“Chiron and Wholeness: A Primer” Makes Top 12 Summer Reading Picks on Spirited Woman

Dear Radical Readers,

I thought you’d like to know that my e-book, Chiron and Wholeness: A Primer, was just named a Top 12 Summer Reading Pick on Spirited Woman!

If you haven’t already read my Chiron Primer, I hope its inclusion in this delightful dozen will prompt you to consider it in your next-reads. (The primer is in some very cool company, including the romantic mystery novel Dying for a Date, by my friend and Sister in Crime, Cindy Sample.)

My recent Chiron Quiz sparked lively discussion in the Comments and confirmed that many readers are hungry for more information on Chiron. Chiron and Wholeness offers a great orientation, if you're new to Chiron, and many new insights if you're continuing your discovery of the centaur planet, the one that helps us weave wholeness and find the gifts in our chronic pain and pesky-to-resolve issues. Chiron is the key to our vocation—the work we are compelled to do, the lessons we yearn to share and give back, and the thing no one can do quite like like you. When we finally can contribute that special talent, we find our true place in the world. That's called fulfillment, another word for wholeness.

It’s a great time to highlight, too, that both my Chiron e-books, Chiron and Wholeness: A Primer and Poems to Heal the Healer: The 12 Chiron Signs, are on sale through Labor Day, September 6, as a package deal for $9.99. (See sidebar to purchase individually or at the pair price.)

Why poems? As a living Chiron archetype myself, meaning a multifaceted Renaissance person (Chiron was the original Renaissance Man way before the Renaissance), it took me till this year to figure out where poetry fits into my medicine bag. What do astrology, tarot, dreamwork, flower essences—and writing, especially poetry—all have in common? Certainly, the common thread is symbolism. But there’s more. Chiron is a weaver. He stitches your diverse talents and assets together into a tapestry of wholeness. Turned out poetry was more a “healing art” than I had imagined.

Recently, I read a book I recommend to all poetry lovers, Saved by a Poem by Kim Rosen. In it, she talks about the rhapsodes, ancient Greek itinerant poetry reciters, who ultimately wrote prescriptive, individual healing poems for people. I must have had some sort of intuition months before I read this book about the healing poets. While I can't do a personalized poem for thousands of monthly readers, individually, I might be able to capture some essence of healing for groups of you by Chiron sign. File this under Unbelievable: In my twenties, I actually set up a business called Wordpix, where people would answer a questionnaire about a loved one—or themselves—and I’d create a personalized poem for them, usually humorous, humor being the biggest healer of all. (Yes, I may dust off that idea that was before its time, especially while Chiron is in Pisces. I expect there will be a resurgence of appreciation for poetry, especially in poetry as a healing art, during this Chiron placement which lasts through 2019.)

As some of you may remember, I associate Chiron with synchronicity. Soon I found myself compelled to create a poetry blog called Stitched Verse, since that is how rhapsode translates from Greek to English. (My half-Greek genes were having a Big Fat Greek Threading, weaving together all these coincidences.)

To top this all off with a French knot, that fancy stitch in embroidery that looks like a raised dot or period, my local Institute of Noetic Sciences is having a poetry-as-healing workshop on August 27. I don’t think I have to tell you who will be in the front row!

These e-books are some of my most concise sources for learning about Chiron until my full-length book becomes available in the months ahead. Treat yourself to a review of your life considering how Chiron fits in. Mercury Retrograde is the perfect time, and I hope you’ll enjoy the TLC and vocational fire that’s gone into these e-books—that Chiron inspires you as much as it does me.

Chiron is truly the greatest gift of healing I’ve ever received—and must share. It has been for me the most integrative archetype of my lifetime.

