Author Archives: Len Wallick

About Len Wallick

Besides endeavoring to be of service to all of you here at Planet Waves, Len strives to live in Seattle while working as a professional astrologer. To contact him for an astrology reading you can send an e-mail to: lenwallick@gmail.com. His telephone number is 206-356-5467. In addition to his profession, Len contributes to the Seattle community without monetary compensation by serving as a Reiki practitioner and teacher through classes and outreach offered by the Seattle Reiki Mastery Series modality.

Planet Waves Weekly Horoscope, Dec. 17 – Dec. 24

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Aries (March 20-April 19) — If you keep two words in mind, you will be present with many of your most important issues. The first word is ‘means’. The second word is ‘ends’. Knowing what means you have available is very much like knowing how much money you have in your bank account. The more limited your means are, the more important it is to be aware exactly what they consist of, and how they fluctuate from one day to the next. Having an abundance of means implies that it’s less important to be vigilant. Ends are a slightly different matter. To be clear as regards to ends you must know and be honest with yourself. Hence, it would be suitable to consistently ask yourself what you want from any person, place or situation. That way you can keep in touch with who and what you are, which will in turn help you to evaluate whether you would like to be something or somebody different. — by Len Wallick

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Taurus (April 19-May 20) — Proceed from your strengths, and keep an eye on your weaknesses. Easy to say, right? Not so easy to do. First, you must know your strengths. Next, you must admit to your weaknesses. It will help (at least to start with) if you think of yourself as having one strong foot and one weak foot. Then you should be conscious of how things came to be the way they are. If your stronger foot got to be that way because you favor it, then consciously using the weaker foot in its place more often should result in greater balance and a smoother stride — which will ultimately work its way up your being to make you more whole and hardy. Should your weaker foot have gotten to be that way because of injury or some other sort of affliction, you must first determine what kind of healing is possible. That way you will know if you need to resign yourself to keep pushing off your stronger foot indefinitely, or just in the interim. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) — It appears as though you are developing a ‘nasty’ streak of common decency. Fortunately, there is no cure. This is not to say you haven’t been a decent enough person up to now. Rather, you are about to plumb greater depths of the stand-up person you have always been. As with exploration of caves, you will probably have to overcome trepidation. It will mean sorting real from imagined risks in order to realize the potential you now have to reach those personal depths, and then return to demonstrate in public practice what you’ve found. Therefore, in your continuing evolution towards being a more truthful, just and trustworthy person than ever, be guided by your own resistance. You will not want to push yourself too hard all at once. Go back more than once, and just a little deeper each time, into discovering what is entailed when you do the right thing rather than just your thing. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — Unless your situation is a matter of having to fight for survival, it’s probably not a good idea to choose conflict for the time being. Rather, select from three other possible responses whenever you feel an urge to respond with aggression. The first option is cooperation. As the saying goes, if you can’t (or shouldn’t try to) beat them, join them. By working to create with those you might otherwise oppose, it’s very possible to achieve gratification while also contributing to influence the nature of what is created. Where cooperation is not possible or appropriate, consider negotiation. Give a little in order to get a little. In the process, gradually establish and learn to maintain relationships so that negotiation can be either continuous or resumed at any given time. Finally, where cooperation and negotiation are not available, try practicing tolerance and give time a chance. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — If you have had to endure loss this year, it should now be possible to assuage some of the pain that came with it. As your first order of business, be gentle with yourself. If you need to mourn, allow yourself plenty of time. If you need help with or guidance through the process of grieving, give yourself the gift of finding the assistance you need. At the same time, don’t be hard on yourself. Guilt and shame are probably not your friends. Neither should you be critical of yourself regardless of what role or responsibility you have had in bringing on whatever has brought you down. Regret exists to learn from it. Remorse is to be expressed so that you can move on. Lighten your load by giving yourself credit for having done what you can in the past. Proceed to do what you can now. Especially as regards to any form of consolation or compensation that is now making itself available, endeavor to meet it at least halfway. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — Repetition can get old fast, especially for you, especially now. Therefore, where repetition is necessary, look to make it also refreshing — such as is (or should be) the case with bathing. On the other hand, any forms of recurrence or recitation that do not also confer a sense of renewal deserve the patient, yet judicious, scrutiny that you are especially gifted at conducting. Purging in any form should not be a hasty matter, for once tossed is often lost. Even so, any form of reiteration that has not, in a long time, provided you with a return on the time and energy you are investing is probably not worth persisting with. Therefore seek to find a middle way between recklessly abandoning routine and reflexively attaching to it. Remember that the idea is to continuously improve the quality of your life. So ask yourself whether discarding a particular practice will, in fact, achieve that end. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — If you are a bit uncomfortable in your own skin, the feeling will probably pass. Meantime, you might want to make the most of whatever restlessness you feel. Indications are you have at least two options. Which you choose should depend on whether excitement or relaxation is more appropriate for you right now. Either way, you will probably need to take some unaccustomed form of action to relieve what appears for all the world to be an uncharacteristic but fortuitous itch. If you think a bit of excitement will best serve to get whatever it is that’s bugging you out of your system, it would probably be better to try a thrill that does not carry the risk of bodily harm. In other words, better to perform at an open mike than bungee jump off a bridge. Should relaxation seem like the best way to float your boat into more comfortable waters, look to do it in familiar surroundings. Better a candlelit bath or three in your own tub than a single trip to the spa. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — Put your powerful imagination to work by envisioning yourself in roles you have not yet dared to take on. For you, the most important part of your constructive daydreaming will be variety. Rather than becoming fixated on visualizing yourself as a rock star, for example, dare also to dream of being and doing many other things. As a matter of fact, no matter how strong your attachment to any particular fantasy, put it away after a day or two and allow yourself to move on to other reveries. That way, you will be maximizing the possibility of eventual fulfillment while minimizing the potential of ultimate disappointment. Unless your circumstances somehow dictate that you must soon settle on and manifest one — and only one — of the many possibilities you can see yourself becoming, take your time and wait until you have been through enough scenarios to be sure of which calls you with greatest certainty. This is not procrastination; it is finding your way. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — Don’t allow any perceived lack of what you conventionally consider progress to get the better of you. To the extent that you can, be task (rather than timetable) oriented. Think of yourself as making a map rather than following one. If you can arrange to see your life that way for the next five or six months, you will avoid a lot of frustration and spare yourself a great deal of wasted energy. In other words, instead of being obsessed with trying to get somewhere, focus on accomplishing something. Let that thing you are making happen justify wherever you need to go and whatever you have to do to complete your task. That way, every cul-de-sac, blind alley or dead end you encounter can be welcomed, noted and recorded as an integral part of the greater whole — rather than be a cause for exasperation. Don’t worry, by this time next year you really will have gone somewhere, precisely because you did something first. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — Expectations are not your ally, at least not for now. Better to have as few expectations of others as practicality will allow. It’s also a good idea to have only the most humble expectations of yourself. This is not to say you should abandon your ambitions or become some sort of spineless Caspar Milquetoast. It is to say that you should consider making flexibility one of your highest aspirations. If you will but reflect on your experience over the last seven or eight years, it should be clear that being rigid has not been nearly as helpful for you as being supple has. Rest assured, the goals you have pursued have left you with erudition, skills and qualifications you will retain for a long time, even if you have actually attained some very different (and almost certainly very worthwhile) objectives. In fact, nothing will have been lost if you will but combine the admirable diligence you have already shown with a more pliant perspective on your life. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — It does not suck to be you. Don’t go to that dark place except to laugh at it. You should not measure yourself according to conventional standards when, in fact, you have been unconventional. Neither is it in any way right or appropriate to upbraid yourself for having practiced your idiosyncratic ways even if others cannot or will not understand. As much as you have had to endure the pain of losing who and what you have lost to be who and what you are, you have almost certainly gained even more. At the moment those gains are probably not apparent. Rather, the accumulated stores of what your originality has built up are hidden, and not from you. There are unprecedented and (as of yet) untapped reserves of creative genius inside you. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to find a way to access that genius without resorting to drugs, alcohol or other forms of self-destruction. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — You probably have an excellent and widespread reputation for all the things you are best at. That’s your mountain and you have built it. For the sake of that formidable massif, don’t allow any detractors to provoke you into making their molehills of disparagement any bigger than they are. Outside of legal recourse against the most clearly actionable forms of libel and slander, your best bet is not to dignify your critics. Don’t spend any of your valuable time and energy defending yourself against their petty complaints. Rather, seek to widen the base of your achievements by exposing your best work to more people in more places. In addition, exercise the greatest care so that in any personal contacts you make, your character and not that of others is the focus. Finally, your mountain’s best bet against any forces of erosion is to continue growing even higher at a pace that no aspersions can keep up with. — By Len Wallick

