Welcome to Ghost of a Podcast. I'm your host, Jessica Lanyadoo. I'm an astrologer, psychic medium, and animal communicator, and I'm going to give you your weekly horoscope and no-bullshit mystical advice for living your very best life.

Welcome back to Ghost of a Podcast. This week, I am really happy to tell you that it's trines, trines, trines and a sextile. There's a lot of really supportive energy at play in the stars. I'm going to break it down for you, but I want to just very briefly make sure that you're checking in with the world⁠—I'm talking about the news⁠—because I know this is a woo podcast. We get woo. It's astrology. But there is so much happening in the world, and in particular in this country, in the United States, where I know a lot of you live.

In 2024 alone, 352 anti-Trans bills have been introduced into this country in 37 states⁠—352 bills, and we're not even done with the first month of the year. Texas has seized part of the U.S.-Mexico border and actually militarily blocked federal Border Patrol agents. That is bananas. That's like civil war shit. And in this presidential election year, despite Joe Biden funding genocide and masses of people fighting against it, they're doubling down on their candidate. They're doubling down on pushing Joe Biden forward. And there is a great deal of resistance to that from leftists and even middle-of-the-road democrats.

The snow globe has been shaken up really aggressively, and there are so many disappointments. There are so many things to be frightened of. Things are happening all around us, and I think it's really important to be aware. And I think it's really hard to be aware, but I wanted to share with you something that works for me, which is, when I see scary things and when I see heartbreaking things and when I see just straight-up fucking bad things, I strive to make space for my emotions, for my fear and my grief and whatever else may come up. But then I allow those feelings to fuel and motivate my determination for being a force for good, being a force for positive change.

I allow it to fuel my determination, and I hope it does for you, too, because as we know, hope is a practice. Being hopeful from an idealistic standpoint where we're not in any way connected to the 3D material reality that we all share, whether we like it or not⁠—that doesn't have good roots to it. It doesn't have chops to it. We all do need to be engaged with the world right now, and that, for better or worse, requires that we understand what's happening in the world right now.

This is not a news podcast, but as a spiritual person and a person of conscience, I do have a really hard time not talking about the news every week because that's what's happening in the world. And when we apply our spirit, our conscience, our heart, to participating in the world in a way that brings about progress or at least attempts to bring about progress, then we're not just doing it for ourselves; we're doing it for the people to the left of us and the people to the right of us. We're doing it for the generations after us, and that's really important. So I wanted to share that with you because, honestly, it's just fucking in my head and in my heart. But, that all said, let's get astrological.

Okay. This week, we are looking at the transits occurring from January 28th through February 3rd of 2024. We're finally shifting into February. I guess we're really doing this 2024 thing. Now, you may remember last week that on the 27th, Mercury and Mars met⁠—they conjoined⁠—in Capricorn. Now, we're going to be feeling the effects of that transit until about February 5th. So it's not going to be as strong as it was on the 27th. It's going to get weaker and weaker closer to the 5th, but the effects of that transit will remain with us.

And just a quick refresher, Mercury conjunction to Mars is a challenging transit. It kind of gives a defensive flavor to the way you think, the way you communicate, and even the way you listen. And so there can be a way that you take things really personally at this time; you respond a little sharper than you intended or just more quickly than is helpful. You may find yourself as acting out a little. And then, of course, it is equally possible that you are a perfect angel and you would never do any of those things, but other people are affected by this astrology, and they may do all of these things.

And so, at that point, what happens is you have a call to make about whether or not you're going to engage with people who are being aggro and what way in which to engage. This transit can coincide with, again, anger and frustration building up in our thinking. So the anger and frustration is Mars, and the thinking is Mercury. So a good thing to do is talk to your dear diary. Talk to your shrink. Talk to people who have the bandwidth to be supportive and to listen to whatever it is that's going on with you. But you want to keep in mind that we're all going through this transit together, and so you should ask before you dump your shit upon your bestie's plate.

The last thing I'll say is pick your battles with intention. I am not against having fights or arguments. I think that they can be really helpful. I think that they're often necessary. However, don't waste your energy on bad-faith arguments. And if you're the one who's kind of pulling or picking bad-faith arguments, maybe rein your shit in. And as I probably said last week, if you're going to fight, make sure you're not just fighting against, but you're fighting for something or someone⁠—not just against. It's just much more of a sustainable way of being, and it's a lot more productive.

