Arty Farty Friday ~ Lord Snowdon, photographer

Time to feature another photographer - one with Sun in Pisces and an interesting backstory would be good. How about Anthony Armstrong Jones aka Lord Snowdon, once husband of the late Princess Margaret of the UK? It'll be his birthday on Sunday.
(Below: Meeting the Beatles in 1965)








If we can believe all we read (highly questionable) Lord Snowdon could easily compete with Tiger Woods in the amorous encounters department - before, during and after his various marriages. That's not the area with which I need to focus my attention though, in an arty farty post his photography must take pride of place.

A few quotes about his work (for links see end of post):

Lord Snowdon.... is a master of illusion. His work incorporates elements that can defy reality yet also convey the essence of a subject. An area of particular focus has been portraiture, which has allowed Snowdon to photograph a range of people spanning the great to the ordinary. Snowdon strives to capture a unique aspect from his portrait subjects and will research their background in order to achieve his goal.

A studio shoot with Lord Snowdon is quite often an uncomfortable experience. He has an uncanny ability to see through even the toughest facades, to strip pretensions, and by removing whatever pride his sitters arrive with, reveal the truth. Although famous for his charm and perfect manners, he likes to unnerve. This approach, coupled with his instinct to press the shutter at exactly the right moment, has made him a world famous photographer.

Despite this well-honed, well-known technique he has no recognisable photographic style, and indeed for the last half-century has made efforts to avoid developing one. He feels that as a photographer his role is to become an invisible observer, coaxing the truth out of his subjects without turning the result into a ‘Snowdon’.

In 1962 .... he embarked on a series of touching pictures examining old age, finally published in 1965, the first of a number of commissions that dealt with social issues. He photographed a fourteen page article on British theatre in 1966 that coined the phrase ‘swinging London’, and he travelled to India, Japan and Italy for the magazine at various points during the decade..... From 1960 to 1965 he was commissioned to design a new aviary for London Zoo. The project, now a grade II listed building, took five years to complete and remains one of Snowdon’s proudest achievements. He won two Emmys for a television documentary, Don’t Count the Candles in 1968, and was also made responsible for the overall design of the investiture of the Prince of Wales in 1969.

By 1970 he was back working for Vogue, back working at the level of intensity that suited his drive, and was one of the most in-demand photographers in the country. His output from the decade is huge; he made six television documentaries, published seven books of his own work, held exhibitions in Cologne, London, the Far East, and Australia, whilst all the time contributing to the publications he helped define. This tireless attitude to work has continued to the present day.
He has published four books since turning seventy, still travels extensively, and refuses point-blank to bask in the indelible reputation that he has worked hard at since 1952.

Lord Snowdon obviously has art in his blood. His great-grandfather was the Punch cartoonist and photographer Linley Sambourne (1845-1910), and his uncle was the legendary theatre, ballet and opera designer Oliver Messel (1904-1978).



With Neptune (the creative/photography planet) smack-dab on the descendant angle, one of the most potent points in the zodiac circle, it'd be very strange to find the chart belonged to someone not creative in one way or another. Sun, and Venus (planet of the arts) are conjoined in Neptune's rulership, Pisces, and lie in semi-sextile to another pair of personal planets: Mercury/Mars conjoined nextdoor in Aquarius, adding an energetically intellectual flavour to Lord Snowdon's nature. Pisces rising puts yet another layer of emphasis on his Neptunian traits. Moon and Jupiter in Gemini - another pair of conjoined personal planets reflect his outgoing, sociable and versatile side, and are in sextile to Uranus in Aries, bringing in a touch of the unexpected; maybe this is more relevant to his private life and reputedly bohemian choice of lifestyle, rather than to his art.





