Your Virgo New Moon Horoscope!

This new moon belongs to lovely, private, do-good, perfectionist Virgo. We continue many of the themes from the full moon but with determined purpose and pratical action. Busy, busy. Decisions decisions. We’re inspired to give our close surroundings a keen critical eye. We are moved to improve, including and especially our health and home. Saturn accompanying the sun and moon may lend our considerations extra seriousness or gravity. Although Mars, Mercury, and Venus in ever companionable Libra keep it friendly and in tune. We may be inspired to change up our more immoderate habits, clean out a drawer or a closet, give our lives a little extra elbo grease, take better care of ourselves, tend the gardens. Virgo conincides with late summer harvests. We’ll reap what we’ve sown and celebrate the results of our efforts. The results may seem mixed and unexpected. But we celebrate them anyway! Then prepare for fall. (Back to school?) Jupiter still retrograde in Capricorn keeps giving me this nagging feeling that there’s much to do and it doesn’t seem to quite get done. It a good time then to get clarity about what those things are, to-do lists, priorities, time tables. Virgo rings with sacrifice and letting go– and the reward that comes with that too. What would you be willing to give up to realize a little heaven on earth? Virgo is still asking. Heaven starts with you and moves out from there. What small thing would make your day or someone else’s day just a little bit better? We can play angels.

The new moon in Virgo (7°48') is on Saturday, August 30 at 12:58 PM PDT.

Aries: Discipline, Aries. What does that mean to you? There’s a lot of potential to be tapped. This new moon suggests you call upon your most mature and sophisticated self. Not to sound over-serious, only to say that you’re in a place of incredible personal potential (as usual) but you could really create something long lasting if you meet the occasion and all the right people with a sincere sense purpose and commitment. Bring all your experience to bear.

Taurus: Ah ha! You’re making a break through Taurus. All the Virgo activity maybe is revealing clearly what’s holding you back, what's gotta give as opposed to what you should continue to count on. Go with the changes! Bust out! Bloom! Likely you’ve been puzzling over what to do for a while. Ruminating in that steady thoughtful way of yours. So if anyone can move forward with confidence, it’s you. The new and the beautiful are looking for you too.

Gemini: Keep doing what your doing. Follow through. I picture you in some multitasking circus mode. One you and a gazillion tricks, details, costumes puzzles and amazing feats in some complex choreography. You’re in that zone. Trust the actions and momentum you’ve set in motion at this point. Have confidence in your Gemini ways. We’ll watch and wonder. Focus on what’s in front of you and then the next thing. Then the next. One thing at a time should keep you from losing your grip if it gets really hectic. No hurry. New moon is calling your attention to home, family, and mom.

Cancer: It’s deep Cancer. How deep does it go? This new moon has got you thinking. You’re so cute when you’re pensive. And you’re looking for some continuity. I’m thinking now’s a good time to get to know your roots/routes. Where you come from. How you got here. The big epic picture. Maybe a new little altar to keep you company at home? Something tangible to help you bring it all together, sort it out– help you to remember what keeps you going in a good way and what’s just extra baggage.

Leo: New eyes Leo. This new moon brings some renewed innocence in the world. How refreshing! How gentle. How lucky you are that everything could reappear so uncontrived, it’s place and purpose just so. It’s not a naïve perspective. Very well informed actually. You’re allowing yourself a wise trust in the great little workings of the world. It’s giving you some brilliant ideas, new inspiration, further insight. Enjoy the wonder.

Virgo: Apples and oranges, Virgo. Apples and oranges. Consider difference. What, below the surface, really matters and what is merely cosmetic. Compare and contrast. How can different things go well together? How can we learn from holding difference together? Or when must we discriminate and decide– one or the other? What serves its best purpose where? This one? Or that one? Here? Or there? Rhetorical questions, I know. You may have to make some tough calls– differences and decision, but for now you could get away with just studying the options. Analysis and the phenomena of difference and non-difference.

