Arty Farty Fri: Gemini Twins: Christo & Jeanne-Claude

A pair of artists with Sun in Gemini who were astrological twins, and married too: Christo & Jean-Claude, creators of environmental art. Full names: Christo Vladimirov Javacheff and Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon.



Jean-Claude sadly died in 2009. Both were born on 13 June 1935, he in Bulgaria, she in Morocco. A matched pair. Their story is told, briefly in an obituary for Jeanne-Claude, by Christopher Turner in The Guardian, here

SNIP

Their relationship lasted 51 years, and they did everything together, Jeanne-Claude said, except three things: "We never fly on the same airplane… I do not draw. Christo is the one who puts on paper our ideas… And I have always deprived him of the joy of working with our accountant." She described their union as passionate and volatile. "We are terribly argumentative and scream and criticise each other non-stop," she admitted. "It is very helpful. It makes us think. Christo is right 75% of the time."

Samples of their work~
The Wrapping of the Reichstag (former German parliament building)



Valley Curtain, Rifle, Colorado.



Video showing some of their work from the air -

In an interview, fully detailed at a website here the pair explained to the interviewer the thinking/philosophy behind the fleeting nature of their huge works of art which take so long to plan and bring to fruition but remain in view for such a short time. I found this interesting:

SNIP:

Mantegna: Can you tell me more about the element of time in your projects?

Christo: ..... I and Jeanne-Claude would like our projects to challenge and question the people's notion of art. The temporal character of the project challenges the immortality of art. Is art immortal? Is art forever? Is building things in gold and silver and stones to be remembered forever? It is a kind of naiveté and arrogance to think that this thing stays forever, for eternity. It probably takes greater courage to go away than to stay.

All these projects have this strong dimension of missing, of self-effacement, that they will go away, like our childhood. our life. They create a tremendous intensity when they are there for a few days. When they are there for 14 days, they create an urgency and sympathy because they are going to go away, they will disappear. All this is translated into a nomadic quality, like the tribes in the Sahara and Tibet. It is translated by the biggest amount of material in this project. This project has fabric, ropes, steel, aluminum, but the biggest amount is the fabric, the cloth. The cloth is the principal element to translate the vulnerability, the temporariness and the fragility of the work, very much like a nomadic tribe that moves through the desert. They fold their tents and overnight they could build an entire village and the next day they would be gone. This is why this project is prepared off-site for several months, but the final installation is a very fast, very fresh operation. It happens at once, like the Umbrellas that opened in a matter of a few hours and the whole project was completed. But, at the very bottom, immortality is linked with a very essential part of this project.

All these projects are about freedom. They happen not because some president of the country liked them, some minister of culture, or some corporate executive or some major of a city; these project happened because the artist liked to have them and, of course, they have this incredible proportion and presence. Nobody can own this project, nobody can buy the project, nobody can possess the project, or charge tickets. This project is a demonstration of freedom. A demonstration of absolute freedom and total irrationality. The world can live without Umbrellas, without Valley Curtain or Running Fence. They have no other reason to be there except poetical creativity, total creativity. That freedom is the most important part of this project and this is why they cannot stay, because freedom is the enemy of possession and possession is equal to permanence …

Jeanne-Claude: … Possession is equal to permanence, so freedom is the enemy of permanence.

Christo: Of course, to keep that freedom to exist absolute, we pay for our projects. No strings attached, no bowing to anybody, no sponsors, no compromises …

Jeanne-Claude: It is very expensive to be free …

Jeanne-Claude: Did we explain that we recycle all the material used in every project? We don't reuse it, of course, but is reused by other people for other purposes, industrial, agricultural , or ecological use, like in sandbags to contain the floods of a river. For instance, the aluminum of the Umbrellas, which was a big part of the cost of the project, today has been melted, there are no Umbrellas and the aluminum is probably part of an airplane flying in the sky, or a can of Ginger Ale.

ASTROLOGY

Christo, born 13 June 1935 in Gabrovo, Bulgaria, at 10.00 pm (data from astro.com)

Jeanne-Claude born 13 June 1935 in Casablanca, Morocco, at 6.00 pm (data from astro.com)

Hmmm - it's hard to know what to say about this! But it's nice to know that two individuals so similar in nature managed to sustain such a long and loving relationship. It's often the differences that cause a spark between two people, here any difference relies on rising sign and house position. That indicates Christo's Capricorn rising reflected a somewhat steadier, businesslike nature, while Jeanne-Claude's Sagittarius rising was more adventurous, risk-taking and lively overall. Another factor could be that their charts are of the "splash pattern" variety - no excess of emphasis anywhere, leaving lots of leeway for a variety of moods, interests and ideas. Two people with "bundle" charts with planets squeezed into just three or four signs - the same three or four signs, might not fare so well together - just a thought.

As for the unusual style they were drawn to in their artworks - where's an indication of that in the charts? I look first to Uranus (eccentricity, the unusual) and find it in challenging square to Venus planet of the arts - Uranus could be seen to be saying to Venus, "Come on....do something different!" There's Neptune (imagination, creativity) opposing Saturn - here Neptune's imagination was itching to do something to solid traditional Saturn - like wrapping it in oodles of coloured fabric?

Their natal Moon conjunct expansive Jupiter in Scorpio speaks of big ideas involving some kind of transformation.

My Own Retrograding - Hand in Hand with Mercury

Mercury Retrograde
has spanned he period
May 19 – June 11, 2015. Coincidentally (or not) I've had a bit of a re-tracing exercise going on during this exact span - unintentionally organised too, I should add.

Regular readers might recall my tale of woe about an accident I had while in New Mexico in late March (see here).

I refrained from taking the advice of the radiologist in New Mexico who seemed intent on putting the Fear of Dog into yours truly, by referring to two masses around my throat area, revealed by the CT scan they rushed me into. By the time I'd gathered my senses on the way back to our hotel, I was confident that the problems were not as dire as all that. I'd coughed up a piece of nasty caused by the blow to my throat, which could possibly account for one mass, on my epiglottis, and the other on my thyroid had been investigated several years ago and found to be benign. So...as my voice and throat gradually returned to normal over several days, I resisted going to regale my own doctor with the preliminary findings and disc of the New Mexico CT scan. I already had a Mid-May appointment for twice-yearly blood-work, plus a followup chat with our GP, so I decided to wait for that.

