Ah yes, inconsistent. Well I wouldn't be too harsh on yourself, every third house doesn't represent the a bad roll of the dice.
I went hunting a little on this and found an article on the 3rd house and there are a few parts that discuss 3/6/9/12. The author delves into what cadence is all about. You may be interested:
http://www.astro.com/astrology/in_dgthirdhouse_e.htm