Sources: Google Image and
http://www.faqs.org/abstracts/Publishing-industry/The-magic-of-Lord-Snowdon-The-imagery-and-the-irony.html

http://www.chrisbeetles.com/gallery/artist.php?art=2871


From VOGUE


PRINCESS MARGARET in the BATH


PRINCESS MARGARET




PETER SELLERS & BRIT EKLAND





DALI



Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip, Prince Charles & Princess Anne




PRINCESS MARGARET



IN A MENTAL HOSPITAL



HELEN MIRREN



PRINCESS DIANA



RUDOLPH NURYEV







CLINT EASTWOOD



JACK NICHOLSON

Fixed Stars & John Frawley.

At Real Astrology website there's an excerpt from astrologer John Frawley's next book, due for publication this spring. He writes, in the excerpt, about Fixed Stars and how they came to have the meanings astrologers now accept. I found it a clear and fairly rational assessment, but was still left with a big question. As usual!

Mr Frawley theorises that the "pictures" said to be formed by the stars and constellations are helpfully symbolic, devised by ancients who understood the stars' intrinsic natures. He surmises that the stars' natures were not discovered empirically - i.e. by observation and experiment, but writes that:"Our astrologer forebears understood the nature of individual stars."

But how? How?

In spite of that frustrating question, the excerpt is a good read. The answer to my question might be revealed elsewhere in his book.

I was curious to take a peek at Mr. Frawley's own astrology. He has Sun in Taurus, Moon in Pisces and Capricorn rising. Hmmmm - quite surprising I thought - until I noticed from the Astrodatabank chart that his natal Moon falls in the 6th degree of Pisces which is on, or very close to, Fixed Star Deneb Adige, thought to have association with astrology. As it happens, my natal Jupiter, at 6.03 Pisces is close to that star too.

There's an interesting interview with John Frawley, by Garry Phillipson at Skyscript - HERE.
With regard to his natal chart he had this to say:

Q: Would you be willing to reveal your birth data?
16th May 1955, at twenty to one in the morning BST, in London.

Q: Could you home in on one or two factors in your chart which explain why you've been attracted towards the path in astrology which you have taken?
Yes, I would say a very strong Saturn: Capricorn rising; Saturn on the MC. Saturn, obviously, gives a respect for tradition; an awareness that you can't just make it up for yourself, or take it from someone who thinks they just have, and a willingness to accept the discipline of learning how to do it properly, rather than adopting the popular attitude of "it doesn't work for me, so I'll dream up my own method".

This Saturn influence makes it comparatively easy to get the focus I spoke of above: one doesn't expect to please, so one can go rather more easily for what the chart shows to be true.

Astrologers' Words of Wisdom #2

Astrologers come in all shades, stripes, shapes and sizes. Something for everyone! My own choice is for the more down-to-earth variety, those who never lose sight of reason and rationality. There are, and have been, quite a few such astrologers. As an occasional feature I'll aim to choose a paragraph or so from the books or websites of some of these. Second helping coming up:

From astrologer Lee Lehman's Astro Blog, towards the end of a post titled "Critical Method in Astrology":

I would like to propose a working axiom that would make almost everybody's astrological learning curve easier. It's very simple: perhaps astrology doesn't have to explain everything. Consider how this simple idea can free you up phenomenally.

Consider, for examples, how geneticists don't feel they have to explain all of intelligence. If a person seems to be brighter or dimmer than might be expected, geneticists don't have to run out and try to find some other genetics analysis to try to explain it: they can simply say: there must be an environmental effect. A meteorologist doesn't have to go to a conference to find a new technique when a forecast is wrong: he or she simply says: either there must be a factor I didn't take into account, or perhaps my weightings were wrong - or even that my forecast was only statistical to begin with!

What we collectively do which other knowledge areas don't is to create a tent big enough to capture all possible outcomes - no matter how unlikely. We never stop to think that the odd case may simply be better explained by something other than astrology. Instead, we risk sacrificing what accuracy we have by focusing too much on the out-liers: those one-in-a-million shots that may be real - just not likely. We don't stop to consider that the astrology that can deal with the oddballs may be embarrassingly bad on the routine.

