Careers Suggestions

[Mist Knacker]

I've been analyzing my natal chart looking for things that would point me to a most suitable career field.

First, in this post, I'm going to give a background concerning my skills and work experiences. Then, in the next post, I'm going to give my natal chart.

My interests have always been varied, and the subject that would be my main point of interest would vary over a long period of time.

In elementary school, I've had interests in various things such as meteorology and astronomy. In third grade, I was heavily into astronomy and had books on it. I even got a telescope for my birthday, and I also watched the weather channel all the time. Over the years, I had gotten many books on weather.

Since middle school, I've been into computers and am good at working with them. I adopted an interest in computer programming and an interest in computers in general since we got the internet. A little later, though, in 8th grade, I acquired an interested in the supernatural. I began to read into lucid dreaming, sleep paralysis, and astral projection for the first time.
So, an interest in the supernatural and computers have kinda overlapped over the years.

When I got into the 10th grade, I went to a charter high school, which is located on a college campus. There, I was able to take computer courses, involving hardware, software, and programming. I got A+ Certified in 11th grade. When I was in 10th grade, I worked part-time, during the weekends, at Winn-Dixie. I was laid off from there because the store had closed down.

While I was in high school, I took college courses for dual credit. I ended up with 50 credit hours by the time I graduated. My year of graduation was 2002. Also, that same year, I adopted an interest in nutrition as I was losing the weight I had gained from taking Depakote when I was a teenager. So, for my senior project before graduation, I did a project pertaining to health and nutrition.

After I graduated, I went and started working a full-time job, which I started at the end of August. My plan was to take one semester off so I could work and save some money. The job I got was at Wal-Mart Super Center, and my position was a cart pusher. My intention was for that job to be short-term, like no more than 6 months to a year, as I wasn't particularly concerned about the type of job then; I was just looking for a routine job where I could just make and save some money. Anyway, while there, on my first employment, I was considered one of the best associates was told that I was a hard worker. On the evaluations, my manager considered my work to be at "above expectations".

In spring of 2003, I decided to go back to school, and I enrolled into Computer Engineering major. For my job, I went part-time. For that semester, I got straight A's.

Based on the above, it would look like I was on my way to decent success. However, things began to turn for the worse after that spring semester was over.

continued on next post

[Mist Knacker]

In summer of 2003, I decided that I no longer wanted to go for a career in computers. After the spring semester, I had gone back to work full-time. From that time, I began to get obsessed with thunderstorms. My obsession with thunderstorms then triggered me change my mind and consider meteorology, same interest I had in 3rd grade. So, we looked up a school for this and ended up considered transferring to it. However, I later changed my mind again and simply decided I wasn't going to go back to school the next Fall. So, I did not end up going into meteorology.

Another mistake I made which I had never admitted until this post is that I started going on cruises on my days off work, which I now admit were meaningless and waste of money. One of the reasons I decided to not go back to school was so I could spend more time going on these day cruises. Also, throughout July, I was making ambitious plans for going on pretty long road trips and doing other fun things, which ended up not happening due to....

By late August/early September of that year, I began to have problems with depression and mood swings. By late October, it got more severe, and these states began to interfere with my functioning at work. On Oct. 19 2003, during my shift at work, I had a breakdown during my shift at work where I got suicidal and rammed carts into my car. Next day, went to the doctor, and I started taking Lexapro.

I only felt better temporarily from the Lexapro. I had another breakdown in mid January 2004, and I ended up leaving my job while on the clock. I called next day and told them I could no longer work due to medical problems. They worked in a 2 week notice.

On early April 2004, I applied back and went back to work there as I felt that I was ready to work consistently again. However, things weren't anywhere near the same as before. I had to go on medical leaves frequently. From Aug. 2004 to Aug. 2005, I worked in the frozen foods department there.

In fall of 2005, I decided to go back to school. This time, I decided to do automotive technology as I had adopted an interested in cars upon an influence of a friend of mine I met in 10th grade. Once again, I didn't do more than a semester and a half as I withdrew from half the classes in the second semester of the program due to the incessant depression and anxiety that came back early in the spring semester 2006.

From 2004 to mid 2006, it was a medication merry go round basically.

Due to problems with depression again in July and August 2006, I ended up abandoning my job. I haven't worked since then. I tried to go back to school in May 2007, but I withdrew within 2 weeks.

So, I haven't worked nor been back to school since then.

continued on next post

[waybread]

Mist Knacker, be sure to post your chart! BTW, is meteorology still your first love?

[Mist Knacker]

So, the problems I've had starting in mid 2003 is essentially what's gotten me into astrology.

Last month, when I first learned about transits, I went back to those times when things were the worst and found which transits were occuring at those times.

The point when all the problems started in mid 2003 was when Saturn had entered Cancer. It was still in my 10th House, but it just changed signs. When Saturn was still in Gemini, things were smooth, but when it switched into Cancer, it's when things started to fall apart.

That day, on Oct. 19th 2003, when I had that breakdown at work, some major transits I had were:
Saturn Square Moon
Saturn Opposition Jupiter
Pluto Square Ascendant
Pluto Opposition Midheaven

During the time I quit my job in mid January 2004 and was having the depression problems all through that year (I considered that year to be one of the worst), I was going through Neptune Square Saturn.

During the second semester of my automotive program, I was going through my Uranus Square Uranus. Uranus is strong in my chart, so I really felt the effects of that square, more than most people do.

During the period when I abandoned my job in summer 2006, I went through my Saturn Square Saturn, and after that, Uranus Square Uranus had come back. Saturn was also about to entered into my 12th House. By mid September, it was completely in my 12th House.

Saturn will be out of my 12th House for good by next month.

to be continued
(next post concerns factors in chart relating to career field)

[Mist Knacker]

Originally Posted by waybread

Mist Knacker, be sure to post your chart! BTW, is meteorology still your first love?

Here's my chart.

Lately, I haven't really had much interest in meteorology. For much of this year, it's been more back to computers.

[Mist Knacker]

As far as what I notice in my chart pertaining to career.

Ascendant is Virgo
Midheaven is in Gemini.

So, both my chart and midheaven rulers are Mercury.

Some things that Mercury rules are communication, writing, computers.

Mercury is placed in the 8th House. Mercury is in Aries, and its dispositor Mars is in the 3rd House of mental activity.

The 6th House, which is the house of work, is ruled by Uranus. Uranus is placed in the 3rd House. It's in Sagittarius, and its dispositor Jupiter is in the 4th House.

Uranus is strong in my chart since:
I have Moon Trine Uranus
It's conjunct IC

So, based on this, my daily work would involve something with technology and electronics.