Bloodwork came up all okay. On telling the Doc my tale of woe, he thought for a while and decided it'd be eminently reasonable for me to go see the local ENT specialist. I did so on 28 May. My tale of woe was told - again. ENT Doc inspected my throat closely, flicked with a needle-ish tool a quite large grain of hardened "stuff" from a fold in my left tonsil (maybe the remaining part of the mass on my epiglottis?) He said that such things form from time to time, nothing to worry about. His nurse approached with another dangly tool- with this one he entered my nostril and travelled down into my throat for a "good look around". He declared all to be well, nothing untoward there. His remaining concern was the thyroid thing. He asked had any of my relatives had thyroid cancer. No, they hadn't! I referred him to the fact that I'd had an ultra-scan back in 2006, which had shown no malignancy, but he still felt it necessary to go a wee bit further and have a biopsy done. He explained this procedure to me very carefully - likely to be fairly painless, thyroid entered from outer neck - a fine needle which will "suck" a few cells to be investigated. I wasn't overjoyed at this prospect.

On 4 June, bright and early (well, early) we were at the radiology dept of our excellent hospital. The whole thing was, as the doctor who performed the biopsy said as he bounced into the room, "quick, easy and painless". He uttered the best words of this adventure so far: "these things are usually benign". I did note the word "usually", but the fact that he said the word benign cheered me no end!

Follow-up appointment with ENT Doc for results was yesterday afternoon, 10 June, almost at the end of Mercury Retrograde. Even though I originally felt pretty confident that all was well, I still had lingering doubts, pushing my BP up sky high before I eventually saw the nurse, who kindly reassured me that "there's nothing bad in the report". ENT Doc eventually showed up and confirmed that I have a benign nodule on the left thyroid. He advised that it'd be wise to keep an eye on it via an ultra-scan initially in 6 to 8 months, then maybe annually, to make sure the nodule wasn't growing and causing problems with other bits and pieces in the left throat area.

So...all's well that ends well...and it ended almost in harmony with Mercury's latest back tracking exercise.

JUNO

June is the month named for Roman goddess Juno, her Greek equivalent was Hera. In mythology she was wife (and sister) of Jupiter (Roman)/Zeus (Greek). She tried to tame her unfaithful, freedom loving spouse away from his adventures, back to matrimonial duties.

The Peacock Complaining to Juno by Gustave Moreau, 1881

 

First verse of a poem titled Jupiter on Juno, by A.D. Hope from the book Antechinus

Juno is the goddess of marriage and childbirth. She is also considered the protector of women. She was devoured by her father Saturn, and rescued by her brother Jupiter, who she married. She is primarily known for being the wife of the father of all gods. She is jealous and stern, frequently quarreling with her husband over his numerous affairs, not to mention his illegitimate children.

She is usually portrayed as a majestic woman, often wearing a crown or a scepter to show her position as Queen of the Olympus. The peacock, an animal which she holds sacred, is one of her most characteristic symbols.

Juno is featured in works of art such as Tintoretto´s “Origin of the Milky Way”, as well as the painting above, titled “The Peacock Complaining to Juno” by Gustave Moreau. She is also feautured in ancient literary works, such as Homer´s “Iliad” and “Odyssey”.
Source: “Gods and Heroes in Art”, by Lucia Impelluso. Hat-tip HERE.

In astrology asteroid Juno (glyph shown, right) takes its attributes from the myths associated with that goddess - notably her position as patroness of marriage. Where asteroid Juno is found in one's natal chart is said to indicate attitude to marriage, marriage partner, etc.

Juno, right now, is at around 22 degrees of Leo.

I don't usually pay much attention to asteroids in astrology, the astrological scene is complicated enough, using all possible combinations available, without adding further content. But, as it's Juno's special month now, I took a a peek at my natal chart, with Juno added, at Astrodienst in the Extended Chart Selection segment. When I was born Juno was at 20 Capricorn, around a degree from natal Mercury, and a few degrees from the descendant angle (depending on exact time of birth of which I'm not certain). Do interpretations for this placement fit me?

There's a fairly clear consensus among on-line astrology sites that Juno in Capricorn translates as a native preferring the solid, upstanding, traditional-type partner, a good earner, reliable, trustworthy etc. Ideally will require a partnership to be legalised by marriage. May gravitate towards an older partner.
Juno conjunct Mercury : likely to be attracted to partners with good communication skills, witty and fluent. Communication will have to be clear and honest, and within any relationship an absolute priority.

Hmmm- well from that little lot I can pick two items which fit or have fitted in the past, and some which do not fit at all.

Sure, I have always paid little or no attention to age. I lived with a much older partner for 30+ years - without "benefit" a marriage certificate. Who needs that - a piece of paper? Husband and I have that piece of paper now, because US authorities wouldn't have allowed me to live with him here without it.

Close relationship is the most important thing in my life, always has been - possibly a need created by being an only child, lacking companionship of siblings in childhood. So Juno close to a chart angle works well. I've always been attracted to good writers, or at least writers who can pull a decent sentence together, a touch of wit thrown in is the cherry on top; and/or to those who can paint and draw well.

Juno in Capricorn interpretations indicating that any partner would be required to be solid, upstanding, "a good earner" doesn't fit me at all...not at all! Being severely independent I've always been able to fill that role for myself. It appears that, in my case, Aquarius Sun and Aries Moon cancel out some of Juno's indications.

Anyone interested can easily discover their natal Juno position at the link above, free of charge. Or, alternatively, there's a Juno ephemeris HERE, covering years 1900 to 2015. Finding interpretations from a variety of websites is just a matter of typing "Juno in........(whatever zodiac sign)" into Google's search box.

RANT

I am absolutely fed up seeing and hearing the name Jenner, whether preceded by the first name Bruce, or Caitlyn. The individual concerned is probably basking in all this publicity, enjoying it to the full.

I feel sad for all the possible embarrassment and awkwardness current publicity, ridicule by comedians and others, and general online commentary might bring to some everyday ordinary people who, for whatever physical or psychologically based reason, feel that they are in conflict with the gender their body presented at birth. I feel sad because what these people have to endure must always be a sensitive and long, highly personal struggle, dealt with by each in the way best suited to their own disposition. Instead of being able to go about whatever processes, challenges and changes they deem necessary for themselves in a private and quietly dignified manner, in this age of so-called "social" networking, where there's so much that is clearly anti-social going on, an additional source of difficulty has arisen.

If some people find the concept of transgender "wrong" or distasteful, that is their prerogative, of course. If those same people have any sense of decency at all, they might desist from public declarations of their "disgust" and/or ridicule. I want to yell to these comedians, commentators, bloggers et al, "Grow up why don't ya, display a bit of real humanity - just for a change!"

Music Monday ~ Frederick Loewe & Alan Jay Lerner aka Lerner & Loewe

Loewe on left, Lerner, right.

Lerner and Loewe were the team of lyricist/librettist Alan Jay Lerner, and composer Frederick Loewe (he was born this week in 1901). They are known primarily for the music and lyrics of some of Broadway's most successful musical shows, including My Fair Lady, Camelot, Gigi, Paint your Wagon and Brigadoon.

