Forecast for March Twentieth, '10

03-20-10
Forecast and Faery Finder
By Janice Scott-Reeder and the Bitwit


According to Llewellyn’s Magical Almanac, today’s color is grey and the incense is sage. Today is Ostara, the Spring Equinox and International Astrology Day. The Spring Equinox occurs at One thirty two PM EDT when the sun enters Aries.

FORECASTS:

Astrologically, the Sun enters Aries at 1:32 PM EDT and the Moon enters Gemini at 8:28 PM EDT.
For the weekend, those trying to bring change really lose their tempers with those who refuse to change the status quo.
For the entire week, there will be a lot of threats about reaping what you sow and be assured, they are not idle.
This afternoon a surprise emotional declaration has you totally confused as to what is going on and that activates your old insecurities. Later tonight, it is a good time to promote yourself but remember that if you get carried away, you will be brought down to earth with a thud. Energy is high and by late night you can find your way around the restrictions that have been keeping you from changing things.

Deck: Navigators Tarot of the Mystic Sea.
Today’s Tarot Card is the Two of Pentacles: permutation. Get organized and then get others to help you bring your projects to fruition. Being stuck in old ways of doing things is going to get you nowhere.

Deck: Healing with the Fairies.
The Faeries say:
Rising above your problems is very hard today and that is really a good thing. You have to solve them before you can move on to the next phase.
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Today’s Cat Comfort Card is:
Cat on a Hot Tim Roof: “Life likes to test your surefootedness. Be nimble.”

Deck: The Fairies’ Oracle by Brian Froud & Jessica MacBeth
Today’s Faery Finder is on the lookout for:
The Guardian of the Gate makes a second appearance this week and heralds new things and a new phase of our lives. If you have learned your lessons well, the doors open and you get a pat on the back. If you haven’t, they slam shut.

Today’s Lo Shu Number is 3 and the Element is Earth. The Boar finds conflict but the Rat has ease. Today is not an auspicious day for haircuts, medical procedures, signing contracts, gambling, starting construction or births.

Today’s Message from the Universe is: “I acknowledge the wonderful qualities I have within me. I open up to the beauty and creativity of my Soul and I accomplish great things easily and successfully.” Annie Marquier creating a world of peace one thought at a time.