Vision Quest, Planet Waves’ 2016 annual edition, is fast approaching publication. Pre-order all 12 signs at a great value or choose your individual signs.

Skywriting, Shadow and Light

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Not long after human beings took to the sky, skywriting was invented. As the term is commonly used, skywriting is trails of smoke intentionally expelled from a small, acrobatic airplane so as to be visible as written messages from the ground. Not long ago, it seemed like such an innocent thing.

Now we know that exhaust from large scale use of aircraft is a prime contributor to climate change. That knowledge in turn casts a shadow on the whole idea of skywriting.

Yet, if that shadow serves the purpose of making you more aware, it will have been worth a loss of innocence. That’s an example of how literal and figurative shadows can be made useful in your life.

The astrology this week represents a form of skywriting emblematically replete with shadows that you can make good use of. The symbolism starts with Venus in Scorpio reaching 60 degrees of separation from Pluto in Capricorn shortly after 6:19 am EST (11:19:18 UTC) Thursday.

In astrology, a separation of 60 degrees on the zodiac (and in the sky) represents the metaphorical interpretation of one planet in support of another. The nature of that support is analogous to a scholarship or grant, in that it is earned.

When you consider how both our astronomical and astrological knowledge of Pluto has evolved since its discovery in 1930, you could very well say that the shadowy image implicit in its name has been integrated into a more productive form of knowledge, which has very real value.

Part of how Venus manifests in your life is through the realization of values. This means that its sextile with Pluto on Thursday shows how you might well apply yourself to looking for the light in any dark night of the soul you might be going through now.

Astrology’s skywriting regarding the theme of shadows and their association with the light of awareness continues when the Sagittarius Sun moves precisely halfway between the lunar nodes just after 9 am (14:01:10 UTC) Friday. The lunar nodes are in Virgo and Pisces, respectively.

The lunar nodes are not tangible objects like the Sun, Venus or Pluto. They are perpetually opposing points on the zodiac, representing the two points in space where the Moon’s orbit around our planet intersects with Earth’s orbit around the Sun.

The most important thing to remember about the lunar nodes is that eclipses take place when the Sun moves close to either one of them. Hence, the Sun equidistant between the nodes means we are about halfway between the most recent set of eclipses this year and the subsequent set of eclipses (and literal and figurative shadows associated with them) next year.