Okay. Let me tell you about the first exact transits happening this week. We have two exact transits on the 28th, and both of the transits are happening from planets in Capricorn to planets in Taurus. So we have nice, earthy trines occurring, okay? On the 28th, we've got a Mercury trine to Uranus exact at 1:07 p.m. Pacific Time, with Mercury at 19 degrees and 5 minutes of Cap and Uranus at the same degrees of Taurus.

A little later in the afternoon, at 5:02 p.m. Pacific Time, we've got Venus at 7 degrees of Capricorn⁠—6 degrees and 59 minutes if you want to be exact⁠—and then Jupiter at the exact same degrees of Taurus. So we have this earthy, grounded, practical, and timely set of trines from very social planets, Mercury and Venus, to Uranus and Jupiter, two planets associated with freedom, autonomy, and two planets that like things to move quickly. Even though they're both in Taurus, both Jupiter and Uranus really can be quite restless and want things to happen quickly.

Mercury trine to Uranus is really good for expanding your mind. Now, what this could look like is any number of things. It could look like having a conversation that actually helps you to perceive things from a new perspective, whether that happens through having a shift in your actual perspective, so a broadening of your thinking, or if you just learn something new, something you didn't already know. This transit is really good for stimulating your thinking so that you can be more innovative, more creative, and maybe go out on a limb and not just in the direction of convention. Everyone in your circle may have a certain perspective and talk about things in a particular way, but you may learn something that changes your mind and that exposes you to new ways of thinking. Mercury trine to Uranus is great for that.

Another thing that this transit is great for is it can bring about good news. And what is good? It can open doors and open potential. What I really like about Uranus and Jupiter is that they can align us with possibility, even when we are more inclined to perceive things from a perspective of what's probable. So possibility, hope, innovation⁠—Uranus, Jupiter, they're both really good for that, especially Uranus. But they're really good for that.

If there are problems that you've been trying to fix and you can't⁠—you haven't been able to figure out why⁠—if there's something new you've been trying to start or plans you've been kind of blocked around making, this transit is your BFF. It's really helpful for all of that stuff. And because it is a trine, you may get support. And that support may come through being able to actually apply something that you've learned⁠—so it's an internal support; you're able to resource yourself. It may be that a regular search on DuckDuckGo or whatever yields the exact thing you were looking for quickly. It might be something that simple, or it may be that you get support through other people or your circumstances. But be open to it. You want to be open to it.

Another thing that's of value to be open to with this transit is le woo. Uranus governs astrology, and it can be that you have some sort of intuitive flash. Uranus and Jupiter are both associated with intuitive flashes, just your sense of knowing being stimulated. So listen to your inner guidance. Pay attention to synchronicities because these transits can really stimulate that stuff. And the more energy we give to these positive transits, the more we can make use of them. And⁠—I don't know⁠—sounds pretty good to me. Right?

Now, the other transit that is exact on this day is the Venus trine to Jupiter, which is why I keep on referencing Jupiter in addition to Uranus. Venus trine to Jupiter is just a fucking lovely transit. It is lovely because Jupiter and Venus are the two planets most concerned with feeling good. And when they make this lovely transit of a trine⁠—that's 120 degrees apart⁠—you tend to feel good. Venus trine to Jupiter⁠—in general, the first thing we think of is it's good for flirting. It's good for dating. It's good for feeling cute and working with and enjoying working with what you've got.

Venus trine to Jupiter is a great time for socializing in general. It tends to make you and the people around you more open, more relaxed, more generous, more resilient⁠—just a little more down, basically. And so, if you've been trying to get out there, this is a great transit. If you feel really like, "I don't want to really leave the house or whatever," this is a good time to put yourself out there.

This transit is also just good for the arts. So, whether that means you've been trying to find a new way to do something with your hair or with your clothes, or you're painting or doing rug art⁠—whatever it is that you're doing creatively, this transit's going to help. So will the other one. So will the Mercury trine to Uranus. These are really supportive transits for allowing the expansive flow that Jupiter can bring to Venus to affect your life.

Now, the final thing I'll say about this transit is Venus is related to your personal finances. So, generally, the purchases that we make during a Venus trine to Jupiter reflect what we value and what we need. So that's something to pay attention to, to make sure that the purchases you're making reflect your values and are of good value to you. So it's just, again, good things to keep in your mind over the course of this transit.

Venus trine to Jupiter can help us to develop a more expansive and resilient relationship to our values. And again, we're not just talking about our values theoretically. We're talking about earth signs here, so how we embody and act on our values.

