Month: September 2017

Canadian-born Katherine Ryan is going from strength to strength in her career as a stand-up comic, in ye olden days very much a male domain. Born 30 June 1983 in Sarnia, Canada, she moved to the UK in her 20s, took to open mic as a hobby, built her profile through television panel shows and now has her own Netflix stand-up special. Her act is described as ‘silly, edgy, political and slapstick all at the same time’.

She has her Sun in a feisty conjunction to Mars in Cancer, which is a sign that has a nose for what the public wants; and she has a quirky, adventurous Jupiter Uranus in Sagittarius, which is a comedian’s sign. Her Mercury in chatty Gemini is conjunct the Node, opposition Neptune and trine Saturn Pluto in Libra – so intuitive as well as hard-hitting with a keen sense of the bleaker side of life. She has a talented Half Grand Sextile from Mercury opposition Neptune, sextile Saturn Pluto sextile Venus in Leo so she can mix her pungent comments with light-hearted entertainment and fun.

She’s certainly moving into a period of fast-moving change with her Solar Arc Uranus Jupiter crossing the conjunction to her Sun between 2017 and 2021, which all looks good if unsettled. And a marginally more challenging Solar Arc Saturn Pluto conjunct her Jupiter Uranus between 2019 and 2022.

Actor Keanu Reeves – Point Break and the Matrix movie series – is moving back into the spotlight after a few lean years. His latest movie is Replicas which he co-produced and stars in. Born 2 September 1964 5.41am Beirut Lebanon to an English mother and Chinese Hawaiian father, he had a peripatetic childhood through his mother’s four subsequent marriages after his father abandoned the family when he was three, living in Australia, New York and Toronto.

He has a 12^th house Virgo Sun, Mercury, Uranus, Pluto, with Pluto Uranus conjunct his Ascendant – so definitely a rebel but also quite retiring, preferring to stay off the fame circuit. His Sun Mercury oppose Saturn in Pisces in the hard-working 6^th so he will have a downbeat side to his personality. Balancing that he has a friendly and enthusiastic 11^th house Cancer Moon Mars Venus; with his Moon trine Neptune, sextile Pluto – well tuned into public taste. Jupiter in indulgent Taurus in the 9^th points to an interest in travel and alternative cultures. It’s an exclusively Water Earth chart giving him great inner strength and determination to withstand calamities, as well as a serious, self-protective streak.

Although always regarded as an enduring bankable star, his career ground to a halt in 2008 after a flop blockbuster, The Day the Earth Stood Still. He said in an interview: ” I call that The Day my Career Stood Still. I kind of went to Studio Movie Jail.” What’s interesting astrologically is that was when tr Saturn crossed his Ascendant and disappeared into his low-profile first quadrant, often a less successful time. As tr Saturn neared the end of this seven year phase he got his mojo back in John Wicks; and now with tr Saturn crossing into his 2^nd quadrant, he should be making faster progress. He looks confident in 2017/18 though with some Neptunian dips this year and a few Plutonic frustrations in 2018/19.  2020/2021 will be outstandingly successful as tr Pluto trines his Jupiter.

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Pierre Berge, the business partner and lover for many years of fashion designer Yves St Laurent, has died.

Born 14 November 1930 10.30am on Ile d’Oleron, France, he met YSL when he was 28 and for four decades his commercial talents made them both fabulously rich. The relationship was always fraught since YSL was manic-depressive and had a drink problem. Berge rescued Yves from National Service where he suffered a nervous breakdown, sued Dior, his previous employer who refused to take him back, and with the money set up an independent ready-to-wear boutique – and they never looked back. The romantic relationship broke up but they remained close and just before Yves’ death they contracted a civil partnership.

Berge was a determined Sun Mercury in Scorpio trine a super-confident Jupiter Pluto in Cancer (the favourite fashion sign); even better he had an entrepreneurial, inspirational Fire Grand Trine of Mars in flamboyant Leo trine Venus in colourful Sagittarius trine Uranus in Aries. He had Mars, Moon, Neptune in the 8^th house of joint business finances, so good at handling money, if not always straightforward about his dealings.

Yves St Laurent was born 1 August 1936 7.45pm Oran, Algeria. He had his Sun, Venus and Mercury in entertaining Leo, though his truly difficult Mars Pluto in Cancer opposed a Capricorn Moon, so he would be subject to rages. It would have been a high-octane relationship since Berge’s Jupiter Pluto was conjunct YSL’s angst-ridden Mars Pluto. But Berge would infuse him with confidence and was strong enough to withstand his storms of creative and emotional fury. Berge’s Moon Neptune fell in YSL’s 7^th for a supportive, sympathetic partnership; with Berge’s Venus conjunct YSL’s MC giving him PR skills and an outlet for his artistic talent; and Berge’s Mars was conjunct YSL’s Sun so he’d motivate YSL, no doubt through endless arguments.

Their relationship chart had a mutually supportive composite Sun, Jupiter, Mercury (Venus) conjunction, so a successful combination for both.

