Mountain Times - Volume 48, Number 24: June 12-18, 2019

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28 • The Mountain Times • June 12-18, 2019 When does life begin? By Cal Garrison a.k.a. Mother of the Skye Celestial Inspiration By Cal Garrison 802-770-4101 Karen Dalury, E-RYT 500• killingtonyoga.com This week’s horoscopes are coming out under the light of a late Virgo Moon, a moon that will turn Void-of-Course in that sign and remain in that mode until it moves into Libra at 8:29 p.m. on Monday night. The big astrological “hoodoo” right now centers around the upcoming opposition from Mars to transiting Pluto and Saturn; most of the astrologers who make it their business to talk about these things are focused on that transit. This time around, those aspects will be active between June 15 and June 20, right up until the Summer Solstice. While for sure, this is no small thing, Mars is a relatively fast moving planet. With a cycle that spins it once around the zodiac every two years, it formed the same aspect to Pluto for a few days back in July 2017, and it opposed Saturn for a few days in late May of the same year. What makes it a big deal this time is less about Mars and more about the long term conjunction of Saturn and Pluto. If I were to put this transit in a nutshell I would say that it is a reality check that gives all of us an opportunity to see what our personalities and our egos are after, on the same page with what our higher selves need us to be aiming for at this moment in time. The opposition indicates that our egos are acting like babies at a time when the deeper part of who we are needs to snap out of it, deal with the truth whether we like it or not, and grow up. Whether we can get that to happen, personally and collectively, is open to question right now. Mars happens to be weak in Cancer. Pluto and Saturn are strong in Capricorn so they have the upper hand. The problem with Mars when he’s in a weakened state is that he tends to dramatize things with a lot of tantrums, and fireworks, and false flag responses that waste our precious time and distract us from what matters. Who knows how Pluto and Saturn will respond to it? Let’s hope that they are strong enough to get Mars to put on his big-boy pants and grow up. Speaking of growing up: All of this reminded me of a conversation between a couple of Millennials that I happened to overhear a few days ago; one of them was pro life and the other was pro choice. They were arguing about “When does life really begin?” The pro-choice advocate insisted that a human being isn’t really alive until they take their first breath, and the pro-life person argued that life begins at the moment of conception. Listening to them, I had one of those moments where I was so glad to be older and wiser. I was just as aware that little knowledge is a dangerous thing and that it is foolhardy to argue about things that we know nothing about. I say this because there is a branch of astrology that very few astrologers are familiar with. Known as pre-natal astrology, it is a system that breaks the cycle of human life into 49 epochs. Thirty-two of those epochs are postnatal; 16 of them are prenatal; the 17th chart is the birth chart. The charts that are erected prior to birth outline the process and the lessons that attend the soul’s materialization, or the soul’s descent into matter. They chronicle the contracts that each of us sign with God, and with our higher selves prior to conception, and during the period of gestation. All of this begs us to realize that the birth process is not a purely biological thing; neither is it random or arbitrary. The business of incarnating on the Earth plane involves a complex series of choices and decisions, or agreements that allow the human soul to bridge the gap between the karma Mother, page 33 Hatha, Vinyasa, Yin Yoga and Pilates New Student Special: 5 classes for $30 3744 River Rd. Killington, VT Aries March 21 - April 20 You are torn between needing to keep it together and wishing you could vanish into thin air. How you decide to approach things is your business. In some cases, the desire to drop everything needs to be overridden with enough common sense to keep on keeping on until it’s 100 percent safe to light the fuse and let things explode. Those of you who worry about maintaining appearances are sure to be having a tougher time than those of you who are fed up with pretense. With a whiff of a need to hang in there, be wary of beating dead horses when there’s no need to keep toeing the line. Taurus April 21 - May 20 This could be the biggest milestone of your life. As you contemplate what it might feel like to step over the line, fears of how this will upset the applecart are equal to your desire to be who you are. Part of you wants a guarantee, or some sense of certainty that everyone involved will be OK with this. I hate to clue you in but there’s no certainty on this planet - and the lesson seems to be about figuring out that love is the response we get when we are true to ourselves. You might as well follow your heart and let others figure out how to get big enough to take this leap with you. Gemini May 21 - June 20 It may be too late but it would be good if you could reflect on what you’ve done and see that you were in error. This is no time to be stubborn; if you need to make amends, do so. Sometimes we allow our issues to win out over the truth. All of us fall prey to this. Getting conscious enough to do the right thing even when it’s the last thing we want to do is one of the most difficult parts of being human. Once you get over the need to save face, you will find out that the truth really does set us free – and your honesty will save this relationship and eliminate tons of hassles down the road apiece. Cancer June 21 - July 20 You’ve reached the point where the desire to find what you’re looking for has hit some kind of wall. Some of