Even so, when the Sun is halfway between one node and the next, it also means the Sun is separated by 90 degrees from both of those points. A separation of 90 degrees is called a square, and is associated with tension originating from within. That’s how (as Eric has oft noted) being halfway between sets of eclipses often feels a lot like the shadowy experiences commonly experienced when eclipses actually take place.

Yet, if you had the chance to see the total lunar eclipse which took place on Sept. 27 (or Sept. 28, depending on your time zone) you also know how something very bright inevitably emerges from even the darkest of shadows. Fortunately, you will get an extended opportunity to apply that knowledge when astrology’s theme of useful shadows extends into Saturday

Saturday will be the first full day of Mercury in its so-called ‘shadow phase’, presaging its first retrograde period of 2016. That retrograde starts on Jan. 5.

To visualize how Mercury’s shadow phases work, imagine the motion of a windshield wiper on an automobile.

The first swipe corresponds to Mercury moving in direct motion over the same degrees of the zodiac where it will subsequently retreat. The second swipe of the wiper (going back the other way) correlates with the actual retrograde, and the third swipe represents Mercury’s third (and final) retracing of its steps before it moves on to other degrees and other signs.

The first shadow phase of a Mercury retrograde cycle (much like other emblems of shadow discussed in this piece today) is not to be feared. Rather, it corresponds with a period when you might receive enlightenment of what is yet to come. With such awareness you can be prepared, and with preparation you can overcome any downside of any shadow in any form.

That’s the metaphorical skywriting implied by the astrology of this week, the last full week of the current season. If you fear any shadows that go with it, however, it won’t be of much use.

On the other hand, if you can, proceed with a determination to gather awareness from any personal experience you have with shadows over the next handful of days. If you do, you will be moving not only into light but with it, as you emerge into a new season with the Capricorn solstice next week.

Offered In Service

New Moon, New Order?

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While there is no certainty as to its origin, the idea of a new order appears to go back at least as far as the roots of western civilization. Those roots are largely a hybrid of two traditions. In spite of their differences, both imply that humanity is empowered to improve its lot.

One cultural tradition is associated with the folklore and culture of ancient Greece, which was later adopted by ancient Rome (with some names changed, perhaps to protect the innocent).

The other system of belief can broadly but fairly be characterized as Sumerian in its origin. That paradigm now finds some of its more extreme adherents contending with one another to bring on an apocalypse. This, in spite of the fact that they all trace their lineage back to a paternal figure known as Abraham.

It appears that the inspirations for both the Greek and Sumerian traditions were in some way supernatural yet possessed of many human traits. Among those characteristics one can demonstrably include abject jealousy, profoundly destructive rage, and a proprietary sense of entitlement normally observed only in human beings who are about two years of age.

Yet both traditions professed to represent an improvement (especially for human beings) over those who had come before. Since most records of the supplanted spiritual and cultural models have been thoroughly eradicated, we cannot be sure.

We do, however, have cause to be suspicious because both Abraham’s tradition and the Hellenistic tradition are known as much for what, who and how they (often violently) exclude others as they are known for anything else. It is for that same reason we must also be suspicious of any new order proffered by human beings. For as long as unconditional inclusion is not an intrinsic part of the ostensibly new archetype being professed, you can pretty much anticipate more of the same mess that has propelled our planet and our kind in a direction that cannot be sustained.

Yet renewal continues. With every dawn, the rotation of the Earth brings a new day. Similarly the tilt of Earth’s axis, in combination with its orbit around the Sun, regularly brings new seasons. That’s how cycles form the basis for our reality, and as long as that’s true an authentically new order remains possible.

Perhaps the most visually perceptible cycle of Earthly existence has to do with the phases of the Moon. That cycle starts over every month or so with a New Moon — when the Sun and Moon move through the sky together for a day, as represented by their brief conjunction in the same degree of the same sign of the zodiac.

Because the side of the Moon facing toward Earth is not illuminated during its conjunction with the Sun, we don’t see a New Moon. Hence the symbolism of not being able to see, at first, what a new lunar cycle holds in store. The planetary aspects during a New Moon, however, can give a clue.

One of those aspects during the New Moon in Sagittarius earlier today — Venus in Scorpio trine Neptune in Pisces — offers some intriguing hints about what a viable new order might possibly include.

The geometrical relationship called a trine equates to 120 degrees of separation on the zodiac circle. So, a trine aspect is reminiscent of an equilateral triangle, a figure fundamental to the sacred facet of geometry, and reminiscent of strength and sustainability derived from equality and balance. Because Scorpio and Pisces have the same sacred element (water) in common, there is an implication of nourishment, perpetuation, connection, cycles and intuition included with the aspect.

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Finally, because Neptune represents what astrologers call the higher octave (same tone, different pitch) of Venus, there is a reinforcing sense of harmony, receptivity and life-affirming values indicated by the New Moon taking place while the water trine from Venus to Neptune is exact to the degree.

This is not to say that an authentic and viable new order is finally coming to pass with today’s Sagittarius New Moon. Yet, one cannot help but see what a long-awaited order of justice, peace, love and equality on Earth might consist of.

That order would first and foremost be inclusive. There would be no slaves (such as there were in the Hellenistic cultural model). Neither would be a paradigm of “us” as distinguished from “them,” which, among other things, characterizes the Sumerian tradition.

There would be equality of status and power in the distribution of shared resources for any new order emblematic of today’s water trine from Venus to Neptune. Finally, there would be continual and unlimited strength that requires no coercion or violence to sustain harmony indefinitely.

