Tag: Signs

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Astrology Fun Stuff

Free Will Astrology: Week of 12/15/22

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries painter Vincent van Gogh was renowned for translating his sublime and unruly passions into colors and shapes on canvas. It was a demanding task. He careened between torment and ecstasy. “I put my heart and soul into my work,” he said, “and I have lost my mind in the process.” That’s sad! But I have good news for you, Aries. In the coming months, you will have the potential to reach unprecedented new depths of zest as you put your heart and soul into your work and play. And hallelujah, you won’t lose your mind in the process! In fact, I suspect you will become more mentally healthy than you’ve been in a long time.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): “The soul is silent,” writes Taurus poet Louise Glück. “If it speaks at all, it speaks in dreams.” I don’t agree with her in general, and I especially don’t agree with her in regard to your life in the coming weeks. I believe your soul will be singing, telling jokes, whispering in the dark, and flinging out unexpected observations. Your soul will be extra alive and alert and awake, tempting you to dance in the grocery store and fling out random praise and fantasize about having your own podcast. Don’t underestimate how vivacious your soul might be, Taurus. Give it permission to be as fun and funny as it yearns to be.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): The coming weeks will be an excellent time to expand your understanding about the nature of stress. Here are three study aids: 1. High stress levels are not healthy for your mind and body, but low to moderate stress can be good for you. 2. Low to moderate stress is even better for you if it involves dilemmas that you can ultimately solve. 3. There is a thing called “eustress,” which means beneficial stress. It arises from a challenge that evokes your vigor, resilience, and willpower. As you deal with it, you feel hopeful and hardy. It’s meaningful and interesting. I bring these ideas to your attention, dear Gemini, because you are primed to enjoy a rousing upgrade in your relationship with stress.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Long before he launched his illustrious career, Cancerian inventor Buckminster was accepted to enroll at Harvard University. Studying at such a prestigious educational institution was a high honor and set him up for a bright future. Alas, he was expelled for partying too hard. Soon he was working at odd jobs. His fortunes dwindled, and he grew depressed. But at age 32, he had a pivotal mystical experience. He seemed to be immersed in a globe of white light hovering above the ground. A disembodied voice spoke, telling him he “belonged to the universe” and that he would fulfill his life purpose if he applied himself to serving “the highest advantage of others.” How would you like a Buckminster Fuller-style intervention, Cancerian? It’s available if you want it and ask for it.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Leo-born Judith Love Cohen was an electrical engineer who worked on NASA’s Apollo Space Program. She was also the mother of the famous actor Jack Black. When she was nine months pregnant with Jack, on the day she went into labor, she performed a heroic service. On their way to the moon, the three astronauts aboard the Apollo 13 spacecraft had encountered a major systems failure. In the midst of her birth process, Judith Love Cohen carried out advanced troubleshooting that helped save their lives and bring their vehicle safely back to Earth. I don’t expect you to achieve such a monumental feat in the coming days, Leo. But I suspect you will be extra intrepid and even epic in your efforts. And your ability to magically multitask will be at a peak.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): When you’re at the height of your powers, you provide the people in your life with high-quality help and support. And I believe you could perform this role even stronger in 2023. Here are some of the best benefits you can offer: 1. Assist your allies in extracting bright ideas from confusing mishmashes. 2. Help them cull fertile seeds from decaying dross. 3. As they wander through messy abysses, aid them in finding where the redemption is. 4. Cheer on their successes with wit and charm.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): A blogger named Daydreamydyke explains the art of bestowing soulful gifts. Don’t give people you care for generic consumer goods, she tells us. Instead, say to them, “I picked up this cool rock I found on the ground that reminded me of you,” or “I bought you this necklace for 50 cents at a yard sale because I thought you’d like it,” or “I’ve had this odd little treasure since childhood, but I feel like it could be of use to you or give you comfort, so I want you to have it.” That’s the spirit I hope you will adopt during the holiday season, Libra — as well as for all of 2023, which will be the year you could become a virtuoso gift-giver.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In 1957, engineers Alfred Fielding and Marc Chavannes invented three-dimensional plastic wallpaper. No one bought the stuff, though. A few years later, they rebranded it as Bubble Wrap and marketed it as material to protect packages during shipment. Success! Its new use has been popular ever since. I suspect you are in a phase comparable to the time between when their plastic wallpaper flopped and before they dreamed up Bubble Wrap. Have faith in the possibility of there being a Second Act, Scorpio. Be alert for new applications of possibilities that didn’t quite make a splash the first time around.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Better than most, you have a rich potential to attune yourself to the cyclical patterns of life. It’s your birthright to become skilled at discerning natural rhythms at work in the human comedy. Even more fortunately, Capricorn, you can be deeply comforted by this awareness. Educated by it. Motivated by it. I hope that in 2023, you will develop your capacity to the next level. The cosmic flow will be on your side as you strive to feel the cosmic flow — and place yourself in closer and closer alignment with it.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Anne, a character in a book by L. M. Montgomery, says she prefers the word “dusk” over “twilight” because it sounds so “velvety and shadowy.” She continues, “In daylight, I belong to the world … in the night to sleep and eternity. But in the dusk, I’m free from both and belong only to myself.” According to my astrological assessment, you Aquarians will go through a dusk-like phase in the coming weeks: a time when you will belong solely to yourself and any other creature you choose to join you in your velvety, shadowy emancipation.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): My Piscean friend Venus told me, “We Pisceans feel everything very intensely, but alas, we do not possess the survival skills of a Scorpio or the enough-is-enough, self-protective mechanism of the Cancerians. We are the water sign most susceptible to being engulfed and flooded and overwhelmed.” I think Venus is somewhat correct in her assessment. But I also believe you Fishes have a potent asset that you may not fully appreciate or call on enough. Your ability to tune into the very deepest levels of emotion potentially provides you with access to a divine power source beyond your personality. If you allow it to give you all of its gifts, it will keep you shielded and safe and supported.

