ASTRAL REFLECTIONS BY TIM STEPHENS SEPTEMBER 14 - 20, 2008 All times/dates are PDT. I vowed not to discuss Obama and McCain again before the election. But I didn't say anything about Sarah Palin, McCain's vice presidential pick. She's an AQUARIAN, as is Bush's VP, Dick Cheney. Aquarius is a paradox: kind and gentle, yet ruthless in politics. (Did I see on CNN's little banner during the Republican convention that Aquarian Abe Lincoln filled his nominating convention with people holding fake credentials?) Cheney's ruthless record speaks for itself. And Palin showed she wasn't shy about joining this illustrious Aquarian group with her convention speech of mendacious assault. Like Cheney, she and her family breaks rules - she eloped, her daughter is an unwed mother - yet they are both archconservatives. Another Aquarian paradox. (Palin possesses either a CAPRICORN or Aquarian Moon, depending on what time of day she was born. Capricorn is the sign of political prowess. Cheney has a SCORPIO Moon - sign of life/death and behind-the-scenes power. That Moon explains why Cheney disdains the limelight. The Aquarian Sun shows his liberalism toward his lesbian daughter. Aquarians accept eccentrics and "different" people with relish.) Joe Biden, Obama's V.P. pick, is a Scorpio with a TAURUS Moon. He's one stubborn guy. It's odd: Obama picked Joe Biden as a running mate to supply the passion, flamboyance and belligerence Barack can't seem to provide. And McCain plucked Sarah Palin from gun-toting Alaska to provide the gusto, ruthlessness and fluency he can't muster in himself. The upcoming vice-presidential debate should be a donnybrook - glad-handing Joe versus Annie Oakley Sarah - both as stubborn as they come, and both masking ruthlessness behind a genuinely friendly nature. The four fixed (stubborn) signs of the zodiac are Taurus, LEO, Scorpio and Aquarius. Biden's Scorpio-Taurus. Pailn's Aquarius. And Barack's a Leo-Scorpio. All will be powerful in dealing with foreign nations. The odd man out? John McCain - a diffident, indecisive, changeable VIRGO. Virgos often marry twice, as McCain did. Fixed signs (Biden, Palin and Obama) usually mate for life. (Biden was a widower who remarried.) But McCain has a Capricorn Moon, so he knows how to utilize, shuffle and gently manipulate those around him, including his enemies. Like an artist, he's set an interesting stage for the entire contest, and I can almost see him alone, watching what he's wrought with silent glee. He's taken a gamble (Palin, etc.) and he's enjoying the event. As is typical with mutable signs (GEMINI, Virgo, SAGE and PISCES) the experience is almost more important than the outcome. Start Nothing: 12:03 p.m. to 2:39 p.m. Mon., 3:26 p.m. to 5:57 p.m. Wed., and 3:51 p.m. to 8:17 p.m. Fri. Aries March 21-April 19 Work hard, complete chores. Seek relationships in business, love and all areas. Seal a deal, gain agreement, relocate, or present your proposal. Next week through October 14, delays, mistakes and confusion (and former contacts) arrive. You'll make other deals after October 14, but they won't have quite the same quality, outlook or mood as those that are presently possible. Be diplomatic. Others hold the aces. A proposal that highlights another's needs/desires is more likely to succeed than one that accents your own. You're successful Wednesday. Money's lucky Thursday/Friday! Taurus April 20-May 20 Work to complete a major task; don't begin new ones. Your romantic, speculative, risk-taking side might propel you into new "gambles" - that's good, if these are pure gambles, in love, money, sports, etc. But if the gamble is that a big new practical or work project will succeed if you only dive in headfirst, you could end up with an enduring headache. You might have attracted someone for many years; this person remains "ready for your call" even if he/she recently rejected you. Your energy and charisma soar Thursday/Friday! Gemini May 21-June 20 A former lover or passion (for art, creativity, an exotic place, etc.) will return soon, September 24-October 14. The present week is your last chance to pursue a new kind of love, creative process, etc. Your hopes for the future are connected to a romantic, creative or similar situation. But your soul flows toward home, property, security, family, kids, retirement, agriculture, etc. You might want to build a house for your love. Hopes hit barriers Monday/Tuesday. Therapists, civil servants favor you Thursday/Friday. Big, deep relationship change needed, foreshadowed Saturday. Cancer June 21-July 22 You feel restless and sluggish. Communications, paperwork, errands, trips, casual friends and siblings fill the days, but so do your property, domestic and security concerns. Complete tasks in these areas rather than start new ones. Get repairs done, fix that fire alarm, settle your kids' difficulties at school, etc. A sweet mellow mood falls over you Sunday into Monday noon. Ambition (or pressure from above) enters later Monday into Wednesday - take care Monday/Tuesday, problems are real. Wednesday promotes solutions. Happiness, optimism and social delights arrive