What's your sign? (No, really...what is it now?)

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/the-hot-button/why-your-zodiac-sign-might-have-changed/article1868349/

If you're incredibly invested in calling yourself such-a-Leo or attributing your stubbornness to being a Taurus, you may want to avert your eyes.

Folks from the Minnesota Planetarium Society are reminding you that the astrological signs we follow today are out of whack with the originals.

The ancient Babylonians based zodiac signs on the constellation the sun was "in" on the day a person was born, but during the ensuing millenniums, the moon's gravitational pull has made the Earth "wobble" around its axis, creating about a one-month bump in the stars' alignment, according to a piece in the Minneapolis-St-Paul Star Tribune.

That, and we've dropped a sign, "Ophiuhus," which was Nov 29-Dec 17.

"When [astrologers] say that the sun is in Pisces, it's really not in Pisces," said Parke Kunkle, a board member of the Minnesota Planetarium Society.

So, what's your real horoscope?

Astrology buffs should be using these dates, reflecting where the stars currently are aligned:

*
Capricorn: Jan. 20-Feb. 16
*
Aquarius: Feb. 16-March 11
*
Pisces: March 11-April 18
*
Aries: April 18-May 13
*
Taurus: May 13-June 21
*
Gemini: June 21-July 20
*
Cancer: July 20-Aug. 10
*
Leo: Aug. 10-Sept. 16
*
Virgo: Sept. 16-Oct. 30
*
Libra: Oct. 30-Nov. 23
*
Scorpio: Nov. 23-29
*
Ophiuchus: Nov. 29-Dec. 17 *Discarded by the Babylonians because they wanted 12 signs per year
*
Sagittarius: Dec. 17-Jan. 20.

So, have you always expected this stuff was totally mutable, or are you devastated to hear you're no longer a Virgo?

I'm a Capricorn now. Not that it matter much as I've never really read my horoscope, but I kind of liked being an Aquarius all those years.

wtf

I really liked being a virgo. :(

sagittarius? i enjoyed being a goat bro. :(

glad to see the Minnesota Planetarium Society is kicking ass and shifting paradigms

I don't believe in any of this shit but that said, I am now a Sagittarius and I've always sorta thought I was much more in line with typical Sag traits than Capricorn ones so I'm cool with my new nonsense star sign.

Ofuckus or however that's said.

still an aquarius, ur earth-shattering revelations r nothing 2 me

lol true aquarian behavior

I am now a Pisces and reevaluating my life.

OMG, no wonder my horoscope always seemed so vague and never seemed to predict anything of value!

this must be a really difficult one for whatever the kind overseeing board of astrology is to deal with; like if they say 'we are changing to the new (old) dates', it's kinda ps all horoscopes until now have been total bullshit.

i'm pretty bummed not to be a ram anymore, also. some people told me about what it meant, and it was this long list of crotchety and unappealing traits like stubbornness and bullheadedness.

ok i'm fairly certain that the 12 actual constellations for which the zodiac signs are named don't occupy equivalent sections of the sky and possibly overlap -- this is not exactly new astronomy here, so this article is maybe beside the point?

and besides I'm pretty sure that sun signs are determined the sun, solstices & equinoxes &c., and that's how it's been done for millennia iirc

I don't believe in any of this shit but that said, I am now a Sagittarius and I've always sorta thought I was much more in line with typical Sag traits than Capricorn ones so I'm cool with my new nonsense star sign.

― ENBB, Thursday, January 13, 2011 3:47 PM (22 minutes ago) Bookmark

what are the sag traits?? i always thought i was a good cap.

I'm pretty sure that sun signs are determined the sun

From the earthly pov, though.

I'm still a pisces, but now my son is too, instead of an aries. It's going to take some time for me to wrap my head around this because he is the model of the stubborn-headed ram.

would be cool to be an ophiuchus

this bumps me from libra to virgo, neither of which i know anything about

i mean, the positions of the zodiac signs re: our solar system have generally been determined by the position of the sun in its yearly cycle (eg aries = spring equinox, cancer = summer solstice, libra = autumnal equinox, capricorn = winter solstice).

the idea of the signs being 12 equidistant arcs of the sky is a foundational conceit of western astrology

xp

That's fine. tbh, I have no idea how it works or what any sign's traits are besides Aquarius (which I've been for 36 years but find I no longer am).

I am an ophiuchus (although I don't believe in astrology at all). I first heard about this in 1995 on CNN, and whenever I relayed the story to people they'd never believe me.

robyn to thread asap.

before: virgo
after: virgo

are we known for our stability?

i am still the same sign too.

