Former First Lady Nancy Reagan has long been known for her use of astrology, even consulting astrologers during her her time in the White House with her husband, President Ronald Reagan. President Barack Obama even personally called Nancy last fall to apologize for a gaffe in which he stated that he had spoken to all the living presidents about his upcoming tasks as President but "[d]idn't want to get into a Nancy Reagan thing about, you know, doing any seances." Nancy has recently revealed that her deceased husband Ronald has appeared to her, and that she still talks to him. While this to some of us may seem odd, it may seem quite comforting to others. Whether you are a Republican or a

Today, the Sun is conjunct Mercury in a late degree of Taurus. Now, bear in mind that Mercury is still retrograde until May 30, so communications issues will be especially highlighted. Also, the fact that the conjunction occurs in a late degree of Taurus could be an opportunity to make a new start monetarily, whether through a new bank account, a new financial endeavor, or an investment venture. But, just as the Ides of March, beware the retrograde of Mercury, as you could well make some faulty moves, and no one wants to find themselves on the losing end of money matters.

Beginning tomorrow at 05:01 UT (Universal Time), Mercury turns retrograde in Gemini. Now, I'm fully aware that not everyone fears Mercury Retrograde quite the way I do (in fact, astrologer Marguerite Manning believes that these periods can actually be quite empowering), but I seem to have the worst luck when it comes to Mercury Retrograde. The last time Mercury was retrograde I was in the process of moving (poor planning on my part, I know), and somehow managed to not only lose a box of my fiancé's expensive masonry trowels but also dent the fender of one of our cars while backing up to the new house. I suppose things could have been worse; after all, I didn't accidentally send any

The Moon has many implications for our earthly gardening endeavors. Gardening by the phases of the Moon can speed the rate of seed germination, and by gardening during specific signs of the zodiac (which correspond to the elements; each plant has a particular preference for which elemental sign it is planted in) you can effectively create a happily blooming garden. Paragon Space Development Corporation has recently teamed up with Odyssey Moon to develop a pressurized mini-greenhouse that will be deployed on the surface of the moon; the hope is to have the first plants growing "on" the Moon by 2012. The goal is to plant a seed within the pressurized greenhouse, watch it grow into a