The 2nd House can also relate to work as it tends to relate to income. Venus rules over it, and this planet is in the 7th House. Like Mercury, it's in Aries, and its dispositor Mars is in the 3rd House.
In the 2nd House, I have Pluto in Scorpio. Saturn is also in this house, though at the end of it. So, I interpret it as in the 3rd House since it's in the last degree.

Pluto rules over my 3rd House, so this suggests that research is a strong point for me. Mars placed here in Scorpio is dignified as Mars is the co-ruler of this sign. Mars in this house indicates an active, aggressive intellect. This would suggest a desire for intellectual challenges.

Uranus here as well would suggest having an original, inventive thinking mind.

Uranus (ruler of Aquarius) also rules modern technology and science, and this would explain my scientific way of thinking as I've felt that my thinking has always been more technical and scientific.

With Mercury and Venus in the 8th House, I wonder if my given occupation would involve handling something that is other people's.

As far as my Ascendant, Virgo tends to be analytical, and I have always been told that I have an analytical mind. Also, Virgo tends to be health-oriented (it's the natural ruler of the 6th House).

I also have an interest in nutrition (since 2002, as I mentioned in the first post), and a project I've been doing since November 2008 relates to diet and nutrition but also involves computer skills.

continued next post
(for aspects)

[Mist Knacker]

For key planetary aspects I found-

Mercury, ruler of my chart and Midheaven:
Mercury Conjunction Venus (H8)
Mercury Sesquiquadrate Uranus (H8/H3)
Mercury Trine Neptune (H8/H4)
Mercury Opposition Pluto (H8/H2)

Uranus, ruler of the 6th House:
Sun Bi-Quintile Uranus (H8/H3)
Moon Trine Uranus (H7/H3)
Mercury Sesquiquadrate Uranus (H8/H3)
Venus Sesquiquadrate Uranus (H8/H3)
Jupiter Semi-Sextile Uranus (H4/H3)
Saturn Semi-Sextile Uranus (H2/H3)
Uranus Semi-Square Pluto (H3/H2)
Uranus Square Ascendant (H3/H1)
Uranus Opposition Midheaven/Conjunct IC (H3/H10)

Mars, dispositor of Mercury, and Venus, ruler of the 2nd House:
Venus Quincunx Mars (H8/H3)
Moon Sesquiquadrate Mars (H7/H3)
Mars Semi-Square Jupiter (H3/H4)

My chart is attached on post 5.

[katydid]

Mist Knacker,
You have done such a good job delineating your Career aspects that I don't know what else to add.

You have also done a tremendous job citing your past history in correlation with the accurate dates and trends.

It would seem both your mercury and your saturn are working quite efficiently in order to have done those tasks so well.

The question then might be HOW to choose an educational field of study that you could successfully stay involved in , without having to interrupt your studies once again.

Perhaps the Uranus on the IC , and the Mercury ruled angles make you more prone to nervous conditions. Also, your pronounced mercury/saturn influences may ,add some stress and the pressures from self doubt. So I might be inclined to urge you to find a field of study that you felt was relaxing to you. Was being in college stressful because of the competitive nature of engineering and computer classes in terms of future graduate studies and /or jobs?




Because

[waybread]

Mist Kanacker, you've done a great job of delineating your chart and transits. May I ask how well you do reading charts for other people? If you're not sure, this forum should give you a chance to test the waters, notably in the Greenhorn's Lounge.

I thought it might be helpful to take a look at your chart with a fresh pair of eyes. Notably for career advice I would take a close look at your career-related houses and their house rulers, plus I would try to get some sense of you as a person. You might be really good at a career that you would find unsatisfying, hence the need to consider both dimensions.

I actually think you have a pretty tough chart, with both Pluto and Mars opposing your sun. Sun opposite Pluto aspects often indicate a dysfunctional relationship with one's father. Oppositions to one's sun in general can appear as people in our lives who seemingly embody the opposing planet's traits. Saturn shows where we feel limited and frustrated; and opposite one's sun, it's as though we're made to feel there's something wrong with us from an early age. [I have Pluto and Saturn opposite my sun as well, although in different signs and houses, plus Virgo rising, incidentally.] Uranus in the 3rd house but on the MC suggests a disruptive home life when you were a child; although trine your moon, probably a good relationship with your mother. With Neptune trine Venus, you probably have artistic ability, whether or not you have developed it.

The trick here is to recognize that even though we may feel the brunt of ruthless Plutonians or authoritarian Saturnians, we ourselves are all of the elements of our chart. My own life began to flow a lot better once I tried to own my own Pluto and Saturn natures.

I also note that you have an empty upper eastern quadrant of your chart. This is where people take concrete action actively to change their circumstances. Below the horizon, our changes are more internal to us; in the western hemisphere, we learn to adapt ourselves to whatever life throws at us. So this can be very frustrating if you know your external circumstances don't mirror your potential, yet you don't see how to change it. People with a strong 8th house are often intensely private people, which is fine unless it is hard for them to reach out to others for assistance.

Mercury rules both your MC and chart, so you probably want a career that requires you to use your mind. Stacking shopping carts at Wal-Mart is not a good fit here. Located in Aries, your mind also needs to work very independently; and then there's Uranus opposing your MC. This may account for unexpected and unwanted outbursts at work. But possibly also your facility with computers. Mercury, BTW rules weather, along with the moon. Your moon squares Jupiter, suggesting that maybe you should go back for that higher education [seconded by your NN in the 9th house.] Your 6th house of work and service is ruled by Uranus, and your 2nd house of money, by artistic Venus. She conjuncts Mercury in the 8th, with that tough Pluto opposition.

So I wonder if you are at all involved in computer-related fantasy games; or if you have tried your hand at science fiction or fantasy writing. You'd probably be good at developing alternate worlds either on-line via games or in print via novels, based upon your rich and sometimes dark imagination.

[Mist Knacker]

Originally Posted by waybread

Mist Kanacker, you've done a great job of delineating your chart and transits. May I ask how well you do reading charts for other people?

I haven't interpreted for anyone yet before as I'm really new to astrology still. I didn't get really into astrology until late April. I looked into astrology some in 2007, but it wasn't beyond the natal chart stuff unlike now.

If you're not sure, this forum should give you a chance to test the waters, notably in the Greenhorn's Lounge.

I may give it a try sometime.

I thought it might be helpful to take a look at your chart with a fresh pair of eyes. Notably for career advice I would take a close look at your career-related houses and their house rulers, plus I would try to get some sense of you as a person. You might be really good at a career that you would find unsatisfying, hence the need to consider both dimensions.

I actually think you have a pretty tough chart, with both Pluto and Mars opposing your sun.

Mars doesn't make an aspect to my Sun.

I think you may mean Mercury, as Mercury does make an Opposition to Pluto along with the Sun, as does Venus.

