WOODRUFF ON ASTROLOGY - WINTER 2023


QUARTERLY HOROSCOPE
BY FREDERICK WOODRUFF

Frederick Woodruff is an astrologer and Corridor correspondent from Vashon Island in Puget Sound. For his winter report, Frederick considers the generation-defining planet Pluto as it starts its long transit through Aquarius, the sign of the technocrats.

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Frederick Woodruff’s career as a professional astrologer spans four decades. Artists, writers, and creatively motivated folks consult with him regularly to better comprehend the cycles that define their unique narratives.


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Frederick is preparing his new romance novel about Jeffrey Dahmer for publication in the new year. Read about his writing process here.

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As the year closes, I want to write about the mania that’s building as we approach a new year. Most cultural pundits (and astrologers) declare that this won't be just any year; no — this will be 2024—the year that concludes with the generation-defining planet Pluto slipping into Aquarius, the sign of the technocrats, where it will remain for the next twenty years.


This is significant, for as political scientist Ian Bremmer argues, the next superpower dominating the global economic-political realm won’t be the US, China, or the European Union. Nope, it will be the algorithms that have infiltrated every aspect of our lives. He defines this as the power of ‘the digital order.’ And as he makes clear in his TED talk, “…the digital order is not run by governments but by technology companies.” In short, the technocracy will struggle to dominate global dynamics. His central question is: ‘How’ will the technocrats rule?

We’ll know soon enough as Pluto’s long transit through Aquarius will heighten both the tension and the forces that rebel to counter it. And if past Pluto transits are any indicator, there will be blood at the start. Already, the tech titans are doubling down on their control and maneuvering for more power as the legal system in the US and the EU challenges their hegemony. As Pluto moved into Aquarius (and backtracked out of the sign through its retrograde phase) earlier this year, we’ve seen hints of what’s to come for the tech titans’ present-day dominion of our consciousness.


Consider the recent anti-trust legislation that breached Google’s reign of the app market. And just this week, Apple lost a significant patent challenge related to their Apple Watch. While over in crazy town, despite increasing ad dollars, Meta is scrambling to regain cultural cachet as TikTok decimates what used to be the cool, fun vibes of Instagram.


Mark Zuckerberg’s dream of the metaverse seemed dead on arrival, turning his promise that such a world would provide us with the height of ‘living in the moment.’ A slogan that the astrologer Jessica Murray deems: “The Winner of the Most Egregious Misuse of a Zen Phrase prize.” And finally, there’s the Elon Musk-driven collapse of Twitter, a slow-motion train wreck that conjures the sweetest schadenfreude.

All of this turmoil earmarks a new opportunity for each of us. The questions I’ve discussed with my clients lately are as follows: Can you return to a more balanced — more organic experience in your life? Can you set aside your screen and view the world with new eyes? This sounds like a trite notion that you’ve seen written about ad nauseam by folks who advocate for digital detox. And yet…


In the new year, it will be doubly important to regain sovereignty from your enmeshment within the tech matrix. If enough individuals can do this en masse, we’ll experience the upside of the upcoming 20-year-long Pluto in Aquarius transit — a transit that hallmarks the return of ‘power to the people.’ Which, in essence, is what the sign Aquarius is about.


Younger folks, the Millenials and Gen Z, are infused with a different sort of mindset (in some cases, a scarier mindset, as it relates to being raised totally beneath the techno-zombie bubble). And yet, those generations realize that the idea of tribes, territories, and nations is so 'yesterday.' Until the older Boomer, ‘me-generation’ dies off — of which Joe Biden and Donald Trump are relic-like figureheads, and until someone finds a way to un-lobotomize the techno-obsessed, we’re in for this strangely unnerving ride that is set to be classified as ‘2024.’

With Aquarius, the notions of brother- and sisterhood are more than slogans; there is a potential for us, by returning to our personal authority, to rejuvenate a unified spirit that will generate a profound influence in the puzzling phase that is about to commence. Brace yourself to see new levels of activism that will read like scenes from a Philip K. Dick novel. You can read more of my predictions (and some of my fellow astrologers) in Mary Plumb’s cogent delineation of this radical transit in her article Pluto on the Edge.