The Cassini spacecraft is coming up to its grand finale as it circles nearer Saturn than ever before, diving through the gap between the rings and planet itself, before it runs out of fuel and self-destructs by entering into Saturn’s atmosphere.

It was launched on a lander from Cape Canaveral on 15 October 1997 at 8.43am, which gives it a 12^th house Sun Mercury in Libra opposition Saturn Moon in Aries, with Neptune Uranus in the 3^rd. It’s a productive chart with an inspirational Fire Grand Trine of Saturn Moon in Aries trine Mars (Venus Pluto) in Sagittarius) trine a Leo Midheaven, formed into a Kite by MC opposition Jupiter in scientific Aquarius.

As it nears the end of its mission with one final flourish tr Jupiter is conjunct the Sun Mercury; with tr Pluto square Saturn and tr Saturn approaching the conjunction to the Solar Arc Pluto. A success, then extinction.

All the signs are that Bashar Assad is winning the war in Syria against insurgents, with the assistance of Russia, Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement. Many western countries have ceased calling for him to step down. He was cautious in a recent televised address, saying that after six-and-a-half years of civil war, the “battle continues”, but his forces have pushed to retake territory almost to the border and he is starting to look forward to reconstruction.

In the light of this, it’s curious that his Presidency chart seems under the most devastating and destructive pressures from early 2018 onwards as tr Pluto opposes the Mars, moving across the opposition to Sun/Mars midpoint and then the Sun in 2020/2021.

His own personal chart, 11 September 1965, has a run of swampy, undermining transits of Neptune conjunct his Saturn this year and then opposing his Uranus, Pluto and finally Sun up to late 2020. Thereafter there’ll be a major collision as his Solar Arc Sun, Pluto, Uranus move across the conjunction to his Mars Neptune through from 2022 for several years. Nothing that looks too settled.

A birth time for the Duchess of Cambridge has been kindly supplied by Nathalie Delahaye, obtained by her from close friends some years ago for their wedding. See: http://www.astro.com/astrology/aa_article170904_e.htm

9 January 1982 7pm Reading, UK gives her a Leo Ascendant which fits with a fashion-conscious image and colourful dress sense for Royal occasions. It gives her a late 5^th house party – and children-loving, ambitious Capricorn Sun almost exactly opposite a family-oriented Cancer Moon in the friendly 11^th – so a real Full Moon baby, which suggests she had parents of very different temperaments, almost incompatible. That opposition squares onto Saturn Pluto in Libra adding a bleaker note – rigid, overly-controlled, low self-esteem never feeling she comes up to expectation, especially since Saturn squares both her Sun and Moon.

What’s strange is her 3^rd house of siblings with Mars Saturn Pluto there, suggesting not altogether easy relationships. Yet she has a 4^th house Jupiter in Scorpio, so she’s aware she came from a secure, well-heeled family and will attract the same in adult life. Her Neptune is in her 5^th which often indicates musical or artistic talent and also sensitive children. There could be confusion around children, lack of commitment or a Neptunian air of mystique about them.

Her 6^th house Venus Mercury in Aquarius squares her MC and Jupiter, forming a Fixed T Square – making her fairly stubborn and not good at taking in feedback, though a good long-term planner, emotionally uncompromising, ultimately good at public relations.

Neither she nor William have planets in the other’s 7^th or 1^st houses which would be usual for a marriage. But they do have a strong bond of friendship and have relatively similar charts. His Venus falls in her 10^th so he brings her social status – and an over-complicated everyday schedule. William is a New Moon in Cancer; while she is a Full Moon.  Camilla has her Sun and Moon both in Cancer, while her first husband Andrew Parker Bowles is a Capricorn with a Cancer Sun; and Prince Charles is a Scorpio with a Taurus Moon.  The New Moon tends to be more self sufficient, the Full Moon looking for the Other.

When she married her Solar Arc Sun was sitting on her Descendant; and as she moves through her third pregnancy, her Progressed Moon is going through her 4^th house of home and family until 2021 so her focus will be on her intimate surroundings and those closest to her. What is clear is that she’s in a peculiarly heavy phase with tr Pluto opposing her Moon and conjunct her Sun in 2017/18; as well as being square to her Mars/Pluto and Sun/Moon midpoints; and then tr Pluto will be square her focal point Saturn in 2018/19 – which all looks like a considerable challenge, emotionally and in other ways, and quite a slog since it pulls on all legs of that T Square; with tr Uranus bringing upheavals as it continues to oppose her Pluto into early 2018. So a fairly punishing transformation, not accomplished without a good deal of difficulty and internal conflict. If this time is accurate then she’ll have a sharp change of career direction around 2019 with tr Uranus conjunct her midheaven and afterwards moving through her 10^th, which may be when heavier duties are placed on William.

Almost a third to a half of the population of 1 million Rohingya people have fled Burma into Bangladesh in the face of widespread, burning, killing and rape by Burmese forces and Buddhist youths. The de facto leader, Nobel peace winner Aung San Sui Kyi, is coming in for widespread criticism for her failure to either stop or speak out against the violence. She claims it is ‘fake news’ and the real problem are Rohingya militants. They are a stateless people living in extreme poverty, mainly Muslim but some Hindu, who have been persecuted over decades and refused citizenship. A 2016 UN report described the “devastating cruelty” of Burmese soldiers in a previous crackdown.

