GREAT BALLS OF FIRE - Plus Bank of England and more

Another round-up week here on CWF:




While many of you in the States were tucking into your Turkey, I had a reason to give thanks of my own here in the UK.

On Thursday night, at 11.25GMT to be precise, I was up out of bed and outside tending to my daughters rabbit because it was, highly unusually, hugely distressed about something. Just as I backed away from his hutch something caught my eye up in the crystal clear night sky. It was a red light, and at first, as we live on the flightpath I thought it must be a plane but it was way too large for that, plus it was glowing red and yellow and quickly getting larger.

I stood transfixed as this 'thing' headed from the SSW to the NNE right over my house. Without a shadow of a doubt it was a fireball. I could see it really clearly as it approached.

It had no tail, it made no noise, it wasn't a firework or Chinese lantern blowing around; this was on a definite path like a missile ( albeit a round one) on a trajectory. As we are in the midst of meteor season it must have been a fragment of spacerock which had entered the atmosphere.

It was a thrilling, if unnerving experience and I was thankful it passed over our house! The thing I keep wondering about ever since though, is how and why my rabbit was so upset? He calmed down as soon as it had passed over, yet he could not have seen it from where his cage is positioned. The only conclusion is he must have heard it at some level above, or below, human hearing range.

I recall when I was in a series of earthquakes in Los Angeles that the animals always went nuts - dogs barking wildly - just before a quake came. So, if we were to consider the possibility that all the doomsday theories hold weight and '2012' is about an impact event or some huge natural calamity, perhaps the lesson to take from this is to get a pet and take particular note when it starts acting strangely;-)

Anyway, after my 'sighting' I immediately scoured the Net for news but found none. (BTW It looked just like the photo at the top, about one quarter this size, without the tail and more of a yellow and red hue whereas that one is white and red) What I did find were reports on sightings of a huge meteor in Utah (17th) and South Africa on the 21st November.

If you haven't yet seen the footage of the South Africa one, here it is (and a link to the Utah event)



Utah http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1ZKm2Cru4E

As I say we are in meteor season but it's not expected to peak for another 14 days yet! God only knows what's set to rain down on us in days to come! Here's a report from the net. :

On the evening of Dec. 13 into the morning of the 14th, the Geminid meteor shower peaks. This shower is fairly reliable, producing up to 100 meteors an hour. The moon will not interfere with viewing this multi-colored display — more than half usually white, a quarter yellow, and the remaining meteors blue, red and green. Only about 25 years ago did NASA discover an object in the same orbit as the Geminid meteoroid stream, a rocky asteroid or extinct comet named 3200 Phaethon. This is most probably the parent body of the Geminid meteor shower.

DUBAI:

"There is no Bank of Morality that could provide a bailout for this sinister mirage in the desert".

Read this great article from The Huffington Post here (thanks to Christine Delorey for bringing it to my attention) and then hop over to my Tomorrow Today blog for an article, with chart data, which I wrote the day the news about Dubai broke. I must admit I had it in my head that 1 December was Monday, but turns out it's Tuesday, so as a quick revision to that article, look out for more problems at LSEG and Stocks in general re this Dubai issue tomorrow 30th Nov AND 1 Nov. Volatility always increases around Full Moons and the next is looming on the 2 Dec.

Christine also pointed out that Tiger Woods car crash and the Dubai crash came on the same day. Read more here

BANKS & ASTROLOGY:
Saturn and Pluto continue their square 'bleak, harsh, survival' aspect throughout the winter. On 16 December, all the way through to 9 February 2010, Saturn will station retrograde and remain at 4 Libra.

Saturn/Pluto cycles link into the metaphorical death and transformation (Pluto) of Institutions - like Banks (Saturn). Anyone with planets at 4 Libra, and therefore - due to the harmonic nature of the universe - also at 4 Aries, 4 Capricorn, 4 Cancer, 19 Scorpio, 19 Taurus, 19 Leo and 19 Aquarius, is going to feel an incredible tension in some area of their life related to the planets and position involved. Something may have to give in order to be renewed.

I have a number of colleagues who are available for personal astrological consultations if you would like to find out where this will impact you - please contact me for details at (cosmictrends at hotmail dot com).

Countries with planets at 4 Libra are:
New Zealand
Bhutan
Lebanon
Abkhazia
UK
Swaziland
Greece
Malaya
El Salvador
South Africa
Tonga
Portugal
Western Samoa
Kosovo
Eritrea
NATO has Uranus at 4 Cancer
OPEC has a close Mercury.

