Aries (March 21 - April 19)

Aries (March 21 - April 19)

Your January Horoscope by Susan Miller

Quickly shake the New Year's Eve confetti out of your hair, dear Aries, for your outlook for career gains is sensational! Use the first week of January to perfect your resume because you are going to need it once the new moon arrives, January 8. Even if you aren't looking for a job, you are likely to get one or two interesting phone calls for positions that you'll want to investigate. If you are self-employed, you will be able to find new business opportunities that will be as lucrative as they are prestigious - you'll soon be the talk of the industry!

Along with the new moon on January 8, you will have the mighty Sun and Jupiter, the giver of gifts and luck, filling your house of fame and honors. Jupiter's appearance in this house is new for you, because Jupiter's not had a chance to visit it since 1996! (Back then, you may have been too young to benefit!)

What makes January even more extraordinary is that Pluto, a planet known to revitalize and completely transform whatever it touches, will enter your house of fame and honors on January 25 for the first time since 1762! Pluto moves very slowly because it spins on the outer rim of our solar system - but the slower a planet moves, the more powerful it is, because it spends more time in the house it visits and can make a more indelible impression.

Pluto will retrograde in and out of Capricorn - and your house of fame - all year until it finally settles in this house in November 2008. At that point, Pluto will remain there until 2023, a little over fifteen years! If you are in the right profession, Pluto will act like Jolly Green Giant by picking you up in the palm of his hand and placing you on the top of the mountain. If you are in the wrong profession, Pluto will slowly but surely drag you to the right one for you. Be aware that Pluto demands an all-or-nothing effort toward your endeavor, but as an Aries, you tend to give that kind of focus anyway. One way or another, you are in for an exciting ride!

January's aspects are simply extraordinary. A great deal of energy is being focused on this very part of your chart, so get ready! The new moon is your friend, so circle it on your calendar, January 8 and the two weeks that follow. The job of a new moon is to bring opportunity, and this new moon signals Uranus, planet of surprise. What's coming is due to come out of the blue. In fact, so special are these aspects that even bad news could turn out to be an astounding blessing!

Truly, you are the one sign that is most blessed for professional opportunities.

Here's one caveat: Mars, your ruler, will be retrograde until January 30. Mars has been in sleepy mode since November 15, so you probably have felt that things were not moving ahead fast enough for your taste. Now, with Mars moving forward at month's end, you'll see things jell faster.

I have to drop the other shoe here, however, in that Mercury will begin to retrograde just as Mars is moving forward. Mercury will be retrograde from January 28 to February 17. As you see, this can be thought of as a bit of a cosmic joke, making us all feel a little confused. You may wonder, should I or shouldn't I make an initiation? The answer is, wait. Although your talks will become more productive, you will find that people won't be communicating clearly, mainly because they have not thought through things deeply enough yet.

Accepting a new job or starting one is always a no-no while Mercury is retrograde because the job will change later in ways you cannot anticipate. Alas, you will need to wait until well past February 17. Fortunately, it takes a long time to win an important job, so there is no need to rush.

Next month there's a difficult eclipse in Virgo due February 20, so I want you to avoid that date too (and the days surrounding it). For all practical purposes, I think you should wait until March or nearer your birthday to begin a job if that fits into your schedule. The February 20 eclipse will change conditions in your workaday sector, and you need to see what's up at that time before you make your big move. Your chart shows you do have time, so don't think you will lose anything valuable by insisting to wait. Keep talking, exploring, or negotiating, and gather up as much information as you can about the new position.

In the meantime, this month, Saturn and Jupiter will be perfectly angled all month (meeting in perfect mathematical angle on January 21) so it is clear that your day-to-day work is adding up to amazingly positive buzz about you from higher-ups, within your firm and outside it! This is a rare aspect, so enjoy it. Saturn rules long-term gains, and Jupiter, unusual luck and opportunity from authority figures. Even if you think nobody is noticing your hard work, VIPs are - and they're impressed.

At the same time your career will be blossoming, you will have remarkable opportunities to take a few fun trips out of town for a quick getaway. You might go to take in a museum exhibit, see friends, or mix business with a little pleasure. While your trips won't be long ones - you have too much going on to leave the office for more than a few days - you will still enjoy the change of scene.

Romantically, watch your love life bloom beautifully at the full moon, January 22. If you are single, watch this date (plus or minus four days) for a meeting of a new romantic partner. If you are dating, you may now have to make a big decision about the future of your relationship - specifically, whether to stay or go. This decision may come up unexpectedly, so even if you've already decided not to decide yet, this full moon will push you for an answer because of certain developing circumstances that come up now.

Married? You may be making important plans for your child or concerning a pregnancy at the time of the full moon, January 22, plus or minus four days. You can also have much more fun with your partner, so decide on an enchanting evening that you come up with as a complete surprise, for no particular reason. Sometimes those surprises are the very best ones. If you feel cash poor due to holiday bills, whip up something in the kitchen as a special treat.

This full moon will benefit those Aries who are born on or within five days of March 22.

Every Aries of every birthday should put a small star on the following dates: January 4, 10, 13, 14, 22, 23, 26, and 31.

Summary

Be ready to make your big career move, dear Aries, for January will simply burst with professional opportunity. It represents your very best chance to climb to new professional heights in the New Year. Coming straight off the holidays, you may not feel ready to start the interview process, but if you are serious about getting ahead, you must put yourself "out there" and start making appointments in early January. Start seeing new potential employers (or meet with your present employer for a promotion) at the new moon, January 8 and the two weeks that follow. Your best meetings will be those that fall from January 8 to 15.

If you are self-employed, you can now find an excellent new client that will set you apart from your competition.

Do you work in a creative profession? You will see your creativity reach all-time highs during the week of January 18-26. It would be an ideal time to make an important presentation or audition, for you'd do well and get word back quickly, too. Also as indicated, you may be ready to finish up an important project during this week.

Now that the powerful duo Jupiter and Pluto have both reached the lofty honors-achievement point in your chart, you'll get a hand from a top VIP who will want to ensure your success. With Pluto's help, the coming years could literally change the whole direction of your life. Pluto is not due to leave this area until 2023, as Pluto takes 246 years to circle the Sun. It's an exciting, heady time, so take it seriously - it would be a shame not to go for the brass ring, now that the cosmos is so staunchly behind you. Uranus will be well angled too, so you're likely to be bowled over by jaw-dropping career breakthroughs that come your way. It will be a real confidence booster to see how valued you are in the marketplace!

Love is also due to be a delicious item on your agenda. You'll have lots to look forward to in matters of the heart on or near January 22, when a beautiful full moon in your true love sector will bring a lovely interlude and send your spirits soaring. If you found that your past experience in love has been dismal, you have every reason to expect things to be different as you go forward.

Over the last two years Saturn has hampered your efforts to find true love, but as of last September, Saturn has departed, not to return for 29 years. At last you'll have romance without difficult strings attached or obstacles to get over. Watch to see what happens on or near January 22, plus or minus four days. It could bring an exciting difference! If married, you can have time to enjoy one another.

Mercury will retrograde on January 28 for a little over three weeks, so plan to be patient while your office pace slows down and cancellations and delays begin to crop up. However, Mercury will be a boon to your social life, because it will retrograde in your friendship sector. In that sense Mercury out of phase can be fun, for Mercury will bring you in contract with many old friends you've not seen in ages.

It looks like you're starting the year off with a bang, dear Aries! Happy New Year!