HOROSCOPE

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2018 Mercury Backs Into Scorpio

Becoming is a function of nature in that what we become is already inside us. Unlike caterpillars, humans have more than one dormant potential and much depends on nurturing. Still, it is not necessary to push, strive or wish you were anything other than you are. As Mercury backs into the sign of transformation, trust in your own becoming.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). Happiness gives you so much, including improved health, vitality and self-control. So it really is powerful to know and gravitate toward happiness and all of its fortifications.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). While you like a good mystery, you also note that there’s a difference between a mystery and a vat of confusion. Mysteries have elegance and the potential to stretch out and be known. Vats of confusion are more like garbage.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). There are those who are happy to take whatever personal power and resources you hand over. Don’t! Remember that you are equally entitled to living a good life as anyone you may be employed by or obligated to serve.

CANCER (June 22-July 22). You’ll be in a position to create a system of doing things. It starts with you figuring things out for yourself, and soon you’ll realize that there are others who need to know, too. That’s when things get clearer.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). As you’ve already done a certain kind of work, you can appreciate what it takes for another person to do the same job. It changes how you interact and increases the amount of respect flowing through your scene.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Humor is a shortcut to connection. To make a person honestly laugh, or even just smile a little, is to skip 10 steps toward rapport. But it’s a risk, because eliciting a false laugh or causing an offense is 10 steps away from rapport.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). It’s a strange day when you actually sustain a high level of productivity by doing very little. This has to do with knowing when to be quiet and when to let people fill in the blanks and do the work they want to do.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). The conflict is a part of life and life could not be without it. But the level of engagement will be up to you. If you steer away from dramatic situations, you’ll still have enough conflict to keep things interesting.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). You’ve been touched by the efforts of people you don’t know, but you don’t have to have a personal interaction to derive meaning and to get real value from someone’s work.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Redundancies are fine when you’re learning something or when you must double-check things for safety reasons. But unnecessary redundancies are boring and cumbersome. You’ll get rid of something like this today.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). You will learn so much about people by observing what they default to, do by accident or talk about when there’s not much else going on. You’re “people,” too, of course.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). The robin’s song may sound sweet to us and to other robins, but it’s not even close to the sort of honk that a goose prefers. Whatever your “song” today, there’s someone out there who will appreciate it over the others.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (Dec. 1). Each solar return you become wiser, more loving and more powerful. Some years this happens in a natural, easy flow. This year, it’s more of a rocket ride where you get out in an entirely different world from the one you started in. Also featured: a key aesthetic choice, a memorable celebration and a career twist. Cancer and Aquarius adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 9, 13, 25, 1 and 11.

ASTROLOGICAL QUESTION: “What happened was that my husband found an extra cord in the wall and he assumed that I was cheating with the cable guy. Don’t try to make sense of this. Next, I came home from the grocery store and he decided that I was cheating on him. Why? Because my hair was a mess. Well, my hair is always a mess. It’s fine, and then the weather is humid and it all goes crazy. My husband is beside himself, looking at me like the end is near. What should I do? Me: Pisces Him: Gemini.”

Consider seriously the psychological defense mechanism known as “projection,” in which a person denies his own state of being and ascribes the condition on others. It’s not because you’re Pisces or because he’s a Gemini. Though, due to your Pisces nature, you’re sensitive and want to fix things. And his Gemini nature may lead him to explain things away. He needs you to lead him to the center of the issue. Prepare for it to have far less to do with you than he thinks. Keep bringing the conversation back to him, his feelings and any actions he’s taken recently that you should know about.

CELEBRITY PROFILES: In keeping with her fire sign nature, sharp-tongued Sagittarius Sarah Silverman has a talent for making incendiary remarks and pushing into uncomfortable territory in the name of comedy, liberty, feminism, decency and the many other causes she takes on. With Mercury and Neptune also in Sagittarius, Silverman likely isn’t even trying to be a brave trailblazer, but she can’t help herself.

Write Holiday Mathis at holidaymathis@gmail.com.

