Forecast May 18-24, 2020: Easy Does It

On the surface, this week’s noteworthy events are a Sun sign change into Gemini and the new Gemini Moon. But the planet to beware of is Neptune. This week the planet of illusions and deception will square Venus and Mercury, and several iterations of these squares are in the works for the next month. Outgoing, friendly Gemini heightens our desire to mix and mingle. As the Sun enters the mutable air sign, restrictions are being lifted, school years are ending and warm days abound. Naturally our thoughts and conversations are turning to summer topics like travel and recreation. it’s as if the cosmos is abandoning the chains of COVID-19 and throwing a party, with the Gemini Sun, Moon (and its North Node), Mercury and Venus as its VIP guests. Pleasure-seeking Venus is hosting the celebrations, and heightening hankerings to explore, spend and socialize even further. Neptune, you might say, is bringing the booze.

Neptune is the outer planet whose influence is subtle and whose effect is unmistakable. Like most intoxicants, it relaxes inhibitions, induces a sense of feeling groovy and impairs clear thinking. Shortly after the Sun enters Gemini on Wednesday, Venus will square Neptune, and right before Friday’s new moon, Mercury will square Neptune. On June 3rd Venus will conjoin the Gemini Sun, on the 5th the Moon will be full (in aspirational Sagittarius), on the 6th the Sun will square Mars (in Pisces) and on the 13th Mars and Neptune will be conjunct. The mutability of Gemini, Sagittarius and Pisces adds to the nearly imperceptible changing of the landscape that will play out during the solar and lunar phases now getting underway. I expect this week’s Venus Neptune buzz to carry us right through to June 5th’s full Moon and minor eclipse. However, the Sun Mars square coming right on its heels signals a distinct shift. Knowing now that a potentially nasty Mars Neptune hangover is on the horizon, we can temper the Venus Neptune seduction infiltrating the ethers as the Sun moves into Gemini.