when magic calls…
Yes: we’re nowhere near Scorpio season. So why have I put a scorpion in this newsletter? Well, friends— I’m writing this under the guidance of my friend Antares, the celestial talisman provided by Genie of Psychic Desert.
I rarely talk about my magical practice, and for good reason: people on the internet do not know what boundaries are, and will insert themselves into magical workings that are none of their business. Either through threat, paranoia, fear— I don’t know. What I do know is when a spirit calls: I usually answer. And I follow suit.
Let me preface this by saying that I have a Libra Mercury: my newsletter posts are often written off the cuff, drafted in my Notes app, and I give them time to marinate before I end up putting it out into the public. What works for me won’t work for you, and I’d take a look at your chart for whatever magical advice. That being said: that part of my practice is still under a lot of refinement, and I’m still an apprentice when it comes to magical workings!
So why am I writing to you on a Mars Day, aided by the guidance of the mighty heart of the scorpion?
Well, to talk about where I’ve been, where I’m going, and what I can offer you: as a friend, compatriot, space holder and community member.
learning through Saturn
I’ll talk about Saturn when He says I’m ready. (We all know Him: Notorious for saying ‘no’ especially if you’re not prepared.) That being said: my Saturn return did mark a shift in my life— a bit dramatically too. After my first pass, I already had my therapists and people on my health team remark that there was “something different about me” or that I appeared more in tune with myself and more comfortable in my own skin.
You know, they weren’t wrong— but I do give Saturn a lot of credit for helping me prepare steadily for His return. In Aquarius, Saturn has already incorporated the lessons learned from His time in Capricorn— He identified boundaries, saw the structures that upheld His beliefs and carefully and painstakingly delivered. In Aquarius, Saturn takes these core morals and learns how to push and test them. Sometimes tradition needs to be up-ended, and airy Aquarius thinks of ways to achieve and discipline itself, but only because it’s mastered the boundaries and rules. Now it can break and play with them. There’s more room for liminality to exist and thrive, as often the world does not contain binary thinking— rather, life is often complex and the liminal is there to highlight these murky limits.
Things often do not appear to be the same was they were before Saturn’s ingress into Aquarius. And that’s okay.
One of the things that has shifted and taken a different shape is the way I practice and relate to others. I spent a long time figuring out what I, as a provider, can do for my clients and others. You can skip this upcoming story if you are already familiar with me, but I urge you to read through it: maybe you’ll see some of yourself in me?
For those of you new to my work and practice: I work as a professional astrologer part-time, and I work in healthcare research full-time during the day. I started my practice in the fall of 2020, after encouragement from some of my mentors and peers, and feeling reinvigorated after attending the Queer Astrology Conference (QAC) 2020. It went well and I made a lot of friends, and had some people within the community even come to me for readings!
However, I got hired at an academic medical centre for my day job in early 2021. Over the last year, I put my practice on pause— mainly so I could recuperate and plan a beautiful reopening— because my FT job was hectic. I would have to commute two hours round trip every day to/from my job, and sometimes more than that. Some days I’d end at 8 pm because I’d have to head to the suburbs to assist in data collection and consenting for research. Now, money doesn’t mean everything, but the lack of compensation was killing my drive to work. Instead of seeing clients, I poured myself into collaborations and potential projects that would see the light of day and help me ease back into part time work as an astrologer.
a call for transparency & where I’m at
I hope no one thinks I’m half-assing either of my jobs. I need both of them for the variety, but also for survival. So, for the absolute standard changes in my practice, here they are:
I’m implementing a change in pricing to reflect my current capacity with offerings. While I believe my most potent work exists in private consultations, I know that I cannot take as many of these as I would like due to my schedule and chronic illnesses.
I am offering a low-cost option (a paid Substack) that will allow me to maintain a sustainable practice, but also give those who may not be ready, or might not be able to afford the increased rate changes I am implementing, a chance to work with me. Joining this monthly subscription-based membership will be a pay-as-you-wish endeavour, with the absolute minimum tier at $7/month, which gets you access to more paid posts and the podcast portion, and more features at $15+/month including a chance to have a free reading with me, and other cool things.