However, both the Venus and Mercury Oppositions to Pluto are out-of-sign. The Sun Opposition Pluto isn't strong either, and at 8 degree orb, it would be considered fairly weak according to some sites.

For my chart, overall, I'm not sure about "pretty tough".
I have only two squares.
Half of my oppositions are out-of-sign.
I don't notice any configurations either such as T-Square, Mystical Rectangle, Grand Cross, etc.

The only issue that I thought I've had with my chart was more of a lack of squares because, from what I read, too many Trines, a lack of balance between challenging aspects & harmonious aspects, for example, can lead one to have a passive life, and I've always felt that my life, as a whole, has been more lacking in experiences overall compared to other people's.

The Mercury Opposition Pluto, I feel, seems to manifest as OCD as that's an issue that I've always had problems with in my life. I was officially diagnosed with it along with Aspergers Syndrome in 2006. I have more problems with the compulsive side and obsessive interests, fixations, rather than obsessive thoughts.

Sun opposite Pluto aspects often indicate a dysfunctional relationship with one's father. Oppositions to one's sun in general can appear as people in our lives who seemingly embody the opposing planet's traits.

My father and I get along pretty well majority of the time.

However, there were some periods while I was growing up where we didn't get along well, and we periodically had outbursts and fought, but they weren't often at all. They tended to be driven by circumstances.

My parents divorced when I was 7. During the time they were married, I got along with him ok.

However, when my parents tried to get back together when I was 11-12 in 1996, that's when I started to have problems getting along with him. Age 11-13 for me was a rough time. This rough time I went through in general was the reason why they were not able to get back together. During this period, we were having financial difficulties. Later that year, I was diagnosed with bipolar, and my parents believed that the quarrels was a manifestation of the impending condition.

Saturn shows where we feel limited and frustrated; and opposite one's sun, it's as though we're made to feel there's something wrong with us from an early age. [I have Pluto and Saturn opposite my sun as well, although in different signs and houses, plus Virgo rising, incidentally.]

I thought Saturn was the taskmaster rather than the frustrator.

Anyway, I can relate somewhat with the above. Periodically, I have felt inferior compared to others and had some sense of a lack of self-esteem. This was particularly obvious when I was in school and around larger groups of people in certain situations. Occasionally, this would lead to depression.

However, from experience, the times I really have had problems with the aformentioned issues here were when Saturn was transiting through the signs of Aries, Cancer, and Leo. Saturn is debilitated in these signs.

On a a little more positive note, though, my Sun Opposition Saturn isn't very strong as it's 5 degrees orb, which would be considered as only moderate according to some sites. My natal Saturn also isn't in one of its signs of debilitation.
Additionally, I have a Sun Trine Jupiter, and I believe that this helps in some way.

[quote]Uranus in the 3rd house but on the MC suggests a disruptive home life when you were a child;[quote]
We moved several times during the first 5 years of my life. Since 1989, I've lived in the same house.

Until I was 11 years old and old enough to stay home alone, I stayed with a babysitter. She cleaned houses for a living, so, during the summer, while school was out for the year, we had to go with her each day to these houses.
Everyday, she picked me up from school, and I stayed with her until my mother got off work and then picked me up.

Home life didn't become a bit turbulent until 1996, which I've always considered to be one of the worst years in my life. This year happened to be my first Jupiter Return. I wonder if that had anything to do with it. By sign, my Jupiter is debilitated as it's in the Saturn-ruled sign of Capricorn. However, it's well-placed by house because it's placed in the same house that it rules.

Because I was having so many problems at home at the time, I was sent to a military academy in 1997 and stayed there until early 1999. This was a boarding school where you stayed in barracks.
Home life then became more tame, and there weren't problems often. I didn't have problems again until 2004, and I also had some in 2006 and 2008. However, the problems those other years weren't at the same degree as those in 1996 and 1997.

Although trine your moon, probably a good relationship with your mother.

I've always had a consitently good relationship with her for the most part. She has been helpful during the difficult times.

With Neptune trine Venus, you probably have artistic ability, whether or not you have developed it.

This trine isn't really that strong, but I'm convinced that I have some kind of musical abilities as I began trying to compose some music over this past April. I started using a sample-based tracker and composing some songs in the Amiga .mod, .xm, .it module formats.

I also enjoy listening to music.

Also, the trine is out-of-sign, and from what I've read, this makes it more dynamic.

The trick here is to recognize that even though we may feel the brunt of ruthless Plutonians or authoritarian Saturnians, we ourselves are all of the elements of our chart. My own life began to flow a lot better once I tried to own my own Pluto and Saturn natures.

I feel that I've gotten better ever since Saturn had gone into Virgo, moreso as it had gotten closer to my 1st House. In middle of this July, it starts its way back over through my chart. My Saturn Return is in 2013.

From my experience, as I implied above, the only times I've felt bad effects of Saturn was when it was transiting through its signs of debilitation.

I was diagnosed with Bipolar when Saturn first entered Aries, the sign of its fall.
Through Aries, Saturn made difficult aspects first, to Neptune, and later, Jupiter. It conjuncted my Moon, and then later, Mercury and Venus.

Saturn in Cancer was worst as it make hard aspects to all five of my cardinal earth & fire sign planets. I was hospitalized during this period, and I was at the peak of the medication merry go round.

Saturn in Leo was pretty bad as well as it squared all of my fixed sign planets. It squared Pluto, then my Sun, and shortly after, my natal Saturn; and then later, Mars. Three of those planets are in Scorpio, and Leo/Scorpio squares are most intense of all. This was also a difficult time, though somewhat less bad than Saturn in Cancer. Saturn Square Mars (H12/H3), which I had in November 2006, was quite hostile, and I felt a bit aggressive during this time. I had several verbal confrontations with peers during this time.

The annoying thing here, when it comes to Saturn transits, is that Cancer and Leo are over much of the top-eastern part of my chart. Cancer covers a about 2/3 of the 10th House, and Leo about 2/3 of the 11th House.

This would explain why the things that went downhill during the Saturn transits through these particular signs were career-related, as the 10th and 11th houses are career related houses.

I also note that you have an empty upper eastern quadrant of your chart. This is where people take concrete action actively to change their circumstances. Below the horizon, our changes are more internal to us; in the western hemisphere, we learn to adapt ourselves to whatever life throws at us. So this can be very frustrating if you know your external circumstances don't mirror your potential, yet you don't see how to change it. People with a strong 8th house are often intensely private people, which is fine unless it is hard for them to reach out to others for assistance.

That last sentence, concerning the 8th house, certainly describes me. I have always had a hard time asking others for help concerning issues.

