Author: Joan Porte

Mars Heading Into Scorpio

On July 26, Mars moves into Scorpio. Before Pluto made herself known to us, Mars was the ruler of the sign of Scorpio so Mars is very comfortable hanging out with Scorpio, although their plans of action are vastly different. Scorpio gets things done but in a subtle, some would sometimes say, sneaky way. Scorpio is a water sign, it grinds slowly and keeps pushing matters into the shape it desires, much like the ocean does to the shore. Mars, however, is all direct fire energy. He just burns his way through any obstacles until he reaches his goal. They are both creatures of action.
Mars is now hovering very close to Vesta, the asteroid that astrologically tells us where we have such a desire that we would climb over rocks to achieve. Vesta often throws those rocks in our place so that we can overcome them to ultimate success. Therefore, when the yearning of Vesta meets the drive of Mars in Scorpio there is no better time to defeat some roadblock that is preventing you from accomplishing some goal that has been on the back burner.

No excuses now – go for it!

Jupiter on the MOVE

On July 16, that enormous planet Jupiter that is astrologically the sign of expansion and growth is moving out of Cancer, the uber Mommy constellation, into the fire sign of Leo, the sign of creativity and self-expression. What a great time! Think of it – we are combining the sign of seemingly never ending growth and discovery with the fiery Leo energy. We should all be running around working on making our most creative impact!
A wee bit of caveat here folks. When I began my study of Astrology, many people thought that Jupiter was the most beneficent sign in the Zodiac – it could bring no shadow. However, all of that expansion – all of the bigness – does have a downside. When Jupiter was transiting my sixth house, the house of health, I was as sick as a dog. I even have a good friend who was born with Jupiter in the sixth and she gets every weird illness going and gets it longer and worse than anyone else. It is a classic case of too much of a good thing.
Jupiter rules Sagittarius, a fire sign, and it is now transiting a fire sign constellation – so there is a danger of too much, “me first, you later energy,” where every way is emoting and no one is listening.  Leo starts her journey in the ninth house – the house she naturally vibrates too – and in conjunction with the Sun (ruled by Leo.) The ninth is the house of foreign affairs – so hold onto your hats – that arena will get even goofier in the weeks to come.
As always, please remember we can use this energy for benefit too. Be creative, make those contacts, work on that book, paint that scenery, – go the extra mile to make the world a prettier, more creative place!

A Full Moon Rising – Tomorrow!

A full Moon brings what has been in the dark – your subconscious – into the light. With the Sun now in Cancer, the opposite sign, the sign of the opposing Moon is Capricorn. (For the Moon to be “full,” it must be as far away as it can be from the Sun.) Cancer and Capricorn are the “mommy” and “daddy” signs. Cancer is the epitome of traditional motherly, nurturing energy and Capricorn is more the authoritarian father energy.
This full Moon is a good time to balance that yin and yang energies – the male and female polarity that exists in everyone. This might be a good time to analyze where you are giving up to much of your power and energy taking care of others as opposed to nurturing yourself (having authority over yourself.)
Masculine and feminine is not really about sex – it is about balancing those two halves that need to be healthy in all of us. Are we compassionate and nurturing enough without harming ourselves? Are we self-assertive enough, can we express our anger properly? These are all questions we need to ask during this wonderful full Moon.

The Moon will be “full” at 7:24 AM EDT so you have the whole day on Saturday to balance that Moon energy! Enjoy

The Battle of Pluto and Uranus

Recently, I have written a lot about the Grand Cross, and the Pluto- Uranus square and the implications they are having on American society. Pluto, the symbol of slow change, is in the staid and authoritarian sign of Capricorn. This placement demands change to what we called in the 60’s “The Establishment.”  Remember wherever Pluto ventures she brings change – she absolutely insists upon it. Now she is bringing her change to authority structures.
Uranus, the rebel, the element of electrically charged quick change, has recently journeyed into the cardinal sign of the warrior, Aries. Where Pluto takes her time and grinds out her demands of change. Uranus is like hello I am here and this is what is going to change right now. Therefore, you can see how these two in disharmony can make us humans a little batty!
With these two squared or in disharmony to one another for a very long time (2007 -2020), we have seen unrest, uprisings, and some major hits to once formidable institutions. The banking system collapse, the abuse scandals in the Catholic Church, the election of an African American president and the subsequent rise of the Tea Party are just some examples of this.
This movement into Aries is most interesting to me right now. Uranus in Aries is like a teenager in a sports car. At any moment, they can put their foot down and take off at 150 miles an hour refusing to see any danger. Remember the song, that anthem of the 60’s, “The Dawning of the Age of Aquarius”? Well, Aquarius is ruled by Uranus.
Uranus is saying, hey Pluto I do not like how slowly you are changing. I am not thrilled with the “one percent” getting richer; I am not thrilled that the middle class is stagnating.  You toppled the banking system but no one went to jail. Now let’s move along…faster!

