Eleventh House cusp
Date: Sep 18, 2000 - Continuing

The planet Uranus is presently stirring the pot of your life, and that always promises a tumultuous passage, peppered with unexpected developments and encounters. Outwardly, Uranus is the wild card, bringing unpredictable and unforeseen events into the picture. Inwardly, it signals a time of accelerated individuation...that is, a time in which who you really are and what you truly want are rapidly emerging and defining themselves. A portion of what you imagined to be your identity has, in fact, little to do with you; it is a side-effect of your social training, nothing more. And, like training wheels on a kid's bike, you are now ready to dump it. This has an unsettling effect upon not only yourself, but also those around you. Often during Uranian periods there is a distinct "changing of the guard" in our social circles; old relationships end, new ones appear. Claim your right to be yourself -- that's the essence of the transiting Uranus. Whatever it touches, changes. Trust the changes! Like a hard wind blowing the sand off a buried city, they are revealing who you actually have been all along. That's Uranus in general. Specifically, Uranus is conjunct your natal Eleventh House cusp: Sep 18, 2000.

Setting priorities -- that's the core of the Eleventh House process. Where do you go from here? What do you really want? A paradox lies at the heart of this phase of your journey. You've accomplished a lot...in many ways you're in an enviable position, harvesting the fruits of long effort. But there's a sense of anticlimax woven into your accomplishments. The truth of it is that your dreams are coming true -- but they are old, burned-out dreams from long ago. You are running on momentum from the past, and that's nothing to be ashamed of. However, with Uranus entering this part of the chart, you are now invited to host a strategy-session with yourself.

Behind the well-oiled machinery of your life, behind the web of social relationships and responsibilities you've woven, there is a basic sense of directionlessness, rendered invisible to others by the successful, energetic appearance of your life. Outwardly, the old answers still work fine, but the truth is they don't satisfy you any more. You've outgrown them. Can you seize the chance to make a quantum leap? Can you take the initiative and claim a new level of creativity, of public respect, of visionary inspiration and leadership?

Those are the questions woven into the foundation of your current circumstances. To answer them in a positive, sustainable, life-enhancing way you need to figure out exactly what you want...and the answer lies right in the crosshairs of Uranus, as we just described it. Tremendous physical and creative energies are available to you, along with a wide array of resources and useful alliances...if only you'll tap into the main line of conscious, self-aware choice in the spirit of Uranus. It boils down to one eternal truth: to get what you want, you must know what you want.

The Means

If you happen to have a cold on the day you win the lottery, will that taint your memory of the big event? Probably not. Ten years later, you will have forgotten your runny nose. Ten minutes later, more likely.

Life and memory work that way. We prioritize certain kinds of events, experiencing them more vividly and remembering them far longer than the trivial and the predictable. The details of a typical Monday morning aren't going to last as long in the memory banks as images of your moment of glory or your darkest hour.

In exactly the same way, not all astrological events have the same impact. What we have considered so far are all first-string milestones in your life. The rest of what we'll be considering is less central -- but that's not to say unimportant. What follows is a set of supplementary transits and progressions, presented chronologically. They're not quite as profound in their implications as what we've seen, but they're not without emotional and existential consequences. If what we have explored in the previous pages can be viewed as an evolutionary invitation, then, to that lofty end, what follows is....

"The Means"

As you'll see, each of these events stands as significant in its own right. But their deepest meanings lie in the way they interact with what we've considered in the pages above, enhancing and sometimes complicating the broader developmental patterns.

Cards on the table: you can skim the next several pages and, I think, learn some things about the coming months that will prove prophetic...and more importantly, helpful. But the real magic lies in putting all the pieces together, synthesizing them in your heart into an emotional whole -- just like you've done with, say, memories of a special summer long ago. No computer can do that for you.

Your own creativity, your own reflections on the material we're covering, your own translations, additions, corrections, amendments, and meditations -- these are what make the difference.

Let's continue.

Tr. Neptune is Trine Mars
In effect: Aug 24, 2000 - continuing
Peak Date(s): sometime after the report period.

Neptune played a part earlier in this report, but it has another trick or two up its sleeve. You may remember that this planet refers to letting down barriers and allowing the creative unconscious to speak. When handled well, it triggers a "seed time" in which new inspirations arise. If handled poorly, one tends to go off half-cocked while enamored of unrealistic ideas. So sit tight, enter trance, pay attention to your dreams and, if you're so inclined, pray or meditate. Neptune currently is trine your natal Mars. The inner opening process peaks sometime after the report period..