While we do not in fact know whether or not today’s New Moon in Sagittarius will at long last herald an awakening to a new order worthy of its name, we have reason to be skeptical. Yet, because we can see it in the sky (and more importantly, in ourselves) we also have reason to believe it possible. May you contribute in your own way to make today the first day of that possibility becoming real.

Offered In Service

Planet Waves Weekly Horoscope, Dec. 10 – Dec. 17

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Planet Waves Weekly Horoscope — Dec. 10, 2015, #1079 | By Len Wallick

Aries (March 20-April 19) — Any restrictions on your physical movement in the weeks ahead are almost certain to be temporary. It’s nearly as likely that those same restraints will become the blessings you didn’t know you were waiting for. That’s the reason you should resolve to cultivate patience as your primary objective for the foreseeable future. That’s also why you should endeavor to see these developments as a gift of both time and space whenever it feels as though you have had either bodily freedom or prerogatives of mobility taken from you. If you play your cards right, any constraints now imposed upon you should provide you with ample opportunity to discover ways you can transcend any and all limitations you had previously accepted and resigned yourself to. — by Len Wallick

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Taurus (April 19-May 20) — There is a difference between complaining and expressing your needs. For you, realizing and leveraging that difference should require only small adjustments on your part so you can be understood as well as heard. Those adjustments would seem to entail putting things in a slightly different order. If you want to be understood, you must first seek to understand. While you probably have enough power and influence right now to simply coerce others into cooperating with you, any gain through duress would probably be as ephemeral as it is efficient. Rather than putting your objectives first, consider the advantages of making others feel as though your desires are their priority. The extra time and effort you invest to enlist support in kind will ultimately pay more than conscription will cost you. — By Len Wallick

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Gemini (May 20-June 21) — A little organizing will go a long way for you at this time. You may feel as though your affairs are on a roll, and perhaps they are, but momentum can be a fickle thing. Don’t take anything for granted. Rather, take stock of both what you have gained and what you have lost over the last six months or so. Do not limit your accounting to material things, either. Consider the state of your relationships as well as your finances. Where you have shown demonstrable increase or attainment, put practices in place to consolidate, preserve and protect from dissipation what has been hard earned. With regards to what you may have had to give up or neglect, think about what you can do to make up, catch up or even up. Smooth rough edges so they won’t snag. Fill in low spots so you won’t fall in them. — By Len Wallick

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Cancer (June 21-July 22) — It would be appropriate for you to exercise great care in small things for the time being. By doing so you will be grooming yourself to achieve great things in the not-too-distant future. The time for assertive, even aggressive, actions will come. For now, make it your business to get, and set, things right. In addition, endeavor to remember, refresh, restore, regain and above all return to what sustains you. Feel for your roots so you’ll know where you have come from when you are someday far removed from where you started. Do not be deterred from focusing on preparation even if others mistake your efforts for stagnation. The best way to make sure that you do not trip when taking the first steps of your impending journey is to make sure that the laces on your boots are well tied. — By Len Wallick

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Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — Sometimes you don’t know when you have gone a bridge too far until somebody pushes back. While you are fully justified and even entitled to have strong and significant feelings at this time, it would be in your best interest to express your emotions with care and consideration. This does not mean you have to repress or inhibit yourself. It does mean picking both your spots and your words so that others will welcome what your heart wants to share. Thus, when you are feeling enthusiastic, shine a light of gratitude rather than blasting the heat of your zeal. That way, others are more likely to see themselves in your picture. On the other hand, if your emotions are more on the somber side, show your generous and gentle nature so as to receive the same in return. Be easy to take and you will be better received. — By Len Wallick

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Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — While spring cleaning is not exactly near at hand, there may be other ways in which you can make a fresh start in the places you feel most at home. If you live alone, begin thinking about the extent to which you would be willing to share your personal space with an additional life. If a roommate or domestic partner is either not on your radar or not in the cards, you might want to at least consider adding a cactus or even a goldfish to open up some additional interaction, which could ultimately broaden your own life. If you share a residence with others, this would be a good time to reconsider your boundaries with them to encourage greater camaraderie and foster improved cooperation. It’s not as though there is any need for you to stir things up; that would only muddy the waters. Rather, look to loosen things up so as to smooth the waters. — By Len Wallick

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Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — Be here now. Especially if you perceive some things going on in your immediate environment that remind you of trying times about two years ago. That was then. Now is the time to finally begin a process of integrating what is not yet resolved. Odds are you have done most of the hard work already. So, first, assume that is the case. Then, make it your next objective not to go back and be what you no longer are. To achieve that end, give yourself all the credit you are due. Look back at more than what you have been through. Consider all you have come through. Are you now more aware? Of course you are! Have you been responsible for an expanded consciousness? You bet you have! And who more than you now knows better than ever how to do the right thing? So now, do the right thing for yourself. Let yourself off the hook and get on the stick instead. — By Len Wallick

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Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — You know you are loved. You know because some who love you reach out on a regular basis. You also know that others wait for you to accept the love they have to offer. Part of the love others offer is to ease your burdens in some way. Some have undoubtedly made it clear that they stand ready and willing to help you with physical encumbrances. Others offer a strong shoulder for emotional support. Then there are those whose clear yet learned perspective will help you see your way through any mental dilemmas. Also among those who love you are sure to be some whose spiritual development will fortify your faith. Finally, when you think about the work you have put into developing yourself over the years, you have evidence that you are fully capable of loving yourself. Just because you may have loved unwisely in the past, don’t assume that you are unworthy of love now. — By Len Wallick