you are beginning to realize that whatever it is, isn’t “out there.” For those of you who think you’ve found it, it comes down to wondering if you are fooling yourself. Whenever we reach this kind of impasse, we are closer to the heart of the matter. In the act of questioning all of it we get to refine our search. So much of who you really are has yet to be reconciled. It might help to let the past roll in and show you the extent to which it still runs everything you do. Copyright - Cal Garrison: 2019: © Leo July 21 - August 20 Too many things are eating away at your sense of certainty for you to be sure how you feel. The brunt of it seems to be coming from circumstantial interference and the rest of it is coming from other people and their choices. How those things affect you will depend upon what you’re willing to accept. This is one of those times when you could even start smoking, the stress is so unusual. Words of comfort won’t match the level of intensity that’s swirling in and out of this situation. For now, surrender to the drama and do your best to stay centered in the eye of the storm. Virgo August 21 - September 20 You’re having trouble with someone who can’t deal with you honestly. This has been ongoing and it’s driving you nuts. I don’t know why you need this but you might want to look at what it’s meant to teach you. Instead of trying to work around their inability to be straight with you, stop feeding into it. It could be that you’ve outgrown them; yes sometimes we outgrow people. When was the last time the two of you saw eye-to-eye? If they keep it up, check in with yourself and consider the virtues of moving on because this situation is sucking up too much of your energy. Libra September 21 - October 20 Your concern for others is keeping many of you up at night. In addition to the way it makes you wonder how all of this is going to turn out, it’s bringing up a ton of unresolved issues from the past. Little did you know you had this much going on at the subconscious level. Working your way through it is where it’s at right now. For at least three more months you will be dealing with ordinary, outer concerns and walking a more spiritual path at the same time. Huge shifts and changes will be birthed in the realm where your Higher Self is the one who decides which way to turn. Scorpio October 21 - November 20 You are sitting on the fine line between the past and the future, wondering what to do. Certain things have run their course. Not knowing how to approach what happens next, part of you is nervous and maybe a little afraid. Having been on the treadmill far too long, the idea that there are infinite possibilities escapes you. Reviewing your options you come up with nothing. What’s happening on the deeper levels is what matters right now. If you go pearl diving, soon enough you will reclaim yourself, blow the dust off your blues, and be free to get off to a whole new start. Sagittarius November 21 - December 20 It’s so clear that something has to change because you’re feeling restless and you need to review where you’re at in order to keep growing. That’s all it comes down to right now. The past 2 years have taught you so much about what life is for. The things that have kept you going no longer seem relevant. In your conversations with others you keep getting lit up by the idea that nothing was meant to last forever. Recent experiences have shown you that there’s got to be more to life than this. You are right on the money. Keep searching. In no time at all you will be on to the next thing. Capricorn December 21 - January 20 You aren’t entirely sure about anything these days. The last few years have brought so much change it would be good if you could get up to speed on where you’re really at with yourself. A big part of you thinks it has to “go on with the show” at a time when you’d just as soon fall apart. Your sense of responsibility to either your standards or the past, could be getting in the way. Take a look around; you’re not in Kansas anymore. Get real enough to see that a raft of other things have come along to show you that the same old m.o. is totally irrelevant to who you are now. Aquarius January 21 - February 20 You have it made on a lot of levels - so much so that, the last thing one would expect is that you would ever want to change even one bit of it. As nuts as it sounds, you’re actually thinking about moving on - not because there’s anything “wrong” with this picture, but because something new is brewing. Whatever that looks like, it would be premature to do anything drastic. Soon enough, you’ll have a chance to decide if you want to stick with showcase No. 1 or go for what’s behind the curtain. We get it and lose it in cycles: yes, my dear, this is a huge turnaround. Pisces February 21 - March 2 You can’t get too worked up about things when they’re this intense. For the next few weeks I see you sorting wildcats out by hand, one way or another. Recent epiphanies have shown you that it might work out better if you can find a way to trust someone else to handle it. As you do what it takes to untangle a mess that is over the top, you see that there is more to you and your goals than you’ve ever been given credit for. This has something to do with the fact that your true purpose is awakening. Stay the course. Rolling with the punches is crucial to your success right now. Mother of the Skye Mother of the Skye has 40 years of experience as an astrologer and tarot consultant. She may be reached by email to cal.garrison@gmail.com