My own thoughts: "a tent big enough to capture all possible outcomes - no matter how unlikely." This is what worries me. It's possible to make any chart or aspect mean anything if you dig deeply enough, and use a number of different astrological "tools". The less "tools" the better, is my choice. If things don't seem to work out, then, as Ms Lehman says, there are numerous other ingredients affecting human beings, individually and collectively.

Astrology works - I'm certain of it - but I doubt that it works reliably to the extent that some would like to think, nor on as many levels. That's my own view, formed from personal experience. It's obviously one not held by most astrologers.

Idol's Best Hopefuls

As the astrology bloggers' friendly neighbourhood American Idol fan, I ought to report now and again on the progress of this season's Idol bandwagon.

Contestants have now been winnowed to 10 females and 10 males, two of each to be eliminated after viewers' votes following tonight's and tomorrow night's shows. Results will be reported on a show on Thursday evening. Phew! Another Idol marathon, like last week's coming up.

I took a look at the ephemeris to compare this season's outer planetary positions with those of this time last year. Uranus and Neptune are still in semi-sextile and mutual reception (in each other's rulerships), and in even tighter semi-sextile than they were last year. Saturn is retrograding back into Virgo, where it was for last season - so the "atmosphere" planet-wise is much the same. Creative and unexpected performances will go down well (Uranus/Neptune) but there could later be backlash against any who are not what the viewers and producers consider to be "squeaky clean" (Saturn in Virgo).

I've yet to find any birth dates of contestants. In the absence of being able to predict progress on the basis of natal charts I visited a betting website OLBG Sports to investigate their views.

As it happens their top three are mine too - though in a different order.

They report:

Andrew Garcia can be backed at 4/1. A young dad from Southern California, sports big neck tattoo and heavy specs; already well-known as a singer in his own locality and on YouTube. Seems to have the ability to re-work established arrangements and present fresh versions of songs.








Casey James at 7/1. Singer-songwriter type from Texas, nice looking with a natural charm about him. Some journalists parrot the term "cougar bait" - very annoying, both for him (I'm sure) and for viewers with a smidgen of discernment. The situation wasn't helped by silly judge Kara going all girly and ga-ga over him during auditions. Thank goodness for Ellen DeGeneres!







Crystal Bowersox at 7/1. Single mum currently from Chicago but a former country girl from Ohio, she sports blonde dreadlocks, plays acoustic guitar, can sound Joplinesque. Definitely different from the average female Idol contestant.



I'd venture to rank Casey James above Andrew Garcia. Casey is the one I'll be waiting to hear each week - in the way I waited to hear Adam Lambert last season. Casey has an extra "something", as well as being a seasoned performer, and professional musician. He has a rather colorful past, it seems. I do hope the strait-laced brigade don't come out in force against him. Apparently some 9 years ago he spent time in jail for driving offences. These were misdemeanors, not crimes. While not admirable in any way, they are long past. He hasn't offended since, and back then he paid his dues.

Andrew Garcia is a gifted singer, no doubt about it. He'll be in the last half dozen for sure. Crystal Bowersox is the least "plastic" of the 10 gals, a "real" performer, no glamor-puss but natural and hugely talented.

Music Monday ~ Bobby McFerrin

Being something of a musical ignoramus, I knew nothing of this artist before I came to the USA. I'd heard his pop song "Don't Worry, Be Happy", but the name of the artist hadn't registered. His birthday is coming up on 11 March - I'm interested to see whether his natal chart is a good fit.

Biographical detail quoted is from an excellent piece at the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra website.

"Unconventional" is a good way to describe the career of Bobby McFerrin. Those familiar with McFerrin's shows, whether as a conductor or a vocalist, know that each one is a unique event that resonates with the unexpected.

To an astrology-conscious reader, that description would immediately raise expectations of finding Aquarius and/or Uranus prominent in Mr. McFerrin's nativity. They wouldn't be disappointed.

Bobby McFerrin was born on 11 March 1950 in Manhattan, New York at 11:19pm (Astrodatabank).



