It’s a good idea to apply Murphy’s Law to anything you do while Mercury is retrograde. Mercury will be retrograde from July 14 through August 7. Murphy’s Law is the assumption that if anything can go wrong it will. But this isn’t as self-defeating as it sounds. It actually makes good sense because it gets you to map out your contingency plans ahead of time. Mercury retrograde will feel like a cosmic monkey wrench has been thrown into the running operations of your day-to-day life. It will be the thing that you take for granted that will cause you the most aggravation now. This is why you will want to make sure that your car is in top shape, that meetings will be taking place as planned and that you put the decimal point in the right place when writing out a check to the power company or you could wind up paying more than you owe. You might also consider adding two weeks to any pressing deadline because there’s bound to be a last minute complication or unexpected delay.
ARIES (March 21 – April 19)
Whatever you do don’t sign on the line that is dotted on Tuesday, July 10. This won’t be easy because you will feel like it’s now or never when it comes to sealing the deal, making a big purchase or landing that long sought-after client. You can always expect a spike in urgency when the Moon is in your sign. And the last quarter Moon in Aries (which is what will be happening on Tuesday) is Astrology’s version of last call at the bar. You may think that your time is up and that you need to make a play for the first hook up in sight, but boy oh boy will you regret it the morning after. This message to stand-down is reinforced by Uranus turning retrograde in Aries on Friday followed by Mercury turning retrograde on Saturday. The Stars couldn’t be more explicit if they tried. So, is it all bets off? No. But it is time to go on a furtive fact-finding mission because developments on July 17, 18 and 20 will show that the other party wasn’t being straightforward about certain details. Searching out their weak spots puts you in an advantageous position to negotiate a reduction in price or to lock in more favorable terms by August 6. The end result will be a much better dotted line to sign on August 8.
TAURUS (April 20 – May 20)
Uranus turning retrograde on Friday, July 13 will come as a relief. Uranus is the planet of revolution and change in Astrology and it’s been screaming in your ear to make big life changes for weeks now. But if there’s anything a Taurus can’t stand it’s being told what to do – even if it is a planet that’s giving the barking orders. When push comes to shove you will do what any self-respecting Bull would do and that’s to sit down in the middle of the road and refuse to budge until you’re good and ready to. This buys you time, which is good as long as you know what you’re buying that time for. You have until Uranus comes out of retrograde on December 13, 2012 to work out plans for where you want to go from here. One chapter of your life is coming to an end. Not only is it inevitable, it’s a done deal. This could be the end of a relationship, a change of residence or the conclusion of a job. However, the current Mercury trine to Uranus (which repeats on December 14) shows that you have a wealth of information and resources at your fingertips. You can use these to negotiate a fair division of spoils, a profitable sale or a substantial severance package. But you have to use them and not just sit there watching the grass grow.
GEMINI (May 21 – June 21)
Did I bite off more than I can chew? That’s the question you’ll be asking this week. One is always super-psyched and possessed by the swelling spirit of adventure when Jupiter enters your sign. Jupiter entered Gemini on June 11, 2012. And it’s during this time that you would have signed on for anything that promised an escape from that rut you felt stuck in. It could have been a new job, a new relationship or a new cause – like digging irrigation trenches for the Peace Corps half way around the world. Jupiter is the planet of “anywhere but here” in Astrology so you were pumped for something new. Mercury turns retrograde on Saturday, July 14. Mercury retrograde has a dodgy reputation in Astrology, but its reverse direction is actually a good time for taking stock of your situation. As a Gemini, you always pencil in, you never ink. This allows you to back out if you need to or to cancel plans all together. For you, knowing that the exits are clearly marked is the only way to get comfortable with any decision you make. So go ahead and give recent choices the once over. It’s why God created Mercury retrogrades. There’s a good chance you’ll discover that you were a lot savvier than you gave yourself credit for when Mercury comes out of retrograde on August 7.