Ironically, my sister also has a strong 8th house with the same planets placed there as me.

And as I mentioned above, two of Saturn's signs of debilitation cover at about 2/3 of my 10th and 11th houses, and it was when Saturn was transiting those signs that my dreams and career were going downhill.
[quote]Mercury rules both your MC and chart, so you probably want a career that requires you to use your mind. Stacking shopping carts at Wal-Mart is not a good fit here.[quote]
I definitely agree with that. After being there for a 1.5 years, I got to the point where the job wasn't suitable at all for my life purpose, and it also didn't provide enough challenge.

With the transits, I noticed that the whole time I was working there, I was under:
Pluto Square Ascendant
Pluto Opposition Midheaven

In fact, I was under these transits when I started.

Along with the Neptune Square Saturn, once those transits ended in the beginning of 2004, that's when I left the job (the first time). Rather than Neptune Square Saturn, it could have probably been more to do with those difficult Pluto transits ending.

Located in Aries, your mind also needs to work very independently; and then there's Uranus opposing your MC. This may account for unexpected and unwanted outbursts at work. But possibly also your facility with computers.

I've always worked better independently than in groups.

Since the 6th House also relates to illnesses, I think Uranus ruling over it would relate to any conditions relating to the nervious system, which the ones I have certainly are. Autistic spectrum disorders are classified as neurological.

You're correct about the computers.

Many people with Aspergers Syndrome are also into computers.

When I had the outburst at work in late 2003, there were no transits from Uranus at the time. The major ones were from Pluto and Saturn.
Usually, transits that are more likely to cause aggressive confrontations are difficult ones to Mars and maybe Pluto.

Mercury, BTW rules weather, along with the moon. Your moon squares Jupiter, suggesting that maybe you should go back for that higher education [seconded by your NN in the 9th house.] Your 6th house of work and service is ruled by Uranus, and your 2nd house of money, by artistic Venus. She conjuncts Mercury in the 8th, with that tough Pluto opposition.

I've gotten interested in computers again (the programming side) over this year, after so many years of having no interest.

I had considerations of going back to school to take some programming classes. At first, I wanted to go back for the summer semester.

However, Mercury went Retrograde in May, so I wanted to put it off until later. I felt like bad for the most part throughout May, so I'm glad I didn't register afterall.

So I wonder if you are at all involved in computer-related fantasy games; or if you have tried your hand at science fiction or fantasy writing. You'd probably be good at developing alternate worlds either on-line via games or in print via novels, based upon your rich and sometimes dark imagination.

I play Fantasy/RPG games a lot. They are one of my favorite type of video games.

The Final Fantasy series have always been one of my favorite RPG series. I also play many other Square-Enix titles. Some of the RPG's I play have sci-fi elements. They are Star Ocean 3, Xenosaga 3, and Wild Arms 5. I'm currently playing Wild Arms 5 right now.
I've recently also been playing Chrono Trigger DS.

[Mist Knacker]

Originally Posted by katydid

Mist Knacker,
You have done such a good job delineating your Career aspects that I don't know what else to add.

You have also done a tremendous job citing your past history in correlation with the accurate dates and trends.

Thanks.

It would seem both your mercury and your saturn are working quite efficiently in order to have done those tasks so well.

The question then might be HOW to choose an educational field of study that you could successfully stay involved in , without having to interrupt your studies once again.

Perhaps the Uranus on the IC , and the Mercury ruled angles make you more prone to nervous conditions.

I do have some nervious conditions. I'm diagnosed with Bipolar, OCD, and Aspergers Syndrome, a high-functioning form of autism.

I believe that the OCD is related to the Mercury Opposition Pluto as Pluto, in difficult assertion, can be compulsive/obsessional, and Mercury rules the rational mind.

I think Autistic Spectrum Disorders, and maybe the Bipolar as well, are related to Uranus. Uranus rules electricity, so in the body, it rules the nervous sytem, and therefore, neurology. These conditions are classified as neurological.

I have a Uranus Square Ascendant.

Also, I found the following from:
http://www.myastrologybook.com/Uranu...-3rd-house.htm
If Uranus is in the third house AND within 4° or 5° of the nadir, then it is said to be on the "dark side" of the fourth house, and it influence will be felt in the fourth as well as in the third house.

Also, your pronounced mercury/saturn influences may ,add some stress and the pressures from self doubt.

With Saturn, as the way it manifests in my life, it seems to depend on which sign it's transiting through.

I was diagnosed with the Bipolar when Saturn first entered Aries. It was going through my 7th House then.

As mentioned in the other post above, I noticed that Cancer is over around 2/3's of my 10th house, and Leo is over around 2/3's of my 11th House, so it's not surprising that Saturn's transits through these particular signs from 2003 to 2007 affected me career-wise and seemingly had overall negative affects on me concerning my life purpose, dreams, and ideals, as that's what the 10th and 11th House are about.

The day I graduated from high school in May 25, 2002, Saturn was tightly conjunct my Midheaven. At the time, the planet was in Gemini.

So I might be inclined to urge you to find a field of study that you felt was relaxing to you. Was being in college stressful because of the competitive nature of engineering and computer classes in terms of future graduate studies and /or jobs?

I didn't get through any of these programs enough to be able to gauge the stress level of them. I only went for one semester for the Computer Engineering, and pretty much the only classes I took were general ed. So, I didn't touch on the core stuff.

I don't think computer programming would be stressful for me as I tend to find it more on the relaxing side.

I thought the Automotive Program was a bit stressful, but I was going through some difficult major transits.

The issues I noticed at the start of it were feeling inferior compared to others as it seemed that many had nicer, faster cars than me, and I also noticed that they were working at better jobs because it related to what they were going into while I was working at that job pushing carts at Wal-Mart.

Then, in the spring semester, some guys had criticized me about my car, and I was affected heavily by it. I ended up in depression and missed days as a result. I had ended up in a relapse, and along with some other issues as well that didn't have anything to do with school and triggered depression and anxiety, I had missed too many days in a couple of my classes and had to withdraw from them. One of them, I was administratively withdrawn from.

While I was in the program, I had some difficult transits as I had mentioned above.

Saturn was in Leo, a sign of its debilitation, and it was transiting my 11th House.
At the beginning of the first semester of the program and until mid October, I had Saturn Square Sun. Also, in September, Neptune had gone retrograde, and by mid October, it had ended up within less than 1.5 degree orb of a square with Saturn. Neptune Square Saturn was a major problematic transit in 2004.

Then, in March 2004, my Uranus Square Uranus began. Uranus was in my 6th House. That was a horrible time for me.
I had my Saturn Square Saturn from the middle to the end of July as well. Combine this with Mercury Retrograde during that part of the month, and it was quite harsh. I remembered taking GABA supplements and other supplements frequently to help lift my mood up during that period.