Thursday/Friday! Retreat Saturday. Leo July 23-Aug. 22 Continue to chase money, buy/sell. Your employment luck sails into high gear through the rest of this year (e.g., Thursday/Friday). Seek a pay raise, take on more duties, longer hours - present efforts can later lead to promotion or other big breaks. If you want to make contacts, travel, write a report, buy telecommunications equipment, etc., do so now. Next week brings misunderstood communications, aborted trips, and lemons - through October 14. Be cautious with legal, educational, cultural and love situations Monday/Tuesday - solutions come Wednesday. Your career luck sails high Thursday/Friday! Virgo Aug. 23-Sept. 22 Your vitality, charisma and effectiveness remain high - tackle significant things, see and be seen, call in favors. Beware of starting big, brand new projects, as a slow-down looms. Money keeps coming - and going. An investment purchase might be slated. Expect problems with this Monday/Tuesday, success Wednesday. Time actions, commitments accordingly. You're strangely and effectively casual about money and about a sexual attraction. Good, I think. A sweet, mellow mood enters Thursday/Friday - you might win a lawsuit, cultural rite, or intellectual contest. But you know your home has to change. Libra Sept. 23-Oct. 22 You're still dealing with secrets, civil servants, institutions, charities, and spiritual realities - be sympathetic, kind. In life's storm, you're facing a cave. It offers security and shelter - but is there a bear inside? Nothing's final, despite appearances, until late November onward. Then, finality rules, and commitments will be "forever." At present, have faith in your hopes, abilities - your allure, determination and decisiveness are high. Commitments made Monday/Tuesday will likely fail. Those made Wednesday will promote relationships. Those made Thursday/Friday might bring riches, intimacy - or both! Secrets, money need revision. Scorpio Oct. 23-Nov. 21 Passion, romance, creativity, pleasure and a small winning streak bless you Sunday/Monday! But Monday also (around noon) sets a tone of more serious things, of necessary financial or sexual adjustments. It's minor, but hints at deeper currents - ones that could surface as serious needs, barriers or conflicts by Saturday (September 20). Be alert, and more importantly, aware. Your intuition regarding family, property, security and such matters rises strongly all week. Pay attention to small clues. Work presents problems Monday/Tuesday. Relationships bring opportunities, success, agreements and happiness Wednesday to Friday! Sagittarius Nov. 22-Dec. 21 Be ambitious, display your skills, contact higher-ups, boost your community status, join service clubs, etc. But don't start any projects now that will demand ongoing effort over the few weeks ahead. (Agreements and allies will "turn backwards" next week to mid-October.) Vegetate at home Sunday. Handle little adjustments Monday - these could be the tip of a relationship, spiritual, or ambition-related iceberg that will grind against your ship of accomplishment by Saturday. (This iceberg, lurking since 1996, will melt in 2009.) Romance isn't great Monday/Tuesday, rights itself Wednesday. Tackle chores Thursday/Friday. Capricorn December 22-Jan. 19 Enjoy this week's mellow, understanding mood. Write, call and travel Sunday. Monday's mild frustration could become late week's definite problem, perhaps involving a family member, an institution, government agency, or simply a personality or moral issue. Your career and earnings potentials are favored all week, especially Wednesday to Friday - follow your intuition (that calm, slight nudge) - it's accurate. Romance and a lucky, creative surge also arrive Wednesday night to Friday - you're on a wee winning streak! If you declare your attraction to someone, you'll succeed - but is it fair? Aquarius Jan. 20-Feb. 18 Change looms in your social life and aspirations this week. This area has been "under development" since 1996 - but this is the last "forced" (cosmically induced) change. In subsequent years/decades, you'll see green fields in friendship. The puzzles, the almost unseen barriers and unexpected transformations in associations will dissolve. This last change (centering on September 20) could be huge and obvious, or travel under the surface like a submarine. Love's involved. Your intuition swells luckily this week, about love, right and wrong, foreign travel and education - act on it! Pisces Feb. 19-March 20 Relationships face one last subtle, slow bump, like a swell in the road. It could be the biggest bump of all these last 12 years, or it could be almost nothing - but it marks the end of a decade of ambition, ambition that has indirectly caused deep, almost subterranean obstacles and struggles in relationships, including those with your parents and children. The "bump" centers on September 20, but it could occur anytime. Don't challenge higher-ups. Your energy and charisma rise Sunday. Money's a problem Monday/Tuesday; solutions come Wednesday. www.astralreflections.com. Email: timstephens@shaw.ca. For a reading: 604-261-1337. /30/