The Lunar Week: June 25 - July 1, 2012

Buck Moon:  Waxing Gibbous

This week sees the burgeoning moon slide through four signs on its journey to next week's fullness.  The week starts out in earthy, practical Virgo; sublimes to airy, measuring Libra; condenses to watery, brooding Scorpio; and transmutes to fiery, expansive Sagittarius.

This moon is also sometimes called the Thunder Moon, because thunderstorms are common in many areas during the month of June.  I wish we'd see more here.  We've had a lot of promising clouds and skyward rumbling to tease us, but no rainfall, alas.




The Lunar Week, Daily:


Monday, June 25: Moon in Virgo.  Our yard is overtaken by ants at this time of year, some of which venture into the house.  As much as I hate to begrudge a living thing a place to dwell, I will likely do some purging of anthills today.  If pests are encroaching upon your living space, today is a great day  to discourage their presence.

Tuesday, June 26:  Moon in Virgo/Libra.  Use the last vestiges of nitpicky Virgo's energy to organize your closet or wardrobe.  If you found any clothes or accessories that you no longer wear, take them to a resale or consignment shop this afternoon.  While you're there, let fashion-loving Libra help you decide on one unique piece to add to your newly organized closet!

Wednesday, June 27: Moon in Libra.  If you're growing your hair out, today and tomorrow are the best of the month for a trim.

Thursday, June 28: Moon in Libra/Scorpio.  If you've been intending to have a positive, meaningful conversation with someone, today might be a great day for it.  The waxing moon as it flows from Libra to Scorpio emphasizes the transition from a mind that weighs options dispassionately to a mind that listens more to intuition and deep emotions.  If someone you love is carrying a burden, offer a sympathetic ear and a shoulder to cry on.

Friday, June 29:  Moon in Scorpio.  Today and tomorrow are excellent days to get late season above-ground crops in the soil, if you live in a climate that is temperate and receives adequate rainfall.  I'm in Zone 8, in a place with scanty rainfall and "soil" that laughs in the face of our puny little sprinklers, so today I will instead watch a movie that makes me cry like a big old baby, so as to purge some of the emotional stuff that gets stuck inside from time to time.

Saturday, June 30:  Moon in Scorpio/Sagittarius.  The movement of the waxing moon from Scorpio to Sagittarius can help us to ease up on brooding over particulars and instead take a positive view of the big picture. Shake off the last of Scorpio's intensity with a physical activity that you enjoy.  Make a playlist with all your most guilty pleasures (if it doesn't already exist), hit play, and blast off!

Sunday, July 1:  Moon in Sagittarius.  Jupiter rules, among many other areas, higher education and intellectual expansion.  Is there a class you've been wanting to sign up for, or a new interest that's been piquing your brain lately?  Pursue it today, whether it means walking into your local craft guild, community college, or bookstore.  Learning is something that we have the chance to do every day, for our whole entire lives--let today's energy be the fire in your engine that puts you on a path to a new perspective!

The Lunar Week: Vol.3

The waning crescent of the Worm Moon will be seen in the sky until Sunday, April 3rd, when it becomes the New Pink Moon. This lunar appellation refers to wild phlox, also known as moss pink, which flourishes during April.

The general term phlox refers to a large group of flowering plants that comes in a variety of colors, sizes, and blooming patterns. Wild phlox is a dwarf variety, and an excellent ground cover. Profusions of small, pink flowers burst from dense mats of mossy leaves. Dwarf phlox is known to be fairly drought resistant, which is great for very hot and arid regions, and also for occasionally scatterbrained gardeners (like yours truly).


The Lunar Week, Daily

Monday, 28:  Moon in Capricorn.  It's a bit cloudy and drizzly in my area today, but if there's no threat of rain where you are, treat your yard to some organic fertilizer.

Tuesday, 29:  Moon in Aquarius.  I am getting back into an exercise routine that totally derailed last month.  Starting a diet to lose weight today, tomorrow, and Thursday is favored.

Wednesday, 30:  Moon in Aquarius. Feeling bogged down by routine? Join a social group that meets up once a week. You can get to know some new people, learn a new skill, and expand your mind perspective!