Overall, I didn't think the field itself was as much of a problem as the transits I was going through at the time.

If I had known at the time that I was going to go through a Uranus Square Uranus in that next year, and that Saturn would be entering my 12th House as well, then I would not have even bothered going back to school. Or if I went back to school, I would've taken just taken a couple classes (as part-time student) rather than registering into a degree program. I also would've quit my job in March rather than August, and I would've put in a two week notice had I known the Uranus square was coming beforehand. In August, by the time the Uranus square was already there again, I ended up doing a three no-call/no-show and abandoned my job.

Saturn transits through the 12th House aren't a good time to start new things as the 12th House is associated with endings and undoings.
It was during this transit when I tried to go back to school but had to withdraw two weeks later, and I have never even bothering trying to get another job during this transit.

[waybread]

Mist Knacker, thanks for the feedback--very helpful!

That mars opposite sun in my previous post was a mistake. I meant Saturn opposite sun. I think oppositions from planetary "heavies" to the sun can be difficult, because our sense of self and identity gets thwarted from an early age.

I've heard enough arguments from siderealists that I tend not to treat signs as important as aspects. [In the sideral zodiac, all planets in our normal western "tropical" charts move about 27 degrees earlier.] As you know, the tighter the orb of an aspect the more you are likely to feel it, and I think this is so independently of sign. But others may disagree here.

Saturn, like all of the planets, is many things. He is both the taskmaster and the frustrator. You might enjoy reading The Inner Sky and The Changing Sky by Steven Forrest if you have not done so already. He refers to each planet as having both a "teacher" and a "trickster" side. Basically Saturn is Dr. Reality-Check, so the taskmaster side comes in when we need to balance our bank account, pay the bills, meet some deadlines and get a dental check-up; but instead we've overspent the credit cards and double-booked our appointments. Saturn's lessons are self-discipline, hard work, and getting by on very little; but he tends to reward these later in life. Although some people are entirely too self-critical, Saturn also shows where we feel inadequate.

I think that 9 times out of 10, if you wish to know whether you will see someone exhibiting the positive or troublesome features of a planet, just look at the aspects. With sextiles or trines, probably they are rewarded by "the teacher." With squares and oppositions, they probably experience the harsh side of the trickster. 1 time out of 10, a younger person will be wise beyond his years and will have developed a positive expression of a difficult aspects; and you may well find older people with challenging aspects who say, "Well, yes, I used to be like that when I was younger, but then I learned to control temper [or whatever]."

Most Kancker, I hope you will read as widely as you can in astrology. The experts don't all agree, so one learns to triangulate between them to see which interpretations work best for oneself. I am pleased that when I began to learn astrology 18 years ago, I started with the books by Robert Hand--very wise and learned; Steven Forrest (very funny), and Stephen Arroyo--very sensible. If you don't already have them, hopefully you can find inexpensive used copies via an Internet book seller or local metaphysical book store.

So would you like to design computer games for a living? You'd probably be good at it. You might enjoy academic courses more on the arts/design side such as computer-assisted animation and graphic design.

Best wishes for your journey, W.

[Mist Knacker]

Originally Posted by waybread

Mist Knacker, thanks for the feedback--very helpful!

That mars opposite sun in my previous post was a mistake. I meant Saturn opposite sun. I think oppositions from planetary "heavies" to the sun can be difficult, because our sense of self and identity gets thwarted from an early age.

I've heard enough arguments from siderealists that I tend not to treat signs as important as aspects. [In the sideral zodiac, all planets in our normal western "tropical" charts move about 27 degrees earlier.] As you know, the tighter the orb of an aspect the more you are likely to feel it, and I think this is so independently of sign. But others may disagree here.

Saturn, like all of the planets, is many things. He is both the taskmaster and the frustrator. You might enjoy reading The Inner Sky and The Changing Sky by Steven Forrest if you have not done so already. He refers to each planet as having both a "teacher" and a "trickster" side.

Concerning the "trickster" side of planets, that's one thing I've certainly experienced on many of the Mercury Retrograde periods.

From research I've done, Mercury tends to act as trickster when it goes retrograde.

Mercury is important in my chart as it's the ruler of my chart itself as well as my midheaven.

Some of the stupidest decisions I've made were ones made during a Mercury Rx.
Here's some examples:
1) I got my second car when Mercury was Rx, and we had nothing but problems with it.

2) During the December 2003 Mercury Rx, I made a good many friends, and I thought that quite a bit of the friendships would be close and fulfilling.
However, after Mercury went Direct, and towards the second quarter of 2004, the friendships didn't turn out to be as good as I had anticipated.
One of them turned quite sour, and I got into a verbal fight with his brother (Mars Opposition Uranus, Mercury Opposition Pluto, with Mercury having just gone Rx for April 2004, which is right when this incident occurred).
As far as all of the other friends, I stopped contacting. Another one, we've stayed friends over the long-term, but we haven't seen each other much. I had met him early in December 2003 during the shadow phase of the Mercury Rx, right before it had stationed to go retrograde.

3) During the Mercury Rx of this past January, I tried modifying my Sega Genesis (adding A/V connectors). However, it ended up not working out, and the console broke as a result.

4) Then, over this last Mercury Rx in May, I bought a new PS2 game. It was defective. So, I had to return it to get another copy. This copy I have now might be questionable as it froze once so far during a cutscene. Mercury had still been Rx when I had returned the game to get the replacement copy.

Basically Saturn is Dr. Reality-Check, so the taskmaster side comes in when we need to balance our bank account, pay the bills, meet some deadlines and get a dental check-up; but instead we've overspent the credit cards and double-booked our appointments. Saturn's lessons are self-discipline, hard work, and getting by on very little; but he tends to reward these later in life. Although some people are entirely too self-critical, Saturn also shows where we feel inadequate.

I think that 9 times out of 10, if you wish to know whether you will see someone exhibiting the positive or troublesome features of a planet, just look at the aspects. With sextiles or trines, probably they are rewarded by "the teacher." With squares and oppositions, they probably experience the harsh side of the trickster. 1 time out of 10, a younger person will be wise beyond his years and will have developed a positive expression of a difficult aspects; and you may well find older people with challenging aspects who say, "Well, yes, I used to be like that when I was younger, but then I learned to control temper [or whatever]."

Most Kancker, I hope you will read as widely as you can in astrology. The experts don't all agree, so one learns to triangulate between them to see which interpretations work best for oneself. I am pleased that when I began to learn astrology 18 years ago, I started with the books by Robert Hand--very wise and learned; Steven Forrest (very funny), and Stephen Arroyo--very sensible. If you don't already have them, hopefully you can find inexpensive used copies via an Internet book seller or local metaphysical book store.