Sun is in imaginative Pisces, but Jupiter and Venus (planet of the arts) are both in inventive Aquarius. Additionally, Mercury in Pisces is in harmonious trine to Uranus (planet of invention) in Cancer. Jupiter is in another harmonious trine - to creative Neptune in Libra, which can be translated as "vocal explorer" - see below:

Bobby McFerrin is one of the natural wonders of the music world. A ten-time Grammy Award winner, he is one of the world's best-known vocal innovators and improvisers, a world-renowned classical conductor, the creator of one of the most popular songs of the late 20th century and a passionate spokesman for music education. His recordings have sold over 20 million copies, and his collaborations with Yo-Yo Ma, Chick Corea, the Vienna Philharmonic and Herbie Hancock have established him as an ambassador of both the classical and jazz worlds. Yet McFerrin's reach extends well beyond musical circles: he's worked with actor Jack Nicholson, comedians Robin Williams and Billy Crystal, the Muppets and audiences around the world.

With a four-octave range and a vast array of vocal techniques, McFerrin is no mere singer; he is music's last true Renaissance man, a vocal explorer who has combined jazz, folk and a multitude of world music influences - choral, a cappella, and classical music - with his own ingredients. As a conductor he is able to hear orchestrally, and with this gift has expanded his singing to include more imaginative territory then most; he might extend his vocal repertoire to sing trumpet-inspired parts in the jazz standard "Round Midnight" or to interpret the flute and cello parts in works by Fauré and Vivaldi, or to simply create entirely new worlds of sound.

Hush Little Baby

Sunday Supplement ~~ MOON

Astrologers will consider it highly significant that the 8.8 earthquake in Chile occurred close to the time of Full Moon. Richard Nolle at Astropro did warn of a clear potential for earthquake around 28 February, with the weekend's "Super Moon" (Moon at nearest point to Earth). It wasn't possible, though, to predict the actual location. There's a lot of detail to plough through on his website; there are parts relevant to the earthquake in the 2010 annual prediction section, and in the February 2010, both in "Futures" section.

Sincere sympathies to all affected by this most recent catastrophe.


FULL COLD MOON
By: ari' anna arena

This night
All light
Full still moon

Lamp lit
Silhouette
Full still moon

Many faces
Secret places
Full still moon

Supernal eye
In the sky
Full still moon

Big stone
Cold Alone
Full still moon

In reverie
A memory
Full still moon

Only one
You are
gone

Only night
to dream
upon

Full

Cold

Moon.

Irwin Shaw & Rich Man Poor Man

I noticed from Wikipedia's lists of births and deaths of the great and good that today was the birthday of novelist Irwin Shaw. His best-known novel, probably because it was adapted for TV as a mini-series in the mid-1970s, is Rich Man Poor Man. That mini-series paved the way for many others - it was the original, and perhaps that's why it has remained in my memory so clearly after all these years. Or perhaps it was the portrayals of the brothers by young Nick Nolte and Peter Strauss that made the tale so memorable.




Rich Man Poor Man is the story of two brothers (a sister appears in the book, but not the TV series) during the period following World War 2 - 1945 to the early 1960s. The two brothers, Rudy and Tom Jordache were, in nature, polar opposites (of course!) I doubt that Irwin Shaw had astrology in mind, but Rudy was archetypal entrepreneur business man, driven by Saturn/Capricorn/Leo, a touch of Virgo too. Tom the disreputable rebel with his heart in the right place - Uranus/Mars/Aquarius, with a touch of Cancerian sensitivity.

Shaw achieved more critical acclaim for his short stories than for his novels, but TV producers and movie makers saw potential in his novels. As he'd started out script-writing for radio shows such as Dick Tracy, it could be that his natural writing style favoured adaptation to audio/visual media. Not all writers have such a style, nor would the more elitist among their number seek to acquire it.