Thursday, 31:  Moon in Aquarius.  Start the weekend early; have friends over after work.

Friday, 1:  Moon in Pisces. Do something this evening to indulge your inner dreamer. Catch some live music, or a local theater production.

Saturday, 2:  Moon in Pisces. Give some serious thought to something that has been bothering you, and take some extra time to be objective, even if "the other side" seems completely irrational. What is it that you are doing to perpetuate this problem? Are others also influencing the situation? Make a concerted effort to push any cobwebs out of your brain and take a rational approach. Draw up a Pro/Con list, and see how the two sides stack up. Finish by weighing different courses of action, and highlight the one that seems most beneficial.

Sunday, 3:  New Moon in Aries. Get out the list you made yesterday. Review the course of action you decided was best. Get your head on straight, take a deep breath, and confront that problem with confidence!

The Lunar Week: Vol.2

I was named after my great-grandmother, and most of my memories of her are tied to the kitchen.  She was an excellent cook, and was never satisfied with anything she put on the table, regardless of how the rest of us devoured it.  So it is when I am in my own kitchen, wearing one of her aprons or using her wooden mortar and pestle, that I feel closest to her.  That probably sounds horribly un-PC (or at the very least, incredibly hokey and bassackwards), but it is what it is, and it's not just the kitchen that reminds me of her.  Specifically, when I think of my Mema, I think of her pantry.

The pantry in Mema's house lined the entire fifteen-foot wall of the utility room, which was a long hallway that connected the garage and the house proper.  The cabinets were deep, and there were four shelves on the lower level, all lined with sparkling, jewel-bright jars filled with the bounty of the garden.

Mema put up just about everything you can imagine, and I suppose family consensus would say that she was famous for her pickles (dill, kosher, bread and butter, you name it).  But I remember her preserves the most.  We had peach and plum trees, and a strawberry patch, and in the mornings we smeared Mema's homemade biscuits with sticky-sweet spoonfuls of these fruit preserves.  Strawberry was my favorite.

Two days this week are favorable for putting up jams and jellies: Tuesday the 22nd, and Wednesday the 23rd.  You don't need your own orchard to make preserves, just a big batch of fruit.  Strawberries are on sale at my local Whole Foods right now, because they're about to go too ripe.  This is ideal for preserving; you can save some money, and just-about-too-ripe-strawberries are best for making preserves.  Of course, you want to trim away and discard any brown bits of the fruit, and never put up anything with mold growing on it.  Old Farmer's Almanac has a great video on making strawberry preserves.

Not into strawberries, or allergic?  Peaches, plums, oranges, lemons, jalapeños, raspberries, blueberries, tomatoes--all of these and more can be turned into sweet and savory preserves, bursting with flavor, and outlasting time without artificial preservatives on your pantry shelf.  Pick your poison, score some glass jars (many grocery stores carry them), and jam on!


The Lunar Week, Daily:

Monday, 21:  Moon in Libra.  Take advantage of the moon's last day in this airy sign and plant pretty, fragrant flowers.

Tuesday, 22:  Moon in Scorpio.  Scorpio is a very fertile water sign, which pairs nicely with the waning moon for root crop success.  Now is the time to get the rest of your root crops in the ground.

Wednesday, 23:  Moon in Scorpio.  My crepe myrtles desperately need some quality time with a pruning instrument.  Have your trees pruned today.

Thursday, 24:  Moon in Sagittarius.    Have a kiddo who's showing signs of toilet readiness?  Consider starting potty training today through Saturday.

Friday, 25:  Moon in Sagittarius.  Fiery Sagittarius combines with the waning moon to make this day favorable for anyone considering a short haircut.  And since Friday is ruled by Venus, the results are bound to be beautiful!

Saturday, 26:  Moon in Sagittarius.  I start my Spring cleaning in February, but today is excellent for clearing out a space that we often neglect while focusing on garages and closets: our bodies!  A gentle detox diet, started today, will help your body free itself from toxins so you can make the most of the beautiful weather.