CANCER (June 22 – July 22)
You were born under the zodiac sign of hearth and home so your family means the world to you. Friends may come and go, your contacts list will wax and wane and even lovers can rent space in your heart for a while, but blood ties will always last forever. Cancer is often portrayed as the Norman Rockwell sign (worshiping the holy trinity of Mom, baseball and apple pie), but the truth is that your psyche is actually more akin to Tony Soprano. Nobody messes with your family. Nobody. Unfortunately, that instinct of yours to preserve and to protect is working against the cosmic current that is running through your horoscope. There’s a point when your protectiveness becomes enabling and when love creates a blind spot where a ray of truth needs to shine. This will become undeniably obvious on Wednesday when you will be forced to change tactics. You will have to accept that a loved one needs more help than you can give. You’re not a failure. Nor are you a bad parent or a thankless child. What you are is human and humans hit walls. What’s needed now is for somebody else to lend a hand or maybe even take over for a while. You need a break and to treat yourself to a change of scene so that you can recharge and recoup. Your outlook — as well as your spirits — will be a lot brighter and fresher when you return.
LEO (July 23 – August 22)
Saturn is the planet of tests in Astrology. Saturn’s mission is to show you where the problem area is in your life and then frustrate your best efforts to solve it. Sounds fun! Actually Saturn doesn’t do this to torture you. Saturn does this to empower you because it’s only by wrestling with situations that bedevil you that you learn to draw on strengths you never thought you had. Now this sounds great in theory, but the experience can be dispiriting – especially when you feel like you’ve been struggling with the same problem for over two years. So what’s the problem? You know that you’re great and special – one in a million and God’s gift to mankind — but other people don’t seem to be picking up on that. In fact, you are having a hell of a time selling yourself to your public these days. Now, that could be a literal audience (Leo is the zodiac sign of performers after all), but chances are it’s going to be clients, buyers, customers and maybe even Twitter followers. So do you reinvent? Pour on more razzle-dazzle? Actually, this might be a good time to stop, look and listen to what people have to say about you. But don’t limit this to your inner circle of friends who will say that nothing’s wrong. Make a point of talking to people you know aren’t squarely in your corner. They may not tell you what you want to hear, but they’ll tell you what you need to hear.
VIRGO (August 23 – September 22)
You’re eager to start the new phase of your life and, after six-and-a-half months of fighting for every inch of progress, who could blame you? But if Astrology is about anything, it’s about timing and Mercury turning retrograde on Saturday, July 14 shows that this is not the right time to launch, begin or to initiate anything. In fact, you would be well advised to reschedule important meetings and get-togethers for after August 8. This would be very proactive of you and given all the craziness that lies in store over the next two weeks people may even come to think of you as psychic. Meanwhile, you’ve got some head examining to do on Thursday. It looks like now that you’re within reach of something you want that you may not want it anymore. It could be argued that getting up-close and personal with your heart’s desire reveals flaws and blemishes that weren’t as apparent when you were kept at arm’s length. However, it’s more likely that having subsisted on a steady of diet of doing without that you may not have the stomach for getting what you want. Here’s some simple astrological advice: Don’t be a fool. Go ahead and seal the deal and then give yourself a few months to get used to the idea of true satisfaction. You might grow to like it.
LIBRA (September 23 – October 22)
Saturn has been in your sign for two years and it has been testing you in every part of your life since July 2010. Saturn will always point out the weak spot in a horoscope and for you that means your romantic relationship or a business partnership. Now, this shouldn’t come as any great surprise. In fact, you have been struggling with what to do about this for a long time. People often break up or divorce when Saturn passes through their sign and if you were going to do that then you would have done it by now. But if you haven’t, then you may want to give some serious consideration to rebuilding bridges. It’s human nature to blame a partner for our own dissatisfaction. We say that it’s the partner who’s too controlling, withholding or indifferent while we turn a blind eye to our own patterns of procrastination, inability to finish what we start or frustration with a lack of direction in life. On Saturday, July 14, the Sun will form its last square to Saturn in Libra. This is when you will come face to face with a sobering truth. It may prove to be ego bruising and that’s because the truth hurts. But if you think long and hard on what’s being said then you will also discover that the truth will set you free.
SCORPIO (October 23 – November 21)
You will receive an amazing proposition on Tuesday. This could come in the form of an invitation to travel, an exchange program where you live abroad for a while or relocating for work. In any case, this will be something that you would very much like to pursue. Unfortunately, life is never simple where Scorpios are concerned and you won’t like being stopped short in your tracks by contractual obligations or the reminder of debts that need to be repaid on Wednesday. This could foster resentment and lead you to withdraw into a dark corner of your psyche to sulk. One of the hardest things for a Scorpio to do is negotiate. That’s because everything is so now or never with you and you feel that if you don’t snatch your opportunity right away, then it will be lost forever. Newsflash: what you’re looking at this week isn’t going to go away so easily. What you’re dealing with here is bad timing, courtesy of Uranus and Mercury turning retrograde on Friday and Saturday respectively. Yes, you may not be in a position to purse what you want right now, but there’s nothing saying that you can’t revisit this offer at a later date – like in December. Sit down with those who are making this offer and you will find a way to make it work for both sides.