Hope you’re having a great summer growing season,
Joyce

~~~

Reader Feedback: Here’s what a variety of readers, including astrologer friends and colleagues, are saying about Chiron and Wholeness: A Primer.

It was absolutely stunning and beautifully done. Big Medicine! I really appreciated the phrase "Chiron is the place between Then and Now." Well said! ~ LW, Pennsylvania, USA

It is beautifully executed, and its insights and gentle wisdom were EXACTLY what I needed, as it soothed me when I read it. ~ MD, Australia

It's a knockout! As ever, very well written, clear and easy to read. I like your tone, which is well pitched between breezy and serious. Writing about people's Chiron placements by sign and house is a tricky matter … There is a 'distilled' feel to the knowledge, which feeds the writing. In the presence of an effective therapist, the client senses that that person has lived their own pain and distilled a quality essence from it, without the therapist having to say anything about their own journey. Your writing about Chiron has that feel to it ~ AW, Scotland

Wow. I have to say I wanted more. I wanted to keep reading more. Give me more. I loved it. I felt like you had been watching my life! Great E-Book. Wonderful insights. Also, I couldn't stay in denial about some things. You had brought them up and gently waved them in front of me! Thank You. ~ KH, Ohio

Of all the astrologers who have written about Chiron, your work resonates most clearly to me. ~ SM, Hawaii

Chiron Quiz: How Strong is Your Chiron?

© 2010 by Joyce Mason

Donna Cunningham has been encouraging me to create a Chiron quiz to complement her other planetary quizzes that have been so popular on her blog, Sky Writer. Although she has quizzes on most planets including the Moon and Mercury, I’m focusing in this article on how Chiron fits into her quizzes on the outer planets. As the bridge between Saturn and Uranus, Chiron fits smack dab in the middle of the mix. We need this Chiron quiz!

My perspective? I consider Chiron to be an outer planet—or at least half-outer. In its bridging position between Saturn and Uranus, Chiron is anchored in both worlds of the inner and outer planets. But before we get going, for those who want to take their quizzes in sequence, I’m starting with the links to the outerplanetary quizzes on Donna’s site:

Donna Cunningham’s Quizzes on the Outer Planets


How Strong is Your Saturn?


How Strong is Your Uranus?


How Strong is Your Neptune?


How Strong Is Your Pluto

I’ve designed the Chiron quiz to parallel Donna’s structure on the other quizzes as much as possible, so you’re using a similar system to compare your Chiron score to the other outer planets. Particularly if you’re what Donna and I both call an OPP (an Outer-Planetary Person) or what I call a PUNC (Plutonian, Uranian, Neptunian and Chironic—all the outers emphasized), you’ll navigate your personal overload of evolutionary change planets better if you have some idea which one is your leading planet, so you can salute him and follow his direction.

When it comes to the outer planets, the quiz on which you score the highest is the engine in the string of influences that nag you to morph at light speed. Not to mention, while we're talking about Little Engines That Could, Outerplanetary People are desperately needed in the current, intense change cycle involving the outer planets in chronic tension. You know who you are and that you've received your intuitive draft notice! Remember, if you think change is challenging for you, imagine how difficult it is for people who aren't having a dialogue with these Gods of Change every second of their lives. We are the way showers.

And now for the one who helps keep the outer planets more on track and easier to navigate in his role as a go-between, Chiron.


What’s Your CQ (Chiron Quotient)?

As Donna always points out in her quizzes, it’s impossible to consider every single influence when creating a planetary “weighting” system, especially without complicating it so much, it’s no fun. You may find you feel more Chironic than your ultimate score would indicate. That’s when you have to consider more subtle nuances. For example, the Moon is my most elevated planet, it’s out of bounds, [1] and closely square Neptune. I have a very “sensitive” and overemphasized Moon, to which Chiron has a nearly exact sextile. Chiron acts as a safety valve to the high pressure of my lunar overload; thus, I have become that sweet centaur’s devotee in undying gratitude for the relief! These particulars jack up my Chiron Quotient, as any close aspect between Chiron and a planet with similar prominence might intensify its strength. Don’t take these quizzes as the Ten Commandments, etched in stone. They’re guidelines to weigh emphasis. Adjust according to personal experience.


I use orbs of up 8° for major aspects (conjunction, opposition, square or trine). For minor aspects, I use 3° for quintile, semisquare, and sesquiquadrate. I go up to 4° on a quincunx  and 6° for the sextile. (The last two are a little generous compared to some astrologers.) As Donna also does in her quizzes, I consider 10° for conjunctions to the Midheaven and ASC based on the research by Michel Gauquelin.

Suggestion: Be radical and don’t even resemble a traditional Virgo nitpicker when it comes to orbs. If you feel it at 9°, count it. If you say “huh?” and don’t relate to the aspect whatsoever in a degree of arc you're "supposed to," then a smaller orb is the one for you. Our sensitivity to the planets is personal and varies somewhat. The whole idea here is to make you more aware of your comparative planetary sensitivities. It would be "off" to deny your actual intuition as you examine the issue. If you do major comparisons with others, you'll need to agree on an orbital definition, but for your own purposes, do what feels right consistently across your outerplanetary quizzes.

Now, hang onto your horse half. Here goes!


The Quiz


___ Chiron is conjunct, square, trine, or opposite the Sun, Moon, Ascendant or Midheaven (10 points each)

__ Chiron is conjunct, square, trine, or opposite other planets (5 points each)

__ Chiron is in minor aspect (sextile, quincunx, quintile, semisquare, or sesquiquadrate) to the Sun, Moon or other planets (2 points each)

__ You have Sun, Moon, Ascendant or Midheaven in Virgo (5 points each).


Note: This comes from my theory about The Chiron Sector, the part of the zodiac from Virgo through Sagittarius that I associate with Chiron. Virgo is the pivotal sign between the planets that deal with “I” and the planets that deal with “Us and Them or Others.” Its bridging nature, just as Chiron bridges us from the inner to the outer planets in its orbital position, makes Virgo the most Chironic sign in my mind. Virgo is the last “I” sign, but it starts the transition to Libra/Other by focusing on service.


__   Bonus Points for Chiron in Virgo, Chiron in the 6th, or Virgo on the 6th House cusp (5 points each)

___ Other planets in Virgo (3 points each)

__   Other planets in The Chiron Sector (Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius) – (2 points each)

__   Sun or Moon in the 6th House (5 points each)




Total your points. A score of 0-14 is a relatively low Chiron Quotient (CQ). A score of 15-25 is moderate CQ. If your points total more than 25, you’ve got a high CQ and should really start looking for a farrier—one of those folks that puts shoes on horses, because you’re a centaur through and through!


Sharing Feedback

It would be great to hear your scores in the Comments and whether or not you think the test is relatively accurate. This is an experiment, and your comments will help make the CQ Quiz better. In case you’re wondering, my own score is 43, without adjustment for Chiron’s role in releasing my lunar pressure. (My hero!)

Please let us know what you learn! Maybe we can start the equivalent of Mensa for people with high CQs. I know what you’ll say. “Hold your horses!” We’d never get any one of us off our figurative Mt. Pelion, away from helping others long enough to attend a meeting. (By the way, there’s a flower essence for serving others to a fault. It’s called Centaury! No kidding.)

That’s what’s so cool about the Internet. The High CQ Club can come to your mountain through The Radical Virgo and other Chiron-friendly sites, and you can read them between sessions—healing, teaching, mentoring—those things we Chironics do, sometimes over-do.