COMMENTARIES BY JANICE SCOTT-REEDER

How many rings does Hades have? Well, I know three of them. The first one starts when the gastroenterologist casually mentions that since you are over 50, you really should have a colonoscopy and while we are doing that, we out to run a tube down your throat and see what is going on with your esophagus and stomach. That is easy to say when you are the one running the tubes down someone. When you are on the other end of that procedure, you are fairly certain the man moonlights for rooter router.
The day before the procedure you get to do the prep. Now in my case, I had a cortisone shot in my shoulder the day before as I was diagnosed with arthritis and calcification of tendon. You can’t argue with an Xray and let me tell you, I’ve used smaller needles on horses! Fortunately, Dr. Young is very experienced in this procedure, froze my shoulder and I barely felt anything. What I, while my mind was reeling, forgot to mention was I have a bad reaction to cortisone nasal sprays. So, I awoke the next day with my arm, face and hand swollen up and the headache from Hell. Of course, part of the prep for two weeks before the lovely rooting out of your colon, is nothing containing aspirin or any of its many children. That leaves Tylenol which I can not take. Translation: no pain killers. However, I was allowed one benedryl to help take the swelling down. It knocked me out.
I was on a clear liquid diet the day before. That was not the bad part. Apparently the doctor wants to make certain you have a really clean colon, so we are talking an entire bottle of Miralax mixed in 64 ounces of Propel Fitness water, divided into two doses followed with a chaser of two Dulcolax tablets. Why he doesn’t just use Draino, I do not know. I was allowed three bottles of ensure. Do not even buy that stuff. I almost upchucked after two swallows. Any resemblance to chocolate is purely fictional. So, I decided fasting was the way to go. I am not a big fan of chicken broth though I managed to get a cup down. Apple juice is not high on my list of things I willingly drink. I managed to get through the first dose and nothing happened. I mean nothing happened. Around 1:30 in the morning, it hit like a ton of bricks and I spent the rest of the night running to the bathroom, compounded by the process had to be repeated at 4:30 in the morning. Let me describe this liquid mixture: snail slime. I can guarantee I will never take another laxative in my life. By time to leave for the surgical center my only hope was I would arrive with clean underwear. As per course, I forgot a spare pair. Fortunately, I had run out anything but water in my colon.
Then comes the wait. I have no idea why I insist on arriving on time for medical procedures or why George wants to get there early. They always start late. In diddy bops the rest of the patients, nicely dressed and generally looking like they are there for morning tea. I look like something the vulture dragged in. I am still running for the bathroom. They seem to be feeling nothing. Something is very wrong with that picture.
Finally they take me in and we go through get the gown on. This process is further complicated by a right arm I cannot really raise but I managed. At least this time I remember to put the booties on last after almost breaking my neck when one of them got stuck in my pants leg last time.
They bring me a lovely warm blanket as I am freezing to death and hook me up to everything. Then she goes for the vein. She can’t find one. Three sticks later, she gets the anesthesiologist. The anesthesiologist at the Dentist popped that baby in my hand in one try. She had already blown both hands. He got one hand and two wrists before finally putting it in my arm on the back of the elbow. The pain finally reached the point I no longer experienced it. My brain shut down. Since it takes longer for the anesthesia to reach you from that position, they immediately wheeled me into the operating room where someone asked if I feeling sleepy. Ah..no…I did drop off a few minutes later.
The net result was 3 polyps burned off and one little pouch in the bowel. The esophagus and stomach got three biopsies I will be waiting on the results. It was obvious what has been hurting me. It was not obvious why or what the areas are. Then I woke up.
They never let you die in peace. They had to change all the tape to paper tape as you could see through the clear tape I was beginning to have a really bad reaction to it. Then I was sent home. I really thought the discomfort was over. Oh ye of little faith in the medical profession’s ability to torture you.
It seems they fill your colon with gas so your methane doesn’t explode when they burn the polyps off. Unfortunately, you are still full of it! Not only that, but the effects of the laxative have not left. Your brain is also nicely blurry. Let me tell you, that is not a good combination. In trying to wash the clothes I messed up, I think I washed them twice trying to get the fabric softener in with the load. Yes, when they say do not operate heavy equipment, that includes a washing machine. Every tooth in my mouth is hurting where I must have clenched my jaw. My throat is getting sorer by the minute. I am bruised and swollen where every needle went in. I have a crick in my neck from how they laid me for the procedure and the freaking internet refuses to come up. I had no idea how much I depend on the internet for information until I didn’t have it any more. I am totally miserable and afraid to go to sleep because that was the cause of the last little accident I had. And then he said…we’ll repeat this is 3 to 5 years. Not if I see him first……
My nursing staff at home has been taking good care of me. No, not George. He has the flu which I think he has given to me. Napoleon and Fiona are taking care of me. They both insist on tasting my food to make certain no one is poisoning me. I have no idea why that require an entire fish cake. Fiona had to inspect every inch of my arms as she smelled my blood. It was fascinating to watch because I did not know a cat snuffles. I know most hounds do it, but cats???? She had her mouth open, lightly hovering over my arm with just the very edge of the tip of her tongue touching me. If she ever encounters the doctor, I think his name will be Claude Balls. She may be little, but she is fierce and she does not take lightly to someone hurting her human mommy.
Oh, and just for fun, I can’t have anything with aspirin in it for another two weeks while I heal. That means I can have no pain relievers what-so-ever and no, I can’t have alcohol either. Oh joyous two freaking weeks! And no internet. My life really sucks right now.
Day Two: Hands were throbbing so badly, I went to shop where I could easily elevate them on my computer chair. It had not slipped my mind that my daily ritual with Bitwit was that she would run over when I sat down and kiss me on the lips. What I failed to realize was she had 8 months of stored up kissing. She drove me totally insane. I even tried to buy her off with a can of food. That had no effect. Finally, it came down to if she was going to roll on my lap, the claws had to be clipped. One claw and she was gone. She has gained weight but not as much Ra the Sun Goddess who is going to have to go on a diet when we reopen. All the cats have gained weight.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I am not a fan of economics. I think my economics professor got drunk to justify passing me simply because another semester of me would have driven him to suicide. However, I have been reading everything that has been written on this melt down, the projections and the possibility of a recovery because I am curious. One thing that everyone, no matter what their political leanings, agrees to is that we will never return to the economy and standard of living we had before the crash. Once more, we will never have the same standard of living we enjoyed 9 years ago. We are going to have to settle for less of everything. The second thing everyone agrees on is that there will be a second crash because the second wave of bad mortgages and investments is about to come due. That means the real estate market is going to suffer another “adjustment” or loss of value. The severity of this is what is debated but one thing is for certain, not a single regulation that prevented this from happening prior to Reagan has been reinstated. The Banks and Wall Street are still doing the same things that brought the original crash on and it is just a matter of time before the world financial market bottoms out again.
Our health insurance premiums are about to go up 40% or more across the board. If we do not get reform, we are all going to go broke. Once again, you can’t eat gold. Gas is expected to reach 3.00 a gallon by summer. That will add a hefty charge to all food. If the truckers can’t afford to bring the food in and the people can’t afford to buy it, the groceries can’t afford to stay open. It is a simple domino effect. So, do what I am trying to do: plant that garden! Learn to can and dry food. The odds are really good you are going to need that knowledge.
Remember, people survived the Great Depression because they would return home to the farm and there was food. The farm is owned by Conagra and the other corporations and there is nowhere to return home to now. Genetically engineered food does not breed true any more than hybrid plants do. That means even if you save the seeds out of your tomato, the plant and fruit you get will not resemble the fruit you took the seed from. Just for the fun of it, I planted some of the seeds from the “grape” tomatoes. I got a little round tomato about a half an inch in diameter and definitely not worth growing. When buying your seeds, get heirloom vegetables. They will breed true from seed and save your seeds. Plant fruit trees and bushes instead of ornamentals. Always remember that nuts are the most efficient crop and they store well.