Wiki's page on Lerner & Loewe tells that....

Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe, more commonly known as Fritz, met in 1942 at the Lambs Club in New York City where, according to Loewe, he mistakenly took a wrong turn to the men's room and walked past Lerner's table. Having recognized him, he asked if Lerner wrote lyrics and Lerner confirmed he did.

Lerner claimed to be the more dominant member of the partnership, which is supported by interviews with their close friends,[citation needed] saying that he would throw out the first two melodies that Loewe would write to any song even if they were both perfect. He said he always knew, with a little pushing, Loewe was capable of greater work. Loewe also worked perfectly with Lerner, who would agonize for weeks over a lyric. Unlike other collaborators Lerner would work with, Loewe was the most understanding of the time Lerner needed for his lyrics and would never pressure him to complete the work.

Their last collaboration came with the 1974 musical film The Little Prince, which received mixed reviews but was lauded as one of the team's most cerebral scores.

Regardless of their professional relationship, Lerner and Loewe were close friends and remained so until the end of their lives. Their final public appearance was in December 1985, when they received a Kennedy Center Honor, six months before Lerner's death.

Lerner said this of Loewe: "There will never be another Fritz...Writing will never again be as much fun. A collaboration as intense as ours inescapably had to be complex. But I loved him more than I understood or misunderstood him and I know he loved me more than he understood or misunderstood me."

From Lerner's Wiki page:

The Lerner-Loewe partnership cracked under the stress of producing the Arthurian Camelot in 1960, with Loewe resisting Lerner's desire to direct as well as write when original director Moss Hart suffered a heart attack in the last few months of rehearsals, and would die shortly after the show's premiere. Lerner was hospitalized with bleeding ulcers while Loewe continued to have heart troubles. Camelot was a hit nonetheless, with a poignant coda; immediately following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, his widow told Life magazine that JFK's administration reminded her of the "one brief shining moment" of Lerner and Loewe's Camelot. To this day, Camelot is invoked to describe the idealism, romance, and tragedy of the Kennedy years.

Cue Richard Burton:



Robert Goulet with a medley of 3 Lerner and Loewe songs:



Julie Andrews with another medley of L & L songs:



Vic Damone with my personal favourite from My Fair Lady



ASTROLOGY

It'd be interesting to investigate whether their astrology tells the same tale of friendship and professional collaboration - with some challenges. I can find no times of birth for either of them, so 12 noon charts have to suffice. Moon positions will not be exact and ascendant remains unknown.

Frederick Loewe born in Berlin, Germany on 10 June 1901.

Alan Jay Lerner born in New York City on 31 August 1918.

Both men's natal Suns are in signs ruled by Mercury, planet of communication: Loewe, the composer, in Gemini, Lerner, the lyric writer, Virgo, and though the two signs have quite different attributes, they do often seem to work well together - depending on other chart placements.

It's possible (but can't be established without times of birth) that both had natal Moons in emotional Water signs; Pisces and Cancer - their Sun and Moon compatibility accounts, in part, for their longstanding friendship, and working relationship.

It's not surprising that, as stated in one of the quotes above, Lerner was the dominant personality in this partnership - his Venus, Saturn and Neptune in Leo gave him a goodly dose of confidence and ambition to take control and make his mark! The understanding and patience Loewe showed to his colleague might be represented by natal Mercury in gentle, sensitive Cancer; his Mercury has a conjunction of Jupiter/Saturn (excess and limitation) in opposition from Capricorn - some kind of balancing act?

Both men had Pluto conjunct a personal planet: in Loewe's case conjunct natal Sun; in Lerner's conjunct Jupiter - and possibly even Moon - depending on his time of birth. These conjunctions might reflect the strains and challenges the two faced from time to time, in some cases even affecting their health.

SAFEKEEPING

The first part of this post is in the nature of a Guest Post by my husband, aka "anyjazz", after which I've added a few lines myself.

By "anyjazz"
Prompted by the post:
The Good and Not So Old Days,
from Thursday, May 28, 2015 -

At the risk of sounding like a rabid conspiracy theorist, here are some thoughts on the digital era.

Unless one of our current minimum-wage PhDs invents a completely tamper-proof, loss proof digital system, humanity is doomed to lose a substantial segment of subtleties in its history. The big facts will remain in memory but the detail found in photographic documentation will be gone. Forever.

A few years ago my daughter boasted videos and photographs of a great grandson’s beginnings. She documented his first steps, words and other childhood events. All on her phone. The data could not be transferred to anything, another phone, a computer, a “cloud” or a disk. The history is lost.

How do we examine some history of say, the 1920’s? We read about it and look at the plethora of pictures and cinema from that era, printed and reprinted in books. We can look at that old, black-page photograph album from the closet shelf that great grandma put together with US in mind! That decade was nearly a hundred years ago. What will be left of the current era a hundred years from now?

Will there be “clouds” of photographs and text available conveniently for perusal and education? Or are we doomed to become more and more uninformed about the reality we live in?

Twilight is right. One big bang and it’s all gone. Or perhaps “not available” to an inquiring mind. History might be reduced to oral stories from memory, passed down in limited quantities to new memories; New memories that do not have the depth and color of their predecessors, nor their passion.

What was the government’s big problem with the Vietnam disaster? It was on television, step by step, mistake by mistake. People saw it. People didn’t want any more of it. The lucrative war machine ground to a halt for a while. That’s not going to happen again. No more satellite transmissions of digital television from on the scene.

If George Orwell had known of this digital development, he would have said “Aha! See! I told you so.” Keep the public uninformed of current events. Keep historical events dim so that they can be re-written at any time. You can’t say things are better or worse today than they were yesterday, because you don’t accurately remember yesterday. The corporate governments won’t want you making those comparisons anyway.

And after all, deleting data files is much safer and tidier than burning books.

Even without dire calamity removing the internet from our lives, there are still problems associated with our digital way of life. An interesting article explains:

Google boss warns of 'forgotten century' with email and photos at risk...Digital material including key historical documents could be lost forever because programs to view them will become defunct, says Vint Cerf.

Snip:

The warning highlights an irony at the heart of modern technology, where music, photos, letters and other documents are digitised in the hope of ensuring their long-term survival. But while researchers are making progress in storing digital files for centuries, the programs and hardware needed to make sense of the files are continually falling out of use.

“We are nonchalantly throwing all of our data into what could become an information black hole without realising it. We digitise things because we think we will preserve them, but what we don’t understand is that unless we take other steps, those digital versions may not be any better, and may even be worse, than the artefacts that we digitised,” Cerf told the Guardian. “If there are photos you really care about, print them out.”