~~~

Note

[1] There’s a good discussion of Moon out-of-bounds (OOB) and OOB planets in general on the post, Moonwalk: Cancer.

Photo Credit: Posing strong female © Smagal Dreamstime.com enhanced by Joyce.

Radical Reminders: Personal consultations are still 25% off through Labor Day, September 6. See sidebar.

Don't miss another New Moongram!  Sign up at the top of the sidebar to receive extra information, including a mini-meditation for each New Moon, and special discounts on new publications.

Comments Are Now Closed for This Post. Thanks to everyone who participated—some 50 people!—in this lively discussion.

Take the follow-quiz on your Chiron Resonance!

Paranormal Connection: “Flower Essences for Interesting Times”

Dear Radical Readers,

For the second time this month, Dänna Wilberg, host of The Paranormal Connection on Access Cable in Sacramento, asked me to appear on her show to help coach people through the current cosmic fireworks. This time my topic is flower essences, and I cover ones that are especially helpful during the Cardinal T-Square and today’s tense times.

“Healing with Flower Essences” airs on Monday August 16th at 9 pm PST for Sacramento area locals, on Channel 17 with encore showings Tuesday, August 17 at 1 pm, and Wednesday August 18 at 5 am. All times PDT. Anyone can watch via the Internet at these same times on Access Cable.

Here’s more information about the show on Danna’s blog, Paranormal Connection. You can also become a fan of the Paranormal Connection on Facebook.

Yes, the times are challenging, but flower essences help you process emotions like worry, pessimism, or overwhelm and bring them to completion. Flower essences help you do something about what you’re going through! I’d love to have your feedback, if you watch the show, in the Comments for this post.