This is horrible, I've always defined myself as a sex- and money-crazed Scorpio! What am I supposed to do now that I'm a Libra, be reasonable or some shit?

taurus -> aries

still a canc-ah

I didn't like being a virgin and always felt more like a LEO despite not having any sort of mane Gucci or otherwise. So yay.

http://melisinka.com/wp-content/uploads//2009/10/aries.jpg

Screw that! ARIES 4 LYFE. Fuck a Pisces imo.

(Exhibiting classic Aries stubborness to prove a point ITT)

i was a taurus, now I am an aries. i don't feel like either describe me, but aries is probably more accurate

seems I will always been a creature with some horns, tho

Harvey Sid Fisher is gonna have to get back in the studio!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CWnp5wOz6c

i'm a leo now. ROAR

there's no fucking way I'm a Sagittarius and not a stubborn old goat

guys this article misconceives how astrology has been practiced since forever, you're the same sign as always, don't worry about it

I was pretty worried.

Still a leo! I always get kinda mad at being a Leo - I feel like it's a misreading of my character where I can see how the mistake was made; my family are just kinda like that, it is how we are.

I always read these article hoping I'll be a Gemini but I never am.

I am a gemini and I am distressed at the thought of losing it bcz it is the only one I know anything about! It feels too late in the game to start developing a bunch of Taurus-centric excuses for why I'm a stupid shithead.

fuck being a libra

also where is sarahel??

by the way guys the chinese astrological calendar is still correct afaik you are all welcome to the tribe

I'm more of a Pisces than ever. I was dangling on the end of a hook before, now I'm right in the net.

Swapping out scorpio for... libra?! You must be joking. There goes my street cred all to hell.

Yeah, I can't imagine this having been called "Libra"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NU2U-_V8608

Oh look at that, I've gone from Scorpio to Virgo. The amount of a shit I give has not changed at all however, ie none of a shit.

I'm still a Piscean. I'm the most Piscean freaking Pisces you will ever meet.

pisces to aquarius. sure ok.

I wonder what Jonathan Cainer has to say about all this. He usually talks about this kind of palaver on his site. I know "the signs have changed!" stuff's been around a while now, in any case.

it's all cool. this is, as far as i can tell, just another pointing out of the difference btwn sidereal astrology (based on galaxy) and tropical astrology (based on solar system), the latter being what we're used to seeing in the west, yknow, in newspapers and such. they measure things differently re: earth's axis, ecliptic, etc. awareness of the 'wobble' is nothing new. (i'm not even sure how this is a news article... "folks are 'reminding' us). but the debate over which system is correct has been ongoing for hundreds of years. some astrologers even use both, looking at the relationship btwn the two. it's all just math/physics + esoterica. we are all way way more than the archetype of our sun sign anyway. and we're more than our childhood traumas and the grades we got in school. and we are all floating in space.

Virgo sun
Scorpio rising
Taurus moon
Venus in Cancer

I forget the rest, lotta stuff in the 10th house I think.

Leo sun
Pisces rising
Libra moon
Venus in Virgo

All Virgos are Mad

(rip libra - don delillo, we hardly knew ye)

And WTF is up with this whole bocephus sign

It's for people with rowdy friends (who like to come over).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpYG5okq1ag

xp are you ready

Dudes really need to get on the ball writing some common personality traits for this sign so I know how to act.

Likes horse riding, long walks on the beach, death metal and sheep husbandry. Needs regular combing for lice and small ticks. Plays well in all 3 phases of the game, strong offensive line, but weak on pass rushing. Excels at talent show portion of the competition.

Ophiuchus is supposed to be Asceplius, the world's first and best doctor, whom the doctor felt the need to kill because he was bringing people back from the dead.

alternate name for the astrological sign = Serpentarius

Not that it matters what you are as it's all bollocks, but i've been Aries for nearly 38 years and i'm staying with that thanks.

iirc i seemed to fit cancer but now i'm gemini

Cainer says what I expected he would, on his website:

News update: There's lately been a lot of talk about 'new dates' for the zodiac signs and even a 'new sign'. This, though, is nothing 'new'. It's the same old nonsense that gets trotted out every 20 years or so by astronomers who think the twelve signs of the zodiac must be the same as the 12 constellations (or star groups). Actually, they're not and may never have been - although once they correlated more closely. 'Aha,' they think, 'Astrologers must be too stupid to notice this.' So without doing any more research, they issue a press release or write a book.