Irwin Shaw was born on 27 February 1913 in The Bronx, New York. His parents were Russian Jewish immigrants, which fact, later in life, caused him to move to settle in Europe for 25 years, after the McCarthy shenanigans, when he was placed on the Hollywood blacklist.


There's not much detail of his personal life on-line, other than two tidbits, and both come out in several of his novels: that he was a keen sportsman, and generally left-leaning politically. In Rich Man Poor Man Shaw's proletarian sympathy is summed up by one character's rule-of-thumb: "Never trust the rich."

Irwin Shaw is another example of the Pisces/Aquarius mix I've been encountering recently in my posts. His Sun and Mercury are in Pisces, but it's energetic and sporty Mars conjunct rebellious Uranus in Aquarius semi-sextiling his natal Pisces Sun which is the true key to his nature I suspect.

Unless he was born before 1am his natal Moon was in ebullient Sagittarius, and likely formed a planetary chain of harmonious aspects: Moon semi-sextile its ruler Jupiter, semi-sextile Mars/Uranus, semi-sextile Sun. An indication of a well-integrated personality, I'd say. And there's more... because if you move in the other direction : from Mercury to Venus, a semi-sextile, with another semi-sextile to Saturn, same on to Pluto, same to Neptune. So there are two separate planetary chains going on, one covering Pisces to Sagittarius, the other Pisces to Cancer. Fascinating! The broad interpretation: a well-integrated personality, with a variety of skills and interests.

Arty Farty Friday ~ Honoré Daumier

It might seem irrelevant, in 2010, to feature a 19th century caricaturist/satirist. What could satire of 19th century France have to offer to 21st century mortals? In the hands of Honoré Daumier it offers us a chance to see that nothing much has changed - fashions and technology - yes, they have changed, of course. Attitudes, politics - no change there! Daumier's cartoons satirised the corrupt regime, the injustice of the law courts, and the hypocrisy and greed at the heart of things. (Left: His lithograph titled (as translated)"Ungrateful country, you shall not have my work".



Today is the anniversary of Daumier's birthday. Born 26 February 1808 in Marseille, France; at age 8 moved to Paris with his parents. His father was a glazier, and didn't support his son's intense desire to become an artist, so young Daumier had to go to work in a bailiff's office. He later was able to study at the Académie Suisse and worked for a lithographer, which experience set him on the road to success. He quite obviously, as well as inborn artistic ability, had a natural flair for acute observation, a love of ordinary folk, a gift for seeing the comedic side of everyday life, hatred of political injustices - and war. It is considered that Daumier did as much as any artist of his time to raise the political and social awareness of the citizens of France.

"Throughout his forty-year career, Daumier created nearly 4,000 lithographs, first for the political journal La Caricature and later for the daily Parisian periodical Le Charivari. His early political images addressed the inequality and corruption of King Louis-Philippe’s July Monarchy. One drawing landed Daumier in jail for several months, indicative of the government’s repression of political caricature during much of his lifetime. After strict censorship laws were passed in September 1835, the artist shifted from political attack to social satire. His victims were the members of the French middle class, of which he was one. His images poked fun at pompous politicians, pretentious lawyers, picturesque individuals at the community baths, artists and writers in the throes of creativity, as well as urban development and the trials of commuting—all things that vex us to this day!" (Link.)

As well as the lithographs for which he is best-known Daumier painted around 200 canvases in oil, many depicting everyday life in France, as well as watercolors and small sculptures, all of which comprise, it is said, the largest visual legacy of any artist before 1900.

Dumier died blind and in poverty. though the people of France enjoyed his caricatures, the elite of the artworld didn't recognise his talent until decades after his death.



Now, here's someone even more Piscean than Elizabeth Barrett Browning (mentioned in my post last Saturday). Daumier had Pisces Sun, Moon, Mercury, Mars and Pluto (birth time 3pm according to Astrotheme, but Moon in Pisces whatever time he was born). Jupiter in Aquarius and Venus in Capricorn. Daumier had more Pisces input, but I'd say he was considerably more stable than Ms Browning the poet. Personal planets and ascendant in Fixed signs, Aquarius, Leo and Scorpio, with Venus in common-sense Capricorn provided valuable balance to an overload of dreamy, artsy Pisces.