Flower Power and  Blessings All,
Joyce

~~~

Photo credit: Honeysuckle Flower Essence © Marilyn Barbone Dreamstime.com

Honeysuckle flower essence helps you move forward when over-attached to past memories, or when you may feel regrets over things that happened in the past.

Disclaimer: This post and the appearance it refers to do not mean to imply any recommendation or certification of any individuals or companies mentioned. It is provided purely for informational purposes. Please make your own determination about the quality of the services and products offered. This information and the others referenced are not meant to constitute advice, nor are they meant to replace medical or psychological treatment.

Moonwalk: Leo

© 2010

by Joyce Mason

"The man on this card doesn't need to speak

to communicate strength, passion and commitment.

Sometimes he is robed like a priest or shaman.
Intense and intuitive, he is a force to be reckoned with."

 ~ Interpretation of the King of Cups,

 parallel to the King of Hearts, tarot.com

As I started thinking about this post, I had a royal epiphany. I realized that four out of five of the most significant men in my life all have—or had—Moon in Leo. (Thought bubble: Wonder what that says about me?) Leo Moons are the Kings of my heart, and the King of Hearts card reminds me of them.

My father, brother, first boyfriend/now husband, plus the man who had the most lingering impact on me from my late teens and for decades afterwards—all Leo Moons. I never thought about it till now (and I wonder why not.) Or if I did, I forgot. (I hate to admit I’m getting to an age where I forget a lot of details and am happy to leave their cataloging to much younger Virgos and Capricorns.) Sometimes I have actual moments of clarity about my Neptune conjunct Mercury square Moon and how it explains why I can miss the obvious about myself.

On investigating this mystery further, I noticed that my men’s Moons lie essentially between 13-18 degrees Leo, the tiny arc of Leo where my Pluto (14) and Saturn (18) are placed. Eek! I only recently managed to figure out why I tend to have a tumultuous inner growth cycle during the summer, especially in August. That’s when the transiting Sun is lighting up my 4th house and those particular planets.

I share this with you because we’re taking a Moonwalk, and I think it’s only fair to tell you what I’m finding on the my own lunar surface, so you can check to see if you have a similar phenomenon going on. This will give me plenty to do all summer, figuring out what gives with this den of Lions in my life. Back to you:

It says a lot about your own Moon to discover the Moon placement and nurturing patterns of the key players in your life.

If you have your own den of Lions, flock of Rams, pen of Bulls or whatnot: you might want to look at how they’re alike and different. My pride of four is split right down the middle, as far as how they’ve supported me emotionally—two did and do a fabulous job (husband and father). The other two brought me the greatest majority of my pain (brother and great love/boyfriend). Obviously, something “colored” these Leo Moons differently.



What Color’s the Moon?

Both my Leo Moon Men who’ve nurtured me well have Saturn aspecting their Moons—by square (dad) and conjunction (husband). My anti-nurturers—“Keane” [1] (the boyfriend I barely ever got over) and my wild, flamboyant brother (he was both a hoot and hell on wheels): They have Pluto and Mars closely conjunct their Moons respectively. Keane’s Pluto/Moon is right on my own Pluto. This explains why love tended, at least in my early life, to be a big, sticky ball of wax, a goo of enmeshed pain and pleasure.

It also explains why I, personally, love the Leo energy most when it’s “toned down” to a certain degree. After all, I have Capricorn Moon, Saturn ruled—I learned at my daddy’s knee how to keep my Moon from taking over the land. As an ultimate irony, I was at the library recently and a history video on Greece caught my eye. I had been showing my husband how his Leo Moon conjunct Saturn might work in his life with the use of the Astrodeck. [2] When we watched the movie on Greece, it had a scene with a caged Lion. “That’s your Leo Moon conjunct Saturn!”


This Leo Moon