It's good to have precious photographs and documents available in both paper and digital form - "proper" photos and papers can be lost for ever too - as I know very well due to having lost all of my own to fire in 1996. Fortunately my mother's collection provided some replacements, but the majority remain lost forever.

 At Shutterfly

One method of saving photographs the "paper-way", while still taking advantage of our digital world, is to make up a "photo book" with the help of one of the several companies offering this service: Walgreens, Shutterfly etc. Here's a comparison and review of the ten currently offering this service. We haven't yet used this service, but intend to do so.

Arty Farty Friday ~ The Gemini Package

I set out to feature Spain's famous painter, Diego Velazquez but found his date of birth isn't available - only his date of baptism: 6 June 1599. Moved on to Paul Gauguin, born 7 June 1848 but remembered I'd been there done that, in 2010..
see HERE.

Alrighty then, how about a few bits and pieces to typify various facets of Gemini the zodiac sign?

Two arty representations of Gemini's duality? (Click on links) ~~

http://safeshare.tv/w/LxQvcdsoYs


http://io9.com/this-isnt-a-chameleon-its-two-women-expertly-covered-i-1696527184

This one says....mutable:





This one says Air:





Finally, something Gemini does very well: talkin', and here's Clint - a Gemini Sun character doing what he doesn't do best, but doing it anyway:

Coué: Imagination v. Will....Winner: Imagination

Reading one of John Galsworthy's follow-up novels to his famous Forsyte Saga, set in the late 19th/early 20th century England, I kept encountering a strange French word/name: Coué. I didn't immediately look it up, but gathered from context that it was some kind of method for ...what's nowadays called "self-help"; a specific system which, in the early 1920s, must have been "the fashionable in-thing" from France. On finishing the novel I searched the net for information on Coué/Couéism. It turns out that it was the brainchild of Émile Coué, French Pharmacist and Psychologist .

From THIS website

Émile Coué (1857-1926), a French Psychologist and Pharmacist, introduced a new method of psychotherapy based on the simple use of auto-suggestion, or ‘self-suggestion’, whereby a person repeats suggestions to themselves in order to spur the imagination. He believed that where there was conflict between the will and the imagination, the imagination invariably wins the battle. So rather than using will power alone, one must also make use of their imagination to better health. He believed that repetition of suggestion increased the likelihood of images being projected into reality; most especially when implanted in the morning, and again before sleeping. Coue learned hypnosis from Liébeault and in 1913 founded the Lorraine Society of Applied Psychology.

Coué's best known affirmation was, and still is : "Day by day, in every way, I am getting better and better." Followers of his system were advised to repeat to themselves, in a clear and focused state of mind this, or other custom-designed affirmations, over and over several times each day, especially first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Coué noticed, also, that he could improve the effectiveness of a medication by praising its effectiveness to his patients, producing a kind of placebo effect.

Coué 's natal chart:

Born on 26 February 1857 in Troyes, France at 3 PM (data from astro.com - AA rating = reliably accurate).

Émile Coué certainly lived up to that Aries pioneering reputation! He had four personal planets plus North Node of the Moon in Aries. His natal Sun was in Pisces, however, along with the sign's modern ruler, Neptune, planet of imagination, creativity, dreams, illusions, which points to his gravitation to the particular area of his pioneering - a type of mini-hypnosis or auto-suggestion. His Pisces Sun harmoniously trines Saturn in Cancer blending in Saturn's work/career connection. A helpful sextile from Mercury in Aquarius to Jupiter in Aries points to the blending of a forward-thinking mind with philosophical yet dynamic purpose. Leo rising speaks to the degree of showmanship Coué surely exhibited, helping him to propel his method to a wider, international audience.

Fixed Stars Now in Gemini

Continuing a series of monthly posts on Fixed Stars in each tropical zodiac sign.

Data for Gemini from Astroweb (HERE), showing star positions in 1900 in the left-hand column and in 2000 on the right.

Astrological interpretation for most of those stars, when found tightly conjunct a natal personal planet, or important point, will be available online - a good, all-encompassing website is Constellation of Words.

 Hat-tip here for illustration

I'll scribble on a bit about Aldebaran, the bright rose coloured star which marks the Taurus Bull's right eye. The star's name derives from Al Dabaran, the Follower - that is, following the Pleiades (a group of stars in Taurus), or perhaps the star was so named because it marked the 2nd Arabic Moon Mansion - following the first.

Aldebaran, now lies at around 9.47 degrees of Gemini. It is one of the four "Royal" stars.

Why were four Fixed Stars considered "royal"? Aldebaran, Regulus, Antares and Fomalhaut retain their status as Royal Stars to this day among western astrologers. The tradition stems from Arabic astrology/astronomy which some see as our modern astrology's closest relation. Arabic astrology filtered through to Europe from Persia, today's Iran, thousands of years ago.

These stars were accorded high stellar office by ancient astrologers and astronomers. In ancient times, in the Age of Taurus, their positions marked the four cardinal points, the equinoxes and solstices. The four stars were referred to as Watchers of the Heavens, looked on as guardians of the Vernal and Autumnal equinoxes, and the Summer and Winter solstices. Aldebaran, the "Eye of the Bull", was the Watcher of the East, conjunct the Sun at Spring Equinox – at the Aries Point.

These bright "Royal" stars formed a huge astrological cross, involving the zodiac's four Fixed signs: Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius long before the cross became a symbol of Christianity.

The symbolism of the four Royal Stars in ancient times is easy to account for. However, it isn't as easy to accept that astrological interpretation of these stars in later centuries, should retain the same flavour, when their positions have changed. The four Royals have moved on from their very early sites. Their approximate positions today: Aldebaran has moved from Taurus to 9 Gemini. Regulus has been in early Virgo since 2011. Antares has moved from Scorpio to 9 Sagittarius, and finally Formalhout moved from Aquarius to 3 Pisces. All four now occupy the Mutable signs - far different in interpretation from their Fixed neighbours.

Many astrologers still see the four Royal Stars as powerful when they appear in very close major aspect to a planet or sensitive point in a natal chart or mundane chart. The reason for this, I guess, harks back to the stars' early important status. Perhaps there is a question mark here. As the stars moved on over the centuries, ought they to have shed their royal reputation? It was their position, not their intrinsic properties, I suppose, which had originally defined them as highly fortunate.

There's a nice piece at Librarising.com on the Royal Stars and their progression:

Snip:

..........All four royal stars have since moved from the fixed to the mutable signs at different times during the last 700 years or so beginning with the Aldebaran-Antares half of the cross around 1300 AD. The move from Taurus-Scorpio into Gemini-Sagittarius may have been the driving force behind the birth of the Renaissance movement as well as the colonization to the Americas. The printing press(Gemini) and the spread of the scriptures(Sagittarius) were also outcomes of this. Alderbaran is currently at about 10° Gemini tropical and Antares at about 10° Sagittarius tropical.

