First, I wanted to take a minute to thank EVERYone who responded, even if I don't specifically reply below. In some cases, I'll just take the advice and look into it (as with Dr. Farr's suggestions and Culpepper's on lunation charts).
And Neptune Rising, you mentioned Neptune dissolving structures (esp. financial) for your friend with Saturn in his 8th. Any thoughts on a 12th house Saturn? In many ways, this is the (personal) planetary house placement that has always been the hardest for me to put a finger on -- probably no surprise, BEING the 12th house. But it is so close to the ascendant, I tend to read it partially as a 1st house Saturn. So impacting fundamental views of myself would make a certain sense, read that way. But for all it has 1st house "resonance," I'm reluctant to read it as a TRUE 1st house Saturn, as some of the harder aspects of a 1st house Saturn aren't really present for me (then again, it's exalted in Aquarius, so...). But I HAVE been doing some thinking about how Neptune is affecting Saturn, pragmatically speaking.
As noted, I still do find myself believing in natal astrology, as I find it to be remarkably on target, and it almost always gives me insight on people's motivations. Comments here have also reminded me of the importance of the major transits. I think the problem with them is that they don't always give me much insight into *timing*, Even when I consider the week/day of the exact hit. They do still seem to reflect general realities, it's true.
But I will add one clarification that I failed to make ... I do realize short-term transits are *short term*, and not as powerful. But that said, what I've noticed at least in the last year or two is that my short-term experiences (and/or feelings) rarely seem to match up well with what the short-term transits suggest I
should be experiencing or feeling. The so-called "easy" or positive transits as often coincide with a few hours or half a day of feeling really BAD as they coincide with feeling good. The same with the "hard" or more negative transits. There seems to be little to no connection, even looking at them short term and being aware they last only a few hours, half a day, or a day (or two).
Long term transits still seem more accurate, but in "general," not able to pinpoint much beyond some months of ___. Additionally, the negative long-term aspects always seem to completely drown anything positive. And I seem to almost never have a "positive" transit without another "negative" transit which hammers me. The only thing I can conclude is that it would, what, be WORSE? Jeez. I supposed I'd like to have Jupiter bring something that was "unadulteratedly" good. ;> Or hey, I'd even take a "nice" Uranus surprise! :-D
Pluto is transiting at 5 Capricorn on your 11th house (friendships) cusp, and inconjuncting Mars in Leo (who is brought alive by the thought that you matter to someone). Pluto is cutting out that feeling. Whatever he touches, he either kills it or he intensifies it. He's making your Mars feel desperate, but stopping him from feeling loved and supported as he needs to be.
There are also some 'invisible' influences hitting your chart that you may not know about...the TNOs or Trans-Neptunian Objects. You can see them on this daily ephemeris... However, they make potent attacks upon our charts. You will see that Hades is retro at 1 Cancer, squaring your Sun and trining your Pisces ascendant. Hades is simply another Pluto. He's a slow mover and will be in this position for some months to a year yet, as he will retro back to the end of 29 Gemini before going forward again. Your challenge will be to defiantly stick a finger up to this beast and not let your Mercury-Pluto conjunction drag you down into dark places of the mind.
That fiery Sag MC, and Jupiter also trining your Sun, tells me you need to make a mark on the world. There will be opportunities out there...
Again, thanks for reminding me about these outer influences, and what you said here sound very fitting to what I'm feeling. Yes, I'll admit that I do want to make a mark in the world, both as a teacher (professor), and as a fiction author, but in native tradition where storytelling is "sacred business" (both appropriately Sag careers, no?!!). This has been a large part of my current frustrations, as I've been told since I was very young (12 years old), what a great writer I am/will be/can be. I won't go into a lot of detail (for space), but suffice to say it's coming from quarters that don't "have" to like or flatter me -- don't even KNOW me. They're objective/indifferent.
Yet, yet ... I can't seem to SELL a novel, despite having writen 4. I have only 2 short stories professionally published despite 30+ years of honing my craft and the fact people who read my fiction tend to assume I'm a professional author (and are surprised to learn I'm really not). (Although I should note that short story writing and novel writing are 2 different animals and I just don't write many short stories.)