Now that I’ve digressed a lot (in other words gone wherever the Moon lured me), let’s talk about this New Moon on August 9, 2010 and how it rules the Kingdom of Feelings. The Sun/New Moon conjunction is at 17 degrees Leo 25. (Glad I’m writing this ahead because, as you know, I’ll be “processing” while the Lights are shining in my usually dark Pluto/Saturn Zone.) I’m using a chart from my own general geographic perspective. While Sacramento might be the Capitol of California, San Francisco is the Capitol of the Left Coast. It has a resonance with the Uranian energy of astrologers, so it feels like the city to use. Click chart to enlarge:

As you can see, not much can escape the Big Change Line-Up in the Sky, including this lunation. The closest aspects to the Sun/Moon are sesquiquadrate Jupiter and Pluto and semi-square Venus and Saturn. The semisquare (45 degrees) and sesqui (135 degrees) are geometrically related as 1/8th and 3/8ths of the zodiac circle. They have similar qualities: irritation, frustration, delays, testing, impeding, constricting or resisting. (This sounds more like a hazing by my brother and ex-beau than a hug from my father or husband.)

This is a good time to remember that growth comes from discomfort. Not too rocky aspects mark this lunation— more like pebbles in your shoe. Efforts to expand or transform are not likely to come easy this month. Relationship issues may be scratchy and feel stuck. Of course, these aspects do come with the backdrop of the Cardinal T-Square. Don’t let them become the straw that breaks the camel’s back. Leverage them as another exercise in not resisting change or enforcing your own timing or outcomes.

Here’s where the Leo warmth can suddenly make it all seem all worthwhile. (Is someone watching a Mary Tyler Moore rerun in the background out there?) Same with the Leo sense of humor. There is nothing like a Leo’s acting goofy in the middle of a fierce “discussion” to diffuse the heat completely. If this month seems a little annoying in parts, draw on these talents brought to you by Leo Moon:


Cool Leo Qualities

Adopt some of these positive Leo qualities in this month’s endeavors:

Warmth, charm, charisma, childlike, fun, entertaining, generous, sincere, paternal, enthusiastic and creative.

(Where do I buy a gallon of that?)

It’s not too late to sign up for my first New Moongram for more information on this month’s Leo New Moon! Click on the top of the sidebar to sign up or click here to learn more .

Living on the Upside of Leo


As I state in Living on the Upside of the Zodiac #2:

“Look at me!” Leo says, as she exudes the rays of the Sun and selfhood with no Ray-Bans or sunscreen. Here is both the danger and the cure. Leo must avoid believing she is the Sun itself with all its power—and around which the rest of us mere earthlings are lucky to revolve, if she deems us worthy. Creative spark is the ultimate drug, and if Leos hold onto the Sun energy with possessiveness, they become mean kings of the jungle: self-centered, proud, overbearing, bossy, intimidating, grandiose, and demanding of constant flattery (kiss my ring or whatever!).

Now that I’ve covered some ideas about Lion lunation do’s and don’ts, here are some ideas to optimize your experience this month.

A Few Leo Moon Rituals and Experiments

In addition to your usual Moon rituals, like looking where 17+ Leo falls in your chart, here are some special suggestions for Leo Moon:

• Become a Leo Moon for a Day by dramatizing your feelings. Be creative. Put on a play for your family. Deliver a singing telegram to the door of your beloved. Be showy.

• Shine your feelings on issues like a solar search light. How does “feeling like the Sun” (the Moon in the Sun’s sign) bring light what’s hidden in a situation?

• Buy or make a lion’s mask. What does it feel like to be a lion?

• Ask yourself every day, until the Full Moon, how does the Moon in the Sun’s sign turn life on its ear? (Examples: It brings the inner outward; it is a male archetype in the most feminine of planets, the Moon.)

• Watch a movie about lions, and imagine feeling part of the pride. What do you learn from “feeling Leo?”


The King of Hearts

Did you know that the tarot is older than playing cards? Playing cards were derived from the tarot, not the other way around. (One of the first psychics I ever saw used a standard playing deck to “read.”)

Leo Moons will always be the Kings of my Heart. (I keep finding more of them!) Their positive qualities of smoldering strength, playfulness, and air of self-confidence have lit up my life in its darkest corners. I’ve been able to overlook most of their less desirable qualities, such as attention getting, bossiness, pride, and the ability to intimidate because their gifts are so great.

And so may it be for you during this Leo New Moon cycle.