Columns The Mountain Times • June 12-18, 2019 • 29 Yet another exotic pest by Joe Rankin Have you seen a spotted lanternfly? If you live in New England, and answered “no,” that’s good. But we’ll have to check back with you next year. The lanternfly is one of the latest foreign invasive insect pests to become established in North America. And it isn’t a picky eater. Dozens THE OUTSIDE STORY of crops and native trees are go-to foods for this destructive bug. While it apparently hasn’t made it to this region yet, it is entrenched farther south. Entomologists are watching nervously. “For landowners and orchards they’re a nightmare ... a total menace to society,” said Judy Rosovsky, the Vermont state entomologist. The lanternfly, Lycorma delicatula, was found in 2014 in Berks County, Pennsylvania, northwest of Philadelphia. Berks and 13 other Pennsylvania counties are now under quarantine, as are three in New Jersey. And it has been found in New York and Virginia. Despite its name, the lanternfly isn’t a fly. It’s a planthopper. It flies poorly, but jumps well. It attacks some 70 types of crops and trees in North America. It really likes stone fruits – peaches, plums, cherries. It likes hops and grapes. And hardwood trees like maple, oak, poplar, walnut, birch, and willow. Its preferred host, the tree of heaven, Alianthus altissima, is itself an invasive species from Asia now naturalized in the U.S. Unlike some other imported pests, the lanternfly doesn’t kill trees directly. It just sort of beats them down. “They have piercing, sucking mouthparts. They stick them in the plant and suck its sap,” causing weeping wounds that serve as portals for debilitating molds and fungi, said Rosovsky. Lanternflies also excrete massive amounts of sticky honeydew. Since they tend to congregate in huge numbers, the result is less than appetizing. “[The lanternfly] can get into an environment and just wreak havoc,” said Stephen Lavallee, the state plant health director for Vermont and New Hampshire for the federal Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). The honeydew can coat entire surfaces. “It’s got that added ‘yuck’ factor to it. It just kind of makes it difficult to be out in your backyard at times.” In other words, this inch-long, half inch-wide insect can really take the fun out of a barbecue and cost you a fortune at the car wash. While the lanternfly can fly and jump, that’s not the primary way it expands its range. Stowing away is. Adults hop into anything, and lay yellow-brown masses of 30 to 50 eggs on virtually any smooth surface — cars, trucks, planes, ships, rail cars. “They are really good hitchhikers,” said Rosovsky. APHIS and state plant inspection agencies, especially in Pennsylvania, are investing a lot in outreach and education. While some invasive insect pests are hard for people to identify with any accuracy, the lanternfly is so distinctive that people get it right 99 percent of the time, Lavallee said. DESPITE ITS NAME, THE LANTERNFLY ISN’T A FLY. IT’S A PLANTHOPPER. IT FLIES POORLY, BUT JUMPS WELL. “It’s a unique-looking insect,” he said. “That kind of works in our favor a little bit.” At the next-to-last stage in its life cycle it is bright red and black with white spots. The colors and its elongated head make it look like a miniature version of something you’d meet in an alien bar on a remote, battered planet in a galaxy far, far away. Adults sport grayish wings draped tentlike over the body, with the red hindwings underneath TOS, page 31 Killington Softball League: Double headers, double pickles By Dave Hoffenberg With temperatures in the 40s, two epic games Monday ended in bad ways for the losing teams. Chinese Gourmet vs. FCFSMBC The first game, Chinese Gourmet battled First Chair First Stop Moshers Base Camp. C.G. put two runners on in the top of the first with one out, but stranded them after Geoff Bloomer suffered a “Cold Milk K.” FCFSMBC then scored four runs but stranded the bases loaded after Sam “Okemo’s Own” Budusky grounded out. Jaxon Smith scored in the second and then the C.G. held FCFSMBC scoreless to keep it 4-1. The third saw C.G. take their first lead, 5-4 and in the fourth, Dom “Little Dolph” Battista, made it 6-4. They added another “CMK,” this time by John Gatto. FCFSMBC cooled off drastically until they managed one run in the fourth to be down one again, 6-5. C.G. got a lead off double by Jacob Lorman in the sixth but nothing happened after that except another “CMK” by Gatto. The C.G. put two on in the seventh but failed to get them home. FCFSMBC started the bottom of the seventh with their first two batters out so the C.G. was one out from victory. Kyle “Famous” Amos got famous with his at-bat. He said to his team jokingly, “Two outs? No problem, I’m coming home.” He made that a reality to tie the game but it was with an unfortunate assist from the C.G’s Dalton Hotchkiss. Amos hit a ball that rolled under the fence for a ground rule double but Hotchkiss grabbed the ball without signaling that it went under so it’s a live ball. Amos ran to third and the throw went out of play so he was awarded home to send the game to extra innings. Smith Donelan led off the eighth with a “CMK.” The C.G. put two on with two outs but failed to produce any runs. Wyatt Mosher led off the bottom with the game’s first “Cold Beer K” but Collin “Hungry Like The” Wolf hit a single. Big hitter Mike “Bouff” Bouffard came up but popped out to the pitcher so the C.G. was one out from sending it to the ninth. Max “Down Under” Rowe walked so FCFSMBC had two on with two out for Chris Major. He singled which would’ve loaded the bases but another unfortunate overthrow occurred and both runners were awarded home for the 8-6 win. McGrath’s Sushi vs. Karrtel The next game was close until the teams hit the field. McGrath’s Sushi was looking for their first win and standing in the way was the Karrtel. It was more like they got out of the way because M.S. crushed them 18-6. The good luck charm for M.S. was bringing E.J. Cully out of retirement to play first. Cully had not appeared in a game since 2013. He didn’t do Softball, page 38 By Robin Alberti
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Mountain Times - Volume 48, Number 24: June 12-18, 2019

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