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FREE WILL ASTROLOGYJuly© Copyright 2010 Rob BrezsnyARIES (March 21-April 19): When astronaut Buzz Aldrin flew tothe moon and back on the spacecraft Apollo 11 in 1969, he waspaid less than $8 a day. That has to stand as one of the mostflagrant cases of underpaid labor ever -- far worse than whatyou’ve had to endure in your storied career. I suggest you keepAldrin’s story in mind during the next six months as you meditatesteadily on the future of your relationship with making money.Hopefully it will help keep you in an amused and spacious andphilosophical frame of mind -- which is the best possible attitudeto have as you scheme and dream about your financial masterplan for the years ahead.TAURUS (April 20-May 20): After meditating on your astrologicalomens for the rest of 2011, I’ve picked out the guiding wordsthat best suit your needs. They’re from mythologist JosephCampbell: “If you can see your path laid out in front of you stepby step, you know it’s not your path. Your own path you makewith every step you take. That’s why it’s your path.” Now here’sa corollary from Spanish poet Antonio Machado: “Wanderer,your footsteps are the road, nothing more; there is no road -- youmake the road by walking. Turning to look behind, you see thepath you will never travel again.”GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Emma Goldman (1869-1940) wasa charismatic activist whose writing and speeches had a bigimpact on leftist politics in the first half of the 20th century.Unlike some of her fellow travelers, she wasn’t a dour, dogmaticproselytizer. She championed a kind of liberation that celebratedbeauty and joy. “If I can’t dance, I don’t want to be in yourrevolution,” she is alleged to have told a sourpuss colleague. Asyou contemplate the radical transformations you might like tocultivate in your own sphere during the coming months, Gemini,I suggest you adopt a similar attitude. Make sure your uprisingsinclude pleasurable, even humorous elements. Have some funwith your metamorphoses.CANCER (June 21-July 22): A while back I asked my readers topropose a new name for your astrological sign. “Cancer” has abit of a negative connotation, after all. Many people suggested“Dolphin” as a replacement, which I like. But the two ideas thatmost captivated my imagination were “Gateway” and “Fount.” Iprobably won’t be able to convince the astrological communityto permanently adopt either of these uplifting designations, but Iencourage you to try out them out to see how they feel. This is agood time to experiment: For the next 12 months, you will havesubstantial potential to embody the highest meanings of both“Gateway” and “Fount.”LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): The year’s half over, Leo. Let’s talk aboutwhat you want to make happen in the next six months. My analysisof the astrological omens suggests that it’ll be an excellenttime to formulate a long-term master plan and outline in detailwhat you will need to carry it out. For inspiration, read this peptalk from philosopher Jonathan Zap: “An extremely effective andgrounded magical practice is to identify your big dreams, themissions you really need to accomplish in this lifetime. The testof a big dream comes from asking yourself, ‘Will I remember thiswell on my death bed?’ If you have a big dream, you will probablyfind that to accomplish it will require a minimum of two hours ofdevoted activity per day.”VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): “The passion to explore is at theheart of being human,” said Carl Sagan. “This impulse -- to go, tosee, to know -- has found expression in every culture.” But StevenDutch, a professor at the University of Wisconsin, disagrees.He says there’ve been lots of societies that have had littleinterest in exploration. Africans never discovered Madagascaror the Cape Verde archipelago, for example. Few Asian culturesprobed far and wide. During a thousand years of history, ancientRomans ignored Russia, Scandinavia, and the Baltic, and madeonly minimal forays to India and China. Where do you personallyfit on the scale of the human exploratory urge, Virgo? Regardlessof what you’ve done in the past, I bet you’ll be on the movein the coming months. Your hunger for novelty and unfamiliarityshould be waxing.LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In the coming months, it’s likely youwill experience more action than usual -- some of it quite expansive-- in your astrological eighth house. Traditional astrologerscall this the sphere of sex, drugs, and rock and roll, but I refer toit as the realm of deep connection, altered states of awareness,and lyrical interludes that educate and enrich your emotionalintelligence. Are you ready to have your habit mind rewired, yourcertainties reworked, and your pleasures reconfigured?SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): I hope that in the first half of 2011you have been doing some devoted work on tidying up the messyold karma that had been interfering with the free flow of graceinto your intimate relationships. If there’s still work to be doneon that noble task, throw yourself into it now. The renaissanceof togetherness is due to begin soon and last for many months.You don’t want any lingering ignorance, self-deceit, or lack ofcompassion to gum it up.SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In 1498, Leonardo da Vincicompleted one of his masterworks, the mural known as “TheLast Supper.” Nineteen years later, the paint had begun to flakeoff, and by 1556 Leonardo’s biographer considered the wholething to be “ruined.” Over the centuries, further deteriorationoccurred, even as many experts tried to restore and repair it. Themost recent reclamation project, finished in 1999, lasted morethan two decades. I hope that in the coming