Horoscope, Thursday, August 16, 2012

Under the current arrangement of Venus and Uranus, love and relationships are not as carefree as they once were. People are quirky. Learning those quirks and determining how they might jibe with one’s own idiosyncrasies takes time, persistence and a belief that the effort will prove worthwhile. Tomorrow’s new moon is a fresh start.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). No matter how busy you get, your creative whims are still important. They connect you with your heart. And now you could follow your muse to personal and financial rewards.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). It’s a fine time to plot your next professional move. Consider putting ideals over income. This will make you happy, and when you’re happy, you’ll either earn more or do more with what you earn.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). Sometimes the show makes the show, and sometimes the audience makes the show. Today involves a team effort between performer and onlooker, each feeding a need for the other.

CANCER (June 22-July 22). Procrastination only delays the inevitable. Steel yourself, and fulfill the obligation before you. Your weekend starts the moment you get it over with.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). It’s not just you; the heat has been getting to everyone. Don’t let your temper flare out of control in the face of summertime frustration. Keeping physically cool will help you keep your mental cool.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Someone in your neighborhood is in need of a helping hand, but is too proud to ask. Keep your awareness open. You’ll sense the silent need and offer a hand.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). Too many evenings out and on the run have left you feeling frazzled. Time to unplug, go to the grocery store and prepare a good home-cooked meal for yourself and your loved ones.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Your talent extends beyond what you’re comfortable doing. Just because you’re not an expert doesn’t mean you won’t do the best job. If there’s no harm in trying, go for it!

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). When old resentments surface, you may wonder what it’s going to take to make them go away forever. Each time you forgive, the hurt dissolves a little more. Eventually, it will be gone.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Before you leap, aim at a soft landing place. If you don’t have time to look for such a thing before you leap, you’ll still scramble to safety, but it won’t be graceful.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). The ones you look up to need you, too. You don’t understand the full extent of it, and you may not for many years, but you can trust that your interactions matter immensely.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). Comparing your relationships will only drain your personal power. The attachments you form don’t have to be like everyone else’s to be valid, meaningful and just right for you.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (Aug. 16). You’ll love and be loved. What could be better? Matters of responsibility lead to professional success. Whatever you dislike, handle it first and get it over with. Paradoxically, you will reach Easy Street because you’re willing to do what’s hard. December brings a spotlight. Financial luck is strongest in November and June. Aries and Scorpio people adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 19, 3, 22, 48 and 6.

TIPS FOR TURNING UP YOUR A.Q. (Attraction Quotient): SAGITTARIUS: Take advantage of opportunity! What use is good luck if you don’t follow through? For instance, when you hit it off with new people, be the first to call and establish the relationship beyond the original circumstance that brought you together. BONUS TIP: Channel your fiery passion into mundane tasks. You never know whom you’ll run into while washing the car or going on a daily jog. CAPRICORN: Put your style stamp on everything you do. You tend to be results-oriented. But how you get things done is really more important than what you get done. Approaching even mundane tasks with great and fanciful gusto makes you feel like a winner. And you can use the previous sentence as an explanation when anyone asks why you’re sharpening your pencil while wearing a tiara or top hat — or the currently popular (and gender-neutral) stick-on handlebar moustache. BONUS TIP:  Be merciful with your romantic power. Power, if abused, is fleeting. Romantic power, if abused, usually flees on the arm of another. — Excerpted from Holiday Mathis’ “Rock Your Stars: Your Astrological Guide to Getting It All.”

CELEBRITY PROFILES: Madonna may very well be the quintessential Leo. Having arrived in New York City with zero connections and $35 in her pocket, she rose to superstardom on blonde ambition and a talent for capturing people’s attention both on stage and off. Madonna was born when the sun, Venus and Uranus were all in the sign of entertainment.

If you would like to write to Holiday Mathis, please go to www.creators.com and click on “Write the Author” on the Holiday Mathis page, or you may send her a postcard in the mail. To find out more about Holiday Mathis and read her past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.