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“The past several months I have felt like my ass was strapped to some unnamed comet with no off switch. My exposure to astrology in the past left me wanting…no substance…too generic. I decide to give it another chance and gifted myself with your Sagittarius birthday reading. Well, finally! I now understand that this comet doesn’t HAVE an off switch, but I have at least found the steering wheel. Thanks.” — Tree Ravenwolf

You can still pre-order the 2015-16 Sagittarius Birthday Reading for the discounted price. You’ll receive two full audio segments of astrology, a third segment of astrology afterthoughts and your tarot reading, plus photos of the cards and the charts. While Eric works on it, listen to last year’s reading, on us, for inspiration and to review if you have a Sagittarius Sun, Moon or Rising Sign.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — You, a leader? Yes, you! As surely as you have been known for your infectious smile, it’s time to own your inspirational style. Just as you have consistently offered empathy and support, others would be thrilled to offer you the reins of authority. Furthermore, the same form of character (known as ‘backbone’) that has permitted you to stand up to both authority and social pressure alike, will now serve very well on behalf of others. Finally, you know in your heart that your competitive side is really something more than a need to distinguish yourself; it is a love of challenge that has long been looking for worthy employment. All that remains for you to step into the leadership roles you were born to fill is to absorb a few remaining lessons about what it means to be a good follower. That means finding one last person to follow in the way that you will someday want to be followed yourself. — By Len Wallick

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Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — Your life has not been for the faint of heart. The fact that you are still alive proves that you are as stout hearted as they come. There is also no denying how big and kind your heart has always been. Now, all the heart you have shown in the past is surely coalescing in a new and improved way. In the depths of your soul, unseen to many (maybe even to you at this point), grows a source of inspiration that you will be able to draw upon to create like an artist and live to the fullest. Most of all, however, those who have had cause to wonder about your ability to mature fully will soon have reason to believe in you even more strongly than they have ever doubted you. As you gradually become more aware of the new type of heart building up inside, the most important thing for you to understand is that you have had it in you all along. — By Len Wallick

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Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Answer the bell. Regardless of any difficulties you are confronted with, keep coming out of your corner until you have gone the full distance allotted to you. Now is no time to yield to weariness or pain. However discouraging others may be, and no matter what challenges are yet to come, roll with them so as to conserve yourself — but also maintain a steadfast resolve to stay on your feet. Just as important, continue to keep your own style fair and clean even if others are not fair to you. Good effort and good form are never wasted. In fact, the only way you can truly lose now is to give up; for, a turning point is about to take place. What good you have done is slowly but surely adding up to more than your stumbles and errors. You need not resign yourself to accepting a moral victory, either. As long as you persist without breaking faith, you will continue to have a fighting chance to both prevail and be distinguished for it. — By Len Wallick

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Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — Whether you know it or not (and you probably do), you have acquired some valuable and powerful allies as of late. Now your coalition of support will be stronger than ever, provided you continue to include those who were there for you when you had fewer options and things looked a lot less promising. Those who have recently thrown in with you have likely done so because of the interests you have in common, as well as the credentials you have earned. But those who have always been faithful to you for the long run have been motivated by more than just what you have to offer them in return. Your core constituency has hung in there with you through thick and thin because of who you are, not what you are. If you continue to honor their faith, you will have done the highest honor possible to yourself. — By Len Wallick

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What You Know

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Watch out. What you know could soon become valuable. Even with entire disciplines encoded into software, what you carry in your head and heart could become more important than ever. Even if robots take over entire fields of work, what you know could be necessary if anything is to work.

For what you know goes beyond skill sets. Whether you are comfortable with it or not, you have a conscience, which discerns between right and wrong. In addition, you have an ability to see what’s important beyond considerations of power. You also know how to appraise value that has nothing to do with price.

In spite of being born into, growing up in and having to make your own way through a world in which death, profit and politics hold sway, you know the importance of a single human life. You can see the future in a baby. You appreciate kindness, treasure love, and comprehend grace. Such are the manifestations of human culture that have truly distinguished us from the machines and machinations we have created.

It is what you know that will ultimately make a difference if you do not allow yourself to forget it. It is what allowed small bands of our ancestors to survive in a big world. It is the same knowledge that will allow a huge global population to go on living in a world suddenly grown smaller.

In the same way we can see an encouraging implication of Mercury entering Capricorn seconds after 9:34 pm EST tomorrow (2:34:10 UTC Thursday). For among the things versatile Mercury represents is mind, where knowledge is processed. By the same token, among the realities Capricorn corresponds to are the cultural institutions that for so long have preserved, protected and passed on the knowledge that allowed our kind to get this far.

In the short period of time since Pluto entered Capricorn in 2008, many of those institutions have been revealed to have either decayed or otherwise betrayed their purpose. Whether it is organized religion, government, schools, justice, health care, public safety or any other of the large organizations that combine to create society on a large scale, dysfunction is undeniably more the rule than the exception. This, in spite of so many people just like you who devote their lives to serving in good faith, somehow holding on to what they believe in while holding things together in a system gone awry.

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Perhaps an elite few have hijacked cultural institutions for their own purpose. Maybe those vast foundations of social structure have somehow taken on a robotic life of their own.

Regardless of what is behind what can only be called a crisis, this foray of Mercury into Capricorn will implicitly require both your innate and acquired knowledge to both understand and address how we all came to this pretty pass, and also how to survive it.

That’s because most of the next Mercury retrograde will take place in Capricorn. Yes, Mercury’s apparent reversal will appropriately begin in the second degree of Aquarius, the sign of groups (especially those in service to the group) on Jan. 5, 2016.