~~~

Photo Credits: Jeu de Cartes 56© Nathalie P - Fotolia.com and African Lion © Riaanvdb ~ Dreamstime.com


NOTES

[1] I like to change the names to protect the innocent and guilty alike—and people's privacy.

[2] Astrodeck by Soliton is a fabulous deck of “flash cards” with key words for the planets, signs, houses and aspects. It is sadly out of print, and the company is out of business and thus far untraceable. If you can find one on eBay or at a used book store, grab it! And if you have one you don’t want, I’m collecting spares. I’ll happily buy it from you. What makes Astrodeck such a great reference is having a reminder of the full-range of keywords. We do get stuck on our faves, especially when we've been doing astrology a long time. Here’s to variety, my favorite spice.

A Gift Exchange with “The Radical Virgo”

Share Your E-mail, Get Ongoing Extras from The Radical Virgo

In the original article, The Radical Virgo, the namesake of this blog, I hinted that Rads are a little less fussy and compulsive than your typical Virgo. The time has come for this Radical Virgo to get better organized! With new events, publications, and other goodies popping fast and furiously, I’d like to be able to contact those interested in my writing, products and appearances. If you want to get discounts and specials on services and publications and the first heads-up on events, please share your e-mail with me. And did I mention? I’ll write some things in my monthly newsletter I don’t put on the “public wall.”

Don’t miss my first New Moongram in time for the August 9th Leo Moon! Each monthly Moongram will have a short New Moon meditation and some of the other goodies already mentioned. Thank you in advance!

What I Won’t Do

Don’t you hate those sites that won’t let you get your toe in the door till you give up your e-mail address? Am I the only who finds this offensive? Maybe even bullying? Especially when you try to leave and all kinds of “but wait!” messages pop up, along with confusing tricks to make it difficult for you to click out.

I would like to avoid such tasteless tactics and honor the fact that when you share your e-mail with me, it’s a gift. It’s one I promise not to abuse! I’ll never sell my list and will operate in a tried and true e-mailing system with Safe Unsubscribe. I won’t deluge you with so many e-mails, you’ll want put a padlock on your e-mailbox and yank out the “@” key from your keyboard.


What I Will Do

1. Give you discounts for letting our communication be a two-way street. Starting in September, special offers will be exclusive to readers on e-mail list. This is my first gift back.

2. I will make sure my e-mails are worth opening—interesting, colorful, and worth at least 5 seconds of your time to determine whether or not you’re interested in what I’m writing about.

