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Horoscopes | Week of January 13-19, 2014

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Your 'victory' will emerge from identifying the unseemly muck you could be lured into by someone else (whether they're actively baiting you or merely creating a circumstance you feel you just can't let slide)… and deciding not to dirty yourself with it, Aries. That's the strategy with which many other types of people wage their battles: not with flagrant displays of firepower which may dazzle or daunt, but such unshakable self-control that their incredulous foes either haphazardly deplete their own arsenal or shoot themselves in the foot. This, of course, is just another twist on the similar advice I dispensed last week. That ill-at-ease Mars in your relationship house (the 7th) continues to try to pull your attention away from whatever you're doing, so you might utterly consume yourself with what someone else is up to. And if it's not an interpersonal 'battle' that's a-brew, then it's some other preoccupation with steering the direction of your dynamics with this certain someone. Whatever the case, you're liable to become too easily riled by any divergence between you… and end up soiling some aspect of the reputation you've worked hard to secure, whether by carelessly misdirecting your irritations, taking antagonistic issue with a co-worker, and/or missing out on a fortunate chance you totally neglected to notice. Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): It would be far better for you to burn off any productive energies on personal tasks (e.g., desk or file organizing, housecleaning or home-repair items) or self-development practices (e.g., extra exercise, nutritional overhaul, mind-body integrative work), Taurus, than to willfully ignore the looming rationale that suggests you shouldn't rush ahead on job-related work before the time is right. Hopefully, by investing your labor into something that will immediately improve a situation in your life, you'll neutralize any frustrating sense that you're somehow 'wasting your time' by not making observable progress on whatever initiative is, truth be told, starting to look increasingly inconsistent with the other still-unfolding developments. The stubborn bull in you might decide to go on with it anyway, though, under the unspoken belief that, if you get far enough along, your efforts will be solid enough to outweigh the cause-for-concern (which, courtesy of Saturn-in-your-7th, is probably being voiced by that certain character you can't seem to get around) and make it all disappear. This would be a bad idea for many reasons, not the least of which is that such an approach is passive-aggressively controlling. Why not use that surge of effort, then, to better 'control' a facet of your life that's inarguably under your sole authority… rather than be shady about a matter you share responsibility for? Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Don't indiscreetly show all your cards, Gemini. What will, in an impassioned moment, serve your pride probably isn't your most prudent move. You likely have some pretty strong personal feelings on this spotlighted matter, but not all of them are legitimately admissible to your case if you're indeed hoping to score your desired outcome with justice on your side. In fact, trying to either inflate your own status (as victim, hero, expert, smarty-pants, and/or arbiter-of-moral-superiority) or assassinate anybody else's character will only muddy these waters with extraneous opinions, grandstands and demands… which won't help you attain the mutual understanding needed for a satisfying resolution. A few shrewdly-phrased questions aimed their way (while protecting your own visage from giving off too-obvious reactions), on the other hand, could help open the conversation further. By the way, these same astro-dynamics apply whether we're talking about a strained interpersonal faceoff or interpersonal friction of a more, er, amorous nature: Play it out at a moderated pace, to build up a provocative dramatic tension, rather than giving it all up too soon. Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

CANCER (June 21-July 22): This week's full moon in Cancer could likely exacerbate an internal friction that's brewing… one which may have you caught between dutifully continuing your longer-term investment in a certain relationship and angrily snapping about and/or at that certain someone for having different needs or wants than you do. What we don't want to happen, Cancer, is for this exacerbated emotional condition to spur you to communicate your frustrated response to these differences between you with a harsh indicting edge, as if the party-in-question is somehow causing you a personal affront by being their own distinct individual. To be honest, it doesn't actually feel like this 'problem' (if, in fact, there is one) is a factor of something this other person is doing wrong. Rather, it's a matter of how you behave in relationships in general… and whether you're angry with yourself for paying too much mind to what they're up to, at the expense of taking care of yourself first. And therefore, your best solution will not likely come from picking a confrontation (though you may yearn for the release of blurting out unkind observations). Instead, you probably need more alone time, so you can focus on yourself more and reexamine the ramifications of your oh-too-familiar relational habits. Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