But most of Mercury’s thorough review will be emblematically moving through the hallowed halls constructed for — and the sacred ground set aside for — a common good. This at a time when the cause of serving all of us in common appears to have been set aside in favor of power, profit and politics — particularly as practiced by those who have forgotten what made them human. Which is how you are being called upon to remember and express your humanity while acting on your conscience. It is nothing less than the symbolic imperative of Mercury’s impending ingress to Capricorn.

If not you, who? If not now, when?

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A Change is Gonna’ Come

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It’s been a long, a long time coming, but I know a change is gonna’ come
— Sam Cooke

For as far back as anthropology and archeology have been able to retrieve information so far, astrology has always shown up as a fully developed system. There are no surviving records of astrology in its early, pre-development stages (assuming there were any).

Yet, there are also no surviving records of most human history. We have been around much longer than writing or other forms of material record keeping.

Even so, it is very likely that some rudimentary form of astrology must have been necessary long before writing, or even agriculture. That’s because watching the sky helps us to anticipate when change is gonna’ come.

Even when our ancestors lived in small bands, roaming around hunting and foraging, it would have been vital to know of impending changes ahead of time. It goes without saying that preparing for seasonal changes can be crucial for survival. It is also probable that the patterns and cycles in the sky were long ago correlated with the movement of migratory animals, the ripening of fruits and the availability of other necessities.

Hence, astronomy and astrology (which until recently in human history were essentially the same thing) has always been of practical use. It helps to know when a change is coming so you can move with it, either literally or figuratively.

Yet human beings are more than practical. We are creative. We make stories. Those stories also serve a purpose. They preserve and contain important information in a way that can be remembered and passed on.

That’s how astrology came to include story, and how those stories are still useful. Among the stories were those about the planets. The planets were invested with personalities that had meaning with regard to their respective cycles. Those personalities were conferred with divine status since, after all, they lived in the sky.

The skies were then divided into metaphorical houses (or signs) in which those personalities could live. Some houses were considered to be like home for specific planets. Other houses were places to visit and be a guest. The comings and goings of celestial objects were evidently observed and correlated with the comings an goings here on Earth. In that way, it is reasonable to speculate that our ancestors knew when to come and go so as to enhance their chances for survival.

So it is that the planets that have always been visible to the unaided eye came to be associated with myth. That mythology, in turn, contains the essence of long observation, codified and formalized — possibly even in our DNA. Part of being an astrologer means retrieving that information and applying it to the present, so that you will know when change can be expected to come and, to some degree, how to move with it.

One of the big representations of change for astrologers is when planets change signs. Tonight at about 11:15 pm EST (04:14:57 UTC Saturday) Venus will move into Scorpio.

Without getting too technical on you, Scorpio was considered by the ancients to be one of the two celestial residences (or signs) where Mars lived (the other being Aries). Hence, Venus is about to be a guest of Mars for abut 25 days. The appropriate moves for you to make in response are indicated by the mythology.

In ancient mythology Venus and Mars had what gossip columnists now like to call “a history.” They were attracted to each other. That’s how Venus and Mars are now considered complementary by astrologers.

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The attractions between Venus and Mars played out in various and sundry ways depending on the context, which among other things the signs provide.

One of the more salacious episodes in ancient mythology gives an account of Venus sleeping with Mars occasionally so that the soporific effects following a coital encounter would calm Mars down and keep the god of war from causing destruction in the world.

Of course, the ancients knew that unless they moved to emulate what Venus was doing, the efforts of Venus would not manifest on Earth. The same applies to you now.

You don’t have to be an astrologer or familiar with myth to see that there is a lot of destruction being wrought by war and the downside of Mars-like behavior in the world right now. You also don’t need too much imagination to figure out the upside of Venus coming to be a guest in the sign where Mars rules (much as you rule in your own home).

But unless you make like Venus and offer some form of love, Venus will pass through Scorpio with no effect here on Earth. In other words, if any change indicated by the skies is going to take place, you have to do your part as a member of the solar system.

If there is anything to astrology, it’s now time for you to move and in some way (not necessarily sexual) offer your love over the next month or so. Specifically, you should offer love as a complement to aggression, and as an appropriate response to the ways of violence we have all surely had enough of by now. One way or the other, you know a change has got to come. Perhaps you can do something to help make that change contribute to enhance our own survival.

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Planet Waves Weekly Horoscope, Dec. 3 – Dec. 10

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Planet Waves Weekly Horoscope — Dec. 3, 2015, #1078 | By Len Wallick

Aries (March 20-April 19) — Most of us have another side we are reluctant to show, a vulnerable side. It would seem that your vulnerable side needs some love right now. At least to begin with, that love will probably have to come from you. Actually, that’s a good thing. After all, nobody understands your needs better than you do. The question is whether you can give yourself the same benefit of the doubt you would readily provide to another for whom you feel affection. The answer lies in going back to the basics. Among other things, love entails acceptance, trust and support. Therefore, do for yourself what you would want a lover to do for you. Give yourself a warm embrace every night. Tell yourself that you are good and worthy every morning. Invite your needs to stay in your heart and be what they are. — By Len Wallick

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Taurus (April 19-May 20) — Participating in an endeavor with another (or others) has many fringe benefits. Among those benefits is, or should be, the right to negotiate. The next several weeks will be a good time to at least evaluate the extent to which you have pooled your efforts and resources in partnership. Is it proportional to the license you have received to influence the nature and course of these joint enterprises? If your role or position in a venture is uncomfortably subordinate, consider how it got that way. It could be that you have created or tacitly accepted a niche that is implicitly unequal. If that is the case, negotiations must begin with you asking for and taking on greater responsibility rather than simply agitating for change. Show your partner(s) what they have to gain, and they will be more likely to give. — By Len Wallick