Now, there are "market" reasons for this inability to sell a novel, largely related to story-length and paper costs -- which I understand ... but ... it gets complicated. I could go into a song and dance about it, but won't. Suffice to say, the mixed messages (neither from people who are obligated either to like or dislike my writing) leave me VERY uncertain and frustrated. Frankly, they have for years, but it's really reaching a breaking point. When do you throw in the towel and recognize
it's just not going to happen? Ever? Is that "giving up" or "getting realistic"? Probably depends on who you ask, but it's been increasingly on my mind. Sure Confucious was a failure during his own lifetime but wound up becoming the Moral Father of China. Yet for every Confucious there are another thousand who really *have* no talent/ability. They just think they do. And I suppose that's where I'm sitting. Should I trust those who say I'm good ... or do I trust the professional publishing industry (agents and editors) who won't buy my novels? Which side is admiring "The Emperor's New Clothes" (and not admitting he's naked)?
The Mars observation is also on target, btw. I've always been aware that my Leo Venus AND Mars gives me a "double whammy" of needing to be admired/appreciated/complimented. (And of course,
being a Leo, I'll always give it back.) But I hadn't really thought about the Pluto inconjunct to Mars.
And Pluto always kicks my ***, which I find a little ironic, as I tend to view Pluto relatively *positively* in my natal chart.
I'll also add that I'm very aware of how Pluto hitting my 11th house is "revising" my personal circle. It's been slow coming, but I've been aware of it for the last couple of years. Pluto through my 9th house completely revamped my personal belief system and my academic pursuits (changed FIELDS of study altogether, even if I didn't stop wanting an advanced degree). Likewise, Pluto hit my MC and 10th house as I was seeking tenure ... and "perfected" it. I got tenure. But since, it's made me ever more aware that, much as I really do LOVE teaching, my first love, and my preferred career, really is WRITING (fiction) ... if I could just
get published. And now, Pluto hitting my 11th house, is revising/purifying my personal circle. At this point, by limiting it. Friends who were close just 2 years ago now have new jobs and have grown distant, those I used to hang out with have new directions that take them away and/or something soured in the association. I've kept a few friends, who've grown closer. And one former friend MAY (stress on the "may") be becoming the infamous "more." But I'm not counting chickens. Solar Return and Venus Return suggest maybe that will pan out but ... again, I'm just so "iffy" these days about projections, I'm skeptical.
But the CHANGES to the larger circle of friends is certainly true.
I have a book about venus transits, and it talks about those who have a good relationship with venus and those who don't. If you don't have a good relationship with your venus, it will cause you to feel totally alone, unloved and despairing of the difficulties in life (unable to see the beauty) ... every planet has evolved and un-evolved manifestations.
... transits to venus in my experience DO NOT affect my mood. Its not about my inner state. They affect my physical sensitivities, attractive power (if I decide to activate it, which is an action not a feeling) and creativity (which again, might not be activated if I don't have the time to be creative!)
Venus is not about how you feel IMO AT ALL... its about HOW YOU PREFER TO BE COMFORTED. So I don't know where you are getting your conclusions but think about where the moon is more, because the moon affects your irrational feelings ...
... You can use the venus energy to heal yourself however ... if you are a venus in leo, than use activity, color and play ... Venus says...hey give me love, and if you don't you will feel lonely and sad. Its not a giving planet like jupiter. Venus requires ATTENTION.
I'm a Libra Sun, so Venus is fairly important in my chart, but suffers a pretty hard square from Neptune (in Scorp), which gives me trouble, and another square from Jupiter (in Taurus), but not a lot of positive action. The best I can point to is a lovely trine to the MC. But ironically, the sun is in fall in Venus's sign, and Venus is in the sun's sign.
And yeah, the most "needy" Venus of all might be Leo! It makes us generous, to be sure, but it also makes us (unconsciously) self-centered. It's something I've worked at all my life, and actually became aware of as a child. So I've had 30+ years of a Leo Venus Libra Sun learning to focus on others and bring out their strengths.
But in this particular case, I mostly singled out Venus because what I was supposed to experience seemed very at odds with what I DID experience. (And my interp of Venus transits came/comes from Hand, most often.)
Firstly, I don't know whether I should even say this publically, but I find the temporary transits to be a bit rubbish. That is, a Venus transit to your Sun or your Mars or whatever will not be felt by you when you have transiting Neptune & Chiron sitting on your Saturn-ASC, as well as transiting Uranus Rx opposing your Sun - and so
transiting Uranus has been for some time activating the apex planet of your Yod 
These transits are MEGA!!! Just Neptune sitting on your ASC is enough to send you into a downward spiral, but you have Chiron & Uranus on top of that.
I'm surprised you can gather all your brain cells together to be able to construct a thread!!!!! When I had tr Neptune on my ASC I was a basket case!!!! But it passed, as do all difficult transits.