The beginning of the populism movement that is making Senator Elizabeth Warren (D.-MA) a very appealing Presidential candidate in 2016 is just starting to take hold in America. I expect that to grow. The energy is there – how we use it is another story of course! Remember, the Tea Party and the whacks running around with the guns are a part of this Uranus energy – they do not like any authority. They want to bring “change” that will bring us back a few centuries. It is up to those of who want to precipitate positive change that includes women’s rights and gun safety to name a few, to harness Uranus to forge a future of truly positive change.

OK IT IS ALMOST OVER –

I know – I heard it all and it has happened to me. My computer was so bad last Friday that I had to reboot ten times to get it to do anything and to do it all at once. This Mercury retrograde was long and ugly but today – YES TODAY- Mercury stations direct which means she stops her seemingly backward movement. Tomorrow, July 2 she starts heading in the right direction again. Send off the fire works. 

This year has been fraught with distant planet “battles” and we will have another skirmish in July. On July 4, the Sun opposes Pluto and then makes a square to Uranus on the 8th.  This is the tail end of the Grand Cross of April that brought us the Malaysian plane and the Ukraine. June’s squares brought up Iraq again. What will July bring? I don’t know. However, I do not like crosses and squares to all of those change planets around a national holiday. Then again, maybe the disaster was the Hobby Lobby decision. It will only remain a disaster if we don’t remember it on election day, however…the best way to change things is by getting thee to the polls, no?

🙂



Remember Pluto is Still in Capricorn

I was having breakfast with friends a few months ago when I said, “I don’t think the 2014 senatorial elections will be as dreadful to the Democrats as they are all predicting.” The collective response was one of “your lips to God’s ears.”  I do not pretend to be a psychic nor do I believe it is going to be a necessarily pretty election cycle for liberals. However, with Pluto in Capricorn – you just never know and I believe 2014 will bring changes no one expected.

Pluto is the (dwarf) planet of change and transformation. Pluto makes us the “offer we can’t refuse.” She says, “Change or I will bring change about for you.” That little icy comet/planet packs the proverbial astrological punch.
Capricorn is the sign of government, authority figures – those structures that keep the glue of society together. When you put the two together, we get big time changes in that arena.

Of course, when the planet hit Capricorn in 2008, it did what we expected – it caused big change in the structure of society like the banking system, which almost came apart. In addition, secrets of the rich and powerful were uncovered (i.e. Penn State, Catholic Church, and WikiLeaks.) It also caused some other troubling changes such as the corporate personhood.  

Pluto Capricorn also introduced his to the first African American President of the United States.  In fact, on election night 2008 also saw Saturn standing directly opposite Uranus. Uranus is new change, Saturn is tradition all the way… we had the battle of the older white male and younger black male and, thankfully, Uranus won. Unfortunately, this ushered in the wave of the 2010 election: the revenge of the old white voter.

Planets sort of kick up their heels and make an impact three times during their transits, first, when they enter a sign, the second time half way through the sign and then just as they are leaving. Pluto entered in 2008 and will leave in 2023 so we are entering the midway point of this transition through Capricorn. So when Eric Cantor was defeated in a primary I said there we go – Pluto is acting up. Therefore, while I won’t pretend to know what will happen exactly, I know the 2014 – 2016 election cycle will not be what the “talking heads” foresee.
P.S. Oh and did I say Elizabeth Warren was born with Pluto in the 10th house, the house that vibrates to the energy of Capricorn?