16-year⁠-old activist Mari Copeny, who you may know as Little Miss Flint, has been on the front lines to ensure her community has access to clean, safe water since she was only eight years old. When the Flint water crisis began, Mari decided to use her voice to help her community and to fight for the kids in Flint. Her work to ensure clean water for kids has extended beyond Flint to other communities impacted by water crises like Newark, Pittsburgh, and New York City. Mari is partnering with a socially responsible water filtration company to bring state-of-the-art water filters to the communities that are impacted by poor water quality here in the United States, while also to keep single-use plastic bottles out of landfills. To support her new project to bring filtered water into the homes that need it most, good to gofundme.com/littlemissflintcleanwaterfund, and make your donation today. Find the link in the description of this episode.

In honor of Valentine's Day and Black History Month, February is Black Love Month on Ghost of a Podcast. If you're Black and you've got questions about love of any kind—I'm talking self-love, romantic, love for your job, family, the place you live, whatever it may be⁠—then send me your question through the contact form over at Ghost of a Podcast today. The midweek episodes all month long will feature selected Black love questions. Just make sure to use the hashtag #BlackLove in your question.

That brings us to the 29th. On the 29th, we have an exact trine between Mars and Uranus at 3:41 p.m. Pacific Time. This is happening at 19 degrees and 5 minutes because Uranus has not budged since yesterday. So you may note that Mars and Mercury are still very, very close to each other. So Mars trine to Uranus is another really lovely transit. And again, I want to bring your attention to Mars is in Cap; Uranus is in Taurus. So we're talking about some earthy energy.

Mars is another very social planet. When we are looking at Mars, it governs lots of things, including but not limited to sex and flirting. Mars governs the chemistry that we feel with other people. And so this is a great time for putting yourself out there, especially if you have a playful and open-minded attitude towards connecting with other people. There's a lot of juj in the air under this Mars trine to Uranus overlapping with Venus trine to Jupiter. So, again, first dates⁠—very well starred at this part of the week. I mean, really all week, actually. First dates are well starred.

Mars trine to Uranus, much like Venus trine to Jupiter, can spark fun dynamics, and in particular romantic and sexy dynamics, with people. It doesn't necessarily guarantee any kind of long-term sustainability, even though this is happening in earth signs. But sometimes a person just needs a little fun or a little distraction. The astrology of this week is supporting that.

The other thing that's really good with Mars trine to Uranus is getting engaged with your body. So that might mean actually following through with your "new year, new you" kind of fitness goals, or it might simply mean taking a walk and actually enjoying the walk, like listening to a song and then actually dancing to that song and really having fun with it. Mars trine Uranus has us having fun with our bodies. Awesome, right? Super awesome.

And I gotta say, if you've been feeling burned out, if you have been feeling really taxed, whether it's because of personal issues or just hurt with what's happening in the world, you are not serving yourself or anyone else by making yourself miserable and keeping yourself that way. Infusing joy and play into your daily life can really help you to sustain the hard work that can be life.

And so I want to invite you to play this week. I want to invite you to experiment this week and to bring your body into the mix, whatever that means for your physical ability and your physical nature, because sometimes we need to use the body to shake off stress. And when we abandon the body or we don't return frequently and caringly enough to the body, it doesn't only hurt the body; it also makes it harder for us to psychologically and emotionally process through the things that are happening in our lives. So Mars trine to Uranus is exceptionally helpful for all of that.

Luckily, this transit helps us to be more daring, to put ourselves out there, to try new things, much like the Mercury trine to Uranus. This transit makes us more innovative, more willing to explore and experiment. So this goes for basically all things. If there is a project that you have been wanting to start, tap into this energy. Use this energy. It will not only help you, but this is a transit that is affecting everyone, so it will help your collaborators. It'll help the people that you need to connect with, and it'll make it easier for you to engage with others because you're going to be enthusiastic, they're going to be enthusiastic, and that energy generates its own energy, which can be really supportive and really enlivening. I guess that's the thing about Uranus, is it is an enlivening planet when it doesn't zing our nervous systems too much. And whenever we're dealing with sextiles or trines to Uranus, as we are now, we don't tend to be overstimulated. We tend to be just the right amount of stimulated. So that's pretty cool.

And that, my dears, brings us to the last transit of the week. We have another lovely transit, I'm happy to say. Mercury is forming a sextile to Neptune, with Mercury at 25 degrees and 49 minutes of Capricorn sextiling Neptune at the same exact degrees of Pisces. This one is exact at 2:55 a.m. Pacific Time. Now, Mercury sextile to Neptune is a lovely transit. Having a sextile between Capricorn and Pisces is really inspiring. It is a lovely connection of energies, which can promote a grounded inspiration. Right? Very, very helpful.