Libra: Coming together. Slowly but surely things are falling into place! Inside and out. Venus, Mercury, and Mars are so working for you. So much possibility at your fingertips. All the action still left in Virgo is kind of like cleaning up after a wild cosmic party. It’s a promising situation. A calm after storms. Optimum results will require all your skills of dynamic equilibrium. Keep it light. Do your dance. Flexible. Thoughtful. Lovely. We’re watching. Taking notes even.

Scorpio: On the outside looking in? You’re holding yourself back from something you know you deserve. What is it? Don’t be too quick to blame others or unfortunate circumstances for standing between you and your little desire. You’re too independent and resourceful for that. Consider the possibility that you are deserving. Give yourself permission. Say, “I’m allowed.” You’re allowed. It’s a start. No one and nothing is really in your way but you.

Sagittarius: Your hands are full Sag. You’re rich. Seems like you’ve got it all, but– now what? This new moon is making many years of achievement very clear. Top of your game, but... If you’re feeling a bit stuck, nervous, or unsatisfied– let me encourage you to light some fires. Free up some energy. Change a few forms. Take some risks. Risk, not caution, is what got you where you are in the first place, right? Your derring-do. Why stop now?

Capricorn: Time to take a trip, Cap. Inner space is calling and the air fare is free! I encourage you to get some quality quiet time this new moon. Tune in. Way in. You’ve got goals, people, places, things– of course. However, the who, what, where, when, how... all those necessary details must follow the why. Why are those your goals? Answer that and the rest might follow more easily. Patience. Silence.

Aquarius: Hmmmm. Just don’t go there. Not that far. It’s not necessary. You know that. It’s neither helpful or healthy. It’s keeping you from moving forward, which is what you’d really like, which is maybe what is most frightening. So know what you know, learn what you’ve learned. Then take the next step. Forward. Beating yourself up is getting you nowhere, only holding your brilliance back. Gentle works just as well. Make it a new song.

Pisces: A little twisted Pisces. Whatever you’re looking for is not in your head. The issue is just getting cluttered up in there. Better maybe to try and get out of your head. Open up if you’re feeling stuck. All your senses. Every channel. You don’t have know or think anything. Try letting some new information, new influences in, without over thinking it. Relax. Also, try to put yourself out there. Nothing big, but get the juices flowing. Start small. Your closest friends and family, those trustworthy and enduring relations provide a safe place for you to gain some perspective by letting go.

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Like the horoscopes? Need some more perspective? There is definitely a bigger picture. Individual tarot and astrology consultations are available. (They make great gifts too!) Here is www.geocitiescom/etravelslight/tarotastrology for more information.

Elizabeth Travelslight is an October Scorpio with a Gemini rising and a Virgo moon. She has been studying tarot and astrology since 1996. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, she has a B.A. in Pure Mathematics from the University of California at Santa Cruz and almost has her M.A. in Communication, with an emphasis on poetry and contemporary philosophy, from the European Graduate School in Saas Fee, Switzerland.

“It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves.” I feel like most of you readers are pretty savvy folks who don't need "how-to" horoscope instructions. But here is a friendly disclaimer...

Scraps

On Exactitude in Science . . . In that Empire, the Art of Cartography attained such Perfection that the map of a single Province occupied the entirety of a City, and the map of the Empire, the entirety of a Province. In time, those Unconscionable Maps no longer satisfied, and the Cartographers Guilds struck a Map of the Empire whose size was that of the Empire, and which coincided point for point with it. The following Generations, who were not so fond of the Study of Cartography as their Forebears had been, saw that that vast Map was Useless, and not without some Pitilessness was it, that they delivered it up to the Inclemencies of Sun and Winters. In the Deserts of the West, still today, there are Tattered Ruins of that Map, inhabited by Animals and Beggars; in all the Land there is no other Relic of the Disciplines of Geography.

Suarez Miranda,Viajes de varones prudentes, Libro IV,Cap. XLV, Lerida, 1658

-Jorge Luis Borges

Ruminating...