Currently Neptune is navigating your Tenth House. That's the traditional "House of Career," as we've already discovered, and it tells us that something of the nature of Neptune is brewing in your profession or vocation, or in your social status. To respond optimally to the potentials and challenges built into this event, you'll need to act according to the spirit of Neptune, as we just described it. Being true to yourself is the challenge, as is generally the case in life. But your public life, with all its superficialities and practical pressures, is perhaps the hardest place in which to live up to that ideal. To succeed here, pay special attention to Mars, which is being invited into development during this time of professional or public reorientation.

Sheer animal vitality -- that's Mars. In your natal chart, it represents your boldness and your pluckiness: what gets your blood flowing. Or boiling. All passions are linked to Mars. Anger and your ability to defend your boundaries are part of the picture. So is your inner fire -- your enthusiasm, your intensity, your sexual desire. When triggered by a passing transit or progression, Mars often signals a "go for it" situation developing in your life, but to make the best of it, you'll need to be brave and assertive. Such transits or progressions can also warn you of upcoming battles, and in general it's wiser to seize the initiative rather than surrender your power to the whimsies of circumstance.

Your Twelfth House demanded our attention above; now we see it playing a part again, once more suggesting that the quality of your inner life is what's really at stake in the situation we're considering. Under such a stimulus, many times the most appropriate step includes a strategic retreat...and a realization that something inside you is wise enough, spiritual enough, transcendent enough to sustain losses with impunity, even with generosity. To move positively in the present environment, renew your sense of the sacred by withdrawing and immersing yourself in the spirit of Mars, a planet which is functioning something like an inner guide for you in this lifetime.

When Mars colludes with Neptune, be wary of chasing mirages. Misguided, ill-conceived, and quixotic enterprises may tempt you; avoid them! What is going on here is that a vision-forming process (Neptune) is occurring in your desire-body (Mars). Translated: a new set of wants, aims, and goals is emerging from your unconscious mind...emerging, but not yet fully crystallized. This is fundamentally an inward process; mistaking it for an outward one leads to half-baked results. So wait a while.

The two factors, as we mentioned, are linked by a trine -- traditionally seen as a "good" aspect, but more accurately seen as simply enhancing or supportive. Generally speaking, with trines there is an opportunity...but to seize it, you must supply the initiative.

Tr. Jupiter is Trine Moon
In effect: Sep 8, 2000 - Oct 20, 2000
Peak Date(s): sometime after the report period.

The planet Jupiter is currently coloring your circumstances. Before we say exactly how, let's attempt to understand the more general significance of any Jupiter event. Essentially, this is a call to recognize an opportunity. Traditional astrologers view it more starkly -- to them, it is simply the planet of luck. And that is often the case: the toast does tend to land butter-side up when Jupiter is crossing sensitive territories. But the real, evolutionary meaning lies deeper. One key is that Jupiter is future-oriented...it is concerned with bright, unexplored possibilities. Stripped to its bones, Jupiter always asks one primary question: how have you been underestimating yourself? Its transits signal a time when new opportunities come into existence, but to seize them you must recognize that you deserve them, that you are capable of rising to them, and that old deals and compromises are finished. Trust yourself, have faith in life, and go for it: that's the spirit of Jupiter. How is it affecting you? Jupiter is trine your natal Moon: sometime after the report period..

Let's first understand that the action is in the First House, for that's where Jupiter is currently located in your chart. And what does that tell you? That the circumstances driving your development, at least in terms of this particular configuration, have to do with the choices you make and how you present yourself. Be assertive; take responsibility. You have considerable power in this situation. To use it well, act in the spirit of Jupiter, as we just described it. But what's the issue? What part of your own life is at stake? To answer that question, we turn our attention to the Moon, which is being invited into development during this new beginning in your life.

The natal Moon -- that, as we have seen, represents your inner life, your emotions, moods, and attitudes.

Your Tenth House came up earlier; now we see it in the spotlight again, once more informing us that the deepest, most essential factors in the situation we're considering all revolve around your role in the world -- your profession or job, your political (or metapolitical!) activities...in general, the image that strangers have of you. And what do right choices look like here? A large part of the answer lies with the Moon, a planet we described above, whose basic nature and values underlie what we might call your "Cosmic Job Description."

When the Moon interacts with Jupiter, the mood of life generally turns jovial and optimistic. There is an attitude of hopefulness and an alertness to possibility. It is a season of enhanced imagination, especially about your own potential future. In general, the best policy is to be bold in your dreaming, but cautious about signing on the dotted line. What you envision creatively now is probably quite sound, but it will want some editing in the cold light of dawn.

