Who In Their Right Mind - more on Mercury retrograde

Left Brain v Right Brain Test

This left Brain v Right brain test asks you to test your perceptions on whether the figure is moving clockwise or anticlockwise. Clockwise, it seems is right brained and of course anti-clockwise is left-brained.

As a generalisation if you have Mercury in the fire or air signs then you would be more inclined to be a lefter, whereas with Mercury in water or earth signs you would be more likely to be right-brained.

With Mercury in Gemini I am usually left brained, i.e. my perceptions rely on logic facts and details. So I should see the figure moving anti-clockwise right? Wrong! Today I am seeing it move clockwise, so today I am right-brained i.e. I am perceiving things through feelings and imagination.

Is this the result of Mercury retrograde I wonder?

If you know already whether you are usually left or right minded I would be interested to know if the test shows up the result you expect.

PS in true Mercury retrograde fashion there is a problem uploading images - so I can't sign off in my usual emoticon style

Rethinking Mercury

Mercury retrograde is a frustrating time for all forms of communication; mail, deliveries, phone systems and computer network to name a just a few. Short journeys are not immune either. Some astrologers issue dire warnings about signing contracts and making decisions during this time. But in astrology, as in all things, there are ways to make difficult periods work for you. So how do we make the best of Mercury Retrograde?

Life doesn’t come to a halt during this period (even if sometimes it feels as if it has!) You may need to renegotiate, revise or reverse a previous decision or communication. If so then you will need to take time out to reflect. In fact taking time out to reflect and refocus is a good way to use this time positively. Do you see the connection with Retrograde? This is a time when you get to rethink any decisions, refocus your minds, and re-consider or revise things you thought were taken care of. Do re-look at previous plans and communications, especially make sure you haven’t forgotten a previously made appointment and that you have double check any travel plans.

If you are an astrologer then maybe if you do have to start or sign anything during this period you could elect a time to do so (for non astrologers electional astrology is where astrologers choose the best astrological time to start a project.) For instance, I registered this Blog when Jupiter, (planet of luck, and opportunity,) was conjunct the Midheaven (point of status). But it was in the shadow period so it was a while before it became public; when it did I used various traditional astrological techniques to make the most of dire planetary placements, ensuring the chart ruler and the moon were both in the exaltation of Jupiter. But as this was done in the shadow period I am still reflecting on whether to stay with Blogger or move to something different.

The general affect of Mercury depends upon the signs where it will show its retrograde motion, whilst the personal affect will depend on the house it is travelling through in your own chart. The current passage of mercury retrograde is through Scorpio and back into Libra.

(This is where you find out that a Gemini will not bother doing something if someone else has done it better, for an excellent explanation of the effects of the current retrograde period through Scorpio, take look at the Blog of Neil D Paris: New World Astrology)

One thing to note is that when Mercury begins and ends it retrograde period it ‘stations’ that is, it appears to stand still in the sky. Often this is the peak intensity for things going awry. However this time as Mercury gets ready to go direct it will station at 23 degrees Libra, this is the position of Spica, one of the luckiest Fixed Stars in the skies. In the book Fixed Stars by Vivien E Robson it is noted that: “According to Ptolemy it is of the nature of Venus and Mars; and, to Alvidas, of Venus, Jupiter and Mercury. It gives success, renown, riches, a sweet disposition, love of art and science, unscrupulousness, unfruitfulness and injustice to innocence” So I can’t help but feel that something good is going to come out of this particular retrograde period, and that the closing shadow will be a harmonious time, especially for any previous contractual negotiations and for partnerships of all kinds.

Me hoping for a positive outcome

In The Shadow Of Mercury Retrograde

Astrologers, and some non-astrologers, are well aware of the Mercury Retrograde phenomenon.

When a planet is described as 'retrograde' it is appearing to go backwards in the sky. Of course it doesn't really go backwards. It's like being in a train as a faster, train goes past, and you feel like the train you are in is going backwards, when you're not at all. Mercury experiences a retrograde cycle about once every 4 months, and remains retrograde for approximately 3 weeks.

Mercury has 3 sessions of retrograde motion each year; it rules communications so during the retrograde period all areas of communication can go awry. You can expect various miscommunications, delays, glitches with phones, mail, computers, websites, in fact anything that you use as a method of contacting others. It’s also not a good time to sign contracts.

So what is the Shadow of Mercury Retrograde and why am I Blogging about it? The shadow period runs either side of the retrograde period, from the earliest zodiac degree it will retrograde to and then to the latest degree. The table below illustrates this phenomenon.

As you can see, we are already in the shadow period as I write this. During the run up to Mercury Retrograde the opening shadow period gives a hint of what can go wrong – things will start glitching, communications will go awry. The current UK postal strike is a perfect illustration of this. The closing period is when things start to settle down with maybe a few final kicks up the rear end from the Trickster.

Already I have experienced some glitches, including my mobile phone suddenly deciding it didn’t have a sim card, my web hosts disabling my web page because I had forgotten to update my card details. (Have to say they were most apologetic when I pointed out that I hadn’t received their warning emails and the problem was fixed within seconds) The most notable glitch though is continued slowing down of my Internet connection. Now I have been with this provider for some years with no problems until this last year. Some evenings lately it slows to a crawl, and support has gone downhill, maybe because it was taken over by a larger company. It’s not the cheapest, nor the most well known. I researched before I signed up and narrowed it down to two providers. I chose this one!

I was recently talking online to someone about this and he recommended his supplier, again not the cheapest nor the most well known. Turns out his supplier is the second of the two I originally narrowed my choice down to. When I checked back it was on the 22nd September that we started discussing this! So it looks like it’s definitely time for a change – but do I wait until Mercury turns direct and completely out of the shadow period before I sign up? Watch this space!

<<<<<< Me Thinking

Animated Gifs Dilemma

This wasn't intended to be my 2nd post, but needs must! I've solved the animated gifs in posts dilemma.

It seems that Blogger does something to your animated gifs when you upload them from your own machine. Therefore you will need to find an online photo host. I used photobucket.

Upload your image to photobucket, then add the image to your post using the URL upload – but click ‘done’ quickly because otherwise it seems to go on adding the same image. (I had to delete the extra ones)

The next step is to check the image size, using html to correct if it is necessary – mine was twice the size it should be. Hopefully this will give you an animated gif in your post.

<<<<< Me being successful

To Blog or not to Blog…

…that is the question.

My friend Kitty has been urging me to blog for a while now, but I wonder a) do I want to share my thoughts with the world and b) who would be interested anyway? I also wonder do I want to and have I got time? Well I’m here so I guess I must want to and I must have found some time. Originally I was going to put some blogger software on my own website – but I just haven’t got the time to check out all the different options and then format them to my liking. (Not that I am a control freak! – OK with Mars in Scorpio I am a control freak.) So for the time being here I am.

I don’t think I’m going to be a good blogger though, there seems to be a whole community amongst bloggers and so many places to blog! I just haven’t time to read all the blogs of said community. I am unlikely to write reams and reams, I’m a ‘to the point’ type of person and don’t believe in using ten words when one will do. Nor am I likely to update this on a regular basis as I get so easily distracted by other things. So consider yourself warned!

<<<<< Me being busy