So would you like to design computer games for a living? You'd probably be good at it. You might enjoy academic courses more on the arts/design side such as computer-assisted animation and graphic design.

Best wishes for your journey, W.

Back in 2006, there was a certain type of RPG game that I thought about wanting to design, which would have similarities to Chrono Trigger. I also did a good bit of photo-chopping back then and over 2007.
So, I think computer-assisted animation/graphic design would be something that I might would like to give a try.

Also, I notice that I will be having a lot of major transits to and from Neptune over the next few years. Neptune is the planet of inspiration. Some things it rules are music, visual communications, photography, film.

So, music is something else that I may consider as well as I had gotten somewhat into composing it this past April while under Neptune Sextile Venus, Neptune Square Mars, and Pluto Conjunction Neptune.

These are my Neptune transit periods over the next few years years:
Neptune Square Mars -> Current Until November 2010
Neptune Sextile Venus -> Current Until Mid January 2011
Pluto Conjunction Neptune -> Current Until November 2010
Saturn Square Neptune -> Late October 2009 Until Mid August 2010
Neptune Sextile Mercury -> Late February 2010 Until Late January 2012
Jupiter Square Neptune -> Early June 2010 Until Early February 2011
Uranus Square Neptune -> Late May 2010 Until Late February 2012
Neptune Trine Pluto -> Mid April 2010 Until Late December 2013
Mars Opposition Neptune -> Aug. 25 To Aug. 30 2009
Mars Trine Neptune -> June 7 To June 12 2010
Mars Sextile Neptune -> Sept. 14 To Sept. 19 2010
Mars Square Neptune -> Jul. 29 To Aug. 3 2010
Mars Conjunct Neptune -> Dec. 7 To Dec. 11 2010

As far as the squares/oppositions to Neptune, I feel that they could possibly help spawn the creativity as Neptune is well-aspected in my chart; Trine Sun, Trine Mercury (ruler of my midheaven), Trine Venus, Sextile Pluto.

Some refer to Neptune as the musicians' planet.

[waybread]

Good luck with your creative pursuits, Mist Knacker!

I have Mercury retrograde natally, and I just expect "best laid plans" to go awry. I am a great believer in Murphy's Law: if something can go wrong, it will. Consequently I built a lot of redundancy into my travel plans!

[Mist Knacker]

Originally Posted by waybread

Good luck with your creative pursuits, Mist Knacker!

Thanks.

I have Mercury retrograde natally, and I just expect "best laid plans" to go awry. I am a great believer in Murphy's Law: if something can go wrong, it will. Consequently I built a lot of redundancy into my travel plans!

I also have it natally as well, but it progressed direct when I was 6.

I think (though not exactly sure) that one way that my natal Mercury Rx manifested as was speech delays as a child. In my early years, I couldn't talk, so we went to see a doctor. He diagnosed me with Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS) and ADHD. He put me on Ritalin, and I began speech therapy. Throughout elementary school and first quarter of 6th grade in middle school, I was in an LD (Learning Disabled) class.

By age 6, I began to be able to talk comparably to others who were my same age. At that time, Mercury had progressed Direct. By the end of the first quarter of 6th grade, I no longer needed to attend speech therapy, and I didn't need to be in an LD class anymore as well, though by 5th grade, there were indications that I had no longer needed to be in one. By age 9, however, I no longer needed stimulants.

By high school, I began to take advanced and honors classes, and then from my junior year and on, college level classes.

[katydid]

Wow. You went from 6 years in LD classes to eventually taking Honors and Advanced Placement classes. That is AMAZING. So now what? Have you made any decisions yet in terms of your future studies?

[waybread]

mist nacker, I didn't check the retrogrades--oops. Well, in Aries, your Mercury will also work very independently. Sometimes people with Mercury retrograde in an independent sign are good thinkers--they just are not a good match with the typical highly structured school system.

BTW, now that I've polished my glasses, I just noticed that you have Mars retrograde natally. It's pretty strong in the sign of Scorpio, but retrograde in the third house and with no major aspects, it can indicate that you turn Mars's natural aggression inward on yourself. I use minor aspects, but some astrologers would consider your Mars to be unaspected. This gives it a more solo, unpredictable quality to it. Heavily aspected planets, for better or for worse, know a lot about the signs and houses of the planets they aspect--i. e., about the means of operating and domains of life that these other planets represent. An unaspected planet is more like a hermit; and consequently, it can have difficulty expressing itself--sort of like a child with no siblings or playmates.

Well, your north node of personal growth is in the 9th house of "journeys over water"--so I hope you can take a few! These might be long-haul trips, though.

[Mist Knacker]

Originally Posted by katydid

Wow. You went from 6 years in LD classes to eventually taking Honors and Advanced Placement classes. That is AMAZING. So now what? Have you made any decisions yet in terms of your future studies?

I had dinner at my dad's house tonight, and while we were watching Storm Stories on the Weather Channel, I began thinking of Meteorology. Looking back into my childhood, I'm thinking that Meteorology is what I had originally wanted to get into.

However, later, when I got into the 7th grade, I was talked into going into the field of computers instead as I was told by various people that this was where the money was at. Additionally, I think this had something to do with the year when I was in 7th grade, which was 1997, when computers were becoming more commonplace, and when the internet was becoming a bit more common in homes also. By then, I was using a computer a lot more during the day.

During my years at military school, in 8th grade and 9th grade, I considered Law Enforcement, but this didn't last long. By the time I left the academy, this interest waned, and I was back to wanting to do something with computers. What influenced me into Law Enforcement was an obsession with Cops videos at the time.

Then by my 10th grade year when I entered the charter high school, there were various opportunities open for computer classes such as the A+ computer repair course.

However, during this time, I made what I now considered to be a major mistake which has affected me even up to now. I started hanging out with some wrong people. A couple of them, I only hung out with for like a year or two, but the other person, I remained friends with him for 9 years (stopped hanging out with each other in May 2008). We considered each other best friends, but in February of this year, I reflected back and came to the realization that he was a negative influence on me in the long-term afterall and actually contributed to my straying off of my career path at the time.

During the time I met him, in September 1999, Uranus was making a difficult aspect with my Saturn.