If the Americans had never committed genocide against the Indians; if they had never incited wars of annihilation between the native peoples of the land, if there had never been a Trail of Tears; if America had never organized and commercialized the kidnapping and sale into slavery of a gentle and defenseless African people; if it had never developed the most widespread brutal, exploitative system of slavery the world has ever known; if it had never attacked a gallant, defenseless Puerto Rico and never turned that lovely land into a cesspool to compete with the cesspool it created in Panama; if it had never bled Latin America of her wealth and had never cast her exhausted people onto the dung heap of disease and ignorance and starvation; if it had never pushed Hiroshima and Nagasaki into the jaws of hell –if America had never done any of these things– history would still create a special bar of judgment for what America did to the Philippines.

-Nelson Peery, Black Fire

Your Aquarius Full Moon Horoscope

Considering the upcoming Leo/Aquarius full moon, I keep coming back to this image from the Rider Waite Tarot. This full moon can’t help but call our attention to all the action over in the Leo/Virgo part of sky. The STRENGTH (XIII) card illustrates the combination of Leo and Virgo quite nicely. The young virgin has gently tamed the wild and forceful lion. It’s an image of great care– strength and strength of purpose, in harmony. When reaching into a lion’s mouth, do not hesitate or second guess your actions! This is not a time of timidity, but of discipline and determination. This full moon calls our attention to each person’s unique place in the universe. Your star in the sky. It asks us to balance our bright individual egos with a shared vision of collective purpose. Sun in Leo should be helping us get clear about who we are, what we want, and what we have to share. (Me! Me! Me!) The moon in Aquarius will keep it all in greater perspective. (We! We! We!) The universe has innumerable centers. You’re just one. But an important one. We should feel like we have more than enough energy for anything. Our right actions should feed us. Not exhaust us. Follow the enjoyment of service. Mars, Venus, Mercury, and Saturn are all in Virgo, asking us to consider and create the possibility and meaning of heaven on earth. Not necessarily a religious heaven, but the best possible world for the most possible people. Starts with you. Look around. What needs to be valued and appreciated more deeply? Attend to details and the easily overlooked mundane things with greater care and attention. Where is there room for improvement? Make room. Full moon should make clear the difference between the necessary and the unnecessary. Get excited about throwing things overboard. If you really need it, may it wash upon your ashore again. More future, less past. Last, how can we approach together a better life with confidence, patience, innovation and practical determination? It begins with strength and intention. Virgo and Leo request we make it pure and let it shine.

love, *elizabeth**

P.S. As ever, it's a work in progress. I welcome your feedback and love your comments!

The full moon in Aquarius (24°21') is on Saturday, August 16 at 2:16 PM PDT. Look up on Friday and/or Saturday night. Say “Hi!” Try to change up your perspective with a little moonlight. Not because we have to, but just because we can. See if you surprise yourself with an unexpected point of view.

Aries: Sitting pretty. Kicking back. That’s how I see you, Aries. Centered and content. Now may be a good time to tend to your fort/nest/cave/studio/dwelling place. Enjoy it. Invite others to join in. Assess all situations and potential for opportunities from a reclining position. Full moon offers plenty of insight about larger purposes, but no action yet. Rest up. Hang out. Grounding, awareness, contented friendly patience. Don’t attract more until you’re certain of what you have and whether there’s any room for more. (Try a shovel?)

Taurus: Let it go, Taurus. Feel the freedom of just letting it all go. How dramatic are the changes you’re willing to make? Not just on the outside. But on the inside too. It involves clearing out the funk. Trust your instinct for beauty. Trust that there is more than enough and you lose nothing in letting things go. Just gain more room for better things. More love. More flow. (Drink lots of water.)

Gemini: Feeling clueless in all your wisdom? It’s possible you’re taking in and processing A LOT of information. The world may seem completely different than it did before. Try to honor the brilliance of those fresh eyes and brand new perspectives. It seems like there have never been more possibilities. More choices. No need to decide anything now. Daydream and discuss. Your friends want to hear all about it. Feel everything out with your words. Your only commitment is to take one step at a time, in any direction. (New shoes?)

Cancer: Armed and dangerous, Cancer. And the mirror doesn’t hate you either. Feel free to indulge that other side of Cancer. Hide out. Solitude is your friend and resource. Should help you get in touch with all you’ve got to work with and those big secret desires that keep the forward momentum interesting. No need to share more than you want too. Not at all. You keep your boundaries. “Yes, please.” Or “No, thank you.” It’s up to you. (Write it out or cut it up.)

