Horoscopes | Week of February 16-22, 2015

ARIES (March 21-April 19): It's happening, Aries. Shit's about to go down at this popsicle stand… and you are the one, among all zodiac types, slated to run this show. After all these weeks of being told to hold yourself back, reserve your energy, and concentrate on showing solidarity with what everyone else is doing, you're finally entering a moment that's unabashedly yours—and waiting must now give way to radically self-directed forward motion, ready or not, here you come. It's no exaggeration, by the way, to inform you these next several weeks qualify as your best period in all of '15 to leapfrog yourself ahead, releasing any unexpressed desires or underutilized self-determination out into the world… if only to acknowledge how life is to be lived to the fullest, risks and all, not spent in a corner, cowering over whether you'll ever get your chance to shine. This is one of those chances, my dear, though it's your job to grab the friggin' ball and run your little heart out. Between now and the end of March, you can change up your life in some pretty profound ways, provided you aren't afraid to come off like a gallant go-getter. This powerful shift begins on Thursday (Feb 19), once your ruler Mars returns home to your sign. Just a day later (on Fri Feb 20), Venus also lands in your sign, their yin and yang conjoining over the weekend. This is the mega-spark to (re)ignite your impressive flame. The fire only spreads from there…

 

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): No matter what the outer conditions of your life may look like, Taurus, your greatest duty over the weeks ahead is simply to repeatedly reaffirm the core-truth of who you are… not loudly or showily, not to lord it over anyone else or use it as a weapon, and not for any specific purpose other than holding your psychic own in a world going increasingly wild, crazy, and frantic. While everybody around is liable to be jockeying for position, fighting one another for the biggest or best piece of pie, and/or shocking each other with sudden disclosures or sharp left turns, you need to be focused on quietly refining your personal relationship with God, the Goddess, the Universe-at-Large, and/or any unifying spiritual principle you might use to explain how the true You has always been, and will always be, that so incomparably one-of-a-kind you. As we discussed last week, the odd twists and turns due to transpire over the upcoming month-or-so are largely out of your confident grasp to direct as you might choose… leaving you merely to respond as mindfully as you possibly can, intent on keeping yourself out of flummoxing entanglements or needless trouble (unless it's truly absolutely essential for your well-being). This weird phase is something of a test of your discernment. Keeping a compassionate hands-off distance, present without forcing anything onward, will be your lifeline.

 

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Time to put your community-building, team-oriented, social-butterfly skills to work, Gemini. With an abrupt astrological shift funneling a concentration of planetary energy to your 11th house starting later this week, you should expect to suddenly find yourself surrounded by hordes of potential pals and allies… and, if you know what's good for you, you'll take full advantage of this wider audience as a golden chance to attract more attention from those who genuinely appreciate your sentiments, sensibilities, or style. Though I'm typically a strong advocate for everybody devoting a considerable amount of time to solitary pursuits, you really ought to spend your upcoming few weeks with as much constant companionship as you can enjoyably handle (and for most Geminis, that's a pretty high threshold). This is especially auspicious astrology for those of you looking to make new friends, recruit comrades to your cause, reorient a social-group's focus, and/or otherwise take the lead in getting your whole pack enthused and energized about whatever bonds you together. Along the way, I should mention, don't be surprised if you hit up against at least one brusque, blunt, or provocative individual who takes issue with your tactics and/or sees things very differently than you do. Don't fear such friction. You might as well know who isn't on your team, so you can quit sending a single bit of stray focus their direction—and save it all for all those who cherish and adore your ways.

 

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Hopefully, after these last weeks of addressing any internal doubts or philosophic inconsistencies, you're a lot less conflicted about which direction is the most meaningful one in which to head, Cancer. And now, after a few early-in-the-week deep breaths to properly prepare for a whirlwind next-chapter, it'll be your moment to audaciously create a situation for yourself that can serve as a vehicle to jettison you further down your desired path. All the earnest soul-searching and agenda-setting in the world won't do you any good, if you're spending an inordinate amount of your daily effort chasing professional aims and aspirations which have little-to-nothing to do with what you claim to care about. If a career change (or other outer-community realignment) is begging to be made, then I'd suggest you commit to decisively initiating it over the next four-to-six-weeks' time. Yes, there are all sorts of day-to-day details, dilemmas, and adjustments you'll need to address, over the prolonged course of recreating your external circumstances so they better meet your rightful calling… but you don't have to figure every last bit of that out right now. In fact, you cannot possibly know what will be expected of you, on the day-in-day-out basis, until you actually start doing the work. Let's not get ahead of ourselves (though, believe it or not, this will all move much faster than you might've imagined): You simply have to decide you're going for that gleaming goal—and then go, go, go, like your life's proudest achievements depend on it (because, of course, they do).

