As a child of the sixties, growing up in California, I can affirm that “what’s your sign?” was probably the second (if not first) thing people asked a new acquaintance back then (sometimes even before “what’s your name?” and “can I have a toke?”)

Well, that’s mine. Something you wouldn’t want to find in a boot, let alone nesting in the pages of a cookbook (an early childhood memory from my paternal grandparents’ home in Mesa, Arizona).

However, as a teenage attendee of “love-ins,” I began to get a certain thrill from answering truthfully (I always answered truthfully…) and then watching people back away, slowly. Really, that happened about half the time. I’d say “Scorpio” and wow, instant doubling of my personal space. Cool! Of course the other half of the time, if the questioner were male, there was also the risk of instant decreasing of personal space, as we Scorpios were known to be sex-crazed. No matter that I was underage. (Yes, things could get creepy quickly back then.)

In the decades since, I’ve cultivated a healthy sense of Scorpio pride, as well as a mild sense of self-ridicule for taking such things “seriously.” But I can’t help it, the Zodiac archetypes are so much fun and mine in particular are so…flattering. Plus, most of my best friends are Scorps (or at least water signs).

My recent serious pursuit of magic studies has brought me back to a slightly deeper consideration of stellar omens and archetypes. And a recent personal crisis led me to review a rather stunning reading I had in January, 2016 from the renowned Caroline Casey, an astrologer and host of the Visionary Activist show on KPFA, 94.1 FM, Berkeley. This reading was a splurge, and took place just a couple of days before I moved to Hawai’i.

This reading was spot-on as Casey described (1) the events of the previous year and their timing (almost to the day!) and (2) my deepest inner responses to a range of life situations. This reading was ninety minutes of pure pleasure and not just because it was “all about me.” It was deeply pleasurable because Casey is a vibrant, nimble wordsmith who meshes mythic image and narrative with a compassionate, free-range “I Cover the Cosmos” perspective. Beautiful language, telling insights, and tons of humor. And she is a damned amazing astrologer. The reading was FUN.

I’ve listened to the recording twice in the last week. I took notes the second time. I’ll say too that it was difficult for me to listen to my 2016 self, at the time naively hopeful in the prospect of making a new (post-divorce) life in Hawai’i, but the reading also contained the germ of why things went so badly once I got there.

According to Casey, I’m “a kind Scorpio, yay!” My “strong fuels” are curiosity and liberation. I’m “increasingly allergic to tyranny.” (Yep!) And most of my action takes place in Scorpio in the fifth house, with Sun, Saturn, Mercury, Venus, and an asteroid, Pallas Athena. (Practically destined to be a sexologist…) And I’ve got two quintiles! That’s hella cool and rare!

Other highlights included strong “trickster” Uranus affinities, and such themes as “metabolizing poisons by conjuring the antidote” (quite appropriate given my multiple chemical sensitivity situation) and “compassion with sizzle.” And according to Casey, “the underworld is my beat” and “the dreamworld is my companion.” Sounds about right.

Casey also said “better a trickster than a martyr” and cautioned me that “no sign is more effective at broadcasting its inner assessment of others than Scorpio.” (Sorry, folks. I try to be polite and kind. Guess it hasn’t worked.)

So I’m super-tempted to save my pennies and have another reading. Getting back to California soil took almost everything I had (literally) and I’m still emotionally and physically convalescent. I’d love to have more insight into the immediate past and perhaps a glance at upcoming rays of light and bumps in the road.

A friend of mine once took a sailing lesson in the San Francisco Bay from a recent New York transplant. She asked him, “So, Tony, what’s the difference between the two coasts?” He answered, “Back deah, I wuz a wop. Out heah, I’m a Pisces.” (Sorry for the use of a perjorative, but that’s what he said.) Me? I’m a California girl. It shows.

This chart below is from astro.com. It doesn’t mention my friend, Pallas Athena, the asteroid. I’m placing it on this blog because, what the heck, out heah, I’m a Scorpio! You might as well know the worst. Be warned!

Any fellow travelers? Let me know you’re here–and if you need to keep your distance, I’ll understand…

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