Most worryingly the Bank of England was founded by Royal Charter on 27 July 1694. If we use the time as 9am, then the forward motion of the planet Uranus (direct 1 Dec) is about to push over into angularity on 31st Dec - the night of a full Moon partial eclipse - and the Mars/Neptune opposition, at 24 Virgo/Pisces will also be conjoined by Uranus in Jan/Feb/Mar 2010 bringing the potential for sudden collapse. This at the same time as Pluto hits the node of the Banks chart, Saturn stations on the Moon and Mars retrogrades to impact the Sun/Pluto conjunction. Arghh. If anyone can put a positive spin on that I take my hat off to them!

Expect the fireworks to begin now (tomorrow) with the possibility of a Black Friday (or black week) around 18th Dec and mayhem in early 2010. Sorry to sound so pessimistic but, as I tweeted yesterday I think it is incumbent upon astrologers to warn people that we are in a bubble of hype about a recovery when the outlook actually calls for people to face the reality. We are not on the way out of the woods in 2010 but heading deeper in. If that stops just one person borrowing ro spending more than they can afford to lose in the erroneous belief of recovery around the corner, then we have helped.

Every single chart of banks, stock exchanges, currencies etc is being pulverized by difficult aspects. Whether this Dubai problem will start the domino effect, or if some other shock is looming we cannot tell but something is about to bring the banking system to its knees. Click to enlarge




MIDPOINTS:
This section is going to be too technical for most readers, but for the astrologers amongst you, I want to add another section here in the hope that careful study of these points will help uncover exactly where potential problems may emanate from in the turmoil we can see approaching in 2010.

These are transiting midpoints of outer planets. What this means is that when a planet in a country chart or a natal chart falls at any of these degrees it acts as a conductor of the two outer planets.:

DEC 2009/JAN 2010/FEB 2010

JU/SA 11 Sag/15 Sag/18 Sag ( this means it is moving thru 11 to 18 degrees inclusive)
JU/UR 6 Pisc/9 Pis/13Pis
JU/NE 22 Aqu/25 Aq /29 Aq
JU/PL 26 Cap/29 Cap/03 Aq
SA/UR 27 Sag (GC)/28 Sag/29 Sag (turns Rx)
SA/NE 13 Sag/14 Sag/14 Sag (turns Rx)
SA/PL 17 Scorpio 17 Sco/18 Sco/19 Sco (turns Rx)
UR/NE 8 Pisc/8 Pis/9 Pis (now direct from Dec 09)
UR/PL 12 Aqu/13 Aq/14 Aq
NE/PL 28 Cap/28 Cap/ 0 Aq

Thanks to Claire in North Dakota for providing the data.

So, for example, on a personal level I can expect to really feel evidence of the SA/PL cycle manifesting in my life this month even if to the casual observer, my chart shows no significant hits. This is because the midpoint of the two is on my Sun at 17 Scorpio. Midpoints are like an x-ray of the chart bringing hidden resonances to light.

Ones to watch are the movements of the JU/PL & NE/PL midpoints to Aquarius in Jan/Feb- and JU/NE to Pisces in March, all concerned with currency!

UR/PL CYCLE
If we want to know what 2012 is all about we need to carefully study this cycle. The last time we had evidence of this cycle at work was in 1986/87 and before that in 1965/1966. We must study these dates and see what may be coming up again for it's first real test at the square since 1965/1966.

Ura 0 Plu 9 Oct 1965
Ura 0 Plu 4 Apr 1966
Ura 0 Plu 30 Jun 1966
Ura 45 Plu 6 Mar 1986
Ura 45 Plu 1 Jul 1986
Ura 45 Plu 23 Jan 1987
Ura 45 Plu 1 Sep 1987
Ura 90 Plu 9 Dec 1987
Ura 90 Plu 24 Jun 2012
Ura 90 Plu 19 Sep 2012

BLUE MOON
31st December is a 'Blue Moon'. These occur when we have 2 Full Moon's in one calendar month. The first is 2 December and the other on the 31st, NY's Eve. This one is also a partial eclipse. Technically speaking, the places in timezones where the Full Moon will not occur until 1 Jan (i.e. Down under) will not have a Blue Moon in December but in January 2010 on 1 Jan and 30 Jan 2010.

