COSMIC WEATHER REPORT

As April begins the Sun is in the fire sign Aries, the first sign of the zodiac. It's springtime, a time of energy, action, and new beginnings. This is a great time to take the initiative, start new projects, and assert your desires. Avoid displays of ego, selfishness or impulsiveness. The planet Pluto turns retrograde* on April 2. Each of the planets occasionally appears to stop its forward motion, become stationary, and then backtrack its orbit for a while. At the times when a planet is making an apparent change of direction, its energy seems to be magnified. Pluto is the planet of deep and powerful emotions and forces for change, and Pluto "stations" are often times of upheaval. Mercury, Venus, Mars and Uranus are in sensitive water signs as April begins, though Mercury and Venus will enter fiery, impulsive Aries by Saturday night, April 5. The energy planet Mars, "ruling planet" for Aries, is in vulnerable, defensive, reactive Cancer. Many of us may feel the impulsiveness of the fire sign energies, but also feel vulnerable and defensive. Three planets are in the practical earth signs, supporting channeling our energy into practical projects leading to tangible results. By April 20 the Sun and four planets will be in earth, helping us be patient, practical, and steady, but also stubborn. Two helpful planetary alignments affect us over much of the month. The sextile of Jupiter and Uranus, described in the March forecast, remains within 1 degree orb all month, supporting easy change and innovation. Saturn will be in positive trine alignment with Pluto from April 10 or so through the remainder of the month. Saturn represents stability, Pluto change. Their being in positive aspect means that we are more easily able to make steady efforts toward positive change and evolution. Both planets are in earth signs; we are able to use this opportunity in practical ways for tangible results. New Moon comes on April 5. Not only are the Sun and Moon in fiery Aries, they are also square to Mars in Cancer. Many of us will feel quite a bit of volatility as this new lunar cycle begins. Full Moon two weeks later is also rather intense, as the Moon will be in Scorpio, and there is an energizing alignment between Venus, Mars and Jupiter. Normally we get a New Moon and a Full Moon in each sign. This year we have two Full Moons in Scorpio. The Moon is in the very first degree of Scorpio at the Full Moon on April 20, and it is in the last degree of Scorpio at Full Moon on May 19. WEEK BY WEEK: Week of March 30-April 5: Be mindful on Sunday of the continued impulsiveness and sensitivity of the Sun square Mars. Pluto will turn retrograde* on Wednesday. Pluto stations are usually times of intensity, when our deep issues are being stirred. Even if you are not being strongly affected, others are going through transitions and crises. Also on Wednesday, Mercury enters Aries after its sojourn in dreamy Pisces. We're ready to state our views in clear but sometimes tactless terms, and let the chips fall where they may. This could add to the intensity of the Pluto station with its deep stirrings. Diplomacy and forethought will be handy tools at this point. This is the quiet time before New Moon, which arrives Saturday evening. Use the end of the week to further any changes coming up with the Pluto station, and to clean up loose ends for a new start at New Moon. New Moon arrives at 9:55 p.m. MDT Saturday evening. Venus has been in the late degrees of dreamy Pisces all week and enters Aries a little before midnight on Saturday. We'll be more direct and assertive about our wants and needs over the coming few days. Week of April 6-12: This Sunday might be a good day for relaxation. The Moon will be void of course** all day, from 9:02 a.m. until 7:20 p.m. MDT. If you have projects for the day, get them started before 9:02 a.m. Venus will be square Pluto on Sunday. Relationship issues will pop to the surface for some of us, and many of us will experience glitches in social occasions and arrangements. We'll be better able to get down to practical matters and achieve tangible results on Monday. On Tuesday the Moon will be v.o.c.** again, from 9:13 a.m. until 7:27 p.m. Important projects are best gotten under way early. Arguments, impulsiveness and exaggeration come up for some of us Wednesday and Thursday. The communication planet Mercury is in fiery Aries, in square to Mars, which is in the sensitive water sign Cancer. (Translation: People may express themselves in an impulsive or aggressive way, possibly as a result of feeling vulnerable and defensive.) At the same time, the Sun, also in Aries, is squaring Jupiter, planet of expansiveness, optimism, and exaggeration. You may feel inspired and enthusiastic and jump into a new project or endeavor. Do the feasibility check, including being sure you have time in your schedule for the follow through. Both aspects are exact Thursday morning. Thursday is the third day this week to have a long period during which the Moon is void of course, in this case from 10:11 a.m. until 8:43 p.m. MDT. All day Friday and on Saturday until about 12:30 p.m. MDT, the Moon is "on course" in Cancer. Connect with your community, nurture your projects, spend time with family, take care of your home and garden. At 12:32 p.m. the Moon goes void again, until past midnight. Take the afternoon and evening off to simply relax and enjoy home, family and community, or to nurture yourself. Week of April 13-19: It appears this week may be a bit less volatile than the one previous. Sunday is graced with a sextile of the Sun to gentle, empathetic Neptune; and a square of Mercury to Jupiter. That aspect, exact around noon, can indicate