Beginning in 1725, the other half of the cross began asserting itself as Fomalhaut moved from Aquarius to Pisces, ushering in Great Britain as a dominant sea power, steam power, the Victorian era, secret societies, and mystical religions. It may also be behind the more modern developments of oil, chemicals, film, photography, psychology, and collectivism, and will no doubt continue to spawn even further developments. Fomalhaut is currently at 4° of tropical Pisces.

Lagging behind the other three is Regulus which moves permanently from Leo to Virgo on November 29th, 2011 AD. Finally, all four stars will be in the same mode again, balancing each other out, and officially ushering in the mutable era or epoch of humanity where learning, communicating, and adapting will be central or pivotal to our existence.....................

Astrologers' interpretation for Aldebaran when found within a degree or so of a personal planet or significant point in a natal chart include such keywords as eloquence, high honors, integrity, popularity, courage, agitation; danger, loss....etc etc. for an entertaining read on this see a piece at Darkstar Astrology; alternatively Kenneth Johnson Astrology has this interpretation:

Aldebaran (10 Gemini) Ptolemy merely remarks[xiv] that Aldebaran is of the nature of Mars – which is unusual, since stars are almost always described in terms of two planets rather than one. It is certainly true that Mars should be a factor here, since Aldebaran is a red star. Anonymous of 379 and the Liber Hermetis both list this important fixed star as being of the nature of Venus and Mars combined.[xv] It is said to render its natives fortunate and wealthy, with a talent for administration. It lends courage, eloquence, integrity and popularity to a horoscope. In keeping with its Mars-Venus association, the longitude of Aldebaran is listed by Anonymous of 379 as being among those “degrees which cause licentiousness.”[xvi] The same author also declares that those born under its influence are “hot-headed” when it comes to their desires, as well as being “versatile in respect of sexual pleasures.” [xvii]

In the Hindu nakshatras, this star is known as Rohini, the Red Goddess, the literal dancing girl in the sky. In 3000 BCE, her rising would have marked the vernal equinox; she is the goddess in the springtime of her youth. As in the Hellenistic tradition, the Hindus recognize Aldebaran as an indicator of fortune, wealth, and administrative talent, and they retain a strong sense of this star’s erotic power. It is interesting to note that Sigmund Freud was born with the Moon close to Aldebaran, while Marilyn Monroe’s Sun was almost exactly conjunct this important star.

Another Democrat Steps Up ~ Martin O'Malley

Martin O"Malley, former Governor of Maryland (2007-2015); Mayor of Baltimore 1999-2007, joins Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in the race for Democratic nomination; Jim Webb (featured in this post) still hasn't formally declared his intention to run.

Martin O'Malley was born in Washington DC on 18 January 1963. No time of birth is known. Below is his natal chart set for noon. Moon position will not be exact; ascending sign and degree remain unknown.

Transiting Saturn will conjoin his natal Venus late this year/early 2016. Transiting Mars will be conjunct his natal Sun during the first week of November 2016 (time of the presidential election). I'm not sure what significance there is there, but it'll be something to keep in mind as stories unfold.

Mr O'Malley's "credentials" aren't nearly as well-known as those of Ms Clinton and Senator Sanders. There's a 7-paragraph run-down HERE. Headings of the 7 paragraphs are:

1. O'Malley got his start in politics working for Gary Hart.
2. O'Malley endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2008.
3. O'Malley has a rock band.
4. O'Malley loves data.
5. O'Malley's mom works for Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md
6. O'Malley is a practicing Catholic.
7. O'Malley presided over the introduction of casinos in Maryland.

#3 might be reflected in his Moon - likely in Scorpio with creative Neptune and in harmonious trine to Jupiter in Pisces (Neptune's rulership).

#4 reflects the Aquarius in him - especially Saturn in Aquarius!

I'll wait until the debates begin to form a proper opinion, but Martin O'Malley, to prejudiced me, already seems a less-presidential character, by far, than Bernie Sanders, whose voice has long been raised on issues important to We The People.

Music Monday's "Furrin Parts"

So much from which to choose! I'm going with Rome, because I fell in love with the city back in the early 1960s when I spent several weeks there.

Paragraph below is extracted from a 2007 post HERE

I spent some time in Rome, Italy in the early 1960s (photo on right). I used to wish frequently that I could turn back time; not all the way back to the days of the Roman Empire, but far enough to allow me to experience the Eternal City without so many tourists and so much traffic. A decade or so before my visits, only very wealthy travellers had access to Rome. I imagined with envy what it must have been like to wander the ancient sites and sights, free of horrendous traffic, noise and fumes. I used to frequent cobbled back streets, away from tourist areas. Occasionally I'd feel that I did catch a glimpse and a feel of how it used to be. I'm luckier than most, though. At least I saw the city before worse pollution and even heavier traffic took its toll.

I used to have a lovely EP (extended play) vinyl record containing 4 songs about Rome. I lost it, along with everything else, in our Great Fire of 1996. For the first time since then I've been able to find three of the four songs on YouTube. These versions are nice but not nearly as good as those on my record, that female singer's name is still buried in my memory banks, so far not recoverable. Below, the first two songs are sung by Lando Fiorini, the third by Mario Lanza.

The songs:

Quanta Sei Bella Roma. Translates as How Beautiful You are, Rome [in the evenings].
Full translation of lyrics





Vecchia Roma (Old/Ancient Rome)

A garbled not very useful translation (the song is, I think, regretting modern changes in the city's life).





Arriverderci Roma (Goodbye, Rome, until we meet again)
Translation of lyrics




Any contributions of more songs from "furrin parts" enjoyed by passing readers?

TV Maturing Well ?

When we started watching Grace and Frankie, Netflix's own new series, without having read any reviews I was expecting a comedy - mainly due to Lily Tomlin's inclusion in the cast. Husband did laugh out loud a few times during the first couple of episodes - I didn't. I really disliked the show's pilot and second episode. Maybe it's due to my non-American background. Maybe due to ....oh, I don't know...my aversion to certain sitcoms about a certain "class" of Americans. They always live in big houses with pools and a view of the ocean, they are lawyers, surgeons, always wealthy, clever, successful etc. etc. Such situations might have been just the thing to attract an audience a few decades back. TV viewers in the USA, then, might have been anticipating their own rise to such opulence. Now - not so much!