That's all for now. Just be sure that if you are in the UK you don't have more than 50K in any one bank in 2010 and if you are in other countries, check how much of your money will be covered in the event of the collapse of your Bank or Building Society or the collapse of a currency. Sources tell me that Bloomberg.com is a good site to frequent for financial information. In the UK I also like This is Money

EXCEPTIONAL ECLIPSE 2010

In January 2010 we are going to experience an exceptional eclipse. Eclipses often cast their influence before them. Although the amount of time that the influence of an eclipse can be felt, prior to the event, is a hotly disputed topic, I always say we should take note from the time of the preceding Full Moon (a partial lunar eclipse, 31st Dec 2009). On this occasion though I feel we may see a chain of events begin to unfold from as early as mid December '09.


This eclipse goes down in the records as special because out of 1,684 eclipses that have been documented to occur between 1700 and 2050 only 5 eclipses are of longer duration. These 5 occurred, in order of occultation, in 1955 (longest at 12 minutes 09) 1973, 1937, 1992 and 1919 ( 11 minutes 37)* Our January 15th, 2010 eclipse comes next in line and this will be the longest annular eclipse to occur this century (between the years 2000 - 2100) with a duration of 11mins 08 seconds.

Fact: The longest ever recorded annular eclipse was on Dec 07 0150AD with a duration of 12m24s

What's an Annular Eclipse?
An annular eclipse would be a total eclipse were it not for the fact that the Moon is too far from the Earth for the apex of its shadow to touch the Earth surface, therefore the Moon will not completely cover the Sun and a narrow ring of light ( annulus = ring) will surround the Moon. Here's a picture of an annular eclipse moving into and out of perfection. It is annular bottom left:


What does this one portend?
An exceptional year began in July 2009 with a total eclipse which lasted 6 mins and 39 seconds - the largest this century - and now we have this second record breaker 6 months later.

For those of us with an interest in celestial/terrestrial correspondences we will be watching current events closely as we know to expect noteworthy occurrences down here on Earth in the months either side of the eclipses. For example, in June the total eclipse fell close to the announcement that Swine Flu was now officially a global pandemic. The eclipse also preceded the death of Micheal Jackson. That said, eclipses are not all doom and gloom. Good things do happen but usually they portend notable entries and exits from the world stage and dramatic occurrences or changes of fortune - ones which capture global attention.

Although some births or inventions are newsworthy right from the get-go, others need more time to come to public awareness. What we find is that things begun or born in eclipse years (people, events, countries or companies) unfold with subsequent eclipses. In 1955 for example, the year of a lengthy total and annular eclipse, both Bill Gates and Tim Berners Lee arrived on the planet. At the next eclipse juncture in 1973 Gates enrolled at Harvard, whilst Tim Berners Lee moved to Queen's College, Oxford. The end of 1991 and early 1992 (the time of the eclipse) were landmark years in the development of the WWW. In fact the whole concept of computer technology appears to be caught up in this Saros cycle.

As the chart of the initial eclipse in 1613 contains a Mercury Uranus conjunction in Gemini (communications technology) in close aspect to Neptune in Virgo, the initial energy or impetus of this cycle could be said to lend itself, amongst many other things, to social change as a result of the proliferation of communication technology..

This eclipse cycle also seems to have a particular association with Kuwait; with the New River of London; with Java, Indonesia; with Virginia, USA; with Descendants of King James 1; with Hungary and with The Globe Theatre and with Sunspots.

If we are to make a thorough study of what these eclipses portend we take at least 5 things into consideration

1) We must look back to the other eclipses in this series, Saros cycle 141. These dates are:


May 19 1613
1631 May 31
1649 Jun 10
1667 Jun 21
1685 Jul 01
1703 Jul 14
1721 Jul 24
1739 Aug 04
1757 Aug 14
1775 Aug 26
1793 Sep 05
1811 Sep 17
1829 Sep 28
1847 Oct 09
1865 Oct 19
1883 Oct 30
1901 Nov 11
1919 Nov 22
1937 Dec 02
1955 Dec 14
1973 Dec 24
1992 Jan 04

2) We must look at the eclipse degree. This time it will be at 25 Capricorn. So we look at other eclipses at 25 Capricorn and note what happened then. This would be Jan 15 1991 and Jan 16 1972.
For example, on this date in 1991 Operation Desert Storm was sanctioned by the UN while the 1972 date is close to the day King Frederick of Denmark died.

