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Horoscopes | Weeks of January 12-18, 2015

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Who are you, Aries, when you're shrouded from others' view and not engaged in any next-moves, logical-responses, or other acts-of-bravery, but merely hovering about, uncohered, bloblike, in conscious monastic standstill, receptive to inspiration? For an innate action-lover like you, purposeful inactivity could sound like some combination of prison-sentence and utter-waste-of-time, though it'll only feel confining if you try to escape this astrologically-due down-moment and force yourself forward in reckless resistance. Too much self-started go-getting, without properly utilizing the requisite 'in-between' periods to release and regather, robs you of the quiet reflection necessary for understanding why you do what you do. If you just keep on keeping on at this time, you're apt to proceed full-steam-ahead like a robot-lemming toward an unclear or outdated goal—whether or not that ceaseless advance actually points you anywhere useful, interesting, or safe. Rather than worry about what to do, concentrate on feeling into the ins and outs of who you are… and be sure to notice its qualitative differences from who you once were, who you want to be, and who you've never actually been. Should such quiet reflection make you nervous, let your closest friends reflect back to you who they see you to be, whether by asking for their impressions and/or noticing the identity you create for yourself via the company you keep. You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): A possible fight (or at least some notable bump-in-the-road) is a-brew amongst your friend-group, community, or an organization you're affiliated with, Taurus… and you seem to have a key role to play, which could triumphantly tip the friction to the side of whatever larger cause or principle you've so devotedly dedicated yourself to promoting. But in order to feed the likelihood of that preferred scenario, you simply must do your absolute best at keeping the proceedings from devolving into vengeful attacks, personal low-blows, or egoic grandstanding. Even if you go into it with a clear head and a clean conscience, there's no guarantee another contentious character won't attempt to hit you where it hurts, not only out of their own desperation to lob a winning shot but in an effort to get you to lose your cool. Don't take the bait. You don't actually need to go to that ugly place to neutralize their threat. In fact, doing so will actually soil your point, as well as provide them legitimate grounds for criticizing your manner of debate. You've still got Venus and Mercury in an elevated spot in your 10th, which means you're likelier to emerge from this whole thing smelling like a rose, as far as the public discourse is concerned—only, however, if you resist succumbing to the amplified emotionality others might try to trigger in you, to their spiteful delight. You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): As of this week (as I mentioned in your last edition), Gemini, you're now entering a major career-related (or other outside-world-involved) power period which stretches into the second half of February. This phase is being kicked off by Mars's arrival to your 10th, an official indicator that it's time to assert willful initiative, effort, and good ol' physical labor, in a pronounced manner, toward your primary professional goals. You must make your ambitions known and your presence unmistakable, rather than gliding by on past impressions or blending into the background. Hopefully, though, you won't be doing so blindly, without properly assessing who's the rightful audience for which assertive moves and/or what sort of public attention is constructively favorable. Mars's square to Saturn-in-your-7th suggests that a good first step might involve serious heart-to-hearts with any relevant character who you need to clear the air with (even if it's been a while since the glitch-in-question), whose guiding advice would be helpful (even if it's a hard-to-hear reality-check), and/or who's presently vying for the very attention you ought to invest in these career matters (even if it's just as much a case of you preferring to focus on relationships over work). Your interpersonal involvements should support your capacity to carry out these essential efforts over the weeks to come, not compete with it. (And there's no getting away from this balancing act; it continues to be relevant for many months ahead.) You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

CANCER (June 21-July 22): But why would you be moved to toil so diligently in support of this certain task or goal, Cancer? Have you asked yourself that question lately? I suspect, now that Mars is in your 9th for the next several weeks, you'll be antsy about whether your present-moment answer provides you enough purpose-driven incentive to continue with this hard work… even as, all the while, you don't have the luxury to stop the work until you've resolved any open-ended dilemmas regarding what's driving you. Especially this week, you're operating under an exacerbated romanticism about guiding principles—enough so that you might actually believe the 'Right Thing to Do' involves leaving behind all these regularly-scheduled-duties and projects-in-progress, to wholly dedicate yourself to the cause or crusade, because you feel you simply must. If you're immediately responsible enough to guarantee all your critical obligations and responsibilities are indeed covered, then, by all means, zoom away on your quest to make the world a better place. But for most of you, who cannot just step back from life's ongoing demands, I suggest channeling whatever discontentment arises (insofar as the gap between how you're now filling your days now and what might constitute a more ethically rewarding investment is concerned) into a more moderate transition plan. Though you might not be able to leap to defend what's 'Right' at all costs (because, of course, of the costs), you can begin to make room in your daily schedule for a regular commitment to such rightfulness. If you don't, in fact, this discontentment will continue to weave itself in and out of your awareness indefinitely. You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