Other transits I was having that month were:
Saturn Trine Ascendant
Neptune Square Pluto
Mars Conjunction Uranus - 9/18/99 to 9/26/99
Mars Opposition Midheaven - 9/23/99 to 10/1/99

Then, in October, my Saturn Opposition Saturn began.
Other transits were:
Jupiter Square Pluto - 10/7/99 to 10/30/99
Jupiter Conjunction Mercury - Starting on 10/15/99
Neptune Square Pluto
Mars Conjunction Neptune - 10/14/99 to 10/21/99

The following are some things that my friend and I had gotten involved in, which I felt had interfered with my career purpose at the time:

In 2000, which was the second semester of my 10th grade year, my friend and I did a lot of crazy things. While driving, we would speed a lot and do burnouts. In Nov. 1999, I had gotten a part-time job at the grocery store. However, I left work early one day just so I could hang out with my friend. I had done this because I was obsessed with the friendship at the time (would call him everyday), and I wanted to spend more time with him.

That day, we broke into a junk yard so he could get a tail light for his dad's '93 Chevy Camaro. However, we got caught, and the owner got my tag #. Once we got to my house, I got a call from the Sheriff's Department. While speaking with the cop, my friends told me to lie to him, so I did under his command. Next night, one of the cops came to my house and talked with me and my parents. Luckily, at the end, no charges were filed with any of us, but we had to go and speek with the JY owner to apologize. The whole JY incident, however, affected me so intensely that it depressed me, and I skipped out of school for a week.

A little bit later, in February of that year, I wrecked my first car, '84 Nissan Maxima, because he and his cousin were acting rowdy, and I got distracted causing me to roll past a blinking red light, which caused me to hit a Toyota Camry. This happened 5 minutes before I was supposed to be home (I had a restricted license then). We were planning on camping that night in the mountains, but our plans had gotten foiled by this accident.
In March, I got another car, '91 Olds Cutlass Supreme Quad 4. This car was fast. So my friend and I often would race other people.

Looking back, these were the major transits I was having over the month of February, which is when much of the above stuff had happened:

February 2000:
Jupiter Conjunction Mercury
Jupiter Conjunction Venus - 11/1/99 to 2/7/00
Saturn Opposition Saturn
Saturn Trine Jupiter
Uranus Trine Midheaven
Pluto Conjunction Uranus
Mars Trine Mars - 2/2/00 to 2/8/00
Mars Square Neptune - 2/11/00 to 2/15/00
Mars Conjunction Moon - 2/24/00 to 3/3/00
Mars Square Jupiter - 2/27/00 to 3/2/00
Mars Trine Uranus - 2/27/00 to 3/2/00

[Regulus Rising]

Mist Knacker--

Do you realize that your Ascendant is at a critical degree? 4 and 17 degrees in mutable charts are extremely enhanced angles. It's definitely a good thing. To give you an example, I once knew a girl who had Mercury in Virgo conjunct Venus. She was definitely nice, not too much of an artist to be honest. But she was pretty sharp! And smart! I couldn't understand what it was until I realized that her Mercury was in 4 degrees Virgo.

Another example is my friend who has his Ascendant as 4 degrees Gemini. He can pull anything off!! Clothes, impersonation, acting, etc. He can hang out with anyone. He definitely has an air about him that has alot of emphasis towards HIM...as in he lives to express himself.

Perhaps if you study your Ascendant more, you may realize that a potential career-path would be something where you can be or express Yourself. After all, you do have Jupiter trine Ascendant. Why do you think that is? You also definitely like to get to the core of things...but you'd prefer to use charm or grace rather than force (though you will if necessary). Perhaps you are supposed to express yourself analytically. Either way, let me say that whatever it is you want to be, you are going to have to shine in it. And others will have to see that. Don't deny or doubt yourself for it!

[wilsontc]

Mist,

You said:

Originally Posted by Mist Knacker

My interests have always been varied, and the subject that would be my main point of interest would vary over a long period of time.

You have a "seesaw" chart, so your interests go "back and forth". This seesaw is mostly between the bottom (inner world) left (self) part of the chart and the top (outer world) right (others) part of the chart. So you go "back and forth" between using your self-awareness to focus on your inner world, and using your relationships with others to do things for them in the outer world. You will want to have a career that allows you both a focus on your inner world and connection and assistance for others around you.

Careering,

Tim

[Mist Knacker]

Originally Posted by Regulus Rising

Mist Knacker--

Do you realize that your Ascendant is at a critical degree? 4 and 17 degrees in mutable charts are extremely enhanced angles. It's definitely a good thing. To give you an example, I once knew a girl who had Mercury in Virgo conjunct Venus. She was definitely nice, not too much of an artist to be honest. But she was pretty sharp! And smart! I couldn't understand what it was until I realized that her Mercury was in 4 degrees Virgo.

I found that out recently when I was reading on critical angles.

Another example is my friend who has his Ascendant as 4 degrees Gemini. He can pull anything off!! Clothes, impersonation, acting, etc. He can hang out with anyone. He definitely has an air about him that has alot of emphasis towards HIM...as in he lives to express himself.

Perhaps if you study your Ascendant more, you may realize that a potential career-path would be something where you can be or express Yourself. After all, you do have Jupiter trine Ascendant. Why do you think that is? You also definitely like to get to the core of things...but you'd prefer to use charm or grace rather than force (though you will if necessary). Perhaps you are supposed to express yourself analytically. Either way, let me say that whatever it is you want to be, you are going to have to shine in it. And others will have to see that. Don't deny or doubt yourself for it!

From additional analysis on my chart, I discovered that there are more critical degrees along with my AC/DC.

Other planets that I've noticed are at Critical Degrees are:
Venus at 25.51 degrees Aries (0, 13, 26 degrees of cardinal signs)
Jupiter at 12.58 degrees Capricorn " "
Sun at 8.42 degrees Taurus (8-9 and 21-22 degrees of fixed signs)
Pluto at 0.31 degrees Scorpio (0 and 29 degrees are critical degrees of any sign)

My Venus Conjunction Mercury is also trine the Galactic Center, which is at 26 degrees Sagittarius.

Additionally, I checked to see if I have any Fixed Stars.

Here are the ones I found.

Sun is conjunct Hamal and Schedir.
Hamal has the character of Mars-Saturn.
Schedir has the character of Saturn-Venus.

The Moon is conjunct Alderamin.
Alderamin has the character of Saturn-Jupiter.

The Venus/Mercury conjunction is conjunct Al-Pherg.
Al-Pherg has the character of Saturn-Jupiter.
Mercury is also conjunct Vertex and Alrisha.
Vertex has the character of Venus.
Alrisha has the character of Mars-Mercury.

Mars is conjunct Agena.
Agena has the character of Venus-Jupiter.

Jupiter is conjunct Pelagus and Ascetla.
Both of these have the character of Jupiter-Mercury.

Saturn is conjunct Menkert and Accrux.
Menkert has the character of Venus-Mercury.
Accrux has the character of Jupiter.

Uranus is conjunct Rastaban.
Rastaban has the character of Saturn-Mars-Jupiter.