The two factors, as we mentioned, are linked by a trine -- traditionally seen as a "good" aspect, but more accurately seen as simply enhancing or supportive. Generally speaking, with trines there is an opportunity...but to seize it, you must supply the initiative.

The Details

In the mood for Mardi Gras? If you live in Chicago, it helps to know that New Orleans lies to the south. Head west or east and you'll never arrive . . .

What we've done in the previous pages is to show you the direction to New Orleans. We've looked at the big astrological themes that are affecting you this year . . .

As a reminder, at the beginning of our analysis of each month's events we'll make reference to any major configurations covered previously which happen to be reaching peaks of intensity then -- and please recall that some of them will have more than a single peak during the report period. There won't be any more analysis; just an allusion to the events so you can go back and review the earlier material, and see the patterns of the month in the light of the year's heavier transits and progressions.

Please remember that the fleeting, often forgettable influences we discuss in the following pages must always draw their real meaning from the far more monumental events we've already described. A "discussion with the boss," for example, is going to take on particular significance during a month when your whole career is up for grabs!

These minor transits unfold quickly. It's a rare week that doesn't contain at least a few. A report that discussed them all in the kind of microscopic detail we've applied to the major events would be several inches thick. In order to cover the daily astrological kaleidoscope within the practical limitations of the space available, we've resorted to producing capsulized one-sentence nuggets that compress a lot of information into a few words. So, slow down, shift gears, and let them wash over you. Think of these images more as daily meditations than as the kind of full-blown explanations to which you've gotten accustomed in the previous sections of SKYLOG.

One brief reminder: remember that many astrological events have not one but several peaks of intensity, so you may find a given "Invitation" or "Means" coming up several times in the pages that follow.

Even minor astrological events commonly have an impact over several days. In the following month-by-month analysis, configurations are listed chronologically according to the days they "peak" -- but don't take that date narrowly. The most colorful events and profoundest realizations might easily occur a day or two later or earlier.

July Invitation Peaks

(None this month.)

July Mean Peaks

(None this month.)

July The Details

(None this month.)

August Invitation Peaks

(None this month.)

August Mean Peaks

Aug 09, 2000 - Tr. Neptune trines Ascendant

August The Details

Aug 02, 2000 - Tr. Mercury squares Neptune
Keywords: clever communication conflicts with your instinctive responsible contemplation.

Aug 02, 2000 - Tr. Mercury squares Saturn
Keywords: clever conversation clashes with your instinctive responsible composure.

Aug 03, 2000 - Tr. Sun opposes Moon
Keywords: cautious identity opposes your inborn on-the-job awareness.

Aug 03, 2000 - Tr. Venus trines Mercury
Keywords: spontaneous affection enhances your usual withdrawn communication.

Aug 04, 2000 - Tr. Mercury opposes Midheaven

The mythological Mercury is the "Messenger of the Gods." The same is true of the transiting Mercury, which speeds around your chart, prompting conversations, dialogs, and sermons, both outgoing and incoming. It triggers the arrival of letters, faxes, and phone calls, and provokes the weaving of new data into your viewpoint. When it arrives at a sensitive point, your task is to listen, to ask questions, and to share intelligence.

Mercury aligns with your Fourth House cusp, the very bottom of your birthchart, Aug 04, 2000. As you might imagine, this point, being buried, represents inward, psychological experience, and often puts emphasis on the home or family. Claim renewal for yourself now, and hold quiet counsel with yourself. Don't let the pressure of events drive you faster than is good for you; you don't need rest so much now as active silence. Vision is rising up in you, if you let it. To attune yourself to this new enlivening, get away from society; be alone, or be with people in your own inner circle -- your real "family" -- and do it in the spirit of Mercury. That will put you in the proper attitude of receptivity.

Aug 05, 2000 - Tr. Mercury squares Mercury
Keywords: cautious conversation conflicts with your instinctive reclusive communication.

Aug 06, 2000 - Tr. Venus squares Jupiter
Keywords: imaginative relating clashes with your instinctive quiet opportunity.

Aug 06, 2000 - Tr. Mars sextiles Mars
Keywords: self-protective swordsmanship stimulates your normal withdrawn courage.

Aug 06, 2000 - Tr. Mercury sextiles Jupiter
Keywords: cautious conversation stimulates your normal withdrawn gambling.

Aug 07, 2000 - Tr. Sun trines Venus
Keywords: sensitive personality supports your typical reclusive affection.

Aug 07, 2000 - Tr. Sun squares Sun
Keywords: emotional nature conflicts with your instinctive reclusive personality.