Leo: My goal for you this moon, Leo, is grace and balance. If you’re feeling pulled in a few too many directions, keep hold of that sturdy center. Don’t go into denial about anything, rather identify those things which may be working against you and see if you can’t figure out a way to turn them around. Or change course. With maximum feline grace. You get what you give. Give your best with the greatest possible wisdom. Excellent returns on that and benefits all around. (Have a seat.)

Virgo: Somebody likes you. Really likes you. They may not know you fully in all your private, enigmatic details. But what they seem to know appears almost other worldly. Something slightly ancient, weirdly cosmic. They adore what they see and would like to understand the rest. And they are temptingly close to your meticulously high standards. Welcome pleasure and reflection with a precious other. (Maybe with wine?)

Libra: If I could, Libra, this horoscope would reach you with soaring symphonies. You are in a very powerful place. It’s been a long time coming. It’s almost as if you could reach out your hand into the great stirring cosmic soup and pull out exactly what you want. Start with what you need. You’ve had plenty of time to consider that. Try not to over think it. It’s okay to believe in your needs– and receive their fulfillment. (Spell it with neon.)

Scorpio: You seem tougher than ever and more gracious. Nothing’s breaking your stride and you have been incredibly clear in your communication. Trying your best anyway. Time to rethink home, maybe. If it gets messy you have the strength to rise above. Your goals are keeping everything in healthy perspective. Trust your intuition. Allow it great authority. You’re allowed mistakes, but more than likely you’re doing the right thing. For now. Be flexible, but no compromising if it brings you down. (Enjoy wind and high places.)

Sagittarius: Endless possibilities, Sag. It may seem difficult to know where to go from here. If you feel like you’re in a bit of a bind, (Lots of squaring action in Virgo.) now might be a good time to assess your priorities. They should be taking on a new clarity. And until you make some important decisions, you’re not going anywhere. And that is rather unlike you. There’s no rush, although you may find progress in attending to your dreams, the quieter, subtler messages. Affirmations come there. (Sleep on it.)

Capricorn: Peachy keen. Things are good. A little bit of shifting and unexpected surprises, but still quite dreamy. Let’s not burst the bubble. P.S. I miscalculated Jupiter direct last week. Look for that forward momentum to come on in early September. Plan something magical for next month, around the tenth. (Maybe a song? Sing along? Soundtrack?)

Aquarius: You’re distracted by something that no longer serves you. Don’t get stuck on it. With your intelligence you place your hopes and beliefs quite carefully, but... I think if you could just detach a bit and explore some other options by tapping into that quirky, out of the box thinking of yours... something much better may come along. (Look up!)

Pisces: Time to start cultivating your visions of winter. We want you warm, rested, cozy, gently and lovingly supported. What do you need to do now to make that happen? Let’s focus on health. Physical and financial. Consider changing up some habits that maybe aren’t that sustaining. (New coat?)

* ** ***
Elizabeth Travelslight is an October Scorpio with a Gemini rising and a Virgo moon. She has been studying tarot and astrology since 1996. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, she has a B.A. in Pure Mathematics from the University of California at Santa Cruz and almost has her M.A. in Communication, with an emphasis on poetry and contemporary philosophy, from the European Graduate School in Saas Fee, Switzerland.

“It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves.”

-William Shakespeare

I feel like most of you readers are pretty savvy folks who don't need "how-to" horoscope instructions. But since I’m still feeling new to the whole horoscope scene, here is a friendly disclaimer...

Like the horoscopes? Need some more perspective? There is definitely a bigger picture. Individual tarot and astrology consultations are available. (They make great gifts too!) Check out this website for more information.

more celan

VAST GLOWING VAULT

with the swarm of
black stars pushing them–
selves out and away:

on to the ram's silicified forehead.
I brand this image between
the horns, in which,
in the song of the whorls, the
marrow of melted
heart-oceans swells.

In–
to what
does he not charge?

The world is gone, I must carry you.