I'm not heavily invested in astrology at all, but I do like Jon Cainer, he has a lovely sense of humour.

I heard an interesting theory that babies born in the fall/winter are exposed to less light overall for their first three months than babies born in the spring/summer. and maybe that makes a big difference, like imprinting. so that's why scorpios are so grim and tr00. \m/

i like cainer

here's what tim stephens says too:

Okay, okay, please stop sending me all those emails about the “changed zodiac!” Birth dates shifting forward for all the signs, turning SCORPIOS into LIBRANS and GEMINIS into TAUREANS. And claiming there is a “lost” sign of Ophiuchus. And that the sign Scorpio is now only 6 days long. All these appear to be the fevered product of an astronomer in Minnesota, whose musings somehow gained media prominence....

So here’s my darned explanation: Many centuries ago, in India and elsewhere, astrology was based on the constellations of stars. The signs were named after the constellations they roughly overlaid. This method of astrology, called “sidereal,” is still (though barely) in use today, mostly in India. The problem with sidereal astrology is “precession.” Precession is a tiny wobble in the earth’s rotation, which makes the sky above us seem to shift a little bit from year to year – very slowly. If you stood in Canada looking toward the equator, and stared for 5,000 years, you’d see all the constellations creep to your right the width of an entire zodiac sign. Over 60 millennia, you’d see the constellations completely circle the sky and return to their starting place.

Sidereal astrologers believe ARIES people derive their qualities from the constellation Aries. So as centuries pass and this constellation slowly shifts in the sky, they change the calendar dates for Aries. (And so on for every sign). Sidereal astrologers believe our century’s Aries natives are born in May, for that’s when the sun contacts the constellation Aries. In 5,000 years, they will say Aries births occur in June. In 30,000 years, they will say Aries are born in winter. Sidereal astrology has fallen out of favour; few astrologers practice it, even in its reputed birthplace, India.

Tropical astrology “abandoned” the constellations about 18 centuries ago. Tropicalists believe a sign’s qualities rise not from stars but from the angle of the sun to the earth, its heat and light. Just as the sun affects plant growth (and everything else) it affects people born in its phases. For a tropical astrologer, Aries qualities reflect spring: new, impulsive, growing. Just as plants “burst forth” in the spring, so does Aries’ personality. As the days grow darker in November, they give us secretive Scorpio. In mid-winter, conservative CAPRICORN. And tropical Gemini will always be born in late spring: light, airy, butterfly-like. Etc. (Yes, this causes a “southern hemisphere” puzzle.) For tropical astrologers, Aries will always begin on the first day of spring, CANCER on the first day of summer, etc. That Minnesota astronomer was actually echoing sidereal astrologers, and telling us all we should revert to “the old days.” Egad. Humbug.

i like his 'we are connected to the earth and the sun, deal with it' attitude

astrology isn't about telling the future and predetermining people's personalities, it's just another way of reading the world as it is

there are a lot of ways to read the world

Yeah Cainer's thrown an absolute strop over this too - the rant on his website is awesome, though you do have to go with his assertion that astronomers are horrid people because they try and tear down astronomy/homeopathy/etc, to which I thought "well of course, theyre scientists". But yah apparently this comes up every now and then and its not true at all - its some astronomer trying to make astrology look foolish.

Ugh that should read "tear down astrology" of course.

Last week, I went from being:

diplomatic to overcritical
romantic to meticulous
easygoing to diligent
peaceable to analytical
indecisive to a worrier
gullible to overcritical
flirtatious to conservative

Except you didn't.

i've changed completely ;_;

http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/2011/horoscoped/

This just in, Loggins and Messina planning re-record that one song that goes, "Pisces, Virgo rising is a very good sign, strong and kind."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22guuzMsGuA

rrrobyn, thank you for that explanation! I had no idea!

Wondering if Pisces, Taurus and Libra are the signs of most collectors.

ha, i just went outside and had a smoke and thought about this -- like there are several ways of looking at this. I could probably make an annoying facebook meme graphic thing that lists all the signs and what they are collectors of: beautiful things, things that will appreciate in monetary value, people, favors, notches on the bedpost, funny stories.

Or, is it an issue of which signs collect objects for the sake of having a "collection" or some sort of archive?

