This week in using energy your advantage

The big thing happening sky-wise over the next couple of days is Mars is squaring Pluto, which is going to cause minor power struggles for people who don't have an active Pluto transit right now and possibly (probably) major power struggles for those who do. If there's someone whose behavior you have decided *should* change, you're probably on the wrong end of the power struggle. If you're aware someone is trying to control you overtly or covertly, that also sucks. Thing to remember: at the end of the day, the only person you can control is yourself, and the only person you can ever truly change is also you. Pluto-Mars interactions can be underhanded in nature and suddenly become obvious and overt, so this might be a time you realize how you've been controlled by someone else, wittingly or unwittingly. Spastic over-corrective action is never good with energy like this (but it's common, as are tantrums). Instead, sit back and scheme about your options.

Also, important: Mars is beginning to slow down and will retrograde in Gemini in late fall, but when I say "slow down" I mean that Earth is closing in on Mars and will pass it in late fall, and Mars will appear to move backwards at that time. Happens every 2 years.

The sun and attendant planets (Venus, Mercury) are covering spaces and lighting up houses that have been empty since a year ago, which is a welcome change from the same ol' , since just about every planet (except the moon, obviously) has been within 120 degrees of everything else since January, which is an extreme and rare situation. The sun is at 3 degrees Cancer today, so look at where that falls in your chart, house-wise, and that's where there's an influx of energy that might feel a little new and fresh for you.

The following is good advice for anyone and is a repeat of something I've said before: Uranus and the transiting north node of the moon are together right now, so breaking away from what you've always done and trying something new is well-aspected right now. Uranus doesn't care at all about commitment, either, so you just have to *try* the new thing. Remember about big-ticket item problems that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing again and again and expecting different results. If there's an obvious new thing you could do that might make you a little uncomfortable at first, just give it a shot.

XO,J