Neptune is conjunct Spiculum and Alnasl.
Both of these have the character of Mars-Moon.

North Node is conjunct Prima Hyadum.
Prima Hyadum has the character of Saturn-Mercury.

Chiron is conjunct the Pleiades and Alcyone.
The Pleiadies has the nature of Moon-Mars.
Alcyone has the nature of Moon-Jupiter.

The Midheaven is conjunct Rigel and Cursa.
Rigel has the character of Jupiter-Mars.
Cursa has the character of Saturn.

[Mist Knacker]

Originally Posted by waybread

BTW, now that I've polished my glasses, I just noticed that you have Mars retrograde natally. It's pretty strong in the sign of Scorpio, but retrograde in the third house and with no major aspects, it can indicate that you turn Mars's natural aggression inward on yourself. I use minor aspects, but some astrologers would consider your Mars to be unaspected. This gives it a more solo, unpredictable quality to it. Heavily aspected planets, for better or for worse, know a lot about the signs and houses of the planets they aspect--i. e., about the means of operating and domains of life that these other planets represent. An unaspected planet is more like a hermit; and consequently, it can have difficulty expressing itself--sort of like a child with no siblings or playmates.

I'm going through Neptune Square Mars right now. It started in April 2008 and went pretty much exact for first time in June of that year.
Then it came back in February of this year and went exact again in March.
It just came back for the third time and goes exact again in August.
It makes its last past in early January 2010.

For me, so far, Neptune Square Mars hasn't been as bad as others say. During the second pass, I was actually more productive, and it was during this time that I started getting into music composition. Neptune is planet of inspiration and is a ruler of music. Majority of the music I was doing was techno and house with extensive percussion. I think Mars plays into the drum beats of music, and the music I listen to tends to be quite upbeat and aggressive.

In addition to Neptune Square Mars, I'm also going through Jupiter Square Mars, as well as Chiron Square Mars.

Basically, this triple conjunction of Jupiter-Neptune-Chiron that's been going on since May of this years has been affecting my Mars (by square) along with my Venus (by sextile).

25 degrees Aquarius, which this triple conjunction is at right now, is my Sun/Uranus midpoint.

Also, along with the Ne/Ju/Ch conj. square to my Mars, I'm also having Uranus Trine Mars. This period goes on until March 2010. I do know that since March of this year, I'm been doing some Uranian (e.g. innovative) stuff.

On the next hit of Saturn Opposition Uranus in mid September of this year, Saturn will be sextile my Mars, and Uranus will be trine my Mars. I wonder what this will bring.

[katydid]

Originally Posted by Mist Knacker

For me, so far, Neptune Square Mars hasn't been as bad as others say. During the second pass, I was actually more productive, and it was during this time that I started getting into music composition. Neptune is planet of inspiration and is a ruler of music. Majority of the music I was doing was techno and house with extensive percussion. I think Mars plays into the drum beats of music, and the music I listen to tends to be quite upbeat and aggressive.

In addition to Neptune Square Mars, I'm also going through Jupiter Square Mars, as well as Chiron Square Mars.

Basically, this triple conjunction of Jupiter-Neptune-Chiron that's been going on since May of this years has been affecting my Mars (by square) along with my Venus (by sextile).

25 degrees Aquarius, which this triple conjunction is at right now, is my Sun/Uranus midpoint.

.

When a natal planet has very few aspects, it makes it pretty powerful in one's chart. It stands out and is less 'muddled' than some with a lot of varied aspects and connections to other planets. Your Mars is that way, focussed and pointing inward much of the time.

Now, when it becomes the focus of other outer planets by transits, as yours is , it can be a nice, pure experience, because there are not a lot of other release points to dilute the energy. So your experience with the Neptune/jupiter/chiron square is very tight and focussed on your mars and venus. It can be a pretty transformative experience
to have that much intensity pouring over your mars , which is usually more private, and personal . Especially given that it is your sun/uranus midpoint. That signifies a very personal revolution and a successful transformation which heightens one's sense of self
radically.

[Mist Knacker]

It's been a while since I had posted in this thread, I have found indicators in my natal chart suggesting that I should be a mechanic as I notice that my may indicate mechanical skills.

I mentioned that I had started a two year degree in Automotive Technology in fall of 2005 but dropped out of the program after the second semester of it due to the medical issues.

In my chart, ruler of the MC (career), Mercury, is in the 8th House of transformation, renewal, regeneration, getting to the bottom of things. 8th House also deals with other people's possessions and surgery. The word surgery is derived from the Greek word kheirourgos, which literally means "working by hand". This does not apply only to medicine but could also apply to the automotive or computer industry etc. given that Mercury is involved as Mercury and Gemini is associated with these things.

Mercury is disposited by Mars, and it is in the 3rd House. It is also the ruler of the 3rd House. The 3rd House is vehicles. In electional charts for car purchases, Mars is often associated with the engine of the car. Pluto, the other ruler of my 3rd House, is in my 2nd House of earnings. This could indicate automotive repair, jobs involving traveling, etc. as some ways to earn income. Venus, the ruler of my 2nd House, makes a bi-directional quincunx to Mars (considered positive) also.

Concerning some other 8th House/Pluto matters of renewal, transformation:
Renewal - can also mean restoration, refurbishment. For example, in automotive, restoring a classic car, refurbishing an engine to get it back to OEM condition
Transformation - change, conversion, modification. For example, in automotive, doing various car modifications such as engine, ignition, air intakes upgrades to add horsepower to make it go faster. Also adding rims, painting stripes, etc. to make the car look sharper. Some of these things require a tearing down first. Hence, R&R (remove/replace, repair/restore).

When working with cars, you often have to get to the bottom of things. When doing repairs on cars, you're basically 'performing surgery on it'. You also deal with other people's possession's as you're working on their cars.

It was during my Uranus Square Uranus period in 2006, which started in the second semester of my automotive program, that I had dropped out. Saturn had also entered my 12th House in August 2006, same time that Uranus Square Uranus was applying to it's second pass, which is the month when I quit my job. Neptune entered into my 6th House as well but had been influencing it some since spring 2004. There was a Saturn Opposition Neptune aspect [in the sky] that had begun August 2006 and would go on until June 2006. This occurred on my 6th and 12th House cusps. During this period, along with not being to work, I wasn't able to go to school either. I went through a very difficult time during this period. This Neptune Square Mars, Pluto Conjunction Neptune, and progressed Moon in Pisces also have been a bit of a bummer, and I've been having a bit of problems with motivation due to these. Pluto Conjunction Neptune made it's final pass today, though.

Since the Spring 2010 college semester starts under a Mercury Retrograde, I really do not want to start a new college degree program. I may certainly consider returning to complete the Automotive Technology program and finishing that degree up.