3. Finally, I’ll make it easy to jump off the list if your interests change and you want to hold off on hearing from The Radical Virgo for the time being. We can only process so much. Separating the wheat from the chaff (the good e-mails from the junk) takes a lot of energy. It takes a Virgo to know!


The gift exchange starts here. See the sign up box on the sidebar, top item.


Thanks and warm regards to all,
Joyce


PS – Another reason to sign up: Pre-publication discounts on books. I have a new one coming out this fall!



~~~

Photo Credit: Golden Key with E-mail Symbol © Marinini Dreamstime.com

Paranormal Connection: “Big Change Signs in the Sky”

Announcement

Calling all Radical Readers! Here’s an opportunity to watch “The Radical Virgo” instead of reading her. Dänna Wilberg, host of The Paranormal Connection on Access Cable in Sacramento, asked me to share my thoughts about what on earth is going on in the sky lately. It was great fun, and I wish she had interviewed all of you, too, so I could hear instead of read your thoughts in the Comments! (I really wonder what some of my “regulars” look and sound like!)

Big Change Signs in the Sky airs on Monday, August 2nd at 9 pm PST for Sacramento area locals, on Channel 17 with encore showings Tuesday, August 3 at 1 pm, and Wednesday August 4 at 5 am. All times PDT.


Anyone can watch via the Internet at these same times on Access Cable.

Here’s more information about the show on Danna’s blog, Paranormal Connection. You can also become a fan of the Paranormal Connection on Facebook.

Hope to feel your virtual presence! I’d love to have your feedback, if you watch the show, in the Comments for this post.

May all your changes have silver linings and hidden gold.

~~~

Photo credit: Change Sign © Lipov Dreamstime

Auntie Joyce Talks Turkey About How to Tone Your Mercury

© 2010 by Joyce Mason

All Rights Reserved

Auntie Joyce, known for her funny and pointed astro-aphorisms, just arrived at the door of The Radical Virgo in her gym shorts to talk about Mercury. She thinks we could use the equivalent of a Pilates class to get our Mercs in better shape for this crazy cyber sprint we’re all signed up for, this marathon of Mercurial madness called the Virtual World. (Not to be confused with the Virtuous World.) Auntie says:

Your Mercury has never been more important. If you’re past your midlife transits, chances are you digest more information in a week than you did, as a kid, in a year. This can lead to Information Indigestion and near-permanent dizziness, like you just got off a fast spinning merry-go-round. My theory is that the Information Revolution has required us to morph faster than our physical vehicles can keep up with … but each Mercury sign, if tweaked and toned like your body during a good workout, can work in your favor. Your enhanced Mercury muscles can help you navigate the chaos of a bazillion websites, social networking communities, Skype, e-mail, YouTube, and an onslaught of images groping for your attention at all times. (Whew! Just writing about it wore me out.)

Let’s take a spin around the zodiac and talk about how you can tone up and tune up your Merc.


Tune-Up Your Mercury Every 3,000 Keyboard Miles

(Will someone with Mercury in Aquarius hurry up and invent the keyboard odometer?)

Mercury in Aries - Full speed ahead, your mind is on fire. You read, write, and communicate in all ways quickly. You’ll be the first to try out a new technology or widget. You leave others in your wake. That’s the problem. To make meaningful cyber connections, you need to pick up your head from the Ram “horns down” position and let some of your fiery energy sink to your heart chakra. This means slowing down a little. No problem surfing the Net in overdrive, but when it comes to those people connections on Facebook, Twitter, and My Space, be sure you take the time to make thoughtful comments, to help your fellow cyber buds, and to think of others. You may garner thousands of followers, but if you only give them a glancing hello on the run, do you think they’ll buy your friendship, much less your products or services?