Happy Solstice, Everyone.


Here are your horoscopes for the winter of 2024:


Aries: In the old horse and buggy days, blinders were developed to keep the big animals from getting spooked and running amok. Think about employing this trick for the New Year. You need to apply limitations to focus on the essentials and what will assist you in achieving your particular aims. This means surrendering to scheduling and forced slowdowns. Your nature prefers impulse and spontaneity, but this is a season for metered progress.





“CAN YOU RETURN TO A MORE BALANCED — MORE ORGANIC EXPERIENCE IN YOUR LIFE?”

Taurus: Sometimes, we need to trade simplicity and order for a little chaos to shake things up creatively. Don’t dig in your heels and resist the urge for a radical makeover. You’ll benefit most this year by putting yourself in direct contact with nature — your earthy disposition finds the rhythm of weather and organic life a constant source of rejuvenation and inner revelation. Follow its cycles.


Gemini: Make this your aphorism for 2024, from wise man George Bernard Shaw: “Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” The new year allows you to channel your keen mental skills into solving mysteries that might appear irrational or off the beaten path. Much of the activity we initiate in life comes from our unconscious and the secrets it guards — this is your year to discover its power.


Cancer: There’s persistent pressure on you throughout the winter to bust out of your comfort zone and engage with the world in an untried way. You’ll need to use your intuition to flow like water through paths of least resistance. Moods can be inspirational, but you can’t always count on them to galvanize your willpower. Let your empathetic nature guide the way. Kindness always sways the outcome of the most perplexing dilemmas.

Leo: As the king or queen of the jungle, it’s difficult for you to engage with the common chores of life that make the world go around for the rest of us. This winter finds you working with the small details, making repairs on your home (and health), and allowing yourself to experience the wisdom of humility. Remember this from the author George Arliss: "Humility is the only true wisdom by which we prepare our minds for all the possible changes of life."


Virgo: 2024 finds you ready and willing to move from caterpillar to butterfly. As good as this sounds on principle, it can be unnerving for the shy virgin to place herself directly in the limelight. Don’t force it. Find a way to move incrementally, at your own speed, into the world at large. We’re eager to see and hear your insights about efficiency, frugality, and applying common sense to complex problems.


Libra: You have a reputation for discovering harmony and beauty in the most unlikely places. Your love of order serves you well until it doesn’t. Then, you surprise everyone with your argumentative and pushy side. Alas, even those bursts of vigor are in service of striking a balance. The winter’s central theme will involve a more proactive, assertive side of your nature. Don’t be afraid to tip the scales occasionally.

Scorpio: You radically depart with tradition this winter — and then live to tell and share your newfound wisdom with the rest of us. No sign understands resurrection better than yours. Remember, when one story is winding to a close, a new chapter will be written. Life is a continual pulse of endings and renewal. Make that dance central throughout the new year.


Sagittarius: You’re a natural-born philosopher. Small details bore you, and you’re much more interested in teaching than playing the role of student. But the winter finds this pattern upended. The most effective instructor is someone who, at heart, still harbors the curiosity of a novice. Allow yourself to surrender to the movement between these two poles of wisdom. In the end, you’ll feel more satisfied and inspired.


Capricorn: You like a steady base of operation that allows you to build slowly towards your goals. But the winter has a few surprises on the home front that will force you to rethink your most reliable strategies. Don’t get waylaid by the disruptions; in fact, pay attention to what family members tell you; someone from that group holds a key that will allow you to open the door to a lifelong dream.

Aquarius: Turn around and look behind you. It’s time to reevaluate and reclaim accomplishments from the past. Reconnecting with former victories instills the confidence to jump into the winter with enthusiasm and hope. The catch is you’ll need to discard dead wood. Study carefully what’s been weighing you down, and then make a clean break. You want to feel light on your feet for the new adventures ahead.


Pisces: You slide into the new year with a slightly skeptical, more thoughtful approach to your aims. You prefer solitude and time outs to recalibrate your sensitive psyche, but now it’s time to see what committing to your community will accomplish. If you’ve one new goal to stay true to this winter, make it involve sharing and exchanging ideas. Great minds not only think alike, but they achieve more through their camaraderie.

 

Corridor 2023