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Astrology Fun Stuff

Free Will Astrology: Week of 12/8/22

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky wrote, “To be free, you simply have to be so, without asking permission. You must have your own hypothesis about what you are called to do, and follow it, not giving in to circumstances or complying with them. But that sort of freedom demands powerful inner resources, a high degree of self-awareness, and a consciousness of your responsibility to yourself and therefore to other people.” That last element is where some freedom-seekers falter. They neglect their obligation to care for and serve their fellow humans. I want to make sure you don’t do that, Aries, as you launch a new phase of your liberation process. Authentic freedom is conscientious.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): The term “neurodiversity” refers to the fact that the human brain functions in a wide variety of ways. There are not just a few versions of mental health and learning styles that are better than all the others. Taurus musician David Byrne believes he is neurodiverse because he is on the autism spectrum. That’s an advantage, he feels, giving him the power to focus with extra intensity on his creative pursuits. I consider myself neurodiverse because my life in the imaginal realm is just as important to me as my life in the material world. I suspect that most of us are neurodiverse in some sense — deviating from “normal” mental functioning. What about you, Taurus? The coming months will be an excellent time to explore and celebrate your own neurodiversity.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Poet Jane Hirshfield says that Zen Buddhism is built on three principles: 1. Everything changes. 2. Everything is connected. 3. Pay attention. Even if you are not a Zen practitioner, Gemini, I hope you will focus on the last two precepts in the coming weeks. If I had to summarize the formula that will bring you the most interesting experiences and feelings, it would be, “Pay attention to how everything is connected.” I hope you will intensify your intention to see how all the apparent fragments are interwoven. Here’s my secret agenda: I think it will help you register the truth that your life has a higher purpose than you’re usually aware of — and that the whole world is conspiring to help you fulfill that purpose.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Author Flannery O’Connor wrote, “You have to cherish the world at the same time that you struggle to endure it.” I will add a further thought: “You have to cherish the world at the same time that you struggle to endure it and strive to transform it into a better place.” Let’s make this one of your inspirational meditations in the coming months, Cancerian. I suspect you will have more power than usual to transform the world into a better place. Get started! (PS: Doing so will enhance your ability to endure and cherish.)