3) We look at the chart of the eclipse and its aspects (plus we note planets arriving at the eclipse degree of 25 Capricorn)
This January eclipse is closely conjoined to Venus which all looks nice, as Venus is the planet of love, engagements, money, gifts, beauty until we note that Venus is in the sign of Capricorn (business) ruled by Saturn, ruler of the eclipse and in mutual reception but retrograde. It looks very much like financial matters are on the slide and takings in shops will be well down over the Christmas period. More redundancies and an unstable financial climate ( Uranus 2nd). Banks or people could be 'robbing Peter to pay Paul' feeling things have to be on the up and ignoring reality. The astrology says we are not over the worst yet.

4) We look at which people, countries or companies resonate to 25 Capricorn. Look at which house of your chart it will fall and if you have a planet at 24, 25 or 26 degrees of cardinal signs ( Aries, Libra, Capricorn, Cancer) the eclipse will end something and bring something new in that area. The planets tell us more. For example in the chart of the USA the eclipse will trigger the Mercury/Pluto opposition at the axis of 24-27 cancer/capricorn. Mercury rules trade and trading and travel and Pluto rules corruption and all types of underhand actions and endings.

Countries which resonate to 24/25 Capricorn are: France. Latvia, Yemen, Australia, New Zealand, Roman Empire

5) We look at the geodetic ACG map - click to enlarge -



What we see here is the eclipse through China again and a specific emphasis on Shanghai and down through Indonesia ( New Moon lines) . reciprocal lines travel down through South America. The eclipse rises through Libya, up off the coast of Italy, through Geneva, home of the LHC and up through the UK. It sets through Vancouver.

The actual eclipse path is through India, Nepal and China

I have begun a new blog called Tomorrow Today, where I will be posting thoughts on cycles and trends, without all the detailed astrological background. I will comment more on the manifestations of this eclipse over there in December


* All eclipse info courtesy of Fred Espenak at NASA except for the total number of eclipses which is taken from Neil Michelsen's Planetary Phenomena

THRU THE LENS OF HIGHER CONSCIOUSNESS

Two babies were 'in utero' - wombmates! One is called Ego, the other is called Spirit. They are having a conversation.
Spirit says to Ego:
"I know you are going to find this difficult to believe but I truly believe there is life after birth"
Ego shouts back;
" Don't be ridiculous. Why must you persist with this notion that there is something beyond reality? Why don't you just accept your lot in life and stop parroting all this 'life after birth' nonsense."
Spirit quietens down for a while but then just has to speak up again.
"Now, don't get mad Ego but I also believe there is a Mother"
" A WHAT??" shouted Ego
" A Mother" said Spirit calmly
" How can you be so absurd?? You've never seen a Mother, can't you just accept reality? THIS is it. trust me Spirit, there is no Mother"
Spirit stops her conversation for a while but her restlessness got the better of her.....
"Ego" she implores, " Please just listen. Somehow I feel that those movements we both feel; those ones that make us so uncomfortable, that continual closing in an repositioning we both feel. I sense that this is somehow getting us ready, moving us towards a growing light and we are going to experience it very soon."
"Spirit" said Ego angrily, " Now I know you are insane. You have never known that. How can you even contemplate such an idea. The movements. Those pressures you feel. These are your reality. You are a distinct, separate, being. This is your journey; darkness, pressure, a closed in feeling. This is all there is. This is what life is all about and you are just going to have to put up with it. Now grab your cord and stay still."
Spirit relaxed for a little while but soon she can no longer contain herself. "Ego" she says " I have only one more thing to say and I will never bother you again."
" Go ahead" Ego said with an exasperated tone.
" I believe that all these pressures and all this discomfort is not only going to bring us to a new celestial light but when we experience it we are going to meet Mother face to face and know an ecstasy beyond anything we have ever experienced.
"Spirit" said Ego. " You really are crazy. Now I am convinced of it".

This story was told by the motivational speaker Dr. Wayne Dyer when promoting the concept of higher consciousness, purpose and unity

Keep the faith. However confused, dark or all at sea you feel, there is a purpose.

I loved this story. I thought I would share it with you now as I know this week is proving to be particularly difficult for some, and this entire period, where many people have lost their jobs or are enduring financial hardship, is one in which it is difficult to keep faith in any higher purpose.

We just need to give in, to surrender, to the process and trust!