Saturn in Scorpio trines Mercury in Pisces and sextiles Venus in Capricorn. Venus semi-sextiles Jupiter in Aquarius and Jupiter semi-sextiles Mercury in Pisces - which means that a planetary loop linked an acutely perceptive Scorpio Saturn to communicative and humanitarian Pisces Mercury, arty but practical Capricorn Venus, and expansive, jocular Jupiter in mentally active, socially aware Aquarius.

Some examples of his work from Google Image:


UNTITLED



GARGANTUA - This one, a depiction of King Louis-Philippe, led to a prison sentence for Daumier.



LOUIS-PHILIPPE, again....PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE.




IMAGE OF SAPPHO



"SO YOU WANT TO MEDDLE WITH THE PRESS"



3RD CLASS



THE FIRST CLASS




COMET



COMET (again!)




FRUITLESS SEARCH FOR THE PLANET




DISGRUNTLED LITIGANT



"Tiens peuple, tiens bon peuple, en veux-tu en voilà ! " (I think this means something like "Hang on good people - is this what you want? Here you are!")

USA: The Uncaring State of America.

The disgraceful saga that is the debate on health care reform in the USA trundles on interminably. To someone like myself who lived for many, many decades in a country where socialised (not socialist) health care is the norm, the debate appears ridiculous - the result ought to have been a foregone conclusion. How can a country, priding itself as a world leader, allow hundreds of thousands of its citizens to live without access to adequate levels of healthcare ? How can the population have been sitting idly by for so long when even those citizens who have dutifully paid their health insurance premiums for years are told, when serious illness befalls them, or a family member, that "you are not covered for that", and either bankruptcy or further suffering - or death - must ensue?

Is there something inherently immoral in the American citizenry, that they have not long ago - decades ago - demanded that something be done about this parlous state of affairs? It can only be that a large proportion of the population does not care about their fellow-men and women - and children. Simple as that. And this is a country which prides itself as being A Christian Nation. Please.

People of the USA would like to think of themselves as compassionate, friendly and forward-looking, and tend to advertise themselves as such. This isn't always the picture onlookers see. Although I'm now an American citizen myself, I'm still really an outsider, an observer of much that's alien. Some attitudes I notice here are more foreign to me than those I suspect I'd encounter among the inhabitants of of some lost tropical jungle.

If I'm feeling kindly, I could put it all down to the fact that the USA is a very young country, as compared with the countries of Europe. Some western states, in particular, are not much more than a century from the days of The Wild West, when it really was every man for himself. How long will it take for the minds, and hearts, of people in the United States to catch up? Too long.

Insurance Corporations have a stranglehold on things now, the country is being run by what may as well be termed mercenaries, verging on sociopathic, but the people, over time, have allowed this to happen. Their votes have been sending successive lawmakers to Congress and to the White House. Successive administrations have in their turn allowed the disgraceful situation to continue and worsen. At root, the people themselves are to blame - for their carelessness.

This post originally ended at that point - but then I read something at Think Progress which lifted my spirits a bit. New York Rep. Anthony Weiner spoke up clearly on the side of the people yesterday, when the House of Representatives debated the Health Insurance Industry Fair Competition Act, legislation that would repeal the 65 year exemption health insurance companies have from anti-trust regulations.

Speaking on the House floor, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) lambasted Republicans for being “a wholly owned subsidiary of an insurance industry,” prompting an offended Rep. Dan Lungren (R-CA) to lodge a complaint:

Transcript:

WEINER: You guys have chutzpah. The Republican Party is the wholly owned subsidiary of the insurance industry. They say this isn’t going to do enough, but when we propose an alternative to provide competition, they’re against it. They say we want to strengthen state insurance commissioners and they’ll do the job. But when we did that in our national health care bill, they said we’re against it. They said we want to have competition but when we proposed requiring competition they’re against it. They’re a wholly owned subsidiary of the insurance industry. That’s the fact!