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Many sports journalists will tell you that while they may root for their favorite teams, they also “root for the story.” They want a compelling tale to tell. They yearn for dramatic plot twists that reveal entertaining details about interesting characters performing unique feats. That’s how I’m going to be in the coming months, Leo, at least in relation to you. I hope to see you engaged in epic sagas, creating yourself with verve as you weave your way through fun challenges and intriguing adventures. I predict my hope will be realized.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Venus is too hot and dry for humans to live on. But if travelers from Earth could figure out a way to feel comfortable there, they would enjoy a marvelous perk. The planet rotates very slowly. One complete day and night lasts for 243 Earth days and nights. That means you and a special friend could take a romantic stroll toward the sunset for as long as you wanted, and never see the sun go down. I invite you to dream up equally lyrical adventures in togetherness here on Earth during the coming months, Virgo. Your intimate alliances will thrive as you get imaginative and creative about nurturing togetherness.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): As far as I’m concerned, Libran Buddhist monk and author Thích Nhất Hạnh was one of the finest humans who ever lived. “Where do you seek the spiritual?” he asked. His answer: “You seek the spiritual in every ordinary thing that you do every day. Sweeping the floor, watering the vegetables, and washing the dishes become sacred if mindfulness is there.” In the coming weeks, Libra, you will have exceptional power to live like this: to regard every event, however mundane or routine, as an opportunity to express your soulful love and gratitude for the privilege of being alive. Act as if the whole world is your precious sanctuary.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): A reader named Elisa Jean tells me, “We Scorpio allies admire how Scorpios can be so solicitous and welcoming: the best party hosts. They know how to foster social situations that bring out the best in everyone and provide convivial entertainment. Yet Scorpios also know everyone’s secrets. They are connoisseurs of the skeletons in the closets. So they have the power to spawn discordant commotions and wreak havoc on people’s reputations. But they rarely do. Instead, they keep the secrets. They use their covert knowledge to weave deep connections.” Everything Elisa Jean described will be your specialties in the coming weeks, Scorpio.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Of all the signs in the zodiac, you Sagittarians are least likely to stay in one location for extended periods. Many of you enjoy the need to move around from place to place. Doing so may be crucial in satisfying your quest for ever-fresh knowledge and stimulation. You understand that it’s risky to get too fixed in your habits and too dogmatic in your beliefs. So you feel an imperative to keep disrupting routines before they become deadening. When you are successful in this endeavor, it’s often due to a special talent you have: your capacity for creating an inner sense of home that enables you to feel stable and grounded as you ramble free. I believe this superpower will be extra strong during the coming months.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Capricorn author Edgar Allan Poe made this mysterious statement: “We can, at any time, double the true beauty of an actual landscape by half closing our eyes as we look at it.” What did he mean? He was referring to how crucial it is to see life “through the veil of the soul.” Merely using our physical vision gives us only half the story. To be receptive to the full glory of the world, our deepest self must also participate in the vision. Of course, this is always true. But it’s even more extra especially true than usual for you right now.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Aquarian theologian Henri Nouwen wrote, “I have discovered that the gifts of life are often hidden in the places that hurt most.” Yikes! Really? I don’t like that idea. But I will say this: If Nouwen’s theory has a grain of truth, you will capitalize on that fact in the coming weeks. Amazingly enough, a wound or pain you experienced in the past could reveal a redemptive possibility that inspires and heals you.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Piscean novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen says it’s wise to talk to yourself. No other conversational partner is more fascinating. No one else listens as well. I offer you his advice in the hope of encouraging you to upgrade the intensity and frequency of your dialogs with yourself. It’s an excellent astrological time to go deeper with the questions you pose and to be braver in formulating your responses. Make the coming weeks be the time when you find out much more about what you truly think and feel.

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Fly On The Wall Blog Opinion

Salad Bars Are For Closers

Behind every sign put up in a restaurant, there is bound to be a story.

At Elliott’s on Second in Downtown Memphis, signs warn of disasters and doom due to salad bar abuses. We believe there must have been an epic salad bar heist in which someone spilled a drink as a diversion while his or her accomplice stole a bunch of salad, or, perhaps worse, made a second trip to the salad bar.

Sour Cream Is Not For Soup!

  • Sour Cream Is Not For Soup!

Let’s just hope these signs (with red highlights!) prevent future disasters of this nature so the honest patrons of Elliott’s can enjoy the appropriate amount of fixin’s on their “bake potato’s”.

We said Please.

  • We said “Please”.
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Fly On The Wall Blog Opinion

Gas Prices are Beastly

666.9, Regular Unleaded

  • 666.9, Regular Unleaded

It’s not an especially well kept secret that Lucifer, the bright, shining angel of the pit, is responsible for rigging gas prices. This Madison Ave. sign pretty much comes out and says so.

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News

October Is Breast-Cancer Awareness Month — and It Strikes Blacks Earlier

The American Cancer Society estimated more than 19,000 black women would be diagnosed with breast cancer this year — the second-most common cancer among black women, surpassed only by lung cancer.