And this particular transit is really good for empathy, for infusing empathy and grace into your thinking and into the way that you communicate with others and even into how you listen to other people. If you are engaged in any kind of spiritual study, this is a really powerful time for doing that. And I would say Mercury sextile to Neptune is a powerful time for engaging with that content, but all of the transits we're going through are equally supportive for that⁠—or maybe not equally, but very similarly supportive for that.

And so this is just really valuable energy to tap into. And I want to say it's not like we get a whole lot of these weeks where it's just like positive transit after positive transit after positive transit. The Universe is organizing itself in such a way to say, "Hey. Tap in. Resource yourself." So I really, again, want to encourage you to do it.

And I will just pull back from talking about this transit for a moment to say, in general, from my perspective, the general rule is when we have really supportive transits occurring and things feel worse, it's generally because of one of two things. Now, one, this podcast⁠—I'm talking about the global transits that are affecting us all. I'm talking about the astrological weather report. Now, you have transits happening in your own personal birth chart that will override this stuff at times and in various different ways. So you may be hearing about all these amazing transits and being like, "Why are my days so hard?" To that, I would say look to your birth chart.

But the other thing is, when we are going through really lovely transits like sextiles and trines and things get worse, it is because sextiles and trines bring us a benefic, a.k.a. easy flow, of energy. What's in place is working. A lot of times, a lot of us have things in place in our thinking, in our relationships, in our habits, etc., that are self-destructive or just straight-up destructive, that don't work, that are unhealthy, that are contributing to a rut or whatever the hell it is.

And so, if you don't have any major transits that are happening that are messing with things and you're having a particularly rough time this week, I would encourage you to look at what you have in place in your thinking, in your attitudes, in your relationships, in your habits⁠—you get the picture⁠—that maybe is working well, but the fact that it's working well is working against you. So an example of that is getting accolades or maybe a promotion at a job that you fucking hate. On one hand, it's nice to get accolades. It's nice to get a promotion. But on the other hand, it just digs the hole deeper in the direction that you do not want to be sinking.

So this is something to consider this week, is if things really are feeling off for you, can it be pointing you towards what's flowing but not in the direction you would want? And how can you use your agency and all of the clarity and innovation that the astrology of this week brings to these situations so that you can find a different way? Or maybe you can't find a different way, but you can find some insights or some revelations that help you to get clearer. We don't have to have everything fixed or at 100 percent all the time. We want to be pointed in the right direction and having some kind of momentum. That's the ideal. We can't always have perfect momentum towards the finish line. That's not life. So for whatever that's worth.

Okay. Back to Mercury sextile to Neptune. This is a great transit for creative work just in general⁠—spiritually creative, artistically creative. We often need to work creatively in regards to business or figuring out how to organize the plates in the cupboard. This is just a great time for bringing creativity into your thinking because Mercury sextile to Neptune helps us to be less attached⁠—attached to the way things "should" be, the way they have been.

And for that same reason, it's a great transit for having conversations with people, for really listening to what they're saying, not just the words, but hearing what they're trying to tell you. It is a great transit for sharing of yourself, being honest with other people, really, again, showing up in more creative ways with less attachment to the way things should look. Because of this, it's a great transit for socializing, connecting with others, communicating with others, having even tricky conversations because they're more likely to go well during this transit.

And finally, I will say that this transit, like every other one that's happening this week, is good for your intuition. So listen to it. And what that, in part, means is do the things that you know you need to do in order to be in a position to receive your guidance, to hear that quiet voice inside of you.

And that, my dears, is your horoscope for January 28th through February 3rd of 2024. If you want to be tracking the transits alongside me, you can check out my astrologer's pro tool, Astrology for Days. It's a subscription that you can get over at astrologyfordays.com. And I want to invite you to join me over on Patreon. We have been going deep into the Midheaven and the tenth house in the past week, and I've been able to answer lots of questions that are really just great questions. So we've been having a really great ongoing conversation over there. And if you're into astrology, you may just be into that. So join me over on patreon.com/jessicalanyadoo. The link is always in the episode description.

And if you get value from this podcast, please do hit the Subscribe or Follow button wherever you listen to your podcasts, because it does really help independent broadcasters like this old girl over here. So I thank you in advance and very, very much.

All right. I hope you have a great week with these supportive transits, and I will talk to you in just a couple of days in the midweek episode. Take good care. Buh-bye.