months, Sagittarius,you will show a similar dedication to the high art of regeneration.Please work long and hard on bringing vitality back into what hasfallen into decay or stagnancy.CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): In a horoscope last year, I askedyou Capricorns whether you ever obsessed on your longing tosuch a degree that you missed opportunities to actually satisfyyour longing. In response, a reader named John G. sent me thefollowing corrective message: “We Capricorns comprehend thefutility of too much longing. We understand it can be a phantasmthat gets in the way of real accomplishment. It’s like a telephonethat keeps ringing somewhere but can’t be found. We don’twaste energy on dreamy feelings that may or may not be satisfied,since that energy is so much better funneled into masteringthe details that will bring us useful rewards.” I’m here to tell you,Capricorn, that the coming months will be an excellent time tomake use of the Capricornian capacities John G. describes.AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): “Truth is, everybody is going tohurt you,” sang Bob Marley. “You just gotta find the ones worthsuffering for.” How are you doing on that score, Aquarius? Haveyou been discerning in picking out allies whose value to you is sohigh that you’re willing to deal with their moments of unconsciousness?Have you created a family and community thatbless you far more than they drain you? The next ten months willbe an excellent time to concentrate on refining this part of yourlife.PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Any minute now, you might startlearning at a faster rate than you have since 2000. Any day now,you will be less bored than you have been since 2006, and anyweek now you will be expressing more spontaneity than you havesince early 2010. Any month now, Pisces, you will find yourselfable to access more of your visionary intelligence than you havesince maybe 2007. What does it all mean? You may not feel anamazing, spectacular, extraordinary degree of personal unitytomorrow, but you will soon begin building toward that happystate. By December I bet you’ll be enjoying an unprecedentedamount of it.Homework: We’re halfway through 2011. Testify about whatyou’ve accomplished so far and what’s left to do. Freewillastrology.com.Featuring biking quips, quibbles, and some damngood advice from Margaret Hammitt-McDonald.Construction DeconstructedWITH THE arrival of longer, brighter, drierdays, many things spring out of our supersaturatedground: flowers, giant slugs,lichen-studded RVs, and bright orangeconstruction cones. To paraphrase TheCanterbury Tales, the sweet breezes ofZephyrus entice people to don neon yellowvests, hoist stop/slow signs over their shoulders,and rip up the roads near you.Road repairs benefit cyclists by filling inepic potholes, re-painting bike lane stripes(discouraging bulky vehicles from enteringour sanctum), andadding amenitiessuch as buttons youcan press to indicateour presence in atunnel or on a bridge.However, the confusiongenerated by detours,shoulder closures, flaggers,loud equipment,and other featuresnot usually present onthe road can present(literal) roadblocks to asmooth ride.Because constructionzones alter traffic patterns and presentall road users with obstructions to a clearview of what’s ahead or to the side, it’sdoubly important to be visible when yourroute takes you through these areas ofasphalt upheaval. Road crews wear bright,reflective clothing; so should you! Your lanemight be full of cones and equipment anddrivers might not see you as easily withall that clutter. Avoid the temptation ofweaving in and out of the stuff in the bikelane; when you pop out, you might startlesomeone.Choke points like bridges and tunnelsalready force cyclists to get up close andpersonal with motorized vehicles. Withconstruction, these pinch points can showup abruptly, without giving motorists muchtime to react to your presence in the lane(especially given some people’s tendencyto enter a trance while driving or riding).Use your judgment about each individualspot. Some places have enough visibilitythat you can get into the lane when carsare approaching in the distance and driverswill be able to see you. Others have low visibility,so it’s better to wait until the speedyvehicles have passed.Bike lanes and shoulders are notoriousfor collecting strange, often sharpobjects, but construction zones aboundin unique flotsam: scoops detached fromback-hoes, giant drill bits, exotic strains ofgravel, pulverized concrete bits… Be on thelookout for these threats to your tires andlet the wacky variety of space-alien artifactsentertain you!Miscellaneous construction hazardsinclude loud sounds (like those huge thingsthat pound the earth, for what reason Idon’t know), flying debris (a big piece ofgravel from a paving truck hit my shoulderonce), and slick or oily roads (a new roadoften gets a good scrubbing to start theday). I’ve considered taking earplugs forthose earth-pounders.My favorite thing about riding through aconstruction zone is having the opportunityto chat with the workers. Route 26 playedhost to a construction crew for a monththis spring and while waiting for our lane’schance to go forth, Seth and I got to knowthe regular flaggers, Bonnie and Kim. Weonly got to converse for a few minutes at atime, but it felt wonderful to hear them sayover their walkie-talkies to the flagger onthe other end, “The last vehicle is a blueHonda, and then there are Margaret andSeth on their bikes.” When we arrived onthe other side, the flagger always cheeredus on as if we’d just won the Tour deFrance.Construction areas require extra alertnessand care, but they result in morepleasant roads for all…and you can evenmake friends and influence people (Bonnie’sconsidering riding her bike to worknow!)july11 hipfishmonthly.com26