And while the incidence of breast cancer is about 12 percent lower in black women than in white women, with black women, it often strikes at an earlier age, and the mortality rate is higher.

Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, many women schedule their annual mammograms during the month to make it easier to remember. Others make mammogram appointments on or near their birthdays.

According to the American Cancer Society’s “Cancer Facts & Figures for African-Americans 2007-2008” booklet, “Factors that contribute to the higher death rates among African-American women include differences in access to and utilization of early detection and treatment, risk factors that are differentially distributed by race or socio-economic status, or biological differences associated with race.”

As Netwellness.org reports, “Statistics show that overall, when African-American women are diagnosed, they have larger tumors and their breast cancer has spread further (i.e., to the lymph nodes and to other parts of the body).”

The five-year breast-cancer survival rate for black women is 69 percent, compared with 84 percent for white women. And while there has been an increase in the number of women getting mammograms, black women still tend to have fewer mammograms and are more likely to be diagnosed after the cancer has spread.

If that’s not enough to get you into a doctor’s office, consider this: Black women are also disproportionately prone to a rare, particularly virulent form of breast cancer that tends to strike women under the age of 35.

According to a study published in June 2006 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, black women under the age of 50 have a 77 percent higher mortality rate from breast cancer than other women of the same age group.

The study, led by scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, said that younger, pre-menopausal black women are more prone to an especially aggressive type of cancer.

In addition to the UNC study, researchers at Emory University and the University of Chicago are trying to determine the root cause of the cancer and why it strikes young black women decades before menopause, when most breast cancer develops.

And don’t forget to check the medical history of your father’s family. In June, JAMA published the results of a study that revealed that a pattern of hereditary breast cancer may be hard to detect because a family is so small or has so few female members that it doesn’t appear to be prevalent. However, the cancer gene can be passed on from the father’s side of the family, as well as the mother’s, because every person inherits half of her genes from her mother and half from her father.

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News

What You Should Know About Breast Cancer

CREDIT: Gary Woodard | dreamstime.com

Flyer: What is breast cancer?

Dr. Blakely: It’s a disease where there are cancerous cells from the breast tissue itself. Most of the time this occurs in women; however, men can also have breast cancer.

What are the signs of breast cancer?

Many times there are no signs at all, and there are abnormalities found during routine mammogram testing.

Signs include:

• a mass or “knot” in the breast

• dimpling of the skin

• inverted nipple that is new

• bloody or other discharge from the nipple

• thickening of the skin

• redness of the skin

• changes in the size of the breast.

What causes breast cancer?

There are no known direct causes of breast cancer; however, there are several known risk factors which include:

• Family history — usually considered to be a first-degree relative (i.e., mother, sister, daughter)

• Personal history of breast cancer

• History of abnormal breast biopsies

• Known genetic abnormality

• Younger age with first period (before age 12) or later menopause (after age 55)

• Never having a baby or having your first child later in life (after 30 years old)

• Never breastfeeding

• Older age (there is a higher incidence in women over 50 years old)

• Postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy

• Alcohol use (drinking more than one drink daily)

• Decreased exercise (even limited exercise decreases the risk of breast cancer)

• Obesity and high-fat diets.

When should a woman first get a mammogram?

Most agencies recommend a baseline mammogram at age 35 with yearly mammograms starting at age 40, assuming no significant risk factors for breast cancer.

Are there any risks involved in having a mammogram?

There is some discomfort with having a mammogram. There is also some small radiation exposure associated with a mammogram; however, the risk from this is very small and decreases as a woman ages.

What questions should a woman ask her doctor about breast cancer if diagnosed with the disease?

There are several questions that should be asked. Some of those include:

• Do I need to see a specialist? A surgeon or medical oncologist?

• Do I need to have any genetic testing?

• What are the specifics about my pathology?

• Tumor size

• Are there any lymph nodes involved?

• Receptor status (ER/PR/Her2)

• Grade

• Do I need chemotherapy and, if so, what type and what are the side effects (short-term and long-term)?

• Do I need radiation?

• What stage am I, and do I need any additional testing (PET scan or CT scan)?

What are the different stages of breast cancer and what does it mean to be diagnosed at one stage as opposed to another stage?

The stages of breast cancer are I-IV. Stage I-II is early and can be cured with appropriate treatment. Stage III breast cancer almost always requires chemotherapy and radiation for cure. Stage IV means that the cancer has spread distantly from the site where it started.