My rates are increasing for private consultations. I do offer a sliding scale, but will now be offering it only to QTBIPOC. Others can contact me for alternative payment plans or discounts depending on their circumstances.
In-person appointments will always be offered at my set rate. Given we are in the middle of a pandemic: in-person appointments are a privilege and we are both risking exposure to COVID. My hourly rate is $175/hr, with a minimum of one hour for *new* individual consultation clients. The exception to this includes synastry/relationship readings, which are a minimum of 90 minutes. For readings with more than 4 people, please inquire about group rates.
For experimental/research/practice sessions, each offering is individualised. Please read the descriptions for each offering when scheduling.
This is all a long-winded way of telling you that my prices are raising due to the cost of maintaining a practice and life in New York City, but also the way that I practice has been looking a little different.
Namely: I’m committing myself to being more of an apprentice in service of my own clients. While I feel like I’m proficient enough in astrological techniques to get through a reading with clients, I’ve become more interested in how a querent inhabits their natal chart, what tools they have in their kit depending on sect, and how they are able to hone their relationships with the spirits around them. I want to be here as a steward to you and your chart, and to guide you through what is going on now and understanding your feelings, so that we can eventually move forward together.
It’s the reason my old practice was tentatively named “YOU ARE HERE” and had emphasis on the present. Astrology is truly a language that can help us deepen our knowledge of ourselves, but I’ve found it most potent with clients when we focus on the here and now, in order to best forecast for the future and to also help reflect on our past actions that brought us to this particular moment.
Astrology makes more sense when you develop a relationship with the planets, and start understanding the ways they show up for you. For a long time, my peers would call me Venusian and I didn’t understand: my Venus firmly sits within the darkest parts of my chart, in detriment. With some exploration, I realised many of my routines and habits, the way I express myself, can all be traced back to my night sect. But I couldn’t have done that without the help of my teachers, and digging in deep.
So, that’s where I am. I’m at a place where I’m still learning what magic means to me, how it appears in my life, and the best ways to integrate it with astrology. I’m still in the apprentice stage and I’m in no shape to offer guidance in regards to magical practices. But I’m learning, so that I can have peer holding spaces and share wisdom. To start exploring it in charts with others.
ONTO THE CONSUMERISM YOU PROBABLY SIGNED UP FOR, THE MAGIC EDITION AGAIN—
I highly recommend Genie of Psychic Desert for astrological talismans. I didn’t even have an Antares practice (the heart of the Scorpion does not play a significant role in my parans or chart, tbh) but I do have a lot of Scorpio placements and a fallen Mars, which this talisman was specifically recommended for. Generally, I wait for talismanic material to call me in. While I’m quick to jump and add to cart, there’s a huge chance I’m not actually buying The Thing unless I divine on it, or get an immediate gut reaction that says “BUY IT.”
My mentor, teacher, consummate professional astrologer & folk witch, and friend Amaya Rourke is currently teaching an Astrological Gardening class through her partner and her school, Arkheina. While this round has already started, I highly recommend checking out any of the other classes or workshops through Arkheina.
The last of my suggestions comes with a story attached: Janet of Good Sigil. Janet makes tarot pendant jewelry, and is working her way through the Major Arcana. As a present to myself, I decided to treat myself to one of her pendants— specifically The Death card. Why The Death? Well, I was going through deep transformative work on myself throughout my Saturn Return (my three direct passes lololol) and an event happened that shook me to my core and I thought this card was indicative of the moment and could act as medicine. I was processing my feelings and the day that I finally let go of all the negativity was the day I picked up The Death pendant after my initial time spent with it (I had only worn it a couple times for the month or so that I had it.) And summarily, found that it slipped off its chain and into the abyss that is my room, or somewhere between. We looked everywhere and couldn’t find it. Even dug through the trash, as we thought it slipped there. Maybe it’s not magical to you, but was definitely a good sign for me.
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