LUNGREN: Mr. Speaker I ask that the gentleman’s words be taken down.

WEINER: You really don’t want to go there, Mr. Lungren. [...] Make no mistake about it. Every single Republican I have ever met in my entire life is wholly owned subsidiary of the insurance industry. That is why —

LUNGREN: Mr. Speaker I ask that the gentleman’s words be taken down once more.

WEINER: Look, the point is very simple, there are inequities in the present way we distribute insurance. There are winners and there are losers. The winners are the insurance industry. [...] There is not bipartisanship on this particular issue. The people who sit on this side, at the risk of offending anyone, generally support the idea of standing up for the American people in their battle against big insurance. And the people generally speaking who sit on this side of the chamber and specifically speaking as well in a lot of cases, simply won’t permit that to happen and haven’t for a generation. Well, that is going to end now. [...] Enough of the phonyness. We are gonna solve this problem because for years our Republican friends have been unable to and unwilling to. Deal with it!” (applause).

Bravo Mr. Weiner!

A quick look at his natal chart reveals that he has rebellious Uranus conjunct Sun, Mercury and Pluto all in discerning Virgo.

This is what the USA desperately needs more of!

Capitalism & John Haines, poet.

Notes on the Capitalist Persuasion
by John Haines


"Everything is connected to everything..."
So runs the executive saw,
cutting both ways
on the theme of all improvement:
Your string is my string
when I pull it my way.

In my detachment is your dependency.

In your small and backward nation
some minor wealth still beckons -
was it lumber, gas, or only sugar?
Thus by imperial logic,
with carefully aimed negotiation,
my increase is your poverty.

When the mortgage payments falter,
then in fair market exchange
your account is my account,
your savings become my bonus,
your home my house to sell.

In my approval is your dispossession.

II
Often in distress all social bonds
are broken. Your wife may then
be my wife, your children
my dependents — if I want them.

So, too, our intellectual custom:
Your ideas are my ideas
when I choose to take them.
Your book is my book,
your title mine to steal,
your poem mine to publish.

In my acclaim is your remaindering.

Suppose I sit in an oval office:
the public polls are sliding,
and to prove I am still in command
I begin a distant war. Then,
in obedience to reciprocal fate,
by which everything is connected,
my war is your war,
my adventure your misfortune.

As when the dead come home,
and we are still connected,
my truce is your surrender,
my triumph your despair.

(From Poetry Foundation).


John Haines was born in Norfolk, Virginia on 29 June 1924, with Sun/Mercury/Venus and Pluto in sensitive Cancer, between 0 and 11 degrees. Moon was in sign of the writer, Gemini (whatever his birth time). What I see as most relevant in the chart is a Yod linking serious Saturn and creative Neptune in sextile with Uranus (planet of the rebel) by quincunx. Being translated that means serious-minded creativity manifesting in a somewhat radical/rebellious fashion.

Much of John Haines's writing in both poetry and prose is a critique of a society that he sees locked up, as the philosopher Martin Heidegger phrased it, "in a destitute time." His vision and voice are somber and serious, at times profoundly apocalyptic. There is little room in Haines's poems for humor, playfulness, or what might be called "the domestic." Writing of his experiences as a homesteader in Alaska, Haines was recognized early as a "nature poet" whose interests were divided between his activities as a hunter and trapper, on the one hand, and his concern over environmental degradation of his adopted state, on the other. His awards include two Guggenheim fellowships in poetry (1965 and 1984), a National Endowment for the Arts Grant in poetry (1967), the Alaska Governor's Award in the Arts for his lifetime contributions (1982), an honorary doctorate of letters from the University of Alaska at Fairbanks, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Alaska Center for the Book (1994). (See Dictionary of literary Biography)