LEO (July 23-August 22): We often consider it wise to consult others for their outside opinions on how best to proceed with an assignment or activity we have less experience with, so we can benefit from their educated perspectives and save ourselves time from not reinventing the wheel. Sound logic, don't you think? Yet, there does come a point at which too much talk—particularly when the different opinion-offerers each have their own dos and don'ts, all possessing their own merits but not necessarily in agreement with one another—can actually serve to inhibit the action-taking, since no matter how much prior research and reflection you conduct, you'll still have to eventually leap into the water and teach yourself how to swim. It seems to me that you might be at such a point, Leo, where you're likelier to learn more from trial-and-error doing than from seeking out any more feedback (which, by now, could confuse your focus rather than tighten it). Plus, you may be unconsciously relying on these 'informative' conversations as a procrastinatory strategy, so you can legitimately claim to be 'on task' without in fact straining yourself with the actual task-mastering. Push past any fear that you 'don't know what you're doing'; just start doing it, and soon enough you will know how. Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

VIRGO (August 23-September 22): It's perfectly acceptable, by the way, to choose an option that doesn't offer obvious practical advantages, yet, nonetheless, is the one you want. In fact, making such a choice is sometimes the best way to define your preferences: If there's no 'good reason' for you to fancy this over that, Virgo, then it must be a matter of personal inclination. And for the record, that's as good a reason as any to turn left instead of right at the corner ahead—yes, even if the leftward way is a half-mile longer, badly paved, up a steep hill, and/or inefficiently full of twists and turns. While of course it's wise to balance the pure whimsy of preference (not that 'whimsy' is some sin to avoid at all costs) against more pragmatic concerns, I suspect you're temperamentally likelier to deny yourself a 'purposeless' want than to veer too far into hyper-indulgent unrealism. Help tip the balance back toward the center, then. Make at least one decision this week that makes no sense, disrupts a habit, bucks conventional logic, puts you on the road less traveled, encourages you to appreciate the journey/process over the destination/product, and/or is totally inspired by some wild hair up your ass… with absolutely no benefit other than putting a smile on your face (which, of course, is a pretty damn good benefit in itself). Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