 

LEO (July 23-August 22): 'You only live once' wouldn't be the worst adage to orient yourself to during the weeks to come, Leo, now that both Venus and Mars will be stirring up your 9th-house hankerings for something way out of the ordinary, starting late this week. This is hardly the time, therefore, to settle for a mediocre middle-ground or otherwise play it too stiflingly safe. On the contrary, I'd expect your eyes to be peeled for the next flight to Timbuktu, the one remaining opening in that immersive study-group or visionary retreat gathering, or your once-in-a-lifetime shot to see something you never imagined you'd have a chance to see… anything, really, that you could gleefully participate in which would make the next month-and-a-half a truly memorable span in your life. What a shame it would be, under such astrological transits, for you to experience any significant amount of boredom. Instead, my clock reads: Time for Leos to be really excited! If you lack this excitement, then you're not trying hard enough to get outside your limiting perspective. This is not all there is, my friend. Reach further. Reflect more deeply. Engage your smartest, most worldly friends in thought-provoking conversations which might help you unleash a repressed hunger or a lifelong curiosity. Here's an invitation to push the boundaries of how you've understood yourself… with great promise that you may well uncover a fuller or truer expression, unfettered by the more conventional rules-for-behavior you've unconsciously obeyed at your own expense.

 

VIRGO (August 23-September 22): Please don't try to fortify yourself against the incoming tides, Virgo, as if you could resist currents so much bigger and stronger than you by sheer will alone. You cannot stop the natural evolution now picking up speed, enabling you to see—without the luxury of hiding behind any rose-colored lenses—exactly where you're headed with a certain special individual, stubborn presence, or unshakable collaborator. Attempts to slow things down, stall, backtrack, or reverse will only further enflame the passions, tempers, or other impatient emotions now flying through the air between you. The 'cooler' you play it, the hotter their reaction is liable to be… and with good reason. How could you possibly dare to ignore the reality of what's presently unfolding? You're in it, baby, like it or not. If you do legitimately like it, then this is the astrologically ordained moment to swallow your natural fears, take off the emergency brake, and let 'er accelerate into a breathtaking ride. Life is full of dangers even when we responsible folks take the proper precautions. Keeping yourself 'safe' (or, more accurately, under the illusion of safety) is a piss-poor justification for wussing out of a potentially rewarding relationship or joining-of-forces. If you fall, you'll just pick yourself back up, right? If you don't like where you are, meanwhile, it's high time to stop pretending everything's cool or wishing away your dissatisfying circumstances: By week's-end, you'd better be ready to rip that band-aid right off and tell 'em how you really feel. Starting now, there's simply no staying-in-place. As I told you already, it's intensifying, one way or another, all in or all out…

 

LIBRA (September 23-October 22): By the time the end of the week rolls in, Libra, you'll be due to proactively initiate whatever conversation must occur if you wish to ensure your needs are being successfully met in a key relationship. Whether the ongoing dynamic has recently left you playing second-fiddle to their agenda and/or gradually slipped out of gratifying alignment over time, or whether you've previously been too damn passive or self-sabotaging in how you assert yourself, you will find no better moment for breaking an unfortunate pattern and/or increasing your level of agency in this partnership than over these few weeks ahead. But because we are talking about interpersonal rhythms here, this is not a script-flipping mindset you can adopt on your own, as if it's merely a matter of changing your internal strategy. This is an interactive process of offering feedback, presenting alternatives, talking, listening, discussing, negotiating, figuring things out together. In fact, if you're doing it right, you shouldn't be able to determine the best outcome wholly in the isolation-chamber of your own mind. All you can do is clearly and directly lay out the terms of what is and isn't working for you, what you'd like to happen, and what you can no longer tolerate. Then, you must allow the other person their reactions (knowing the first one's not always the greatest), their space to think, their opportunity to rebut, and all that jazz… and it'll continue from there. However, it is on you to take the lead with this—and to continually make sure the conversation stays on a productive track over the upcoming weeks, even if it doesn't head exactly where you hoped it would.

 

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): While the moon wanes to its darkest during the week's opening days, I suggest you carry out one symbolic act of creative gratitude, Scorpio, expressing your love for whatever special moments or wondrous turns have transpired since '15 began. I suspect you've reconnected with a certain pleasure, passion, or perspective-on-life during these recent weeks which, if all goes well, should continue to inspire your senses in the months to come. A pregnant kiss, a poignant glimpse, a few gorgeously melodic notes or the perfect turn-of-phrase, a renewed vision for how you deeply wish to spend future years of your existence… any and all of it should be treated sacredly, as the gift it's truly been, with appreciation and humility. And then: Once you wake up, post-new-moon, on Thursday (Feb 19) morning, it is time to get the fuck to work, baby! Starting late in the week and continuing a few weeks, you will be expected to concentrate almost exclusively on the now-pressing duties which are unambiguously yours to handle—even if they take up all your time and attention (for this limited interval, of course), and even if you must bid a fond farewell to all those inspiring leisure-moments you've recently enjoyed. This is nothing more than a natural pendulum-shift, back toward increased day-to-day productivity and, consequently, away from quite as much free-time fun. It's as if you now must return to the factory to 'pay off' the goodies you've been enjoying so very much. If you work extra-hard, though, you can 'buy' yourself more of these rewards… a future guarantee, banked upon the security you're now building, that life will be this awesome again real soon. But first, a period of real hard work, though it's nothing you can't handle.

