And this little piggy went to school?

It is an auspicious Yin Wood Pig day which aligns with the monthly Sheep to make a strong wood element influence. This wood qi signifies expansion, networking and strategy and these aspects feature prominently in today's Chinese almanac recommendations. They include taking a course, visiting friends, setting your goals, having an astrology reading, moving home, opening a business and trading, refurbishing a home or office, laying foundations, fixing a roof, having a haircut, buying or setting direction for your bed or oven and hunting. It advises against marriage or burial duties.

A Wood Pig when viewed in isolation can be the strongest but not necessarily the most confident of the five types in Chinese astrology. They are also extremely resourceful when they need to be. To see how you own sign fares under its influence see our dedicated Wood Pig web page.

Mercury will begin its retrograde tomorrow and we will return on Tuesday.

Until then, enjoy every moment of NOW.

Finn & Slim Shooey

Barking dog never bites

Today's title refers to a Flemish saying and means a lot of angry words, but no action. As an imbalance of the wood element denotes anger and today's Dog clashes with the annual Dragon, you can see why we chose it.

Chinese astrology can be used to predict health problems and this clash can mean damaging feet, legs, chest or shoulders, so take it easy with whatever you do. So says the Chinese almanac which advises the only suitable activities today are quiet contemplation and sweeping up or putting your house in order. It specifically advises against laying foundations or opening a warehouse. Now it’s a good job I didn’t liken Yang Wood to a stick, as there would be nowhere to bury it.

Wood Dog can be the most affluent of the five different types of Dog in Chinese astrology. To see how you own sign fares under its influence see our dedicated Wood Dog web page. We will return tomorrow on a Wood Pig day, or should that be a Truffle Hunter?

If you have enjoyed today’s blog, please feel free to send it onto a friend or anyone you think may benefit from a daily dose of Chinese astrology or feng shui.

Until tomorrow, enjoy every moment of NOW.

Finn & Slim Shooey

Guardian at the gateway to the stars

You may well ask what today's title has to do with it being an Earth Dragon day in a Water Dragon year. Well, the Dragon represents the starting point for many rings in the Chinese luo pan or compass; a device for calibrating energy according to time and space principles. As time and space is associated with stars, how could we choose any other title?

Seriously though, Dragon is a harbinger of new cycles and already this year our scientists believe they have found the “God” particle. As Dragon really comes into its own in the second half of the year, what wonders await us then? Whatever lies ahead, Dragon being the “guardian at the gate” you can see why this mythical beast is held in such high esteem in Chinese culture.

This Double Dragon time being most auspicious, you could also consider today as a gateway to happiness as most activities are lucky. The Chinese almanac is smiling for the second time this week and recommends meditation or honouring ancestors, although do not burn the spirit tablet, asking for blessings, taking a course, visiting friends, travelling, getting engaged, exchanging gifts, buying or making clothes, seeing a doctor or choosing a treatment, emigrating, opening a business and trading, refurbishing a home or office, laying foundations, fixing a roof, drilling a well or planting seeds.

To see how your personal astrology will fare under these influences, please see our dedicated Earth Dragon web page. As we are teaching this weekend we will return next Wednesday, so until then, enjoy every moment of NOW.

Finn & Slim Shooey

Take stock as Rabbits rise

It’s a Fire Rabbit day, where fire represents the height of growth and in five element theory, the Rabbit strengthens this phenomenon. In this pinnacle position you would expect quite a busy day ahead, yet the Chinese almanac advises only quiet contemplation.

It is a time of taking stock and gathering your energy for busy times ahead. This is borne out by the Twelve Mansions which lists today as a Gather day. From the Twenty Eight Lunar Mansions we also get Well, an indication of stored and storing resources. Why so? Well, tomorrow is a Dragon day in a Dragon year and Saturday sees the start of a new month and solar term called Little Heat, so let’s keep cool while we can.

To see how your personal astrology will fare under these influences, please see our dedicated Fire Rabbit web page. We will return tomorrow with an Earth Dragon and until then, enjoy every moment of NOW, only don’t work so hard at it.

Finn & Slim Shooey

Celebrate as the Sky Tiger smiles

It’s a Fire Tiger day which seems apt in a couple of ways. Firstly, the fire element is associated with the sky and represents action. Secondly, as it’s the fourth of July there will be plenty of activity from celebratory fireworks in the atmosphere over our American cousins.

There’s a lot for us all to smile about today, as Tiger aligns with the monthly Horse sign and makes this a very auspicious day. I have entitled it the Sky Tiger smiles, because there is a bright red horseshoe shape around today's recommendations in the Chinese almanac. This denotes a celebration and should make most activities lucky especially taking a course, visiting friends, travelling, getting engaged, getting married, having an astrology reading, buying or making clothes, seeing a doctor or choosing a treatment, opening a business and trading, refurbishing a home or office, laying foundations, fixing a roof, planting seeds and gardening, hunting or setting up a tombstone.

To see how your personal astrology will fare under these influences, please see our dedicated Fire Tiger web page. We will return tomorrow on a Fire Rabbit day and until then enjoy every moment of NOW!

Finn & Slim Shooey

We return as the Cow jumped over the moon. Is it all downhill from here?

Wow, it’s been such a while since we last wrote a blog, that I am desperately trying to remember how we write these things. Let me see, oh yeah, we look at all of the different feng shui and Chinese astrology influences occurring today and then think of the most quirky and informative title to sum them up. I wonder what happened today then?

Due to some very large international projects and extremely tight deadlines taking up all our time, I think it’s now getting on for a couple of months since we last wrote a blog! You may know exactly how long it’s been if you have missed our translations of daily advice from the Chinese book of nature. As you know, they help you decide on the best activities for the day ahead and vary from meditation and shopping, to beauty, health and business dealings.

Here are today's recommendations and they consist of meditation or honouring ancestors, funeral duties, having a haircut, sweeping the house, buying or making clothes, filling cracks in walls or refurbishing a kitchen, laying foundations and opening a watercourse (modern equivalent of installing a water feature). It advises against buying a wedding dress or planting seeds. Tomorrow is a much more interesting day and we will give you the full spectrum of dos and don’ts to help you be in the right place at the right time. Now back to today!

It is a Wood Ox day with a full moon tonight and, as ox is another name for cow, you can see how we derived today's title. However, the most significant happening recently was that yesterday was the start of the first sexagesimal cycle since the summer solstice. Although a controversial point amongst Chinese astrologers and feng shui master consultants, all can now agree that the Yin half of the year is truly underway. As Yin refers to downward energy, you can see the final part of our title at work.

To see how your personal astrology will fare under these influences, please see our dedicated Wood Ox web page. We will return tomorrow and until then enjoy every moment of NOW!

Finn & Slim Shooey