Look at it this way - Sun sextile Venus in transit is like a mini torch, and the light from this will not be seen against the giant floodlight beam cast by transiting Chiron-Neptune and Uranus.
Thanks, R4VEN, this actually makes a good deal of sense, especially in conjunction to what Sweetpea said above. It may be that I'm SO weighed down at the moment by the major transits that they've simply overwhelmed much if any affect for minor transits, even when assuming they ARE short term -- and, for instance, I regularly ignore the moon, and even Merc. I don't really pay attention until it's Venus or Mars (or the Sun), since these last more than a few hours or half a day.
Anyway, it seems like Neptune-Chiron conj. Saturn/ASC is REALLY hitting me hard, perhaps the worst of all. I've felt the Uranus less, for whatever reason, despite it hitting my Yod. But Hand's description of Neptune-Saturn as "dark night of the soul" ... oh, yeah. Putting it on my Ascendant, too -- it's just a killer (metaphorically speaking, at least, hopefully not literally, even when there are days I consider it).
You do have some very trying progressions happening right now, so can't expect to feel very optimistic. Your natal Saturn (right on your ascendant) is sextile your natal moon in Aries, This is the natal connection that the progressed Saturn and prog.moon should to be read against . We are taught that the sextile is an easy connection, which means that the two planets involved can easily connect, which I agree with, what we don't often realise is that the sextile is a working aspect, so a sextile between the moon and Saturn doesn't mean that we only get the easier connections between these 2 planets ... the positive side of moon in Aries sextile Saturn would give you a certain control over the impulsive moon in aries (among other positive qualities) , while other manifestations of this connection will give you a depressed feeling, especially when progressions and transits are aspecting these 3 positions (moon,Saturn,ascendant) A look at your progressed chart shows us that your natal sun is in fall (libra) which is a great place for an astrologer because you feel the progressions/transits more keenly than the average joe/jane as a strong sense of self just isn't there, the progressed sun is now conjunct Neptune in scorp, it's no wonder you are feeling disillusioned, as the emotional intensity of your sun in scorp is so contrasted to your natal (unemotional ) Air sun, and Neptune in scorp can be a very sensitive and confusing. This progression isn't helped by transiting Neptune and Chiron on your natal ascendant and Saturn (a triple whammy). Your progressed moon is currently in Capricorn, activating the saturnian influence of your natal saturn/moon sextile, it doesn't suprise me that you would contemplate suicide. The good news is that you don't have much longer to wait until you start to perk up a bit, your progressed sun is now 2 minutes past the conjunction to Neptune, so things are looking up. Next year your progressed moon will conjunct your progressed M/C, I would interpret that as you recieving some medical treatment for your depression, but you don't have to wait for this conjunction to be exact, you can get some help now, this would involve using your natal saturn/asc/moon combo in a good way! I have very similar progressions/transits too at the moment, having a shoulder to cry on can help to release some of the negativity, and knowing that these very trying planetary combinations will soon move on should give you a light at the end of the tunnel.
Thanks. Several things here to consider that I'd forgotten, including the nature of the sextile and progressions. And yes, Saturn-Moon sextile does calm down my Aries moon (although a square from Mars ruling Aries gives me a temper still). I'm not especially impulsive, or warm to strangers, although I've been described as enthusiastic and charismatic (especially when I'm feeling "on"). But anyway, on the Progressed Moon conjunct the MC, this may actually have a slightly different interp. For the next 2 years, I'm in charge of a regional history conference, which puts me SQUARE in the public view. While this is an academic role, in many ways, it's really a SERVICE (industry) role, as my ability to coordinate, keep people happy, and finesse feelings are as important (or really, more important) than my academic expertise. Ha. I sorta "inherited" this role, and had to laugh when I noticed that Moon-MC conjunction coming up in progressions, as it seemed very apropos of the aspect! (But you'd only know that, of course, if aware of my personal schedule.)
That's not to say I might not get some sort of medical treatment for the depression. I did actually raise it with my physician, as my peri-menopause is starting, and severe depression like that is VERY uncharacteristic of my usual moods (but can be one of the symptoms of peri-menopause). I may have a moon-Saturn connection, but I tend to experience it as more stabilizing (in the past) than dampening/depressive. I've always had really
even moods, NOT much mood swinging (for good or ill). The doc suggested that some of my problem may owe to increased insomnia associated with peri-menopause. She also pointed out that at least a couple of the drugs used to treat depression are ALSO used (in much smaller doses) to treat insomnia. (I don't find that too surprising, really.) But if things don't get better, she may try prescribing one for a short term, only in the "insomnia" strength. We're not going there yet, however.