There are a number of planetary cycles stirring up our Selves and environment at this time. A cycle known for its particularly difficult birth pains is the Saturn/Pluto cycle. The square aspect of these two culminated in the sky on Sunday. Although the two planets reached exact alignment, with both at 1 degree 42 minutes of celestial longitude in the signs Capricorn and Libra, they remain very close (what we sky watchers refer to as 'within orb') in days and weeks to come. Additionally, you should know that this is a 3 pass transit due to retrogradation, so they will meet again on 31 Jan 2010 and 21 Aug 2010. 3 pass transits usually work out on the physical and mental planes in this fashion: as a notable Crisis, followed by Action, then Resolution.

Look at it like this; an event occurs or a realisation is arrived at. You may see this as a crisis. On the next pass you revisit it (or it revisits you) in someway and you either integrate the change and it becomes an accepted part of your life, or you back away, having reviewed it, and change tack i.e., you take action. Then on the final pass you look back and see how your life has changed forever as a result of a process, event or decision set in place at the first pass and you'll know, better, how to proceed from thereon in. At that point it is over - resolved as best you know how. All this will occur between now and Aug 2010.

For those of you who are going to be affected by this transit on a very overt level, you will already know what the 'issue' is. It may be around money, work, relationships, family but you will 'know it' by the fact that it is threatening your equilibrium and, like it or not, it is transforming some previously established part of your life.

It's not necessarily bad or negative - although it is often challenging. Remember too though, someone, somewhere in the world got engaged, secured a great job, fell in love or even won the lottery this weekend on this transit. All of these events transform the structure of one's life and each presents its own challenges, but overall they are joyous.

We all have a choice at each moment to look at our life from the perspective of Ego and our isolated, separated Self, or from the point of view of Spirit, who sees the connection to the whole picture. If you 'work with' what is happening - meaning; use conscious awareness, then even if it seems tough or challenging for a short while, the ultimate benefits will outweigh the negatives. Ultimately you are facilitating your own spiritual growth in line with nature's timetable. Your part in a greater plan is unfolding.

CYCLES
The way any cycle works out is different to the retrograde transit where the planets meet 3 times. When looking at cycles we have to look at their start point - when the 2 planets were in conjunction indicates the start point in this cycle of unfoldment. So zero degrees was in 1982 - 8th November 1982 to be precise. Next came the square ( 90 degrees, 1993/1994) then the opposition (180 degrees, 2001/2002) and the closing square is right now (270 degrees, 2009 and into 2010 as mentioned). This whole time period, and what has occurred within it, is now in the autumn phase and seeking closure.

Every Saturn/Pluto cycle, not just this 1982 one, has a close historical correlation to events in Pakistan and India, to the Commonwealth and to large scale transformation of countries and their borders.

Cycle watchers will look to these things and know that some growth stage will be occurring for:-

Anyone, or anything, born/established with a natal Saturn/Pluto aspect.

Anyone or anything who was 'born' on 8 Nov 1982 ( or close to) as they will resonate to this cycle.

Transiting planets arriving at 27 Libra - or 27 of cardinal signs- the position of Saturn and Pluto in 1982.

Anyone born on Nov 14/15 of any year (and a few days either side) could have a challenging year ahead as the cycle will be exact in their solar return chart.

Anyone born with Sun or Moon at 1-3 degrees of cardinal signs Aries, Libra, Capricorn, Cancer is in the throes of extreme change as the current alignment falls at 1 degree triggering their charts.

The Thames Barrier in London was publicly demonstrated on 7 Nov 1982. This makes it resonate very strongly to the Saturn/Pluto cycle. It may now need repairs or worst case, will fail in the next 10 months. Expect Canada to be in the news. Pakistan and India, as mentioned, are greatly affected by this ongoing SA/Pl transit.

Prince Charles has the exact square in his Solar Return, as it was his birthday on the 14th, so expect long overdue changes in the Royal family in 2009/2010.

9/11 occurred on the SA/Pl opposition in 2001. This square therefore tells us that another stage in this tragic 'event' is now due to occur. We should therefore be on high alert this week, and around the others two dates mentioned, with regards to terrorist activity emanating from Al Qaeda or events that bring survival (either of structures, boundaries, Governments, landmasses and leaders - all Saturn ruled) into question. It may just be the issue around the trial of the 9/11 suspects that the aspect is triggering. As Saturn is in Libra, the significator of fair trials and justice.

Watch the news headlines and then Google back to 2001 or 1993/4 or 1982 to see if you can spot a connecting thread to the story or person you are assessing.

