Well, it looks like a better year, doesn't it??? No heavy duty Saturn, Pluto, Uranus transits. ....Saturn opposite Uranus at the end of the year seems to be the only fly in the ointment. Yet there are planets that are close. Uranus has had the asteroid, Pallas, close, most of 2007. It's still there til March. Uranus is the higher octave of Mercury, indicating a genius mentality when aspected positively, and Pallas is all mental - the goddess was born of Zeus' head, so she's not in touch with emotion - this conjunction will see children born at this time genius in the field of computers and math.....Uranus rules computers and Pallas rules the ability to think in patterns and put things together others wouldn't see.

At the same time, Chiron is keeping close on the heels of Neptune....in fact it will do so til 2014! Chiron is the wounding and Neptune is illusion/delusion....even sabotage sometimes. How are these two going to work? They are in Aquarius - and will move to Pisces before they split up an opportunity to move beyond our limitations. The last time Chiron and Neptune met up, it was 1945. I've heard from people who were children in that time that they were fed some propaganda of sorts from their parents, which, since they were their parents, they believed, and built their life on. It behooves nurturing parents of children born in these years to watch for negative programming by someone. It would depend on which house it's in, who the probably culprit might be.

When Saturn opposes Uranus in November, it will also oppose Pallas, of course, as well. Those who think within the box are not going to cotton to people who think outside the box....and so far outside the box most of us can't comprehend the genius (sort of like "Charlie (David Krumholtz) " on "Numb3rs").

During the first few months of the year, Mars flits back and forth opposing Pluto before it moves on. Mars is the god of war, and the previous ruler of Scorpio before Pluto was discovered. It's usually a time of dark forces. Mars also represents cars, and Pluto is anything with an RE before it, so REpair works here. Keep your car repaired. ...there are 3 types of policemen. #1 is the Virgo type who wants to serve and protect, #2 is the Saturn type where they want you to follow the rules and stay within the box, and #3 are the Pluto types that want dominion and control.....the latter is more likely to be behind the bush just waiting for you to make a mistake.....so watch your p's and q's (literally! that's shorthand for pints and quarts!!) and don't give them anything they can complain about.

Pluto enters Capricorn in January, with Jupiter nearby, and then Jupiter takes off, staying in Cap for the year, to make the ingress a bit more easy. Saturn starts off the year aspectinig a number of planets, and close to opposing Uranus, so we can feel a little of its non-appreciation of Uranus' hippie qualities at that time. In June, Saturn gets close to trining Pluto again, as it did in August of 2007. In July, Saturn and Pluto are still in a pretty close trine, but Mars joins them, conjuncting Saturn. As we saw with the bridge collapse, even a trine isn't good with Mars in the picture.

As we start into the summer months, Uranus is starting to move in to square Pluto, which it won't do til June of 2012, but it'll be hanging in close proximity the whole time. When Uranus conjuncted Pluto in 1966, it started the whole hippie, free love, uncommitted relationships, and being more open in sexual expression.....which brought in Roe v. wade, in 1973. In the coming years, culminating in 2012, we'll probably see more individualism again, and the people standing up to power.

For you Aries:

Jupiter trines Saturn from the 10th house of career/dad to the 6th of work. Work, work, work. But while Saturn keeps your nose to the grindstone it can also be a time of learning so that you are prepared to accept a career opportunity.

Jupiter sextiles Uranus from the 10th house of career to the 12th of the hidden. Uranus is unpredictable and may pull your mate's job out from under. But you should be getting some recognition in your own career, so you can keep things together til something changes.

Jupiter sesquiquadrates Saturn from the 10h to the 6th. As the faster planet moves away from the trine at 120 degrees, it creates a sesqui at 135 degrees....a little blip on the radar screen to see if you handled the positive energy right.

Saturn Opposes Uranus/Pallas, from the 6th of work to the 12th of the hidden. This is your job vs. mate's job. In this instance, Saturn is demanding more and more of you in the work area, while sudden changes are happening in your mate's. It's also a time when dreams can be very revealing.

Jupiter inconjuncts Neptune from the 10th to the 11th.....Neptune's dissolve can find your dad or boss coming to your rescue just when it's needed .