LEO (July 23-August 22): You're now moving into more sensitive territory, Leo… whether that draws you even closer in intimacy to a companion, lover, or professional partner, and/or brings you into just-as-close a confrontation with the parts of their psyche which might qualify as 'quite a handful'. This is the natural progression of getting to know one another better. But that, of course, rests upon the fact that you don't know each other as well as you soon might—and that the getting-deeper process is liable to yield a surprising insight or two about 'em. You, however, could mistakenly overlook this fact, instead presuming a greater commonality on deeper issues of background (familial, financial, sexual, etc.) just because you've got good chemistry or an easy rapport. And making such presumptions is exactly how you're likeliest to get yourself into trouble… by inadvertently asserting an opinion or attitude that hits 'em in a delicate place, transgressing a boundary of theirs you didn't know existed, and/or overriding their distinguishing traits with your bigger-than-life personality. (After all, Jupiter remains in your sign, enlarging the impact your personal self-expressions have on those around you.) To avoid such pitfalls and make the most of this astrology, then, I recommend a two-fold strategy: (1) When you share something sensitive, be sure to speak in the singular (rather than plural) first-person, without assuming they'll automatically understand or agree. If they inquire further, don't be defensive, just honestly confessional. (2) Ask them questions about themselves, and allow their answers to unfold freely, at length, rather than prematurely interjecting about how much you totally understand or agree. Hasty replies may only prove the opposite is true. You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

VIRGO (August 23-September 22): What do you do, Virgo, when your desire to take care of, please, and/or pander to an important person in your life comes into direct conflict with that feeling in your gut which tells you this is not what's emotionally right for you? With Saturn now in your 4th for much of these next three years, the more critical consideration to protect is your own inner well-being—even if it causes you to alter a long-standing interpersonal dynamic, with the potential to upset the other person. While serving their needs or accommodating their interests may, on some level, provide you a sense of 'doing good in the world', it could simultaneously work against the Saturn-assigned task of giving more and more credence to your own subtler emotional need for better boundaries. In other words, what's good for them may not be as neatly congruent with what's good for you as you've previously been telling yourself. And with conflict-stirring Mars entering your relationship house (the 7th) for the next several weeks, your impulse to shift the balance between you so you get more of what you want is liable to expose any underlying incongruences. But before you lash out at anyone for expecting too much of you, please be fair about it: Did you set them up to expect all that, because you like doing and providing and being needed? because you never paused to check in with yourself about whether such 'acts of kindness' actually support your emotional contentment? You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

