Hey Folks <3
As a part of the class I’m currently teaching, Charting the Artist’s Way, I’m providing the students with fine-grained, daily play-by-plays of each week’s Astrology. It’s something I love doing informally for myself, and I’ve recognized that I’d like to be doing it more regularly for a bigger audience. Thus - today, I’m starting a test-run of doing these weekly forecasts for my whole email list and launching a subscription capacity on this Substack for $8/mo (or $2 per weekly forecast). My goal by the end of these upcoming 8 weeks, around the Summer Solstice, is to have $150/mo in subscriptions, which is about 19 subscribers.
I’m also renaming this Substack to Cosmic Cartography, imagining it to be a blend of strategic planning to navigate the archetypal environment and more personal, mytho-poetic musings. Many of these will likely take note-form, rather than being long, comprehensive analyses with full sentences. I’ll give suggestions for activities, heads-ups about when things might be testy or tricky, and highlight moments where rest or being low-key is encouraged. I’m also hoping to integrate more of my artistic color experiments and to foray more substantially into sharing my thoughts on movement and embodiment in relation to Astrology. I’m planning on releasing these weekly on Friday or Saturday, but that may adjust as I get into the groove. I hope they help you plan, navigate, and feel into the dreamy magic of life, and I hope you support my work!
So - without further ado:
This week, we’re between Eclipses, having had a total Solar Eclipse on Wednesday night and heading into a lunar eclipse on May 5th. The dragon is out and about! Mercury has also gone retrograde - this week, they’ll really start picking up steam on whatever projects of review, reworking, and recalibrating are warranted. In Taurus, this is likely to do with navigation of resources - time, money, and energy, as well as a clarification of your values. Jupiter is about to enter Taurus in the next few weeks, so you might think about this as a time to prepare for an opportunity, kinda cleaning up before a benefactor arrives.
Why launch something at the start of a Mercury Rx, you might ask? Well, first, I’m clear that this is something I want to at least try. By the end of the retrograde, I think I’ll get a quick, clear view of how it’s all functioning. Fail fast, as they say. Or succeed quick! As a dragon-kin, being born just before an eclipse, I also feel this is an appropriate direction of the dragon energy in my life.
Disclaimer: these notes are by no means exhaustive of the full range of Astrological assessments that can be derived from the aspects at play - hopefully, at the very least, these give you a sense for the archetypal flow of things, and therefore you’ll have more space for freedom and creativity in responding to them. It’s also worth emphasizing that, for the lunar aspects which are noted exactly here, there will be a bell curve wherein the aspect will be felt, extending several hours on either side - a taste of an aspect can definitely be felt 5 or 6 hours later, even if it’s peak, noticeable intensity can be pinpointed.
Moon in Gemini - Sat AM (5am CST) till Monday 2pm CST - a lighthearted, chatty, curious time. Seeking stimulation, connection, conversation. Looking for humor and magic. Wanting to get moving, tinkering..
Sat, 2PM, - Moon squares Saturn - could feel important to get some serious work done of some sort, through a perspective of play. A day to explore/test limits, challenge oneself in a fun manner. Working on solid, structural things, serious subject matters from a lighthearted perspective. Maybe get work done for Monday AM.
Sun AM, 8am CST - Moon conj Venus. Morning eroticism, creativity, artistry. Romantic and social dynamics in mind/at heart. Venus in Gemini is bubbly, festive, fun-loving and seeking. A morning for an extravagant breakfast. A reason to get to bed early on Saturday night.
VoC Monday AM starting at 7:30 CST. Moon enters Cancer at 2pm, staying till 1:29am Thursday.
Could be a very dreamy, floaty Monday morning, after a square with Neptune at 7:30 and then the Moon goes Void of Course. Probably not the best time to get hard work done. Could be a great time to be chill, restful. Effort will feel easier after 2pm, although a sorta cozy mood will still predominate for the next few days. With the Moon in Cancer on a Monday, it’s an especially rich time to do anything Moon-related: cleaning up house, connecting with family and friends, tending your soft self and watery inner world.
Void of Course Moons are the time after the Moon has made her last aspect in a sign and before she enters a new one - it’s typically a time period that’s quite low-key, and it’s advised to not start anything new or expect strong effort from yourself during these periods (which can be super short or last all day). These Void of Course periods are really nice to track, and will be central parts of these forecasts.
