Every year, I receive an email from my mother, who (God bless her heart) loves to forward on chain letters and random, unsubstantiated claims. This particular email always focuses on how, on August 27, Mars will come closer to Earth than it has in thousands of years and will be the size of the full moon in the night sky. This particular email is a remnant of the one sent around to celebrate the actual occurrence, when, on August 27, 2003, Mars came within 35 million miles of Earth (which happens only once every 60,000 years) and appeared 6 times larger and 85 times brighter than it normally does. The reference in the email to Mars appearing to be the size of the full moon was intended

Our New Moon in Capricorn occurs at 11:11 pm PST, directly preceded by a solar eclipse at 11:07 pm PST. Both 10th house themes (those of public image and career) and Capricorn qualities of ambition and determination will be highlighted. The  influence of this Capricorn New Moon will be extended by the eclipse (you can anticipate extra organized, practical energy for anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months after the eclipse). Capricorn is a stable earth sign; use this time to re-evaluate your foundation and where your life is headed. Ruled by Saturn, Capricorn takes very seriously its job–be prepared to think long and hard about where you've been, where you're headed, and

Whether it's because I'm still a newlywed or the fact that Valentine's Day is but around the corner,  I am constantly thinking of romance, especially when it comes to astrology. Jessica Shepherd, author of A Love Alchemist's Notebook, recently wrote an article for us about astrology and relationships, called "Love Alchemy: Using Astrology For True Love in 2010." In it, she details just what we can all expect from the stars in 2010, so that we can maximize our magical plans by using the timing of the skies to our advantage. For example, if your Venus and Sun signs are in either a Fire or Air Sign, positive dates for love magic

To get an overall idea of what this coming year holds for you, determine your Major Arcana card of the year. This is calculated similarly to your birth card but uses the current year rather than the year you were born. For example, if you were born on March 8, 1968, you would add up 3 + 8 + 1968 and reduce down until you reached a number less than 21. In this case, 8. Your birth card would be Strength or Justice (depending on what deck you use). Your card for 2010 would be 3 + 8 + 2010 and would reduce down to 5, the Hierophant. Your card of the year indicates the themes, challenges, and gifts you’ll face in the next twelve months. For those interested, my card(s) for this year are the