With regards to financial situations, historically the SA/PL cycle has seen recessions come to an end. In this case however other cycles, and that fact that we still have 2 more SA/PL squares to go, make this distinctly, capital D, unlikely. In fact, I notice today's New Moon squares the Pluto of the NYSE and Mars is approaching Uranus (some shock - or a surprise?). Mid 2010 looks dire as far as the overall global financial situation is concerned and Christeen Skinner, an expert Financial astrologer, sees a currency crisis looming, possibly due to even more money being pumped into the Banks/system at the looming Jupiter/Neptune in December.

Christeen has this to say:

Way back in September 1873, a group of banks in the US came unstuck. Within days it was decided to CLOSE the New York Stock Exchange: the first time this had happened. It didn’t reopen until the last day of that month.

Can I see that happening again? Will it be a stock exchange or part of the banking industry that is compelled to close its doors whilst a mess is unravelled? Well yes, all that’s possible in February 2010.

Before then there has to be obvious chaotic activity and a marked downturn: the question, as always, is when?

This week? It could be argued that the markets have gone as high as they can since the March low. As of this Tuesday, the number of planets (inc. the Moon) in Fixed signs, reduces. With this, a slide could begin. If the markets do move up on Monday, I think some people will start to worry. If they withdraw funds, the slide could start

Okay, so this is not positive news. But, in the context of forcing things down a birthing canal so that the pain and pressure can give way to some light, understanding and growth, I strongly feel it is best to just accept what is occurring and not to resist.

Keep faith!

WHEN A THEORY BECOMES A FORCE

Through the course of a normal week, I often stumble across interesting little snippets of symbolism and/or astrological information. Where I can, I put them into a Tweet but quite often, as space there is limited, they get filed away in the recesses of my mind or computer, never to be seen again.

Earlier today, a friend and I were discussing this propensity for me to be a mine of tit-bits of information. "A mine of useless information" I lamented. "Oh no" said my far more positive pal, " A mine of useful information. Someone will find it interesting, and anyway in this day and age of speed, many people prefer their information delivered in short, sharp bursts". "

I took her comment on board and although not as short as they could be, here are some bursts of the useful/less facts that have caught my attention and been stored away this week!

I made a tweet earlier this week that, as Neptune was stationing direct this week, there may be more earthquakes. Well, I don't know that there were more than usual, there are actually many each day, every day, but there were some larger ones. One shook up the Azores. This one caught my attention as the Azores belong to the Portuguese and this week the Lisbon Treaty is shaking up the face of the globe.

The treaty was signed by the Czech Republic, meaning it has now been ratified by all 27 member states. It will most likely come into force on 1 Dec 2009. Make no mistake, this Treaty is big news even if many of you in more distant locations have heard little of it. It means that we will soon have a President of Europe (President of the European Council) and although, at the moment, word is he's not likely to be chosen for the position, Tony Blair, the person who committed all our troops to the War effort, is a candidate.

The Lisbon Treaty is a classic Saturn in Libra agreement as it will lead to what are called legal co-decisions and it's also very much a Saturn in Libra square Pluto in Capricorn event - redefining the legal and authoritative landscape of a huge portion of our globe. (Incidentally, negotiations began around the SA/PL opposition in 2001).

The President won't have the powers of a Head of State but, just the terminology President of Europe carries an air of incredible authority, and that person will have a close alliance with many world leaders and countries bordering on the Middle East. If you want to see how big this European Union is go here and scroll down to the animation under sub-heading 'Ratification'.

I do hope they choose wisely. Tony Blair has Mars rising. There are lots of interpretations of this but a certain amount of impulsiveness across the axis of 'the way one deals with enemies ' is to be noted.

Moving on but still looking to unification; did you know that on the Washington National Monument there is an inscription on the steps that reads: Fy iaith, fy ngwlad, fy nghenedl Cymru — Cymry am byth. It's Welsh for 'My language, my land, my nation of Wales — Wales for ever'.

Why is it there? It is said that no-one knows, but it's widely believed (behind the scenes) it is due to the fact that over 50% of those who signed The Declaration of Independence were of Welsh origin, including Thomas Jefferson. If you want to know of the remarkable influence the Welsh have had on America (and I love this because my Mother is half Welsh) then read these speeches given to the House of Representatives and the Welsh Assembly (especially the latter one) and prepare to exclaim, Gosh Golly! Proud to be Welsh/American

If you wish to look more deeply into this subject go here and here's a nice page I found on Wales and Standing stones

Talking of my Mother, as I was, she just had her cataracts done. Fabulous timing and symbolism as it was done just as Neptune went direct, allowing the fog to lift and one to see more clearly!