THE OUTLYING PLANETS

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are called the 'major' planets because they move slowly. They are the 'directors' of our play of life, and dictate the set and the scenery and outline the major direction of the play.....they would be the ones who write the 'bible' for soap operas - the long range direction of the stories. Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus and Mars, on the other hand, are the "personal" planets: they are the actors who trigger the events, and can also be looked at as the 'daily writers' of our individual soap opera who write the daily events. So, in astrology, we look to the outlying planets and see what they are doing to get a sense where the action is going to take place.

For you Aries, As a fire sign, Aries, you had Pluto in Sag going thru your 9th house, a cadent house, which is usually easier....but it also deals with the law, too. The 9th has to do with travel, religion, higher education, getting ready for Pluto's segue into the 10th house of career. The 9th helps define you for this important evolution in your life. Thru these 3 aspects, you discover just who you are in relation to the universe, so you're ready for the 10th - this is what you've been waiting for all your life - power in your life. If you are a child or young when this happens, it will provide a foundation for later on. Now, Aries, it's time for you to take the sceptre and accept the throne. Pluto moves into your 10th house of career/dad. Pluto will help you to dig deep inside yourself and come to terms with your father. New ways of viewing your relationship will come to the surface. You can use it to your benefit. In readings I often say look to your father to be a success in your career - a most people groan! But, he is a role model for this house. What he did right, you emulate, what he did wrong, you do the opposite. Of course, it's not that simple, but it gives you a head start. You can have some power struggles with Dad as you move to individuate yourself in this career. You might find out that some of the things he did to survive, you will find you will too, and you'll understand him more.

Pluto in the 10th calls you to be scrupulous in your application to work. Your reputation will be scrutinized and you don't want to come up lacking. You have the opportunity during these 12 years to make some real progress in your career, so if you didn't do all you should have in the 9th to be prepared, don't hesitate to go back to school, travel, or in some way get that education that will bring you success here. You can have a run in with dad, or your employer can have authoritarian airs.

Pluto goes retrograde on April 2nd and goes direct on September 8th.

Neptune is now in Aquarius. Combined with Uranus, it's been a bumpy ride the last 8-15 years. There have been upsets and jobs lost, as you've been encouraged to get out of the rat race and pursue more personal goals. The nebulousness of Neptune, has found carving a niche for yourself rather difficult. Now that it has followed Uranus into Aquarius (as Uranus moves into Pisces), the ride should be a little easier, as the energy is more to Nep's liking....Aquarius is a transcendant sign of higher vision much as its own sign, Pisces.

For you, Aries, In your 11th house, your father's money may slip thru your hands, or an inheritance from him will be hard to hang on to. You're bringing in new spiritual friends and must make sure they are on the level. Do a personal background check before making any sudden moves.

Neptune goes retrograde on May 26th, and goes direct on November 2nd.

Uranus- On March 11, 2003, Uranus moved into Pisces after 8 years in Aquarius. It then retro'ed back to Aquarius on Sept. 16th,2003, and then back to Pisces by Dec. 31st to continue on it's way thru Pisces for the next 7+ years. Uranus rules Aquarius, which is an air sign, and Pisces, of course, is water. Water and air don't work too well together. Just as Uranus got 'stuck' in Capricorn, it dives into the unknown areas of emotion, and gets confused....that objective, logical air quality doesn't understand emotion, ala "Mr. Spock" and "Data" of Star Trek. Triggering emotional buttons can have Uranus moving into uncharted areas, and acting inappropriately, even for itself. As a friend of mine, the late actress June Ellis (herself an Aquarian) once said, "How can you predict Uranus, when it is unpredictable?" When Uranus enters a new house (new room, more specifically) it throws on the lights, and exposes all that is in that 'room' to be be cleaned out, pulling the rug out from under as it goes, forcing you to move forward in new directions.

Arians will find Uranus shaking up the 12th house of the hidden. It's also the Pisces house on the flat chart, and is ruled by Neptune; hence, your psychic abilities can come up, your innermost thoughts can be revealed. On the positive side, Uranus in Pisces can expand your consciousness to reveal more of the secrets of life.

Uranus goes retrograde on June 26th and goes direct on November 27th.