LIBRA (September 23-October 22): While you continue to be in a great spot in terms of the dynamic personal appeal you're now emanating, Libra, this is a week in which your energies are being redirected toward the concrete tasks-at-hand. Though your off-hours should probably remain extra-jam-packed with entertaining activities and adventures (and the corresponding interpersonal dalliances which will make 'em so very entertaining), your workday time will demand increasing amounts of intent effort. Don't assume, however, you ought to hole yourself up in an isolated cubicle and solitarily slave away, to the point of befuddling burnout. For this week at least, you're at risk for working too indiscriminately… for pouring way more sweat-equity into inefficient processes or tangential steps than is ultimately needed to attain the end-goal, at the expense of your capacity to persist at a decent rate for the next several weeks. To guard against unwise toil, you'll probably need to have a few clarifying conversations with other relevant stakeholders. Their feedback can help ensure you're on track with your priorities, methods, and/or timelines. But you'll have to resist the urge to silently withhold your questions or doubts, and/or to provide pollyanna-ish progress-reports which skirt the fuller snapshot, as if you're sparing the other players the headache of needless interactions by heroically taking on the whole burden yourself. Though you may have a lot of independent work to do yourself, participating in interpersonal communications about the specific details of the job are just as critical a step. You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): Time to get up, go out, and make the beauty you wish to see in the world, Scorpio. The current astrology is granting you permission to indulge your romantic side, provided its expression brings you some blend of pleasure, pride, and potential to produce even more pleasure and pride. This is not a radical switch-flipping, mind you, where all of a sudden you don't still crave plenty of quiet at-home alone time, too. For now, it's more about attaining a more even balance between your introvert and extrovert sides, rightly understanding that you'll have a purer signal to outwardly transmit if you're not feeling emotionally malnourished. Me being me, I of course have a warning to deliver along with this otherwise pretty-damn-good news: You mustn't let your romanticism go so far as to create financial problems for yourself, as if the most delightful gesture you could come up with is to sign away your assets on behalf of love, artistry, or some other platonic ideal. Likewise, putting forth a self-presentation that is excessively deprecating, undermining, unflattering, or cruel—without at least also including a significant aspect that's compassionate, supportive, confidence-building, and kind—is not the sort of prideful pleasure that actually increases the world's beauty. You can reveal your tender, vulnerable, and self-critical sides, sure… but only with an ultimately uplifting intention. For the next several weeks, in fact, consider yourself a warrior for beauty and love. The passion you bring to this 'battle' just might attract an admiring recruit or two. You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21): While much conversation and social activity continue to fill much of your time, mobilizing you toward your necessary next-steps, this is not where your actual effort is currently needed, Sagittarius. This week, in fact, will likely bring you face-to-face with whatever internal, private and/or home-based tensions must be addressed, in order for you to effectively persist with all the outside-world developments you've got on slate for '15. With Mars entering your 4th, to both square Saturn and conjoin Neptune, you could confront an irrational inner demon or foe—or, for that matter, a real live family-member or housemate—who'd seek to undermine your confidence by discounting or devaluing an emotional need that your heart yearns to satisfy. Beware, then, of any pressures (from yourself and/or someone in your up-close-and-personal space) to suck it up, stop being so 'needy', pull it together, and get going already… when, in truth, your 'getting-going' demands that you presently pay attention to your subtler emotional to-dos as much as the list of worldly feats and exercises that more conspicuously symbolize success and happiness. Don't get too down on yourself for needing to put in this extra 'personal' effort. Rather than slowing you down, its purpose is ultimately to afford you greater personal gratification from all the outside work you'll be putting in. You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19): Though you may find yourself in an increasing number of social situations where continual chatter and gab are demanded, Capricorn, you mustn't allow others' offhand and/or mindless remarks to affect your mood in a more impactful manner than is warranted. What's an inaccurate, offensive, and/or emotionally-triggering comment, at least as far as you interpret it, probably means very little of actual substance to the person uttering it… and though you could have quite legitimate grounds for calling them out on it, the effort it'll require of you may prove even more demanding than just letting them run their mouth. Besides, you have more productive—and potentially profitable—self-interests likely consuming your attention, which have little direct relevance to this conversational bullshit you could either take issue with or take with a grain of salt. Yet, truth be told, your most lucrative self-interests may presently reside within collaborative efforts… where, by their very nature, you might need to contend with other people's sometimes-distracting, sometimes-annoying, sometimes-batshit-crazy ideas, opinions, and offerings without letting 'em rankle you. Therefore, the answer isn't just blocking everybody else out, in order to protect your mood. You still must participate, but with increasingly refined emotional boundaries. You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18): Even with Venus (and others) still on your side, you're under a peculiar threat of shooting yourself in the foot, Aquarius, thanks to a presently-elevated temptation to go overboard in demonstrating how you're not self-serving. On one hand, Venus's opposition to Jupiter-in-your-7th suggests a heightened willingness to use your present advantage to accommodate someone else's desires… which is not, in fact, an unfortunate instinct in itself, provided you're not bending over so far backwards (out of discomfort or guilt surrounding what you have that they don't?) that you throw yourself out of whack. On the other, Mars's arrival to your 2nd and subsequent Neptune conjunction exaggerate your idealistic notions about money and other practical matters… potentially inspiring you to make selfishly-unwise moves, in an effort to illustrate your magnanimity or high-mindedness by kissing off personally profitable opportunities on behalf of a social value or purpose. Again, such choices aren't inherently bad if, and only if, you can legitimately afford them. But if you're merely trying to make nice with people who'd judge you for deploying what you've got to increase your own gain, you'd better be damn sure these same folks would be willing to pay your bills as sure as they're expecting you to sacrifice your own standing to stand with them. You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!

PISCES (February 19-March 20): Okay, now start your 2015, Pisces. As I told you last time, your real action starts this week, with Mars's arrival to your sign… a perceptible injection of initiative, vigor, and zeal that'll get you off your butt and back in the saddle, to begin galloping your way toward whatever aims or activities you've been telling yourself you'd get to soon enough. I recommend building up to a steady momentum first, before blasting out into the world with this renewed self-possession, by taking steps which jump-start your personal habits and practices into a more dynamic rhythm. With plenty of 12th-house planets still influencing your overall tone, however, this isn't a jump-starting which should be accompanied by proud declarations or momentous comings-out. Say very little to others about the up-shifting you're embarking upon, and expect no pats-on-the-back or you-can-do-its from anyone. The moment you involve them on what's really a rather independent call-to-action, you flirt with losing yourself in relational distractions that don't support what you already know you need to be doing. Of course, the more confidently you keep yourself on track, the likelier that other folks will notice your single-mindedness—and, if they've counted on you being available at their beck-and-call, could behave with annoyance or anger towards you. If that's the case, it's on you to hold your own, though it might necessitate mustering a compensatory dose of assertive pushback. One exception: Don't 'push back' against bosses, VIPs, or authority figures unless you're consciously intending to challenge their power… and are willing to face the potential consequences. You haven't got your copy of ASTROBARRY'S 2015 yet? How silly! With detailed year-ahead horoscopes for all twelve signs, it's a must-have!