I mean, yeah, I think Pisces definitely has that quest for knowledge going on, and is likely to collect for that purpose, though because Pisces is fairly changeable, they often have multiple collections of entirely different things as their interests and questions their collections are acquired to inform upon also change. Aquarius is similar in some ways, being about knowing things, but I think they are less diligent in the pursuit and more often about making their own items. I think Libras tend to be completists?

Taurus is the most noteworthy "connoisseur" sign, but Virgo and Capricorn also collect, though maybe with more pragmatic ends, e.g. a Capricorn might have a coin collection as a "nest egg" or a Virgo might collect vintage clothing or jewelry that she/he will wear on a regular basis.

I know Sags, Scorpios, and Cancers that also collect. So good question!

If hoarder works for collector then this Piscean says YO HI

I'm a Taurus and have a storage unit filled with books, records, art supplies, my old FP toys and boxes of vintage knick-knacks, Mexican curios, then there is all the kitchen stuff, appliances, Fiestaware, then shoes, wool clothing, wool skirts, oh and the bulky stuff: 16mm projector with reels, 8mm projector with reels, typewriters (2), Super8 and 8mm film cameras, two boxes of 78's....vintage furniture...Blackwing pencils.

My collections are random. I wouldn't say I collect vinyl, I just buy records I like and want and then group them and sort them on the record shelf, now in storage with records in alphabetical order within genres. I do love old pawn turquoise and Native American jewelry, have several pieces. I buy vintage knick knacks and group. Don't have any cool Raymor ceramics or Made in Japan stamped things. I am no connoisseur...what a poorly executed Taurean I am.

I was just wondering. I don't collect for a collection, everything is so random and incomplete, nor do I archive. At least I don't think I do. I wish I were more focused I think collections serious ones, are really cool and disciplined. I am passionate about a lot of things. It's a good thing I don't ```have a ton of money to blow because I think it would be spent just buying more random things.

Not many Pisceans at my old library job. Mostly Virgo and Leos. My Leo friend has tons of collections from bird nests to really pricey jewelry and rare Mexican clay figurines.

apparently I am "Ophiuchus," thanks thread, but astrology is bunk so why am I even posting

I bet Taurus is very organized and deliberate as a collector.

The characteristics of taurus are solidity, practicality, extreme determination and strength of will - no one will ever drive them, but they will willingly and loyally follow a leader they trust. They are stable, balanced, conservative good, law-abiding citizens and lovers of peace, possessing all the best qualities of the bourgeoisie. As they have a sense of material values and physical possessions, respect for property and a horror of falling into debt, they will do everything in their power to maintain the security of the status quo and be somewhat hostile to change.

Probably all of the signs can have collectors, they just go about it in different ways. I can say as a Libra, they are bad at collecting.

Cancers don't seem to collect at all.

Found this:
http://blogs.houstonpress.com/hairballs/2012/06/hoarding_astrology_predict.php

I'm a Virgo and my collecting is exactly as Sarahell describes, only add records, books, pictures, and people. And memory-laden junk. But by nature, I'm definitely a collector/conservator of things that other people don't want.

I never thought it had much to do w/ astrology so much as a general constitutional orientation.

That's because astrology is a complete load of bollocks.

true, but i would have more fun arguing the merits of astrology to a spluttering dawkins type than trying to convince a 'very spiritual person' (c) of its inefficacy

I would have more fun arguing that I am not a hoarder. I am a ~collector~.

I don't take it that seriously but see it as kind of a gestalt. I enjoy doing the puzzles and reading the articles in this.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d195/richhunt35/HOROSCOPEGUIDEENDTIMES-1.jpg

I think the zodiac signs are fun. I don't really read horoscopes but my friend is HUGE into astrologyzone.com. She sent me my 12 paragraphed horrorscope the other day. Seems the full moon will be wrecking lives this weekend.

If I am a hoarder, I hoard good stuff, not like sardine cans, string or toilet paper tubes.

https://i.ibb.co/NKLGCJL/IMG-20200630-114107.jpg

via Ned's twitter

all otm afaict!!

except Nixon wasn't a Sagittarian

I haven't murdered anyone yet, but yes, definitely the worst of the lot

also, according to Mordy's link upthread, I am a Scorpio in Hebraic terms

I am logical, but I'm fairly certain I'd make for a shit bus driver, so that one is clearly incorrect on any number of fronts.

me neither sarahell, looks like we're gonna have exciting second acts!

xxp cheshvon is the perfect hebrew month for a scorpio since it's also known as mar-cheshvon or bitter cheshvon since it has no festivals in it (or maybe bc it's the month the matriarch Sarah died!)