Everyone Breath!–

As my dear friend, artist extraordinaire, Arlene Weinstock, would say – breathe!  The Moon is in quixotic Aquarius right now. Aquarius is full of highly charged, changeable energy.  Right now, the Moon is conjuncting Neptune. Moon in Neptune regardless of the sign placement always gives me a little bit of start because high level of unreality that surrounds Neptune.
I always describe the effects of Neptune by asking people to think of a great whale in the ocean. In the water – the whale glides with grace and beauty through the water. Take it out and it clomps around – flaps and dies on land. Neptune wants to be in the ocean of the spirit. On Earth, it devolves into a web of illusion and escapism – it wants to go back to spirit.  

So when the Moon, our emotional barometer, is in hinky Aquarius and is next to confusing Neptune – well, you can see it is a pattern for blow ups, upsets, emotions being brought up that are deep in subconscious. So, therefore, everyone – breath!

Mars and Pluto – Starting in.

I wrote this back on May 28th. Iraq sadly is the point for this action now – and I am afraid more is to come.

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On June 14, Mars will make a square, a disharmonious contact, with Pluto. If one of these planets are in either retrograde or badly aspected in your chart – expect to be out of sorts for a few days. You might even be itching for a fight. Watch out for road rage and people acting out.
June 19 sees Uranus coming into the act. This Mars, Uranus Pluto T-Square – or three planet square – represent the tail end of the much spoken of Grand Cross that has been in play since April. If anyone has been planning some big disaster since the Cross started I fear they will make it happen now. (Not that missing plane and 300 missing little girls are not horror enough.) I hope all security systems are on guard during this time.

Full Moon Time!

The full Moon this month will be on June 13 at will take place at 22 degrees Sagittarius.   I love Sagittarius full Moons perhaps because my North Node is in Sagittarius. However, it is more than that. It is June, everything is in bloom, and everything is growing and expanding. Isn’t that the essence of Sag: growth, breaking our borders, reaching beyond our roots?  I always think about Sagittarius as a shooting arrow into the world – just like the flower and vegetable seeds are sprouting outward and upward.
If you have Sagittarius prominently placed in your chart – either North Node, rising sign, sun sign, use this time to feel that energy. Where do you have to get out of your safe zone? Where do you need to grow? Where are you stagnating?
The positive aspects of Sagittarius are optimism, adventurousness, generosity, and intellectualism. Use them!
It’s June, it is a Sagittarius full Moon – go for it! Grow.

Contact me for a review if you want to explore the Sagittarius aspects of your chart.

D Day

Seventy years ago this month Allied troops invaded occupied Europe in one of the greatest acts of bravery ever known. The leader of the Allied troops was Dwight D. Eisenhower. After he was President of the United States, he “rejoined” the Army because he said that in 500 years, no one would remember him as President but no one would ever forget D Day.
Where were the planets over Normandy on the amazing day? 
There are so many interesting things about this chart. Look at all of those planets in Gemini, the sign of communications and the flow of information, tucked away in the ultra-secretive 12th house.  The false news reports fed to the Germans, the months of secret planning, the thousands of hours spent on reconnaissance all came to fruition on the day.
What really sends shivers up my spine was that tight conjunction of Mars and Pluto in the fire sign of Leo in the third house.  The third house is my community, my brothers and sisters, my close friends (yes, “Band of Brothers”.) Mars is the god of war and Pluto is the planet of change. This was a grueling, bitter, tragic Mars battle to rescue Europe – our brothers and sisters – from the horrors of Nazi Germany.
Anytime Mars and Pluto are together, there are fireworks. Mars with any of the external planets is a cause for worry but Mars and Pluto sadly foretold the horrors seen on the beaches that morning.
This biwheel with D Day in the center and the birth chart of the United States also tells a stunning story.  Look at our Pluto – yes Pluto again – in the eighth house right on the South Node! Pluto vibrates to the eighth house – it is the house of power and change. We were using our power to shift the balance of power and break the existing order in Europe. Not ironically, the South Node that day was in Capricorn, the stern taskmaster.
This is another one of those spine shiver-makers for me! Our Jupiter, Venus, and Sun were all in a tight conjunction in the sign of Cancer, the sign of motherly caring.  Jupiter is the sign of expansion and growth and international service with our life force, the Sun, and Venus, the goddess of beauty and love. COME ON.
We can thank our lucky stars for that day but we really should thank these men, thousands of whom gave their lives in this amazing fight for freedom. Soon that generation will be gone but their deeds should live on in history and it us to us to be sure that they do.