Aug 09, 2000 - Tr. Mercury sextiles Mars
Keywords: watchful communication excites your native private swordsmanship.

Aug 09, 2000 - Tr. Venus squares Mars
Keywords: playful relating clashes with your instinctive private swordsmanship.

Aug 13, 2000 - Tr. Mercury opposes Moon
Keywords: watchful conversation is in tension with your inherent career sensitivity.

Aug 13, 2000 - Tr. Sun conjuncts Pluto
Keywords: self-expressive personality combines with your characteristic playful honesty.

Aug 14, 2000 - Tr. Sun sextiles Neptune
Keywords: child-like identity excites your native dutiful contemplation.

Aug 14, 2000 - Tr. Sun sextiles Saturn
Keywords: playful nature stimulates your normal supportive integrity.

Aug 15, 2000 - Tr. Mercury trines Venus
Keywords: psychologically sophisticated communication supports your typical spiritually open affection.

Aug 15, 2000 - Tr. Mercury squares Sun
Keywords: watchful communication clashes with your instinctive meditative personality.

Aug 17, 2000 - Tr. Mercury conjuncts Pluto
Keywords: child-like communication combines with your characteristic self-expressive investigation.

Aug 17, 2000 at 11:41 PM - Tr. Moon enters Twelfth House

The Moon in a month passes through all twelve houses of your chart. In so doing, it correlates with the passing whimsies of mood. One afternoon you're bright and cheery, the following morning you're blue...but energetic again after lunch. It doesn't amount to much, and it's not really very important in practical terms -- with one exception: the passage of the Moon through the Twelfth House. During that time you are going through a kind of emotional moulting, ending one cycle and preparing to begin another. Your attentions and energies are turned inward. Accept that, handle it well, and the period -- usually a couple of days -- is quiet and contemplative. It may even be rather pleasant. But if you try to keep up your normal level of activity, you'll find yourself confused, flat, and prone to dumb accidents. So when the Moon enters your Twelfth House, make sure that you have some unstructured time. Minimize distractions. Put off any significant new beginnings for a couple of days. And take a few unhurried breaths. This month, the transiting Moon crosses into your natal Twelfth House Aug 17, 2000 at 11:41 PM, and emerges Aug 23, 2000 at 04:19 AM, when a new emotional cycle begins.

Aug 18, 2000 - Tr. Mercury sextiles Neptune
Keywords: child-like conversation stimulates your normal responsible inspiration.

Aug 18, 2000 - Tr. Mercury sextiles Saturn
Keywords: playful communication stimulates your normal competent composure.

Aug 18, 2000 - Tr. Mars opposes Moon
Keywords: sensitive courage opposes your inborn work-oriented sensitivity.

Aug 19, 2000 - Tr. Sun trines Mercury
Keywords: playful identity supports your typical private dialog.

Aug 19, 2000 - Tr. Venus sextiles Uranus
Keywords: child-like human connection stimulates your normal inventive individuality.

Aug 19, 2000 - Tr. Venus trines Sun
Keywords: playful human connection supports your typical quiet identity.

Aug 20, 2000 - Tr. Mercury trines Mercury
Keywords: playful communication enhances your usual meditative dialog.

Aug 20, 2000 - Pluto goes Direct (at 10°Sg09' in your 07th House)
Aspects: Sextile Moon, Trine Venus, Opposite Mars, Opposite Ascendant.

Aug 22, 2000 - Tr. Sun squares Jupiter
Keywords: playful nature clashes with your instinctive private exuberance.

Aug 22, 2000 - Tr. Mercury squares Jupiter
Keywords: imaginative dialog conflicts with your instinctive quiet exuberance.

Aug 24, 2000 - Tr. Mercury squares Mars
Keywords: spontaneous communication clashes with your instinctive quiet courage.

Aug 24, 2000 - Tr. Mars trines Venus
Keywords: watchful swordsmanship supports your typical quiet relating.

Aug 25, 2000 - Tr. Mars squares Sun
Keywords: watchful swordsmanship clashes with your instinctive withdrawn identity.

Aug 26, 2000 - Tr. Sun squares Mars
Keywords: creative personality clashes with your instinctive meditative assertiveness.

Aug 30, 2000 - Tr. Mercury sextiles Uranus
Keywords: creative conversation excites your native open-minded autonomy.

Aug 30, 2000 - Tr. Mercury trines Sun
Keywords: creative dialog enhances your usual private personality.

Aug 30, 2000 - Tr. Venus trines Jupiter
Keywords: competent human connection supports your typical meditative exuberance.