optimism, positive communication, and voluminous talk. There's a tendency to exaggerate, to be overly optimistic, and to talk a lot about all the wonderful inspirations, ideas and possibilities that seem to flow easily at this time. On Monday Mercury is in positive sextile to Neptune, helping us be particularly insightful, inspired and subtle. Tuesday and Wednesday are good days for getting things done, as the Moon is in meticulous and practical Virgo, which helps us direct our energy for concrete results. On Wednesday the Sun and Mercury are conjunct. This is a day of high energy and lively communication. As these bodies are in Aries, we tend to be quite confident and sure of ourselves and our ideas. We may be long on conviction and short on objectivity. Thursday begins with a long Moon v.o.c. period commencing right at midnight and running until 4:10 p.m. MDT. Mercury is at the end of Aries, which may mean that there is a lot of talk and ideas without concrete accomplishment. Mercury enters practical Taurus around 3 p.m. MDT, the Moon goes on course an hour later, and we're good to go, particularly since Mercury is coming into a "grand trine" alignment with Saturn and Pluto, which are trine one another. This alignment creates a synergy of thought, focus, and practicality that supports focused and disciplined mental work. Late afternoon and evening Thursday and all of Friday are great times for any type of planning, analysis, negotiation, or other work demanding careful concentration. Saturday morning the Sun is at the very end of Aries, and this is rather similar to the Moon void of course, as the transit of the sign is just about spent. The Sun enters Taurus at 10:51 a.m. MDT. We are ready to settle in and be calm, patient, practical and productive for the coming thirty days. But first comes Full Moon, in the wee hours of Sunday morning. Week of April 20-26: Full Moon comes early Sunday morning, 4:25 a.m. MDT. .Full Moon always presents us with Sun and Moon in signs opposite one another in the zodiac and very opposite in nature. At this Full Moon, the Sun is in steady Taurus; the Moon is in Scorpio, sign of deep emotion. You may be tempted to let go emotionally, but also want to remain composed and steady. You may be tempted to make changes or to confront the issues in your life, but hesitate to cause upset and loss of Taurean stability and comfort. The Sun and Mercury are in a beneficial "grand trine" alignment with Saturn and Pluto, meaning that changes can be made and deep transformation effected without undue upset. Also at Full Moon, Venus is in a "t-square" alignment with Mars and Jupiter, which are opposite one another. This combination can be quite ebullient and full of high spirits, optimism and good times. It may also show up as impulsiveness, bumptiousness, or emotional or financial extravagance, if it operates unchecked. Tempered with a bit of common sense and good timing, this energy might boost you to success in one arena or another. Size up the situation before you step out there. On Sunday and Monday the Sun makes the beneficial grand trine to Pluto and Saturn, with Sun exactly aligning with Pluto around the noon hour on Sunday, and Sun trine Saturn exact around dawn on Monday. We should be capable of quite a bit of focus, discipline, and resourcefulness on these days. On Monday and Tuesday Mars is trine Uranus, supporting innovation and taking revolutionary steps in our lives. Venus is exactly square Mars and Jupiter on Wednesday, fueling boldness and confidence, which can manifest in our being demonstrative, enthusiastic, confident, and also potentially bumptious, extravagant, even arrogant. Be modest, and use a bit of judgment. This may be the perfect time to step out and live at a new level. Just be realistic. Mars is opposite Jupiter all week, with the influence strongest on Wednesday and Thursday. This is an aspect of confidence, good timing, and successful action. There is the potential to overextend, overexert or be overbearing, but with a bit of common sense this alignment should work out well. We should be feeling optimistic, and physical energy levels should be good. (Watch a tendency to be a little accident prone, as in our confidence and enthusiasm we can get ahead of ourselves.) Friday and Saturday are a bit more sedate, with a gentle sextile of Venus to Neptune, exact Friday morning, enhancing empathy and consideration for others. On Friday and Saturday the Moon is in Capricorn, helping us stay grounded and steady in our efforts. Week of April 27-May 3: This is the week Saturn turns direct, and many of us will be dealing with important issues that may seem very weighty. This is the time to take hold and work things through, though Saturn stations can feel very daunting as we step up to them. It may seem as if all our issues are coming up at once, and that may be the case. Just step right in, in any case. The only way around is through. Depending on Saturn's current influence in your chart, this may simply feel like a good time to get down to work. Saturn may be more noticeable in the lives of those around you. Sunday begins with the Moon void of course** for several hours, from 8:18 a.m. until 3:27 p.m. MDT. The time is well used for rest, meditation, and contemplation. Mental activity is enhanced as Mercury makes positive alignments with innovative Uranus on Sunday, and with expansive Jupiter, which helps us see the big picture, on Monday. Confusion or miscommunication could enter the picture later on Monday and in the early hours Tuesday as Mercury squares nebulous Neptune. We're back on track by Tuesday afternoon, when Mercury sextiles energetic Mars. Venus is at the very end of Aries on