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November certainly has been a big month for all of us. Politics notwithstanding, we have had to endure the wrath of Venus retrograde in Scorpio that began October 5th and finally completes on Friday, November 16th at 2:50 AM Pacific time.

There is a window betwixt the end of Venus retrograde and the onset of Mercury retrograde at 5:34 PM that same day, where you can take care of all of your legal, travel, stock trade, investment and other financial transactions (not to mention the safe exchange of secrets). We won’t have another Venus retrograde in Scorpio for eight years.  So, to be clear, buy stuff, sign stuff and write stuff Friday the 16th between 2:50 AM and 5:34 PM, Pacific standard time.

Venus runs retrograde for five weeks; two more than Mercury’s three weeks in retrograde. Two more weeks damage control. Venus retrograde can really torture those who have the Sun, the Moon or their rising in Taurus or Libra.

This particular retrograde has been in the sign of Scorpio creating havoc with banks, investments, secret love affairs, taxes, self-control and hidden enemies. Friday the 16th, the day Venus goes direct, seems worthy of celebration … at least an Aphrodite martini*!

Mercury will go retrograde at 5:34 PM on Friday, the 16th of November in the sign of Sagittarius. It will be positioned 90 degrees away from Neptune in Pisces, which is also retrograde. There is more connection to these two planets than there appears at first.

If you like lots of astrological detail, read this paragraph. If not, skip down.

Prior to the discovery of Neptune (September 23, 1846), the planet Jupiter ruled both Sagittarius and Pisces. And modern astrologers still consider the original planets. those that ancient astrologers could see, as primary rulers. Mars still rules Aries and Scorpio. Uranus rules both Capricorn and Aquarius. Jupiter rules Sagittarius and Pisces.

Mercury goes retrograde in Jupiter’s sign of Sagittarius while squaring (forming a 90 degrees angle or aspect) the planet that replaced Jupiter in its sole rulership of Pisces. Mercury naturally rules the sign that holds the polarity to Sagittarius: Gemini.

So, what happens when you put Mercury, Jupiter and Neptune energies together in a pressure cooker. If left unconscious, there tend to be information leaks, plumbing leaks, identity theft, insomnia from nightmares, lies, deception, flare-ups in institutions such as mental wards and prisons, contagion in hospitals, broken promises, false claims of ownership, green-lighting of bad scripts for film production, shattered dreams, violation of 12 step commitments, concert musicians forgetting their music, and an inability to distinguish one’s own feelings from those of another, not to mention an overall sense of confusion and loss of direction.

Great things can come about by making these dynamics more conscious in yourself. Mercury in Sagittarius wants us to have an open mind and more humor. Neptune wants surrender, compassion and forgiveness.

Some possible remedies are meditation, visualization, self-hypnosis, prayer, floating in a sensory isolation tank, daydreaming, making a list of who to forgive and then sending them and yourself true forgiveness, yoga, stretching, cycling, golf, belly dance, comedy, dancing in the living room, making time to explore great music, watching films and gazing at the ocean.

Mercury will stop provoking Neptune as of November 19th, but because it was present at the onset of the retrograde, we will feel the energy of these two at odds with each other for the duration of the retrograde. This is not a good time to make travel plans, submit college applications or change religions – so be sure to do all these things before the retrograde.

Mercury comes out of retrograde on Thursday, December 6th at 1:22 pm Pacific time. As it goes direct (comes out of retrograde), it will join the relatively new planet Chiron (discovered 1977) and the North Node in the configuration of a grand trine.

A grand trine is an equilateral triangle with either a luminary, a planet or one of the nodes at each point.

The North Node is about progress in spiritual evolution. It is a calculated point of where the Moon’s orbit of the Earth bisects the Earth’s orbit of the Sun.

Chiron concerns healing.

Mercury in Scorpio is about the optimal utilization of our resources, often through intense communications, research and delving to the core of important matters.

Chiron will be most interested in healing humanity’s fear of pain and its unconscious belief that we have been forsaken by God and therefore at the mercy of an unfair, unjust and inequitable world. Rather than retreat into our shells, Chiron encourages us to grow more comfortable with our vulnerabilities, to expose our sensitive natures and to lighten up on scary topics.

The North Node will help us to overcome inner pride and gain greater self-acceptance through ownership of our failures as they contributed to our greatness. We will see all the ways in which we make life harder than it needs to be and release those tendencies. This particular ending of a retrograde is globally healing.

Jupiter will enter its own sign of Sagittarius tomorrow, Thursday, November 8th at 4:38 AM Pacific time. As a result of Jupiter’s benevolence (unless you are a Gemini, Virgo or Pisces person), you can expect your life to become easier, more adventurous and prosperous. Jupiter will remain in the sign of Sagittarius until December 2nd, 2019. This is an especially favorable transit for those with their Sun, Moon or ascendant in Aries, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius or Aquarius.

Neptune has been retrograde since June 18th this year in its own sign of Pisces and most of us have experienced the accompanying vagueness, loss of movement, sacrifice, stagnation, sensitivity to mold, increase in anxiety, sleeplessness, erroneous diagnoses and increased inclination towards addictions. Others have dealt with more serious ramifications of this retrograde in the form of religious persecution, floods, typhoons, setbacks in prison reform, and toxic algae.

Fortunately, Neptune will be going direct on Saturday November 24th at 5:09 pm Pacific time which means all of the above will turn around and progress will resume, especially concerning the subjects of sleep, music, interior design, film, water as a resource, plumbing, mold elimination and mental health in general.

Retrograde Uranus in Aries will square the Nodes (a harsh 90 degree aspect) as of November 17th through December 5th. Uranus’ agenda is pure rebellion and it seeks to overthrow the status quo and interrogate authority, the establishment, the old guard, and heads of corporations. This is uncomfortable, but ultimately liberating for everyone. Uranus often seems like a disaster as we experience it, but never fails to reveal a silver lining as it completes the transit. As you may surmise, Uranus has been very busy with politics of late.

*A fortified wine cocktail comprised of rich cream sherry, both dry and sweet vermouth and some orange bitters.