Aung San Sui Kyi, 4 January 1948 Yangon with an unverified 12 noon birth time, has a Sun and Uranus in Gemini, with Moon and Neptune in Libra. What stiffens her spine and gave her the endurance to stick out long years of house arrest is a tough-minded Mars in Taurus conjunct Venus, sextile Saturn and square Pluto – that has the capacity to be cruel and ruthless as well as persevering and inordinately stubborn. She looks confident enough in 2017/18 with tr Pluto trine her Jupiter. Where she runs into trouble will be 2019/2020 when tr Uranus is conjunct her Mars and then square her Pluto, which will bring major upheavals and disruptions.

When she was released from house arrest the tr Uranus Jupiter in Pisces was conjunct her Descendant and square her MC, so the birth time may be feasible.

Of the Harmonics which are notable. Her 10^th Harmonic – ‘the seed of the rise and fall’ has a stressed Yod linking Mars and Pluto. The 11^th Harmonic – a difficult number to live up to, can be idealistic but also obsessive, fanatical and unreasonable. It warns against hidden trials, disloyalty and betrayal from others. And her 18^th Harmonic – it gives strength, but also conflicts and enemies, “war & revolution”, which links together Mars, Saturn, Pluto as does her 9H. (See post Aug 29 2017)

Both the Burma charts – 1 April 1937 12 am and 4 January 1948 4.20am Rangoon – are relatively similar. Sun in aspect to Mars; Saturn to Pluto; and Jupiter to Pluto. Martial, bleak, controlling and confident.

The 1937 chart will be hard hit by the tr Saturn Pluto conjunction in 2019 as it clamps down on the Jupiter in Capricorn opposition Pluto, with rebellions from tr Uranus on its Return. The 1948 chart looks financially undermined in 2018 with tr Neptune square the 1^st house Jupiter and a directionless tr Neptune opposition the MC as well. It’s 2^nd house financial Capricorn Sun Mercury will pick up the deprived tr Saturn conjunction by 2019.

The 1948 date and time were supposedly picked by astrologers as auspicious. Heaven knows why. There’s not much to recommend it as a start chart.

Mexico has suffered an 8.2 earthquake, the strongest in a century, as Hurricane Irma and a couple of others following behind lay a trail of devastation across the Caribbean.

Mexico, 15 Sept 1810 11pm Dolores Hidalgo, had the August Solar Eclipse, like Texas, conjunct the midheaven; and their Mars in Leo was also being rattled. At the moment the tr North Node is closely conjunct the Mexico Mars; with the tr Sun opposition the 10^th house Pluto; with tr Saturn moving to square the Mexico Virgo Sun within three weeks as they mop up the damage.

Charts for the Caribbean Islands are difficult to pin down given their complicated history. But Puerto Rico, 25 July 1952 1.36pm San Juan, which missed the eye of the storm have a shocking, disruptive Solar Arc Mars opposition Uranus exactly now. They also have Mercury Pluto in last decan Leo catching the Eclipse.

Irma is heading for Florida, 3 March 1845, which, like Texas, has a Pisces Sun being directly undermined by tr Neptune; with a ‘collision’ Solar Arc Mars square Sun still in orb; and its Mercury Venus Neptune in Aquarius were opposed by the Leo Eclipse so a high-stress time.

Kate Millett, the feminist writer whose Sexual Politics was a catalyst for progress in women’s rights to abortion and equality has died. She was a fervent campaigner for human rights, civil rights, peace and the anti-psychiatry movement and was described as ‘difficult, brutally honest, and tenacious’.

Born 14 September 1934 7.40pm St Paul Minnesota, she had an alcoholic and violent father, who abandoned the family when she was 14. Despite her childhood traumas, she graduated at university with honours and a wealthy aunt paid for her to attend Oxford University. Through an academic career she grew to become a leader of the second-wave feminism.

She had a rebellious Uranus in Taurus on her Ascendant, so was custom-built to upset the status quo; with a hard-working and communicative 6^th house Virgo Sun and Mercury in Libra. Her 4^th house describing her childhood and relationship with her feared father had Pluto on one leg of a Yod in sextile to her Sun inconjunct Saturn in Aquarius in her 11^th – in some ways bleak, but she rose to the challenge of that Yod to make a serious difference out in society. Her performing 5^th house had Mars in Leo and Venus Neptune in Virgo, so she undoubtedly appreciated entertaining an audience. Her North Node in Aquarius would also give her the impetus to devote herself to humanitarian causes.

She would not have an easy emotional life with her controlling 4^th house Pluto square Uranus opposition Jupiter; or her 8^th house Moon in Sagittarius trine Mars – she’d be domineering at times, overly secretive and inclined to blow a fuse when crossed. But she certainly created a few waves. Her leaving-a-legacy-for-history 17^th harmonic is strong; as are her two creative harmonics, 5^th and the inspirational 7^th.