Tuesday. We might feel rather impatient with relationships and social niceties. Venus will enter loving Taurus early Wednesday, restoring harmony. Venus trines Pluto and Saturn on Wednesday and Thursday, making a "grand trine." We are able to evolve our relationships and interactions in constructive ways, without disruption. As Venus, Saturn and Pluto are in earth signs, some of this synergy may show up as progress in our material affairs. Saturn turns direct Friday evening. You may be dealing with important issues, or simply working along and perhaps finding that progress is slow but steady. Mercury is at the end of slow, deliberate Taurus, further slowing the action, until 2:00 p.m. MDT on Friday, when it enters sprightly Gemini. But not so fast. Mercury is square to limiting Saturn on Saturday. Communications and transactions are slowed and require deliberate and conscious effort. We're right before New Moon, making this a time for resting and regrouping. Make it an easy weekend. Take time to finish projects, relax a bit, and plan for the new cycle that begins with New Moon on Monday. May Preview: For most of the month we will have at least four planets in the practical, down-to-earth earth signs. On May 2 Saturn will turn direct.* Saturn stations are typically times when we are dealing with the realities of life, facing the truth about our situations and doing something about them. Jupiter will turn retrograde* on the 9th, bringing our expansive energies to maximum flower before a time of regrouping over the next four months. On May 26, both Mercury and Neptune will turn retrograde. With Neptune at its turning point, or "station," you may notice that some situations are rather nebulous and open to multiple interpretations. The challenge is to see clearly rather than be lulled by illusion and rationalization. Mercury will be retrograde* until June 19, slowing down communications and daily affairs. The two turning retrograde at the same time may really lead to some confusion, miscommunication and general foul-ups. Both these events can signal a time for meditation or turning inward, and that might be the thing to do. *Regular readers of this column and others familiar with astrology know that all the planets occasionally appear to backtrack or "retrograde" in their orbits. A planet will slow down, appear stationary, and then appear to slip backward for a period of a few weeks or months before again appearing stationary and then resuming apparent forward motion. Of course the planet is not actually reversing direction but only appears to do so due to its motion relative to Earth's. Nonetheless, we do feel the effects of these shifts. When a planet is at its "station" or stationary point, the planet's energies are emphasized; when retrograde, its energies are more internalized. The cycle looks like this. The planet is going forward, and affairs of the planet are moving forward normally. As the planet slows and turns stationary, those matters related to the planet become emphasized in our lives, and significant developments may take place. Then those matters ebb in our outer lives for a while, as we internally digest those developments and realizations and integrate them into our lives during the retrograde. Later, the planet again goes stationary, coming back to the forefront of our awareness, and then "turns direct," resuming apparent forward motion as we again move forward with those matters related to the planet. Mercury takes a little three-week retrograde cycle approximately every four months. Our daily affairs slow down and get complicated. Communications get tangled, computers flake out, automobiles break down and travel arrangements fall into disarray, a comedy of scheduling mishaps occur, and things pretty much slow to a crawl. It's really a great time to slow down and regroup, to finish projects and catch up on unfinished business. Just try not to launch your big project, or sign on the dotted line for a new contract, job, car, or whatever unless you really need to. Try to get those things moving before the retrograde, and shepherd things patiently along during the retro cycle, knowing that some things may not completely come together until Mercury turns direct. If you are making significant moves during the Mercury retrograde period, just know that some things will have to be straightened out after the direct. **Moon void of course occurs when the Moon has made all the aspects or alignments it will make while in the sign it's in, and is just "marking time" without real momentum. The Moon goes through a sign in 2 to 2 ? days, so consequently it also goes v.o.c. every couple of days as well, sometimes for only a few minutes or more likely hours, but sometimes for more than a day. Things initiated during a v.o.c. tend to meander off and arrive at a destination other than what was planned. Void of course periods are well used in completing tasks or doing routine chores, or in resting, meditating, and planning for future activities. I teach astrology classes in Albuquerque (available by tape if you're out of town) and will be starting a beginning class soon. I am available for personal consultations and forecasts, either in person or by telephone. I also offer comprehensive computer chart services, providing charts, transit calendars, and computer interpretations. I invite your feedback on this column and am available to answer simple astrology questions. Be in touch! Please feel free to share this forecast with your friends. Just be sure to include my name and contact information: Sandy Bryan, Astrologer (505) 255-5001 email: sstars@thuntek.net web: www.thuntek.net/~sstars/sandy.htm Happy Life!

Copyright 1998-2006 Sandy Bryan