Mercury in Retrograde

2014 Retrograde Dates

In 2014, Mercury will be retrograde during:

• February 6–28
• June 7–July 2
• October 4–25

 

Friends, I know some of you roll your eyes whenever I bring up Mercury in Retrograde. I roll my eyes at myself as well, hoping that it’s all a bunch of hooey, but the strangest things happen during these periods of time when the messenger planet appears to be going backwards. It never fails that there are electronic woes, communication catastrophes, botched and bollixed events, weather insanity, strange illnesses, people popping up from the past, arguments between strangers. On and on.

I thought I’d make a list of some of the events that have transpired thus far. I was just thinking that my cat, Play’s cancer was diagnosed last October, 2013 and was in the pet hospital recovering during a retrograde for a much longer time than expected. It is said that trips shouldn’t be planned, nor contracts signed. Illnesses and recuperations may take longer than usual to heal and there may be complications.

So, let’s get started.

So far, during this period …

Health woes:

Cats

• Ampersand is still at the vet, almost two months, with a strange eye infection. (Second cat in the house who suddenly became ill with something major). We feared he’d lose his eye but it appears to be healing. Hopefully he’ll be home in days

People

• I get a strange abdominal problem that sends me to the gastroenterologist
• my mother gets the shingles, the only one in her residence. Her aide has to get the vaccine leaving me to provide transit and money to another borough
• my mother’s whole building got the norovirus

 

 

 

Electronics:

• two computers go wacky
• several programs stop running properly
• I spend days on the phone with tech support and issues are still not solved
• the street light in front of my house dies
• a halogen bulb in a fixture dies and then is resurrected
• the Verizon Fi-OS back-up battery in the basement suddenly dies

 

 

 

Weather:

• Endless snow and see-sawing temperatures create ice dams in leaders and gutters trapping water in the walls, creating leaks and pools in and around back sliders (get the pails!) and my bedroom carpet (get the towels!) No end in sight!

 

Communication:

• Verizon bill is still in conflict, despite talks with corporate and escalation departments, robo-calls inform me a bill wasn’t paid when allegedly it was all resolved.

 

Transportation: My Car, etc.

• (I wasn’t driving) my car is sideswiped by a truck, loses mirror, doors bashed.
• Next day, (I wasn’t driving) my car taps a SUV in a parking lot and nothing happened but police were called by the other party and my family member was accused of committing a “hate crime” and scratching the bumper. Other driver files report with wrong date.
• My car is scheduled to be completely repainted and fixed. Fingers crossed it will go OK and nothing else will happen!
• My neighbor works at a food service store and reported that this morning while on line at the drive-thru, one car tapped another’s bumper and a huge argument broke out.  Looks like a world of bumper car madness.

 

 Addendum: At the Vet

Some of the animals haven’t been eating or walking properly with nothing obviously wrong. Weather malaise?

Just plain Mercury?

A look Ampersand and some of his friends who have been treated this week.

 

Ampersand’s cone has been removed this morning. He is being observed and so far he is not scratching his eye. If all goes well, he’s coming home tomorrow.