Basic storyline of Grace and Frankie is that "Grace" and "Frankie" (Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, respectively) women in their 70s, have been long married to lawyers who are business partners, Robert (Martin Sheen) and Sol (Sam Waterston). The husbands announce to their wives, over a communal dinner, that they've been in love with each other for 20 years, and intend leaving their wives to set up home together and marry. The guys hope to live out the rest of their lives in tune with their natural instincts. Both couples have grown-up families, bringing in four more regular cast members.

Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin are probably the only two actresses, of the right age group, who could have carried off the parts of Grace and Frankie. They're a classic "odd couple" thrown together by circumstance. There are other, lesser known TV faces who could have played the parts of the husbands to much better effect though. Martin Sheen remains Jed Bartlett (West Wing) to me for all time. Sam Waterston's Law and Order character loomed large for me over his characterisation of an ultra-sensitive, soft and gentle gay guy.

The show did grow on me some during the 13 episodes of its first season. It still isn't, for me, what it ought to be, and could be. Maybe Season 2 will improve it still further. In any case, it is good to see another show with its focus on characters of an older generation, and not portraying them like doddering old fools. In tandem with its more mature characters the show approaches what had been "a sensitive subject": being married to a heterosexual partner while gay. For those factors alone I should give Grace and Frankie a gold star!

Another show we saw early on in our Roku-owning time, was Amazon's Transparent, starring Jeffrey Tambor as a guy who dared to came out as transgender in later life. I much preferred the general tenor of that series to that of Grace and Frankie. The humour was less forced, more natural; the characters warmer, and far more believable.







An excellent British TV drama series we found, I think also on Amazon Prime during our free month's trial a while back: Last Tango in Halifax. It's another drama mixing love stories of an elderly couple (played by Anne Reid and Derek Jacobi), with an interwoven theme of a lesbian relationship of one of their daughters (played by Sarah Lancashire). Characters in this series were totally believable; there was humour and pain mixed with delicate deftness, skilled writing and acting. Maybe I'm a wee bit prejudiced because the action took place in my native county of Yorkshire!




Thank goodness some writers and producers are at last cottoning on to the fact that there is an audience out here made up of more than teens, twenties, thirties and forty-somethings! We have time to watch too, and we have been starved of decent drama and comedy to which we can easily relate. I don't want to watch nothing but "oldie" stories, I enjoy films and shows featuring younger people, as long as their themes are interesting, funny, witty, clever or science-fiction related - so few of them are though. Writers of such shows will often throw in a token "oldie" to keep things, as Fox News puts it "fair and balanced", but those token characters are usually portrayed in such a way that is anything but fair and balanced - just like Fox News!

Arty Farty Friday ~ Abbott Handerson Thayer's Angels and Camouflage

Abbott Handerson Thayer, I'd never heard or read the name before. Even had I encountered one of his paintings in a museum or gallery I'd have passed by quickly I suspect, as most of his best known works depict angelic winged figures - not my tha-a ng!

I noticed this artist's name among a list of deaths for today, 29 May, in 1921. He was born on
August 12, 1849 in Boston, Massachusetts.

I skimmed a few articles online to discover more about him. It turns out that he should be remembered for more than his angel figures (which, by the way he insisted were not meant to be angels, as angels are usually perceived). He was no follower of organised religion, but was a "spiritual" type, a follower of his generation's
"in thing": transcendentalism.

First of many of Thayer's paintings of chaste, lovely young women, usually winged, sometimes with halos was the painting below of his 11-year-old daughter Mary as personification of virginal, spiritual beauty, giving her a pair of wings and calling the canvas "Angel". The wings, he said, were only there to create “an exalted atmosphere” — to make the maidens timeless. Other of Thayer's winged female paintings, as well as some of his portraits and landscapes, can be seen via Google Image.

Digressing! The other, quite different, facet of Thayer links to his early interest in birds and nature in general. He and his family lived for many years near Mount Monadnock in New Hampshire, an area with which he fell deeply in love. Thayer's love of the countryside, wildlife and nature was what gave him an early idea - possibly the earliest - to point out that, as a form of camouflage is present in much of nature, something similar could be used in wartime for military personnel and for equipment, as protection, disguising their position, confusing the enemy.

He is credited with being the first to write about disruptive patterning (he called it 'razzle-dazzle'), which breaks up an animal's outlines; about masquerade, as when a creature mimics something in its environment; and about countershading, such as the white undersides of animals that make them seem less round and less solid. He became obsessed with the idea that all animals are camouflaged.
(New England Historical Society, here)

Thayer's ideas on camouflage (a good piece on this is at Order Rhythm and Pattern, here) were not initially well-received. Eventually, though, they were taken up as experimental, and in some cases improved upon during World War I.
Camouflage, patterns are now familiar to everyone, from military combat uniform, as well as from similar patterns transferred to items of casual clothing and accessories, embraced mostly by young people as a way of standing out as "cool" (though the irony probably escapes 'em!)

Abbott Handerson Thayer suffered from what's now labelled "bi-polar disorder". He described the affliction himself as "the Abbott pendulum," two extremes: "all-wellity" and "sick disgust." He also suffered from “oceans of hypochondria,” blamed on his mother, and from an “irritability” he claimed to be inherited from his father. Plagued by sleeplessness, exhaustion, anxiety, petty illness, bad eyes and headaches, he struggled constantly. Loss of his wife, Kate, at a young age to a lung infection affected him, and his work, greatly. Left with three children, he soon married again, to a family friend, Emma Beach, who had been helping to care for the children.

Personality-wise, Thayer is described in this Smithsonian piece as

Impractical, erratic, improvident, Thayer described himself as “a jumper from extreme to extreme.” He confessed to his father that his brain only “takes care of itself for my main function, painting.” Later he would compose letters to Freer in his head and then be surprised that his patron had not actually received them. Though Thayer earned a fortune, selling paintings for as much as $10,000, an enormous sum in those days, money was often a problem. With wheedling charm he would pester Freer for loans and advance payments.
Thayer cut a singular figure. A smallish man, 5 feet 7 inches tall, lean and muscular, he moved with a quick vitality. His narrow, bony face, with its mustache and aquiline nose, was topped by a broad forehead permanently furrowed by frown lines from concentration. He began the winter in long woolen underwear, and as the weather warmed, he gradually cut off the legs till by summer he had shorts. Winter and summer he wore knickers, knee-high leather boots and a paint-splotched Norfolk jacket.

ASTROLOGY

I think the artist's extremes of temperament mentioned above must be reflected here in Neptune's loose fogginess intensified by its position, in its own sign Pisces, opposed by Jupiter in organised meticulous Virgo. The configuration astrologers call a T-square shown in the small chart links the opposition to Mars and/or Moon in Gemini intensifying an ongoing challenge to balance that pesky opposition.