 

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21): Use your first few days of the week for warm-up calisthenics, Sagittarius, whether of the literal bodily variety or any other sort of preparatory exercise that'll get your juices flowing. Following Wednesday (Feb 18)'s new moon, you should consider yourself to be officially all-in with whatever 'baby' you are now ready to birth. The exciting moment has, yes, at last arrived! Understandably, you'll probably need to dramatically redirect your attentions, pouring every ounce of enthusiasm and adoration into your big thing, in order to make the absolute most of this very exciting situation… which also means that, as a result, you could need to pull back from other involvements (and/or stop indulging any sourpuss moods that might otherwise deplete your emotional energies). If you've been wondering when, oh when, your life would begin to sing its glorious songs of splendor once again, well, start warming up those vocal-cords, my love. This is when you must go for the full-on blitz, kicking up your present-moment investment in creating the future you want more than anything else in the world. You really want it so badly? Prove it! Show your true colors, holding back nothing which you'd consider 'authentically you' from the world's view. Bashful self-doubt will not go rewarded. Expressive audacity, on the other hand, will loudly awaken your highest potentials.

 

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19): You'd be wise to inaugurate a few-weeks-long process of 'getting your house in order', Capricorn, beginning during the second half of this week-ahead… though whether this 'house' is your residential dwelling, the place you think of as the ancestral home, or your internal domain is up to you to determine, based on which zone(s) warrants a self-nurturing reclaiming of the reins. In the literal domestic sphere, you may feel an escalating impulse to rearrange, redecorate, unclutter, scour, or full-on move elsewhere, in order to create a more comfortable environment for yourself—and though the efforts you crave to invest could be legitimately described as somewhat self-centered, tending to your own need for a nourishing home-life seems like a totally justifiable motive for 'centering' on yourself. The same sentiments apply to your current relationship with where you come from, another area in which asserting a new or renewed level of independence will ultimately promote your inner well-being… even as it may ignite friction with family-members who'd prefer you to remain under their psychological thumb, behaving as you always have (and stoically sucking up your discontentment). To effectively clear your energy-field (or whatever you want to call it) and set yourself up to approach your future worldly activities with a clean psychic slate, you must be willing to draw the necessary dividing-lines between what you've begrudgingly learned to tolerate and what you intentionally choose for yourself. It starts at home… which, oddly, may be one of the hardest places for you to stand up for what's right, since the only one who'd otherwise suffer is you.

 

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18): Spend the earlier part of your week putting any important business in its place, straightening out any stray worries left over from recent Mercury-retrograde scramblings, and setting up some fun social plans for the weekend. Once the week's tail-end rolls around, Aquarius, your impulse to socialize should be skyrocketing to heights not seen in quite some time… a celestial invitation to open yourself outward, to expose yourself to a reinvigorating lineup of fresh interactive inputs by circulating through the scene with a more visibly conspicuous flavor, and to swap wild tales and war-stories and informational dispatches with whichever old pals and new contacts come across your path. For the upcoming month-or-so, this will be your amped-up social tempo—if, that is, you're rolling with the energies—and it behooves you to reach out, check in, and catch up in as many affiliations and friendships as you possibly can. It's more important that you're proactively engaged in oodles of social exchange than making any premature or habit-driven judgment calls about who is worthy of your time and attention. The fact is, you're just at the beginning of a larger Saturn-in-the-11th reexamination of what most fittingly constitutes your slice of the social pie… a process which could well include a tapering-off of outdated connections and/or a heightened investment in folks you're just now getting (better) acquainted with. This period, then, is akin to eagerly casting the widest net, both to see what you catch and to help you determine who to throw back. It does you no good to hide in the shadows. Get out there, and fish for your people.

 

PISCES (February 19-March 20): Take whatever you've recently gotten going, Pisces, and start setting up systems which will root these fledgling sprouts into solid, longer-lasting being. We don't want your latest gain to go down in history as a passing fancy, a fluke, or an almost-was. You can actually make something worthwhile, possibly even economically profitable, out of this creative boon… but only if you've got sufficient self-serving boldness to resolve that, yes, you really are up for developing this into a real occupation. You're at a pivotal turning-point where, perhaps for the first time in a long while (if ever), you have a chance to invest your personal enthusiasms into an actual self-supportive, confidence-building, income-generating endeavor—if, of course, you're willing to take on more autonomous responsibility for building a concretely successful future for yourself. The only way you'll ever assume more direct power to determine the financial fate and flavor of your livelihood is by grabbing it with your own two hands. Your only other alternative is to continue working for other people, cultivating their dreams and padding their profit-margins, feeding them the bulk of your passions while squirreling away whatever bits are left over for your own interests. If you crave freedom from that setup and are courageous enough to start exploring your entrepreneurial capacities more markedly… well, buckle up for the ride, your moment has arrived.