Tuesday AM, Sun sextiles Saturn. A somewhat serious vibe, which is actually present all week to a certain degree. A good time to be getting into a groove with your Saturn in Pisces rhythms, practices, rituals, uniting the spiritual, imaginative, and contemplative with the fundamental structures of our lives.
Tuesday Evening, 10pm - Moon conjunct Mars. More evening heat/fire. Could feel especially volatile/vulnerable. Probably a good afternoon to get a bit of a sweat in, otherwise you might have trouble getting to sleep. Fiery eroticism, late-night creativity, or watching something like sports might also be great, if a little disruption won’t rock your ship.
Early Wednesday AM (1:45 am) - the Moon sextiles Uranus - could look like an unsettled moment in the middle of the night, or some intuitions arising from your night side through dreams. Hopefully they open you to new ideas and possibilities, but they may be a little shocking.
Wendesday PM, 4:08pm - a square between Jupiter and the Moon: a friction between desires to expand and move towards strong growth and a need for coziness/a coherent container.. Appease both by getting yourself comfy and working on something at the edge of your comfort zone.
Wednesday night, 6:40pm - Moon trine Neptune, then goes Void of Course- a time for dreaminess, openness, softness, rest. Watch out for disassociative tendencies/a temptation to blur your consciousness. Spacious music, a beloved show, favorite meditative or artistic practices could all be great. Probably not a time to expect to get much done.
Moon in Leo: Thursday 1:29am - Saturday 1:58pm: a time for creativity, noble, brave, generative action, a childlike spirit - could turn into childish drama.
Moon square the Sun, 4:19pm Thursday (the 1st quarter moon): a challenge to be moving ahead with the impulses/themes that are arising this lunar cycle, like sprouts breaking above ground. The Taurus/Leo square - taking pride and finding joy in one’s sensual existence. A fiery character that has sustaining fuel and a sustainable expression (the challenge of the fixed signs). Could feel like a challenging day, could feel like a time to make a breakthrough. Sustainable effort encouraged!
Friday, 4:40am - Moon square Mercury - a good morning to be writing, challenging your thought patterns, reworking ideas, and listening to what had been stirring over the last week of Mercury’s retrograde and is ready to start being more actively reworked. Mercury is getting moving into their retrograde at this point - time to listen into what’s going on and cooperate with the process.
Friday, 2:25 pm - Moon square Uranus - the potential to be rigid in face of needing some change or adjustment. The resistance would likely be egoic - being unwilling to metamorphose one’s sense of self. But - also a potential of a revitalization here, riding a wave of excitement/change. A good time to experiment with new potentials of self.
Friday evening, 6:41pm - Moon sextile Venus - a romantic evening on Venus’ day! Especially with Venus in Gemini and the Moon in Leo - a time for a festive evening, to do something fun, lively, creative, social. Probably something to make plans/clear out space for. Trace back to Sunday morning for further inspiration.
Saturday, 5:52am, Moon trines Jupiter, then goes VoC till 1:58pm. Could be a rush of enthusiasm to start the morning, but probably shouldn’t expect it to last - probably best to do something small but meaningful - getting the blood moving, keeping things in motion, making small progress on some Jupiterian quest, then let yourself really relax for a few hours.
Moon in Virgo: Saturday 1:58pm till Tuesday, 1:08am. A time to organize, to operate smoothly, to keep things functioning well, working on small, detailed tasks, assessing what’s going well and what’s not, focusing on your routines, helping someone.
Sunday, 12:41am, Moon opposite Saturn - (therefore able to be felt Saturday PM). A serious, potentially heavy mood. A time to bring your commitments and ideals into smaller steps and practices. Saturn in Pisces - a sort of spiritual seriousness - could be a great evening for reverence, reverie, conscience-consulting…
Sunday, 10am - Moon trine Sun. 2pm - Moon trine Mercury. Each of these a fairly easier, lighter aspect. Likely to be energy present for simplicity and softness. Cleaning up, working on small projects, getting out and about and moving, running errands, having small conversations, writing.. Especially a softer morning - but with Mercury Rx, there might be things that require attention grabbing you in the afternoon.
Have a great week! Of course, if there’s anything else I can do to help, you know where to find me: astrologyally.com
Charlie