COPYRIGHT 2018 CREATORS.COM SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2018 Attention Boxed by Solar Square to Mars

A square of the sun and Mars will point out that though a number of people may show up at the same place at the same time, each person is not present to the same degree. Never has this been truer than in the digital age, when attention so scarcely is focused on things happening in the larger environment of our being.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). Your first responsibility is to yourself -keeping yourself healthy and strong on all the levels, including the spiritual. Handle your responsibility to yourself well and the other responsibilities will fall neatly within reach.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). A reckless person may execute the same action as a confident person, but the reckless person is coming from hopelessness and the confident person is coming from optimism. This matters. Learn the intentions of others.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). Head games are not limited to social manipulation. They can be solitary efforts, too. You’ll recognize the game you play with yourself. Once you recognize the loopy thinking that isn’t serving you well, you’ll quickly change it.

CANCER (June 22-July 22). To know that another person is thinking the best about you, taking what you say in the most positive possible light and interpreting good into all you do -- it’s an ultimate form of success.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). You welcome the opportunity to try new things. That’s why you won’t mind today’s detour all that much. It involves new vantages and people and so has all the makings of an adventure.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). The person who understands a concept extremely well will be able to explain it simply and concisely. If you’re confused by an explanation, seek a more expert teacher.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). If it seems as though you still don’t have what you’re looking for, maybe you’re just looking in the wrong direction. “All things on Earth your will shall win you . ... But the Kingdom -- the Kingdom is within you.” -- Rudyard Kipling

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Different friends have different roles in your life. These roles can take a metaphorical minute to figure out. Some shuffling and experimenting is to be expected. Also, these roles change. Stay open.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). The difference between a garden and a lawless patch of growth is not that one is more beautiful or useful than the other. It’s that one sticks to a plan.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). The villains aren’t all bad, and the heroes aren’t all good. It’s better not to generalize anyway. Each instance needs to be taken out of context, looked at separately and then put back in context and assessed in the whole.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). When food doesn’t satisfy you and people around you don’t engage you, it’s a sign. If immediate needs can’t seem to be met in the way they usually would be, there’s something deeper that needs your attention.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). Each ecosystem can support only a certain number of living organisms. The various social groups around you are the same. The large and more inclusive groups have the potential to make you very happy now.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (Dec. 2). Think about what’s going to happen this year. Try to see it vividly. You’re increasingly psychic, yet it’s not your main power. Big results come from regular visualizations. See the outcome you want and your decisions and actions become more concisely geared toward the attainment of the future you see. Cancer and Aquarius adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 4, 40, 1, 18 and 9.

FORECAST FOR THE WEEK AHEAD: The warrior planet doesn’t automatically start trouble, but it likes to know where the trouble potential is. The week starts with a line of questions posed by a solar square to Mars. (SET ITAL) What would happen if you expressed an unpopular opinion? Would your right to do so be supported by those who disagree with you? (END ITAL) This is the very definition of freedom, Mars would like to point out. If you don’t feel free to go against the group, you’re not really free. If you feel as if you can’t say “no,” then you’re not really fully able to say “yes.” There’s a difference between agreement and acquiescence.

Venus slips into Scorpio, and the integrity of people, things and relationships matters more. We become willing to look deeper as we seek situations that feel honest to us.

The Mercury retrograde ends at the close of the week. Also, a new moon in Sagittarius celebrates the return of a more logical flow. It’s still not safe to take communication for granted. It’s still a good idea to double-check all of our efforts and communications. But we’re branching out and moving on now, so less vigilance will be necessary.

CELEBRITY PROFILES: Besides winning Grammys and Billboard and Glamour awards, Britney Spears has held several world records. She has been the most searched person on the internet and the best-selling teenage artist, too. But her Aquarius moon indicates that what this pop star cares about most is the good in the world that can be done with a charitable heart.

Write Holiday Mathis at Holidaymathis@gmail.com.

COPYRIGHT 2018 CREATORS.COM