Venus, planet of the arts, is in a nicely harmonious trine aspect to creative Neptune, as well as in helpful sextile to Jupiter. Jupiter links to the religious/spiritual, which links back to Thayer's signature angelic-seeming figures.

Thayer's interest in camouflage - where might that be found in his natal chart? In the square aspect Neptune makes to Mars, maybe Moon too? Neptune's cloaking fog challenges Mars, planet of aggression and war? Saturn in Mars-ruled Aries squaring arty Venus in gentle Cancer could also be seen as a co-ordinating reflection.

The Good & Not So Old Days

Looking back in time, not too far - a few decades only - have we lost something important without fully realising it? Two articles below offer food for thought:

Ten polite things people just don't seem to do anymore
(E.g. 2 of them: writing thank you notes; giving your undivided attention to your company, rather than your phone.)

Does the digital era herald the end of history?

"But anyone who's seen their photo or music collections wiped out, knows how easily digital files can be lost".

"And in an increasingly networked digital world, the same catastrophic result could be achieved by a particularly virulent piece of malware or through state-sponsored cyber-warfare. The loss of this data could plunge the world into a "digital dark age", warns "father of the internet" Vint Cerf - one of the inventors of the net's language and architecture."

EXTREMES

Global warming is making hot days hotter, rainfall and flooding heavier, hurricanes stronger and droughts more severe. This intensification of weather and climate extremes will be the most visible impact of global warming in our everyday lives. It is also causing dangerous changes to the landscape of our world, adding stress to wildlife species and their habitat.
(See here).

While some regions of the USA have been experiencing more extreme weather, it's nothing like the extremes experienced in other parts of the world. In India, for instance, soaring temperatures are killing many hundreds of inhabitants - and people there are not unused to extreme heat.
(See here).

Oklahoma has never been short of some level of weather extremes, but the pendulum has been swinging ever more widely during the past few years, noticeable even during the relatively short time I've lived here (since late 2004). Our local newspaper's headline today was apt: "From the Driest to the Wettest". Texas, our neighbour to the south, is experiencing much the same, and worse in some areas. (See here).

This year's long, colder than usual winter followed a few very dry summer seasons. The state experienced ongoing severe drought conditions. These are suddenly ending with weeks of regular violent storms and torrential rains. I'll not even mention the attendant tornadic activity because that comes with the territory, always has.

In 2015 the annual rainy tornado season is lasting longer, with regular daily storms, heavy rainfall bringing flash floods. Rivers and lakes are filling rapidly, some overflowing. In many ways we are thankful - this is beneficial, much needed.

Yet, one does wonder.

What if this is part of a new pattern? Could the region cope with a regular mini-monsoon season? I doubt it. Drainage systems here have always seemed primitive to me, coming as I did from oft rain-soaked England where they have the drainage issue down to a fine art. Even there, though, flooding occasionally does cause problems.

Will local Okie and Texas politicians ever deign to accept that climate change is actually happening? If they do, eventually accept as much, will they have the gumption to do something about trying to slow down the rate of change?

Airy Ideas: Gemini etc.

By David Palladini

We're into Airy Gemini times once again. There are a few posts on Gemini stashed in the archive, accessible by clicking on "Gemini" in the label cloud in the sidebar. Apart from what's written in those posts, what more to say?

Louis MacNeice, in his book titled simply, Astrology, writes:

"All astrologers agree that the Gemini type enjoys argument; after all this comes naturally to a double man, born under a double sign.
[André] Barbault stresses this "bipolarity" and points out that Gemini rules the lungs with their double process of breathing in and breathing out. He adds that if Aries symbolizes the original fire at the source of life, and Taurus the condensation of this life in a material form (as it were, an egg) it is when the process arrives at the stage of Gemini that this egg is polarized and we meet the differentiation into the masculine and feminine principles."

Carrying the idea of a process of development through the signs, one could assess development of the zodiac's three mentally-oriented Air signs, Gemini, Libra and Aquarius in that way. Gemini could be seen as youthful Air - an impulsive, exuberant and flexible mentality. Libra, having learned a few lessons during the onward journey, matures to emerge in a more careful, deeply thoughtful state of mind. Aquarius has matured still further, to become more determined and stringently analytical and logical - in some ways mirroring its traditional ruler, Saturn.

So... the light gusty, playful winds of springtime Air, become the sweet, warm languid breezes of late summer, then finally, the more demanding chill winds of winter.

Ivy Goldstein-Jacobson, in Here and There in Astrology, wrote this:

In Air Signs, the Sun develops the individuality through logic, reason and keen insight into basic or underlying principles. It is therefore the most impersonal approach to the most personal development. In Libra, judiciously and calmly, sure of the laws and regulations he leans upon; in Gemini, with an open and inquiring mind, probing for what is factual; and in Aquarius, by depending on universal principles that he knows can ultimately be proven scientifically: an individuality at once remarkably human and godlike.

Back to Gemini!
Liz Greene, in her Mythic Astrology:

"Gemini is a fascinating sign, it presents a profound insight into life's diversity. In Gemini's world no truth is the whole truth, and nothing exists without its opposite...........For those with a strongly Geminian nature, there is often a sense of being several different people. Walt Whitman, the 19th century American poet, was born with Sun in Gemini, and wrote that he contained "multitudes".

Music Monday's Relationship Issues ("don't you love farce?")

Y'all know about iffy relationship issues, one way or another I'm sure. Many common ones have been put to words and music. For instance:

I still miss Jake Thackray and his fun songs, after all these years (he died much too soon in 2002). Here he is with a bit of La-di-dah on the in-law issue:



Sample lyrics:
....I'll be nice to your mother,
I'll come all over lah-di-dah,
Although she always gets up me nose.
(I love you very much.)
And so I'll smile and I'll acquiesce
When she invites me to caress
Her scabby cat;
I'll sit still while she knits
And witters, cross my heart,
And I shan't lay a finger on the crabby old batface.


I'll be polite to your daddy,
Frightfully lah-di-dah,
Although he always bores me to my boots.
(I love you very much.)
And so I won't boo and hiss
When he starts to reminisce


Then there's the general feeling of disappointment issue:




Sample lyrics:
Flowers and wine
is what I thought I would find,
when I came home from working tonight.
Well, now here I stand
over this fryin' pan,
and you want a cold one again.

I bought these new heels,
did my nails, had my hair done just right.
I thought this new dress was a sure bet
for romance tonight.
Well it's perfectly clear,
between the TV and beer,
I won't get so much as a kiss.
As I head for the door,
I turn around to be sure,
did I shave my legs for this?