LIBRA (September 23-October 22): If you're feeling pleasantly grounded in, and/or optimistic about, your domestic life at the moment, you're far less likely to misdirect your go-getter juices… and end up causing yourself a lot of needless emotional unrest, the natural fallout of pushing the wrong people's buttons and consequently having them push back at you. Just knowing you can count on a peaceful environment at home, Libra, helps relieve some of the pent-up energy which would otherwise spew out of you in scalding bursts: It's just a matter of making it through the externalizing parts of your day without ripping any heads off, before you can land back on your cushiony furniture and privately grumble to your heart's desire until you've thoroughly defused yourself. If you don't have the luxury of a rejuvenating residential climate, alas, let me offer two suggestions: (1) Take active steps right away to remedy your home-life… whether that means creating your own mini-sanctuary within the madhouse, being more direct about your desires and/or frustrations with your housemates, or hunting for a new living situation. (2) Go spend time someplace which gives you that 'at-home' feeling… whether that's a spot in nature, a nearby town, a favorite restaurant or shop or public-space, and allow yourself to enjoy its effects on you. Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): To the best of my ability, Scorpio, I will not endorse any of your wily maneuvers to elude accountability to those who consider you part of their day-to-day social existence... and/or who at least would like to consider you as such, if you'll allow yourself to consciously acknowledge that your presence is both desired and consequential. As captivatingly romantic is the tale that you are a lone wolf wandering the desolate wilderness and nobody notices whether or not you're slinking through their woods, it is an alarming disservice to all those whose lives you touch (with obvious profundity or in a subtle, but no less meaningful, manner). I understand if you don't presently feel like putting yourself out into the exposed social-space all full-throttle… in part because, yes, there's a certain unpredictability to your personality (especially if you start drinkin' or druggin') that's liable to do Who-Knows-What if the wrong character comes at you with a weird enough attitude. So, make a self-supportive compromise: Invite a very close pal over to your place. Spend several hours chit-chatting on the phone or Skype with someone dear who's far away. Write long, intimate and detailed emails or letters (and actually send 'em). Find ways to indulge that desire for retreat, without trying to escape all interpersonal contact. Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21): Interactions which start to feel a little too much like a confrontation ought to be cunningly deescalated, Sagittarius, with a kung-fu-master-style deflection of the straight-on strike into a circular dispersion of energy that never comes to a head. In other words, any concentration of assertiveness mustn't be met with an equal-or-greater response of similarly focused self-assertion… but rather with a diverting tangent, a genuinely innocent side-remark, the inclusion of others' generally neutral feedback, and/or a wisecrack made at your own expense. To be clear, what benefits you is not to be positioned as an outright ally or adversary (i.e., 'you're either with us, or against us'), but as an independent thinker who'd rather not be forced to think too intently about this contentious matter right here, when your attentions are presently elsewhere. It may be possible, of course, your attentions actually are squarely fixed on this picking-of-sides spectacle (whether it's happening for everyone to see or merely in hushed back-corner loyalty dealings); even in that case, though, I recommend not fueling this preoccupation. For the time being, inviting potentially troublesome characters into your immediate sphere by engaging them too directly is likelier to lose you something, rather than gain you anything. Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19): You'll find certain circumstances in which having that continuing-to-retrograde Venus in your sign will actually assist you in getting away with more brazenly leading your initiatives into public being, smoothing away any rough edges to your presentational style and helping recruit new supporters. Yet, Capricorn, there are other circumstances in which Venus will merely blind you to how your leadership push is liable to annoy those who thought they were supposed to be 'leading'… a scenario which is likelier whenever you forget or neglect to ask permission, show due respect, and/or attempt to align your efforts with those of the greater organization-at-large. For the passing moment, you want to ride that fine-line between 'enthusiastic pioneer' and 'brash upstart', keeping yourself on the side that doesn't threaten the interests of anybody who might suddenly start seeing you as 'the competition'. That said, I hardly imagine you're going to respond to this astrology by taking a backseat, pretending not to care about which way things are going, or agreeing with an opinion or approach that you believe is short-sighted, ego-driven, and/or just plain wrong. Find methods for self-assertion that also honor others' experience and expertise—not in submission, but for political poise. Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18): This week, you may well feel as if you've got both (1) a very important angle, outlook, or piece-of-information to share with the wider world and (2) an especially strong urge to outwardly proclaim whatever's on your mind… and I don't necessarily see anything wrong with generally following those feelings, Aquarius, and (re)introducing yourself into the public discourse with a renewed verve. Here's the catch, though: You could suffer from an uncharacteristic tone-deafness, making it strangely hard to gauge whether your 'very important' words are opening minds and generating dialogue (as you likely intended them to), or merely grating on nerves and inflaming ideological opposition. This in itself, though, is not a reason to altogether zip your lips or spend one more day not saying what's on the tip of your tongue. Please, however, pause before you launch into another recap of what you just said, in nervous concern that your audience didn't quite grasp your point and/or disagrees with you based on false presumptions or a glaring blindspot. Reserve the other players their fair space to silently digest what you're telling 'em, to let their thoughts on the matter settle. Faithfully leave your sentiments out in the ethers, aware that you cannot know the ways in which they're invisibly impacting those who've been exposed. Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!

PISCES (February 19-March 20): There's something else going on in your life—after hours? behind closed doors? in disregard of the advice you've received, and/or contrary to what others think is happening?—which flies defiantly in the face of the image you've lately been presenting to your peers. So what gives, Pisces? Are you up to some deliciously dangerous activity that you don't want certain people to know about? Or are you trying to maintain a too well-behaved or squeaky-clean impression that requires a significant amount of omission (which, of course, is an indirect form of deception) of relevant defining details? Whatever the specifics of your case, you cannot deny this lurking tension between (1) your sense-of-belonging within a particular social-group or community and (2) your urge to perhaps transgress the standard line-of-decorum these folks generally hold to… though, I want to be clear, it's up to you which of these must be reined in. If you quietly know you're 'up to no good', I recommend leaning on your pals, instead of running from their (imagined) judgment; pick a couple folks to discuss your situation with. Or maybe it's that you're just tired of adhering to behavioral guidelines others are pressuring you to follow, though they might not serve your desires… and those 'friendships' need to be reevaluated. If you're not clear which way to go with this, don't rush into action—but please reflect on this tension with serious attention. Grab your forecast for the whole year-ahead! My e-book ASTROBARRY'S 2014 is now available for immediate download!