September Invitation Peaks

Sep 18, 2000 - Tr. Uranus enters Eleventh House

September Mean Peaks

(None this month.)

September The Details

Sep 02, 2000 - Tr. Mars conjuncts Pluto
Keywords: spontaneous courage combines with your characteristic child-like honesty.

Sep 03, 2000 - Tr. Venus trines Mars
Keywords: competent relating enhances your usual quiet courage.

Sep 04, 2000 - Tr. Mars sextiles Neptune
Keywords: self-expressive assertiveness excites your native dutiful contemplation.

Sep 04, 2000 - Tr. Mars sextiles Saturn
Keywords: creative swordsmanship excites your native competent integrity.

Sep 07, 2000 - Tr. Mercury trines Jupiter
Keywords: dutiful dialog enhances your usual meditative opportunity.

Sep 07, 2000 - Tr. Sun sextiles Uranus
Keywords: self-expressive personality excites your native open-minded individuality.

Sep 07, 2000 - Tr. Sun trines Sun
Keywords: playful nature enhances your usual spiritually open personality.

Sep 09, 2000 - Tr. Venus trines Moon
Keywords: helpful human connection supports your typical career sensitivity.

Sep 10, 2000 - Tr. Mercury trines Mars
Keywords: painstaking conversation supports your typical spiritually open swordsmanship.

Sep 11, 2000 - Tr. Mars trines Mercury
Keywords: creative swordsmanship enhances your usual private conversation.

Sep 12, 2000 - Tr. Venus opposes Venus
Keywords: dutiful relating opposes your inborn quiet human connection.

Sep 12, 2000 - Saturn turns Retrograde (at 00°Ge59' in your 12th House)
Aspects: Conjunct Mars, Conjunct Jupiter, Trine Midheaven, Conjunct Ascendant.

Sep 12, 2000 - Tr. Venus squares Uranus
Keywords: responsible relating conflicts with your instinctive open-minded originality.

Sep 14, 2000 at 06:02 AM - Tr. Moon enters Twelfth House

This month, the transiting Moon crosses into your natal Twelfth House again Sep 14, 2000 at 06:02 AM. It emerges and a new emotional cycle begins Sep 19, 2000 at 09:50 AM. As we discussed earlier, this represents a brief period in which you serve your own ultimate interests best by relaxing a bit, taking some extra precautions against physical mishaps, and most importantly, delaying any major new starts, insofar as that's possible.

Sep 15, 2000 - Tr. Mercury trines Moon
Keywords: helpful dialog supports your typical on-the-job awareness.

Sep 15, 2000 - Tr. Mars squares Jupiter
Keywords: creative swordsmanship conflicts with your instinctive reclusive opportunity.

Sep 17, 2000 - Tr. Venus sextiles Pluto
Keywords: painstaking affection stimulates your normal child-like honesty.

Sep 17, 2000 - Tr. Mercury opposes Venus
Keywords: dutiful communication is in tension with your inherent private affection.

Sep 17, 2000 - Tr. Mercury squares Uranus
Keywords: dutiful communication clashes with your instinctive open-minded originality.

Sep 18, 2000 - Tr. Venus conjuncts Neptune
Keywords: dutiful human connection combines with your characteristic supportive inspiration.

Sep 18, 2000 - Tr. Venus conjuncts Saturn
Keywords: painstaking relating fuses with your natural responsible composure.

Sep 21, 2000 - Tr. Mercury sextiles Pluto
Keywords: competent dialog stimulates your normal self-expressive honesty.

Sep 21, 2000 - Tr. Venus opposes Mercury
Keywords: responsible affection is in tension with your inherent reclusive conversation.

Sep 21, 2000 - Tr. Sun trines Jupiter
Keywords: dutiful nature supports your typical spiritually open exuberance.

Sep 22, 2000 - Tr. Mercury conjuncts Neptune
Keywords: dutiful conversation combines with your characteristic supportive inspiration.

Sep 22, 2000 - Tr. Mars squares Mars
Keywords: self-expressive courage clashes with your instinctive meditative assertiveness.

Sep 22, 2000 - Tr. Mercury conjuncts Saturn
Keywords: supportive communication fuses with your natural competent solitude.

Sep 25, 2000 - Tr. Mercury opposes Mercury
Keywords: helpful dialog opposes your inborn quiet conversation.

Sep 26, 2000 - Tr. Sun trines Mars
Keywords: responsible nature enhances your usual spiritually open courage.

Sep 29, 2000 - Jupiter turns Retrograde (at 11°Ge14' in your 01st House)
Aspects: Trine Moon, Sextile Venus, Conjunct Ascendant.