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Gemini (May 20-June 21) — Personal development does not always take place at a constant rate. Sometimes there are spurts of growth. The period just before a moment of abrupt maturation or attainment is often characterized by consistency and persistence, even when there are no discernible results. On the other hand, the stage immediately after a growth spurt of some sort typically requires some adjustment. It is important for you to know where you are in the course of your own evolutionary cycles now because it appears that you are about to move from one state to another. Therefore, if nothing seems to be going anywhere, keep up with your chosen practices. If you are somehow suddenly awkward, slow down. And if the world has suddenly opened like a flower, go with the flow for all you are worth. — By Len Wallick

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Cancer (June 21-July 22) — It’s very appropriate for you to make your place of residence both comfortable and safe. Home can be more than just a place of refuge, sanctuary and nourishment, however. Where you abide can be lively and fun. You should not have to leave your abode to have a good time. Indeed, there is no better place to take a thrilling risk or two than in the security of your own space. It does not matter whether you live alone or with others. Nor should it make a difference whether you are hosting a party or in bed by yourself. There should be some way to find both joy and adventure under your own roof. Fortunately, your imagination is capable of being quite active and very creative right now if you put it to work. Think of some ways to have the time of your life where you live. — By Len Wallick

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Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — There are some who are fond of saying that “it’s later than you think.” Let them think that way. You don’t have to. If anything, your case is that’s it’s earlier than you think. Even if you are in the midst of a long haul of some sort, permit yourself to be refreshed by the distinct possibility that today really is the first day of the rest of your life. Allow yourself to at least imagine that you are only at the beginning of a great adventure, and consider what that would mean if it were true: that you have time on your side, perhaps in a way you never thought possible. It would also mean you have space to maneuver or even change direction altogether. Chances are if you give yourself the gift of positioning yourself at a starting line of some sort, it will allow you to make better decisions than if you see yourself approaching an end. — By Len Wallick

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Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — Almost by definition, you have an earthy nature that should not (and ultimately cannot) be denied. You also have an inherently open mind. The combination gives you a greater proficiency than most for exploring the full range of your potential for sexual satisfaction. Paradoxically, your innate contact with the fecund Earth can often result in an over-emphasis on propriety. Similarly, your supple intellect is entirely capable of over-thinking. You may have also run into some trouble with inhibitions lately. Fortunately, however, the remainder of this year should be prime time to get your groove back. If you already have an established intimate relationship, ask about pushing the envelope a bit to liven things up. If you are without a sexual partner right now, try being a bit more risqué with yourself. — By Len Wallick

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Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — Being misunderstood is not a pleasant thing to go through. After a certain point, however, you have to be philosophical about what other people think so as not to lose yourself. You may be at that point now, especially if you are feeling a need to please others in order to be truly content and fulfilled. Yes, we all have a lot in common. In addition, your ideals and sense of fairness do you credit. Even so, not everybody has the same priorities as you. Therefore, if you cannot please everybody, don’t think yourself a failure. Rather, think of yourself as having delineated where differences between you and others lie and what your own values are. If you can do simply that you will have more clearly defined yourself. With that definition you can finally begin to work and create to your own satisfaction to the same degree you have considered the satisfaction of others. — By Len Wallick

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Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — Let yourself up. As a matter of fact, let the word ‘up’ be your mantra for a while. Take charge of your inner environment, and experiment with excluding the word ‘down’ from your vocabulary for the rest of the year except where absolutely necessary. That should be long enough for your outer environment to turn a corner and allow you to begin tidying up, as if to accept better times as your guest. It’s worth a try. When you awaken, try telling yourself to go beyond getting up. Encourage yourself to be up. When you are trying to resolve even the most intractable and discouraging challenges, envision yourself as cleaning up to make your circumstances better (as opposed to facing an odious and interminable chore). Finally, when your hard work and determination have you feeling most worn and weary, remind yourself to look up and notice the sky is still there. — By Len Wallick

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Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — If the sky is right, you are now settled into a smoother routine than was your situation only three months ago. If that’s not true for you, put on your thinking cap. Next, set aside all doubts about what can and cannot be done as the next order of business. Think as if anything were possible for you, even if it does not seem that way. Then, simply ruminate about the single most simple and easy thing you can do to make your life more simple and easy. What your free-range thinking comes up with may be something you don’t want to do. Let that be okay — because after all, you have a choice. That way, if you do decide to eschew the simple and easy in favor of a more difficult but palatable path, you will at least have come to a greater understanding of what makes you tick — and that alone will come in handy sooner than thinking can reveal. — By Len Wallick

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Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — For astrologers, your element is earth. What you might want to meditate on right now, however, is what it means to be in your element. You have been around long enough to know when you feel most confident and relaxed. You also have enough experience to know what fields of endeavor allow you to demonstrate impressive competence yet also experience authentic fulfillment. Once you are clear about when and where you are in your element, you can begin making some plans to spend more time there. Don’t put pressure on yourself — you don’t need any more of that. Conceive of moving more fully into your element as a gradual process that should rightfully take years to complete. That way not only can you make adjustments as you go, but also change course altogether should you have a change of heart. — By Len Wallick

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Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Yes, some might be judging you unfairly right now. If you are fair to them, however, you probably must admit you have given others some small reason to judge you. This does not mean there is anything wrong with you, so don’t compound your situation by judging yourself. Neither, in all probability, do you need fixing. It might do simply to be more transparent about your situation. Admittedly, revealing more of your circumstances and taking responsibility for them could mean swallowing your pride, or even risking embarrassment. Even so, it is almost certainly better to take a chance that depends on the understanding and compassion of others than to maintain the unsustainable, doing damage to yourself or your cause in the bargain. Give the truth a chance to set you free, and it probably will. — By Len Wallick