If a woman is young , with no family history of breast cancer, should she still do self-exams and/or have a mammogram?

She should do monthly self breast exams and yearly mammograms if she is of age. If she feels any lumps or masses or other abnormalities, she should seek medical attention.

Dr. Johnetta Blakely is well-published and participated as a lead researcher in a study investigating the effects of pregnancy on cancer outcomes. She joined the West Clinic in July 2004.

Blakely is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Association for Cancer Research, the American Society of Hematology, the Connective Tissue Oncology Society, and the Herb Fred Medical Society. She graduated cum laude with a bachelor of arts in biology from David Lipscomb University in Nashville and received her medical degree in Memphis at the University of Tennessee. Dr. Blakely completed her fellowship in oncology at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas.

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News The Fly-By

Sign Up?

Billboards are made to be seen. But some outdoor advertisers might not be happy with the Memphis City Council setting its sights on the signs.

The City Council is currently reviewing its billboard and sign ordinance, especially as it relates to

electronic signs. In a recent report to the council, consultant Eric Kelly said that it was “absolutely essential” that a new sign ordinance address full-motion electronic billboards.

“They may say full-motion videos are allowable anyplace in the city, but you need to decide because otherwise it’s going to turn up randomly,” Kelly said. “One might go in front of an apartment complex and keep people up all night. They’ll be asking, how did this happen?”

Already in Memphis, several electronic billboards have been erected, with at least one full motion sign — depicting the spinning reels of a winning slot machine — off Bill Morris Parkway.

“There are a number of things to be alarmed about in my opinion,” said council chair Tom Marshall at a recent committee meeting. “I don’t think it’s appropriate to watch video while you’re driving down the street.”

More than likely, some electronic signage will be allowed, but the council could choose to limit the size, brightness, and locations of the billboards. Marshall indicated that he felt there is a place for some electronic signage.

“I was outraged at first,” he said. “Then I thought, this looks better than what was there.”

Electronic signs with changeable copy — the type consumers might see advertising paper towels at area Walgreens — are considered safer and more attractive than their traditional counterparts, which require an employee to change the sign by hand.

“That may, however, open the door to scrolling and other rapidly changing signs,” Kelly’s study noted.

Currently, the ordinance doesn’t address motion on signage. “All the ordinance says now is that signs can’t flash,” Kelly said. “Whether this applies to video, it’s not clear.”

Full-motion billboards might have a place in Memphis the same way they are used in Times Square or the Vegas strip. “Personally, I’d love to see 12 of these signs on Beale Street,” Kelly said. “They build excitement and vitality in an area.”

The billboard report also suggested that the City Council review its rules on political signs and real estate signs, especially those erected off-premises by developers.

Currently, political signs cannot be put up more than 90 days before an election and cannot be placed on utility poles or in public rights-of-way. However, time limits for political signage have been deemed unconstitutional. The ordinance does not allow for political signage not related to an election, such as signs supporting a living wage or the war in Iraq.

“People ought to be able to express their opinions,” Kelly said. “I don’t think either the city or the county is enforcing it, but it’s weird to have an ordinance on the books you’re not enforcing.”

Legal issues could also arise with real estate signs that direct drivers to new housing developments. Typically, non-commercial signs have more freedom than commercial signs.

“Once you allow commercial signs in the rights-of-way, you have to allow noncommercial signs in the rights-of-way,” Kelly said. “It’s going to be some weird group that tests the ordinance.”

In Missouri, that group was the Ku Klux Klan. Though the state attempted to bar the KKK from participating in its “adopt a highway” program and erecting a related sign, the court rejected the effort as unconstitutional.

Traditionally, the council has taken a strong position on signage, only allowing new billboards to be erected along interstates and highways. Smaller signs on utility poles and in medians are also not allowed. Existing billboards on city streets have been grandfathered in under the ordinance, but if they fall down, they are not allowed to be rebuilt. And the council hasn’t determined yet if those existing signs can be converted to electronic billboards.

But Memphis isn’t the only city struggling with its sign ordinance.

Kelly is probably more known to Memphians as the consultant who gave the City Council the dirty details on area strip clubs in a $38,000 study.

“When you look at sex businesses in Memphis, it’s worse here than in other places,” he said. “But with signage, Memphis is in the same boat as everybody else.”