Mercury in Taurus - If Mercury in Aries is Speedy, you’re Pokey. You mull things over. Pretty and luxurious stuff attracts your attention, along with moneymaking schemes. You need a motto or affirmation that commits to a single sentence why you use the internet. Example: I use the Internet to make friends, make sales, and make it with men (or women). Keep coming back to your goals. You’re likely to get lost looking at your Cousin Joe’s vacation photos from a lush, tropical island. You like to click through on those alluring promises of making millions on the Internet. Since you click at the speed of dirt, like most Mercury in Earth signs, you don’t have as much time to waste. Focus! Use the “5 things a day” rule of thumb. Do five things every day that further your goals. Uh, Mercury in Taurus? Get out of that art gallery site. I’m talking to you!

Mercury in Gemini – The Brave New World of Constant Communication was made for you, which is both your blessing and curse. You flit here, there, and everywhere. With your curious mind and tendency to bore easily, you’re in hog heaven on the wide cyber turf of nearly 27 billion websites. But what about depth? To have true knowledge, you have to dig deep into some things to glean the archeology of how they work and to unearth their wisdom. Similarly, if you do dating sites, you probably have wondered how such great mind connections sometimes flop when taken a step further to coffee or another form of in-person meeting. It’s not how much or well you talk or on how many subjects; it’s how well you reach your “subject.” Your quicksilver mind can become easily obsessed with games, chats, and that made-for-Gemini phenomenon, the tweet. Choose one thing in your huge chain of multi-interests and get to know it well. Maybe it’s one social networking site. Maybe Facebook will become your community and ground your lively Mercury, enhancing its greatest gifts--but only if you offer your friends more than chitchat.

Mercury in Cancer – You’re a touchy-feely communicator, and this bodes will for the potential to make deep friendships on the Internet. One thing about cyber connections. When made between mature adults who know how to sense a kindred spirit, this form of “sight unseen” relationship can be among the deepest you’ll ever know. Without physical or cultural context, we communicate online heart to heart and mind to mind. There’s no interference of the unconscious stereotyping we all do but hate to admit. Mercury in Cancer can enjoy that kind of deep friendship if she pays close attention to necessary safety factors: don’t disclose too much, too soon. Be sure your new friend is trustworthy, someone you got to know because of a shared interest or friends. Above all, don’t crab, cry, or mother-hen people on the public wall. Monitor your public persona and don’t reveal too much where everyone can see, even if they are your chosen Facebook friends. Certain levels of intimacy belong in one-on-one e-mails. Don’t cry, Mercury in Cancer. I know you wish you’d have read this sooner. Better late than never!

Mercury in Leo – Like the MGM lion at the beginning of that studio’s movies, your communications come in with a big roar and lots of spotlights on—YOU! Like Gemini, there’s a certain sync between how you naturally communicate and what social networking sites are all about. They make us all stars in our own constellations. However, it’s important to know when enough is enough. After you’ve gleefully seen who has left messages or tweets for you today, take time to remember your Leo generosity and do at least as many back. Yes, it’s All About You here—but it’s All About You for everyone! Your warm way of expressing yourself, your humor, and your command of a crowd will keep your followers in the thousands. Just be sure the applause goes both ways. Applause sends waves of appreciation from heart to heart. (See Getting the Clap.)

Mercury in Virgo - Here’s the thing. I know that many social networking sites with their short status lines were originally set up for close friends and family to catalog their every move. But do you have any concept how boring that is? No one uses the status line for its original purpose, or at least not often. No one cares that you ate Earth-Friendly Granola for breakfast, a scant half cup with skim milk. Not even your mother. Keep details down to a minimum and boring unnecessary ones down to none. Now to open Merc in Virgo’s gift in today’s 24/7 worldwide Internet Café—research! You find things no one else can, and you’re both thorough and accurate. There is precious little of that going around. You’re a blessing and counterbalance to Internet rumors that take on lives of their own. Keep finding the facts. Keep us honest. Keep being right—in a nice way. But, of course, I don’t have to tell Mercury in Virgo to be polite. Virgo must be the Mercury sign of Miss Manners!

In the Little Prince by Saint-Exupery, the fox defines taming as “establishing ties,” that once tamed, two beings need each other. Isn’t that what the Internet and interdependence are ultimately all about?