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Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — Travel beckons, but not in the conventional sense. For sure, traversing greater distances than your usual commutes and opening yourself up to new experiences should be in the cards for you sometime around the middle of next year, maybe earlier. For now, however, it’s time travel that is waiting for you at the curb with an open door. You may argue that time travel is the stuff of science fiction, but all of the work you have done on yourself in recent years makes a trip down memory lane not only safer but also potentially more productive than at any other time in your life. The same labors of loving yourself with diligence and purpose for so long have also made you better able to visit possible futures more clearly than most people can ever do. So when you get the time, take some time to explore time itself — and enjoy a payoff that has been long in coming. — By Len Wallick

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Parallels and Perspective

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It can be overwhelming to live in historically significant times. There is no blame in being overwhelmed, but there are consequences. To see the consequences of being overcome by profound changes in environment or condition, you need only look back a century or so.

The scale of events experienced by those living through the first world war was unprecedented. It was enough to result in an entire generation being declared “lost.”

World War I was said to be “the war to end all wars.” Yet, the sense of nationalism which resulted shaped those who survived the experience so as to make that description immediately moot.

Then came a great depression and second world war. The result was a generation now often referred to as “the greatest.” Yet, those whose plausible greatness was shaped by widespread hardship also became inured to it. The outcome was a partisan world where material prosperity took precedence, and “peace” became a dirty word.

Beginning with those who reached maturity during the 1960s came an accelerating rate of change to match the scale experienced by their elders. The upshot was a continuous medium of rapidly cycling obsolescence in parallel with overpopulation, which overtaxed the Earth itself as well as all of those living on it.

In this century, the proverbial chickens of the previous hundred years have come to roost. Right now, at this moment, political leaders who have come together to ostensibly work out a solution to global environmental crisis are simultaneously and unavoidably being confronted by military conflict, partisan intransigence and economic inadequacy.

At the same time, you may well be struggling to make your personal financial ends meet without the price being a physical or mental breakdown. That’s how it would be unfair to blame you or anybody for being overwhelmed. It is not easy to live on Earth at this time.

Yet, paradoxically, it is potentially more empowering to live now than ever before because you have perspectives not available to your parents or grandparents. As a result, it’s possible to see both parallels and alternatives not visible to those who preceded you.

Interestingly, and almost ironically, one of the best sources of perspective for this moment in time can be found in the ancient art of astrology. It all started around 2008 when Pluto transitioned into Capricorn for the first time in more than two centuries. Then something amazing happened.

About two years after Pluto entered Capricorn, Uranus began making its way into Aries for the first time since the period between WW I and WW II. Then, during the next year or so, Chiron returned to Pisces for the first time since the 1960s, and for the first time since we became aware of its existence. Finally, Neptune came home to Pisces for only the second time since it was discovered in the middle of the 19th century.

Think of it. Pluto has a orbital period of nearly two and a half centuries. Neptune takes more than a century and a half to go around the zodiac. Chiron requires more than 50 years to make a circuit of all 12 signs, and the 84 years or so it requires Uranus to orbit the Sun represents a relatively long human lifetime. Yet, in less than a handful of years they all changed sign.

That did not happen for your parents. Nor during the lifetime of your grandparents, or even your great grandparents. To have the planets that represent meaningful epochs and eras in human history all change sign at essentially the same time has not happened in a long time. The fact that it happened for you indicates that you are special and different. It implies that you have it in your hands to shape, rather than just be shaped by, the times you are living in.

Throw in the interpersonal planets, Saturn and Jupiter, which correspond to the longer cycles within the span of a human life. The dozen years or so it takes Jupiter to move through a dozen signs often correlates with big changes. The nearly 30 years Saturn requires to complete an orbit usually corresponds to those changes adding up to form a new order, form and structure in your life.

Saturn entered Libra shortly after Pluto moved into Capricorn and just before Uranus made its ingress to Aries. The result was a T-shaped configuration on the zodiac that correlated with world events in parallel with your own life as never before. The continuous series of seven square aspects (separations of 90 degrees) between Uranus and Pluto in the years that followed served to repeatedly drive home the same point that the personal and political are inseparable.

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Jupiter entered Aries to conjoin with Uranus way back in 2010, and is now in Virgo — essentially opposing Neptune and Chiron while all three are more or less at right angles to Saturn’s position in Sagittarius now.

The result is another T-square, a mutable one symbolizing how it is now nationalism and partisan distinctions that have become obsolete. The mutable quality of Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces symbolizes everybody together on the brink of change, and gives everyone living now unprecedented power in numbers — if only we can see past those outmoded means of separation.

In other words, as easy as it is to feel overwhelmed, it is now you who can participate in doing the overwhelming. For if overwhelming numbers refuse to wage war, there will be no war. If the overwhelming sentiment is to support the wellbeing of our planet, Earth can still conceivably return the favor. With perspective that extends beyond our time and an understanding of how one person’s fate now parallels that of every other, you need not simply become a product of this era of our history. Rather, the epoch of human history we are now clearly entering can and should be co-conceived and co-created by you.

If that prospect seems overwhelming, break it down into what you can do on your scale and at your pace. It will be enough to know when to say “no” to political leaders so that they will know to follow your lead. It will be a good start if you can figure out a way to say “yes” to the vast majority of people who are just like you.

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