And much the same issue from the male viewpoint:




Sample::
He's been working all week he's got mental fatigue and that old couch sure looks fine
All week he's been gone she's been sitting alone slowly going out of her mind
As he kicks off his shoes for the six o’clock news she's getting all prettied up
Oh she's wanting to boogie he's wanting to lay there she's got the Friday night blues

And the Friday night blues they get in your shoes and they work to get you down
Oh and there ain't a lady that I ever knew who didn't need her a night on the town
But the hills and the bills and a week's worth of deals has got him feeling more than used
Oh, he's kicking his shoes off she's putting hers on she's got the Friday night blues



Then, as mentioned in the post's title, there's the timing issue:

Just when I'd stopped opening doors
Finally knowing the one that I wanted was yours
Making my entrance again with my usual flair
Sure of my lines, no one is there.
Don't you love farce? My fault, I fear
I thought that you'd want what I want, sorry, my dear.
But where are the clowns, send in the clowns
Don't bother, they're here.

Isn't it rich? Isn't it queer?
Losing my timing this late in my career
But where are the clowns? There ought to be clowns
Well, maybe next year.



  She wears it well  - 1995 above, 2010 below.




Any more iffy relationship songs to add?

BLUES in the charts?

Dr. Cornel West, in his book Brother West: Living and Loving Out Loud, A Memoir, wrote:

“I'm a bluesman moving through a blues-soaked America, a blues-soaked world, a planet where catastrophe and celebration- joy and pain sit side by side. The blues started off in some field, some plantation, in some mind, in some imagination, in some heart. The blues blew over to the next plantation, and then the next state. The blues went south to north, got electrified and even sanctified. The blues got mixed up with jazz and gospel and rock and roll.”

Iconic blues singer B.B. King died recently. His passing prompted me to seek out a post about some blues singers, including B.B. King, that I wrote in 2008. I've taken parts of that old post, edited, updated them and re-posted below.

Blues music is such a well defined genre, I had wondered if some of its best known stars might have something in common astrologically. As Ed Kopp wrote in "A Brief History of the Blues" :

"When you think of the blues, you think about misfortune, betrayal and regret. You lose your job, you get the blues. Your mate falls out of love with you, you get the blues. Your dog dies, you get the blues.

While blues lyrics often deal with personal adversity, the music itself goes far beyond self-pity. The blues is also about overcoming hard luck, saying what you feel, ridding yourself of frustration, letting your hair down, and simply having fun. The best blues is visceral, cathartic, and starkly emotional. From unbridled joy to deep sadness, no form of music communicates more genuine emotion.

The blues has deep roots in American history, particularly African-American history. The blues originated on Southern plantations in the 19th Century. Its inventors were slaves, ex-slaves and the descendants of slaves - African-American sharecroppers who sang as they toiled in the cotton and vegetable fields. It's generally accepted that the music evolved from African spirituals, African chants, work songs, field hollers, rural fife and drum music, revivalist hymns, and country dance music."

What astrological factors spring to mind? Saturn aspects, mainly with Mercury (communication - which includes singing). Saturn says angst, difficult times, limits, barriers. Next, some emotional depth: Moon and its aspects, Water signs, perhaps a lot of negative (Yin) polarity.
(Wikipedia: "Yin - shady place, cloudy, overcast; the dark element: it is passive, dark, feminine, negative, downward-seeking, consuming and corresponds to the night.")

I picked the first three names my husband suggested as being quintessential blues singers: B.B. King, Robert Johnson, and Muddy Waters. No times of birth are available for any of them, which limits search for Moon aspects and house positions, so I looked at their natal charts mainly for Saturn aspects, Water, and polarity.

B.B. King, born 16 September 1925, Berclair, Mississippi.
astro.com has a rectified time of birth for him but I'll stick with a noon chart for this purpose.

Saturn sextiles Mercury and possibly Moon, (which could be anywhere from 1 to 12 Virgo). Jupiter trines Mercury. There's a loose Grand Trine in Water linking Pluto, Uranus and Saturn. Negative (Yin) polarity dominates 9 to 1!

Robert Johnson, born 8 May, 1911, Hazlehurst, Mississippi.


Saturn conjunct Mercury and 7 degrees from Sun, Saturn opposes Jupiter and sextiles Mars.Moon would be in Virgo and possibly in trine to Sun/Mercury/Saturn if born before 10pm.Grand Trine in Water, Jupiter/Mars/Neptune. Negative (Yin) polarity dominates 8 to 2.

Muddy Waters (birth name McKinley Morganfield) born 4 April in Rolling Fork, Mississippi, in either 1913 or 1915...or? (Note: Wikipedia and other websites have his birth year as 1913, some biographies state 1915, as does his gravestone.) From Wikipedia's page:

Although in his later years Muddy usually said that he was born in Rolling Fork, Mississippi, in 1915, he was most likely born at Jug's Corner in neighboring Issaquena County in 1913. Recent research has uncovered documentation showing that in the 1930s and 1940s, before his rise to fame, he reported his birth year as 1913 on his marriage license, recording notes and musicians' union card. A 1955 interview in the Chicago Defender is the earliest claim of 1915 as his year of birth, which he continued to use in interviews from that point onward. The 1920 census lists him as five years old as of March 6, 1920, suggesting that his birth year may have been 1914. The Social Security Death Index, relying on the Social Security card application submitted after his move to Chicago in the mid-1940s, lists him as being born April 4, 1913. Muddy's gravestone gives his birth year as 1915.

Doubt surrounding his year of birth is as muddy as his chosen name! An alternative place of birth, within a short distance, won't make much difference, but the year of birth will. I'll post charts for 1913, 1914 and 1915, maybe a clue will emerge.

4 April 1915
Saturn squares Mercury/Mars. Moon in Sagittarius (degree uncertain) might well be opposed by Saturn in Gemini. Stellium in Watery Pisces. Water predominates, negative (Yin) beats positive polarity 6 to 4.

Alternative chart #1
4 April 1913
Polarity is equally balanced negative with positive here (Yin/Yang), and elements are well balanced also.

Alternative chart #2
4 April 1914
Polarity favours positive (Yang) here, 6 to 4, and elementally Air and Water are balanced.

The chart for 1915 does best fit the pattern of the other two legendary blues singers, and one would expect his gravestone to be correct, but.... We'll never know why 1913 inexplicably changed to 1915 - or even whether either year was the correct year of birth.

Conclusion (if Muddy Waters' year of birth is taken as 1915): Saturn aspects Mercury in all three charts. Negative polarity dominates in all cases. The element of Water is a big factor in all three charts, via Grand Trine or stellium.


The blues these men sang, are traditional in style, blues singers from later years have expanded the range and flavour of the genre a little, but I think the three artists above illustrate the blues genre's very core.