Would you like to see clearly into the future? Then you may like to take heed of this quote I came across from the Prophecies of Paracelsus:

There is not the slightest doubt that if the Present is the result of the Past, the Future will be the result of the Present. The three being one, the Future should be as easily read as the Past. But this can only be done when the finite mind of the Seer becomes one with the infinite mind of the Seen, by a manifestation of the Soul, which is the Creator, and source of Truth.

Note: The three being one. There is no separation. All we have is Now!

This week I'm sure my skin is slowly turning yellow. The reason why? I am chucking copious quantities of Turmeric into almost everything I eat! This is as a result of reading recent newspaper reports of it's magical properties. It has been proved to keep cancer cells at bay and to be good for stiff joints and all types of other ills ! Here's a good page of information and another on this 'wonder shrub'. You may like to incorporate some into your daily diet too.

Back in 2006 I referenced a book I was reading by Lawrence E Joseph, entitled Apocalypse 2012 - An Optimist Investigates the End of Civilisation. The book was popular then (I recommend it) but now it is going stratospheric and in the build up to 2012 he's revamping his website to cope with the inundation of interest. I decided to give the book a quick reappraisal, this week and I wanted to share a quote from the book:
'Of all the the potential cataclysms Armageddon is the only one for which significant numbers of Muslims, Christians and Jews actually hope, pray and scheme. Karl Marx observed that when a theory grips the masses it becomes a material force...

The doctrine of Armageddon has gripped several small, but extremely motivated and influential groups.. and that doctrine is rapidly becoming a powerful, perhaps unstoppable force. Whilst most abhor and eschew the harness of fundamentalist thinking, history is not driven by most of us. It's the fanatic few, at whom we may laugh one day and cower before the next, who are history's engine'. 'Evangelical Christians are the group most eager to precipitate Armageddon, ( a great war said to precede the Apocalypse) looking forward to the Rapture, the exalted moment when...true and faithful Christians are literally lifted up into the air, into the heavens, to join God'.

Lawrence E. Joseph has a big point here. We really shouldn't be fearing natural cataclysms so much as we should hope our powers-that-be are keeping an eye on those with a vested interest in seeing a final clash between Good and Evil as confirmation of their interpretation of the Scriptures.

2012 is becoming so huge in the collective psyche now that it is likely to become a self fulfilling prophecy. He goes on to mention the extremely worrying fact that a few years ago the oldest Christian Church in the world was unearthed in Megiddo. He mentions that This discovery has been hailed (by fundamentalists) as another 'sign' that the end is near ( In Hebrew Megiddo becomes Megeddon).

Talking of End Times, Carl Calleman, who will be speaking at this conference next week, believes that the end date of the Mayan Calendar is not 21 Dec 2012 but even closer; 28 Oct 2011 He tells us why here

Finally, talking of shifts, look out for changes from 11 November when Heliocentric Jupiter changes signs for the first time since Dec 2008. It moves to Pisces. Heliocentric means looking out as if the Sun was the centre of our system and not the Earth. For reasons that we don't yet understand, heliocentric charts seem to provide an additional level of information and aspect patterns within the helio charts often have a bearing on events on Earth. Here's an explanation of Heliocentric Astrology

On Calleman's date of 28 Oct 2011 in 'normal' astrology there will be an exact opposition of the Sun to Jupiter and a precise trine from Jupiter to Pluto which means that the Earth will appears to be conjunct to Jupiter using Heliocentric terms and Mercury would be conjunct to Pluto. There's no incredibly unusual significance in that but the fact they both occur on that day is mildly interesting!

One potentially very interesting point re 2011/2012 that I noticed is that the planet Uranus will move from southern to northern declination ( declination is the distance above or below the Celestial Equator) between the two dates and it happens more than once. On April 9 2011 it will go to north declination and then back to South on Oct 16th 2011 then on Jan 28 2012 it will go North.

The last time Uranus changed declination was in 1968 and 1969. I guess this could potentially have some bearing on Earth. Uranus is known as The Awakener!

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PS. Here's a nice little PDF with some great diagrams on Celestial Navigation!