Cancer (June 21-July 22)

“I like rice. Rice is great if you’re hungry and you want 2,000 of something.”

Mitch Hedberg

Hello 2014! The year 2014 means greater freedom and change for all Cancers. You are so dramatically redefining your individuality, others notice it. Even if your drive for more independence is hindered by a partnership, you ain’t gonna stop. After all, you gave up a lot at the beginning of the millennium, which is why you began to reinvent yourself around 2003. Job changes and residential moves in 2007-11 pretty much put the finishing touches to this journey. Since then you’ve been helping family members and working to establish a secure home for yourself. This is important to you because you are a nester. And since you need to feather your nest, you hold onto stuff. Fortunately, all those residential moves helped you pare things down. Actually, because you have lightened your load and established a home base, you are even freer to explore new ways of living. Mars Attacks! This year an unusual journey of Mars in one sign will energize you. You will assert yourself in many situations, even to the extent that you surprise yourself. However, you will also feel you are being tested and forced to demonstrate that you know what you’re doing. Mars is the planet that governs war, so you will have disputes and disagreements with others, especially on the home front. Basically, Mars will make you irritable and impatient. So the obvious remedy is to practice patience and be tolerant. In the bigger picture, Mars gives you abundant energy to work hard, which in turn guarantees that your efforts will bear fruit. The key to handling this influence is to be aware of what you say and do. Guard against being petty and irritable.

Money — the Second Most Important Thing

Career and money are where things get better and better this year. Your financial prospects will improve because of your good fortune. Lucky Jupiter is in your sign and will stay until August. This means you get the breaks. Lady Luck is smiling on you. Decisions go in your favour. Opportunities come to you. After August, moneybags Jupiter moves into your House of Earnings and that’s when the real dough starts to roll in! For most of this year, you will be in the right place at the right time saying the right thing to the right person. You will attract favourable circumstances to you and your confidence will increase. This is the start of a new 12-year cycle of growth. Late in the year, all these advantages will generate money and rewards. Some of you will have to wait until 2015 but the money will come. However, you might have to compromise your individuality for professional achievements. Others will explore new areas of science, technology, radio, aviation, astrology or the occult.

Love is Chemistry, Sex is Physics

You’re serious about romance this year and ready to cultivate committed relationships. However, you might have questions about existing long-term relationships, which is not surprising because you stay in the wrong relationships too long. But this year, you have the courage to speak up because you want your freedom. Not necessarily freedom from a relationship but freedom within a relationship. That’s why there will be power struggles, especially related to home and family. But aside from that, Jupiter in your sign encourages happiness and an easygoing lightheartedness. This is why others want to be in your company. And if a powerful partnership hinders your drive for independence — well, there’s the door. If you feel secure and confident to explore new paths that bring you greater autonomy and freedom, you are willing to bond with someone. Home Suite Home Close partnerships and relationships are under the gun. If you’ve been stifling your grievances, this year you will put your cards on the table. But if you don’t, pressure could build up to a breaking point. For different reasons, there will be a lot of chaos and increased activity where you live or within your family, and this distraction could make you fight with family members, especially if you’re living with parents. Disputes about land ownership or a family business or something that is shared are possible. Think about what your long-term objective is. Fortunately, with lucky Jupiter in your sign you will weather this.

A Sneak Peek beyond 2014

This year you have the challenge of Mars stirring up trouble at home and yet, it also energizes you in a wonderful way. By 2015, more money comes your way and this leads to a three-year window of hard work. Take note that a wonderful window of opportunity to improve where you live or deal in real estate exists from mid-2016 to the end of 2017. Great time to buy or sell. The next year (2018) leads to kudos, recognition and acknowledgment, the best you’ve had since 1996-97.

Your Cancer Mantra for 2014

“I appreciate my good fortune and will take advantage of it!”

Mercury Retrograde in 2014

Expect delays, lost items and confused communications! Best to finish things, not begin them. These are poor times to buy cars, trucks, bikes, computers, printers and phones. (Dates below are actual retrograde dates and buffer dates. Mercury slows down before it goes retrograde and, likewise, it takes a while to catch up to the degree it was at when it first went retrograde. Use buffer times for big purchases like cars.)

Feb. 6 to Feb. 28 (Buffer times: Feb. 2 to March 20)

June 7 to July 1 (Buffer times: May 28 to July 16)

Oct. 4 to Oct. 26 (Buffer times: Sept. 25 to Nov. 10) Lucky Days for 2014 Jan. 11, 12, 13 Feb. 7, 8, 9 March 6, 7, 8 April 3, 4,5, 30 May 1, 27, 28, 29 June 24, 26, 27 July 21, 22, 23 Aug. 17, 18, 19 Sep. 13, 14, 15 Oct. 11, 12, 13 Nov. 7, 8, 9 Dec. 5, 6, 7

Who Shares My Birthday? June 21 Chris Pratt 1979 22 Elizabeth Warren 1949 23 Joss Whedon 1964 24 Mercedes Lackey 1950 25 Anthony Bourdain 1956 26 Chris O’Donnell 1970 27 Tobey Maguire 1975 28 Measha Brueggergosman 1977 29 Bret McKenzie 1976 30 Lizzy Caplan 1982 July 1 Diana, Princess of Wales 1961 2 Evelyn Lau 1971 3 Sebastian Vettel 1987 4 Richard Garriott de Cayeux 1961 5 Eva Green 1980 6 Dalai Lama 1935 7 Ringo Starr 1940 8 Kathleen Robertson 1973 9 Kelly McGillis 1957 10 Alice Munro 1931 11 Justin Chambers 1970 12 Pablo Neruda 1904 13 Patrick Stewart 1940 14 Jane Lynch 1960 15 Travis Fimmel 1979 16 Gareth Bale 1989 17 Angela Merkel 1954 18 Nelson Mandela 1918 19 Benedict Cumberbatch 1976 20 Sandra Oh 1971 21 Paloma Faith 1986 22 Prince George of Cambridge 2013