After a rough 2 1/2 years in Leo, Saturn left the lofty sign and moved into Virgo on September 6, 2007. Leos in particular, breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn't a good time for Leos. Michael Richards (Kramer on Seinfeld) had his meltdown, Isaiah Washington of "Grey's Anatomy" had a long drawn out meltdown (just quit while you're ahead, Isaiah! He must have Snake energy in his chart somewhere - has to be right, can't be wrong and has to have the last word! - Let it go, for heaven's sakes!). Barry Bonds proceeded towards the home run title under spurious circumstances....if Saturn hadn't been in Leo, the last two and a half years would have gone better, but as Saturn made travel plans to move on to the state of Virgo, the energy lightened up and he got his tying home runs and went on to add to the total. For others, like Steve Carell, his career took off. For Leos, who like to live large, found Saturn more onerous than most planets traversing it. They started to part-eeeeeeeeeee when it left. they felt a sense of relief and 'let out of jail'. That ponderous cloud over their head moved on and the sun came out to shine a bit...yet it went into their money house, so hope you didn't part-eeeeeeee too much, Leo, the bills will come due at some point, and Saturn will wonder why you didn't put something aside in the savings account.

The Baby Boomers of the 40's found that Saturn was going over the same territory (Leo) it did in 1946-48. The problem there being that Saturn caught up with Pluto in 1947, and in 1948, Chiron squared them as they broke up. There was lots of angst during those years, and now, as Saturn moved thru it again - their second Saturn return, and revisiting the S/P conjunct, those in and around their 60's were feeling the aches and pains and emotional blocks of the traumas of those days.

Saturn went thru Leo again from 1976-78, so Baby Boomers had a fresh look at the wound again, and those born later, experienced it for the first time. Those born in the late 60s and early 70's experienced the recycling of the energy as they went thru their first Saturn return, and found the body manifesting the emotional blocks which occurred in their early years. In the 70's, Saturn was squaring Uranus - the 'cop' knocking heads with the "hippie" of the zodiac, but at least not causing the angst of the Pluto connection. For all signs born after the late 70's, this was the first time they felt it going thru Leo, the sign of ego and self worth, so they all felt some ego denying in relation to the house position it was in. Leos particuarly, those born in the early 80's are now in their mid 20's and they had never experienced Saturn riding rough shod on their need to shine.

Now, Saturn is in Virgo. In modern times, it went thru Virgo from 1948-51, and 1978-81. Virgo energy works better with Saturn, for it rules Capricorn and is part of the earth trine. Doesn't mean there aren't lessons to learn and karma to address, but it's a cadent sign and thus, lighter energy. Those who are recycling the energies from the late 40's and late 70's, will find issues coming up again to heal. Emotional blocks which were created during those times can manifest as illness. This is where we can thank Saturn instead of cursing him, because it brings into manifestation what we have been harboring in our souls for all this time, in a tangible expression which, if we detect it right, leads us to the answer.

Taurus and Capricorn will benefit most from this transit, as it will trine their sun sign during this juncture, and they'll find that the 'gods' are approving and bringing rewards for work well done. Virgos will be tested, but they are such workaholics that they probably won't know the difference. Sagittarians, Pisces and Geminis will feel the square energy, and find they have to stand up to authority figures who would like to mold them to their will. Leos, Aquarians, Aries and Libra will find themselves making 'adjustments' as Saturn quincunx (30 degrees) and inconjuncts (150 degrees), their signs. That leaves Cancer, Scorpio in a sextile position to Virgo, which will create a YOD pointing to Aquarius and Aries, respectively; when Saturn tests, your "answers" are in those houses, Moon baby and Scorp....it's up to you to figure it out. *

Now, Saturn moves thru your 6th house of work and service. This will reflect on bosses and supervisors. Those above you may ride you harder during this period to see 'what you've got'. You can allay a lot of problems by keeping your nose to the grindstone and not taking off on those wanderlust feet. Work hard and you'll deserve that vacation.

Chinese astrology - Aries, you had a rough time of it the past two years, because even tho Saturn was in Leo, and Leo is a trine, another fire sign, it occurred in the Chinese chart, where you could have been victimized in some way. Even tho it was suppose to be a good two+ year period for you, you found your kids stressing you out, and if it reflected negatively, you found yourself feeling that you were not handled justly in some fashion. Some who experienced at the beginning of the transit, found themselves going in to control mode to stop the bleeding, so to speak.

Now, with Saturn in Virgo, you'll get ticked off at being treated that way, and you'll stand up for yourself and vow it will never happen again. You'll move from victim to victor, and take the reins and be more hands on in directing your own life. Just don't be overbearing and take it too far, or it could manifest with some Bladder issues.