-Paul Celan

glittering charms

"Despite all efforts to tame it, manage it, control it, outsmart it, language resists your best efforts; language is still a bunch of sturdy, glittering charms in the astonished hand.

A utopia of possibility. A utopia of choice.

And I am huddled around the fire of the alphabet, still."

- Carole Maso, Rupture, Verge, and Precipice
Precipice, Verge, Hurt Not

Farewell Osento!

-Monique Wittig, Les Guérillères

The Osento Bathhouse for Women, one of my great sanctuaries in the city for many, many years, closed its doors for good yesterday. I had shown up early that afternoon to meet a close friend and then realized what was going on. It felt too emotional to say goodbye forever to a place that has provided me with such consistent healing. I opted for denial instead and decided to just enjoy and appreciate every last sweaty naked minute. I proceeded directly to the deck to work on my Osento Memorial Sunburn. By late afternoon the ladies were piled up happy as sea lions at Pier 39.

I know a lot of people who don't get naked. I'm not one of those. When appropriate- the euro-hippie girl in me- likes naked. Naked in the sun. Naked in the water. Naked hugging a tree. Shameless. Osento is the only place in San Francisco where it's safe to get naked and be in the sun. I like clothes too, but there is something awesome about nothing coming between me and the glory of sunshine.

And to see other women naked, many ages, many races, varying sexualites- that goes deep. Without places like Osento, some women, might not ever know what actual women look like. The bombardment of fake images of photoshopped women is so overwhelming and really skews the perception of "reality." That's Women's Studies 101, I know. But the effect of theory does not compare with the effect of reality. I love to actually see women enjoying and tending to all our curvy, flawed, tatooed, hairy, variety. It's beautiful– and healthy. I know it's been good for my self esteem to experience what real women look like. Makes me less prone to the propaganda.

The afternoon brought up a lot of memories of the closing of Herland in Santa Cruz (for which I got the tattoo above). It reminded me of how precious and incredibly valuable women's spaces have been in my life over the last many years and how difficult they are to establish and maintain. I know that the increased queering of gender has really complicated the concept of women's space. Osento's policies with respect to transgender were old fashioned, in part, I think, because Osento is old. Right out of the 1970s book of first world lesbian feminism. Women's spaces as healing places need to last and it's a struggle. I applaud the fact that Osento endured sufficient years to welcome my naked butt from the 90s until yesterday. I did hear a rumor, while I was in the sauna, about a community organization called Soak and just found this. Sounds like some folks are getting together the political will to develop a new community-style bathhouse with a more flexible gender policy. Yeah!

More than anything I just wanted to honor the passing of a place that has provided me with serious sanctuary. Osento is a place where I'd meet friends to relax and catch up on our busy lives. On several occassions, I've practically crawled to Osento, when the day to day world started to feel unbearable, all wrong, too tense, noisy, lonely, fragile, and crooked– like when PMS gets a bit hazardous. Osento took care of me. Really good care. And rather than be sad, (I am of course.) I just want to be grateful for the many years that it was there, for all the totally random, wonderful conversations, the very necessary healing moments, the awkward while naked customer sightings ("Don't you work at Rainbow?"), the golden glowing womb-like enclosure of the sauna, the intense heat and meditation, the smell of Olbas and the sharing of Epsom salt, my friend's hands gentle on my back, the thrill of the cold plunge, the familiar ding of the doorbell, Yvonne ever dazzling behind the desk, the blue tiles, the quiet room, cut limes, the sun deck, all the women, the layers of voices, and so many awesome tattoos! I never left Osento without feeling that I had recovered my deepest sanity from the obscurity of an occasionally complicated and fucked up world.

I went back later that evening with another friend. I figured I may as well. Closed is closed. And there was a very, very, crowded farewell party going on, only half the people were naked, which was kind of funny, and there was hardly any room in the saunas or tubs. Luckily, we managed a good twenty minutes in the little sauna and some socializing from the cold plunge. I overheard discussion of a Valencia Street midnight streak, but I don't know if it ever happened...

I woke up this morning and the first thing I thought was how nice it was to sit in the sun at Osento yesterday. My skin felt so yummy. The second thing I thought was maybe I'll go back and do it again today... but I guess not.