PREVIOUS THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY September 28 2009 to October 4 2009 Monday September 28 Arachnopopeia Had it been crawling over someone in darker clothes, we might never have seen that spider, creeping across the Pope in Prague. It says something about about his deep concentration that he hardly noticed. It also says something about Papal untouchability. Had that been Obama, the Queen, the Dalai Lama or the Chief Rabbi, you might imagine a member of their entourage stepping briefly forward to brush the creature away. And it may say something else. Both the Pontiff and the spider are 'living symbols'. But where the Pope represents faith, a spider symbolises the inescapable web of fate. Tuesday September 29 Hi Jonathan, Janine isn't the only one who has had problems with electrical items recently. My stereo system has just died, my TV is failing, and the keyboard I have just had repaired is going haywire... again! Audrey Dear Jonathan, I am curious. Why you did not mention 'Mercury retrograde' when replying to Janine's letter last week? Renee Dear Audrey and Renee, Mercury's current retrograde phase could well explain all those devices going wrong. I didn't mention it last week because Janine said it happened at the same time each year. Mercury's retrograde phases, though frequent, are not seasonal. Special announcement: My Facebook 'friend' page will close on Thursday. If you have registered as a friend (or made a friend request and are still waiting) I must now ask you to join my 'fan' page. I'm not best pleased about this. My readers ARE friends, not fans! I even tried to ask Facebook to alter their rules... or at least help us run an automatic, seamless migration. But the folk who run this social networking site turn out to be rather remote and er, faceless! Wednesday September 30 Missed Opportunities Hello Jonathan, Some people say a missed opportunity is something you would have been better off without. Others say a missed opportunity is something to regret. What are your thoughts? Sam Dear Sam, There's an old Scottish saying: 'What's for you will not go by you.' A missed opportunity creates a fresh opportunity; to think about whatever caused your delay, doubt or difficulty. It may be that you only missed out because you were busily catching another, more important opportunity. The real risk in mourning a lost chance, is that you lose sight of a chance that still exists! Special announcement: My Facebook 'friend' page will close on Thursday. If you have registered as a friend (or made a friend request and are still waiting) I must now ask you to join my 'fan' page. I'm not best pleased about this. My readers ARE friends, not fans! I even tried to ask Facebook to alter their rules... or at least help us run an automatic, seamless migration. But the folk who run this social networking site turn out to be rather remote and er, faceless! Thursday October 1 Pontification I've had a lot of letters about the piece I wrote on Monday regarding the spider that crawled across the Pope when he was in Prague. Some of them 'added' to what I wanted to say and others seem to be from people who have misunderstood me completely. In a departure from our usual format, I have today decided to publish several of those letters in full, along with my replies. If you'd care to read them, click here. Special announcement: My Facebook 'friend' page will close today. If you have registered as a friend (or made a friend request and are still waiting) I must now ask you to join my 'fan' page. I'm not best pleased about this. My readers ARE friends, not fans! I even tried to ask Facebook to alter their rules... or at least help us run an automatic, seamless migration. But the folk who run this social networking site turn out to be rather remote and er, faceless! Friday October 2 Light Side of the Moon Purists insist that 'proper' mooncakes must contain lotus seed paste and duck egg yolk. These days, though, you can get coffee-flavoured fillings. Nor must your mooncake be cooked. In Shanghai, H�agen Dazs™ do a range of mooncake ice creams. It's traditional in the Far East, to eat such delicacies at the mid-autumn festival. Elsewhere, this weekend's Full Moon is an Elk Call Moon, Singing Moon, Wine or Harvest Moon. And in Australia, where it's neither autumn nor harvest, a debate allegedly rages over whether it should be a Vegemite Moon... or a new-fangled Cheesy Snack Moon! Saturday October 3 Your Month Ahead Some people don't like it when the Sun shines too much. Farmers, for example, only want fair weather when they've got crops to harvest. Generally, they're more worried about whether it will rain enough. It's the same with the cosmic climate. People ask me, 'Are things looking good or bad?' Often, the only honest answer I can give is, 'It depends on what you want from life!' Often, it's easier to want what you're getting than to get what you're wanting. But, in October at least, there will be times for all of us when, if we try, we CAN get what we want. So we'd best be careful what we wish for! Sunday October 4 By Jupiter Back to Index   Click here for Jonathan Cainer's Daily Zodiac Forecasts