SAGITTARIUS (November 22 – December 21)
You need to stop making excuses for why things didn’t turn out as planned and start making better plans. Sagittarians put a lot of value in faith and there’s something to be said for placing your trust in a “higher power.” But a higher power isn’t going to help you with things like targeting your objectives, mapping out strategies and following through on what you’ve started. It hasn’t been easy living with Saturn in your solar house of hopes and wishes. Saturn makes everything you do feel like an exercise in futility. It doesn’t matter how many times you push that rock up the hill, it always seems to come careening back down again. But there are certain times when it pays to revisit and to rethink and this is one of them. Many people will experience the upcoming Mercury retrograde (July 14 to August 7) as a vexing period of delays and postponements – but not you. Maybe you discover that it was a faulty premise that sent you down the wrong path or that your decision to pull the plug on something before it had a chance to get up and going wasn’t the best idea. In any case, you will happen upon the missing key to your success on July 30 or August 2 and it will wind up making all the difference on August 8.
CAPRICORN (December 22 – January 19)
You’ve gone about as far as you can go on your own and you will need to partner up if you want to move on to the next stage of your life. This could be a romantic partner or a business partner. You were born under Saturn, the planet of trials and tribulations. You’re used to tough times, hard climbs and going it alone. However, Saturn, the planet of tests, is also the planet of lessons and the lesson that Saturn in Libra has been trying to teach you is to open up and show your more human side. It may sound too touchy-feely for words, but it’s what people need if they’re going to stick around. Nobody sticks around if they don’t feel needed. You, more than anyone, should know that. Meanwhile, Uranus, the planet of revolution and change, will be turning retrograde in that part of your solar horoscope that pertains to hearth and home on Friday, July 13. This will bring you face to face with a loved one who has been going through a difficult time. This person doesn’t need advice. This person needs the companionship and support that only you can give. Speak from your heart and from your soul. You will remind this person of treasured qualities that have been forgotten and in the process you will remind yourself of your own precious qualities as well.
AQUARIUS (January 20 – February 18)
It may feel like life is moving at a glacial pace this week. And you would be right – it is. The best advice is to switch gears and take it all in stride. Aquarius is an air sign (not a water sign like most people believe), which means that you tend to live in your head. Cerebral and analytical, you often run on nervous energy which is why you don’t dial down well. This is great for those times when you have to pull an all-nighter at work or at school, but it can be hell on the body if you keep at it 24/7 because you will burn yourself out. This week the planets will be imposing a “time out.” Ruling planet Uranus turning retrograde on Friday, July 13, followed by Mercury turning retrograde on Saturday, July 14 means that just about everything will grind to halt. Think of it as Europe in August. If there was ever a time to hit the beach or to lounge poolside with a favorite book, then it would be now because you won’t be getting anything done until after August 8. Retrogrades are also good for cooling the engines. You’ve pitched a lot of brilliant ideas lately – one after the other – and people need time to process what you’ve said so that they’re not looking at you with glazed expressions.
PISCES (February 19 – March 20)
You were born under the zodiac sign of the fish. You’re accustomed to drifting along the current of events and swimming around (or under) anything that gets in your way. Drawing a line in the sand and erecting boundaries is a strictly land mass thing! Nevertheless, protecting your interests will be the order of the day this week as the Moon nears its occultation to Jupiter on Saturday, July 14. An occultation works like a cosmic blind spot in Astrology. You can never be too sure of what’s going on just outside your peripheral vision, which is why you should check the dates of April 12, 2012 and June 25, 2012 on your calendar to see what transpired. Whatever you’re dealing with now stems from events that transpired then. Perhaps you were too lax with your terms vis-à-vis a lease or rental? Or maybe you inadvertently left the door open to a rival who is now poaching on your emotional property? A third possibility is discovering that a fixer-upper may require a lot more work and money than you originally thought. Thankfully, none of these are huge fiascos. Indeed, they can be resolved quickly as long as you make a point of addressing them sooner rather than later. Let them languish, however, and they will become problems. Then you would have only yourself to blame.