Sunday, 27:  Moon in Capricorn.  Commune with the earthy Goat and get the waning moon to work for you by doing some weekly weeding.  It's therapeutic, meditative, great for venting frustration, and the pesky little green guys will stay away longer if you do it now.

Moon in Libra

The moon will move into airy Libra tomorrow, March 20th, transitioning from earthy Virgo.  She will stay in Libra through Monday, March 21st.

While air signs are generally considered to be unsuitable for planting, Libra is an exception.  Flowers will thrive and flourish when planted during this sign, and since the moon will be on the wane as it passes through Libra, tomorrow will also be a good time to start putting root crops in the ground.

If you're a patio gardener like I am, try some carrots in a container .  It's probably too late for onions here in Texas, but if you live further north and still expect a freeze within the next four-to-six weeks, go ahead and get those beauties in the ground; they like a bit of cold weather, and its good for their growth.  Same goes for potatoes.  Both are great container crops, too.

Libra is generally not a favorable sign for cutting hair if you are looking to increase growth or thickness.  However, if you're like my aunt, who suffers chronic headaches from the masses of thick, curly hair she was blessed with upon birth, you might consider thinning your hair during a Libra moon.

Dry, airy Libra is also a good time to deep condition.  Hair will take color well during Libra; consider henna, a marvelous alternative to chemical-laden box colors.

My, What a Big Moon You Have!

In two days the moon will be full, and this will be one for the books.  Anyone observing the full moon this month might notice that she's bigger and brighter than usual.  The phenomenon will be interesting to observe, and the degree of fullness we'll see hasn't occurred for about twenty years, so it's worth stepping outside this Friday evening and gazing skyward.

The term for what we'll observe is a Supermoon.  Yes, really.  Supermoons occur when the moon enters 90% of its perigee at the same time it is full.  "Perigee" is a Greek compound that means "close to earth."  The moon's orbit around earth is not spherical, but elliptical, so the moon is not always the same distance from the earth.  The moon's perigee, then, is the section of its path that brings it closest to our planet.  So, that the moon would appear larger this month is logical.  But there's nothing like a fancy-schmancy lunar event to get people talking, and some interesting theories are out about what mischief the Supermoon will whip up for the denizens of Earth.

Some have already suggested that the Supermoon is to blame for the recent tectonic events in Japan.  Scientists quickly whisked away this theory for several reasons.  It's known that Supermoons, when full, increase high tides a little beyond their normal degree of fullness; this is called a proxigean spring tide.  But this increase is not enough to cause catastrophic events, and doesn't even occur until the moon is full, scientists say.

Still, there have been whisperings of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.  Bloggers in China point to the cyclone that ripped through Darwin, Australia in 1974, and the tsunami that slammed into Indonesia in 2005.  Both preceded by Supermoons.  Australia's own astronomer Dave Reneke has gone on record saying, "Phooey."

A staff writer for Space.com holds astrologer Richard Nolle responsible for the Supermoon-Japan association.  Nolle takes credit (among other things) for both coining the term "SuperMoon," and foreseeing a disastrous weather event associated with the August 2005 Supermoon.  That event is better known as Hurricane Katrina.

The best balm for these concerns is knowing that Supermoons, despite the buzz and cool, capitalized "super" appellation (because there's no actual scientific term for the event, and full-moon-at-90%-or-greater-perigee lacks pizzazz), are actually pretty common.  Do the research yourself, at the next Saturn hour.  Find a moderate-to-sophisticated moon phase table and look up how many times the moon has been full at 90+% perigee; try to find weather events associated with these occurrences.  Take it a step further: research and compare the number of natural disasters in recorded history that occurred at times when the moon was not full at its closest approach to earth.  You may, or may not, be comforted by the results.

Whatever you believe about the associations between Supermoons and weather phenomena, it's plain to see that the moon holds many of us fascinated, scientists, astrologers, and lay-terrestrials alike.  If the skies above your home are clear this Friday evening, and the moon is visible, step outside and say hello.  Just don't tell her that she's looking bigger than usual.  She is a lady, after all.