Living in San Francisco Means . .

I'm moving out of San Francisco this Monday. I'm excited about the future, but also in shock to leave my beloved town. I've lived in San Francisco since 1981 and I've seen so much happen here, but nothing like I've witnessed in the last few years. This town has been overtaken by big business and the rich, as most larger cities are today. I've watched the most recent mayors of San Francisco - Willie Brown, Gavin Newsom and now Ed Lee - sell this city to the highest bidder. The fabric of SF has been forever changed and I really mourn the town I used to know. I'll be posting more personal stories and pictures once I get settled but for now....

Check out this excellent commentary by Broke-Ass Stuart: Link

"Living in San Francisco means being torn apart. It means having people you love get evicted. Seeing cultural institutions replaced by trendy cocktail bars. Moving to this city for a job in technology and getting vilified for being the reason for higher rents, even though you can barely afford your own. Reading the news and getting sick to your stomach because the elderly and the mentally disabled and the working class and the creative class keep getting “displaced,” which is a euphemism for “thrown out of their homes in the name of greed.” It means reading the news and being enraged that a 98-year-old lady is getting evicted. It means reading the news and worrying about when you’re going to get evicted yourself."

Art by John Stich


"Living in San Francisco means knowing that local politics are completely crooked. It means knowing that Willie Brown still runs this town, even though he hasn’t been mayor since 2004. Well, he and Rose Pak, anyway. It means knowing Ron Conway and Reid Hoffman are trying to buy this town, and that Ed Lee is giving it to them. Knowing that the David Chiu’s backroom deals with Airbnb were shady. Worrying that SF isn’t as progressive as it used to be. Worrying that all the new people who moved here won’t vote or care about local issues. Worrying that “San Francisco” will no longer represent an ideal but will now just be a place. It means crying into your keyboard when you heard the San Francisco Bay Guardian had shut down.

Living in San Francisco means thinking that jaywalking while smoking a joint and drinking a beer in front of a cop is totally normal. It means seeing a men’s knitting circle in a café in the Castro and thinking it is totally normal. Seeing Deep ride by on his trike blaring Prince and thinking it’s totally normal. Seeing people walking around dressed in bondage gear and thinking it’s totally normal. Seeing people wearing strange costumes at any hour of the day on any day of the year and thinking it’s totally normal. It means seeing 13 people sleeping on the sidewalk during your walk to work and, unfortunately, thinking that’s totally normal too."

by Broke-Ass Stuart

Robin William's Astrological Life Chart

I'm so stunned and sad over the news of Robin Williams' passing. This is a tragedy. I grew up watching him, like all of us. I was floored by his talent and the type of person he seemed to be - so radiant and joyful. And he loved San Francisco where I've lived since 1981. I had the good fortune to cross paths with him one day and he was sparkling and friendly just as I had imagined he'd be. He was really sweet to my dog too :)

I relate to the depression he suffered from. I've struggled with it my whole life and I'm heartbroken to see how it manifested for him. It's a serious health issue and I hope people give mental health even more respect and empathy as they grieve this loss.

Below is Robin's natal birth chart. The black planetary symbols in the center houses (marked 1 to 12) are his birth chart for July 21st, 1951 in Chicago. The outer green planetary symbols are where the planets transited yesterday, August 11, 2014 in Tiburon, CA. 

First off...  I didn't know he was a triple water sign! Sun in Cancer, Moon in Pisces and Scorpio rising. Water signs are emotional signs - and to have all three at the forefront is significant. 

People with Scorpio rising often have a deep, hidden side. Scorpio represents the ocean depths, and it feels deeply. It has a secretive nature. So a Scorpio rising person will often be quite different behind the scenes of their life. I think Robin's sensitivity added to his brilliance as a performer. Mercury on his midheaven in Leo gave him a quicksilver delivery. He was born to be a performer, and came from the great generation of actors born in the 40's and 50's when Pluto was in Leo.

I became curious as to what happened yesterday that led him to this tragic decision, and immediately saw the planet Neptune was passing over his Moon in Pisces.

Neptune is the ruler of Pisces, and reflects our desire to unite with the Cosmic Whole.... it is the great Cosmic Ocean that unites all of us. It's the underlying unity of the world and all of humanity, it's God. But Neptune is the planet of illusion. The Moon rules our emotions and was right there, in a conjunction with Neptune IN the watery sign Pisces. I can see how one could become lost and overwhelmed with emotion during this transit.

AND the Moon was Full. It was a Super Moon in Aquarius, sign of the genius. It's such a bright, illuminated time to exit this world. There's nothing brighter than the yearly Full Moon in Aquarius, which comes every August.

Neptune and the Moon are also within a few degrees of Robin's North Node which represents our destiny. There must have been a feeling of fate here too.

Add to that, Pluto was in opposition to his Mars and Uranus in Cancer - bringing even more emotion erupting from deep within. Mars and Pluto create the image of a volcano erupting, while the planet Uranus brings sudden change... like a flash. Uranus is like a bolt of lightning coming out of nowhere. It brings shocking actions and insights in a flash.

It's a terribly challenging cosmic stew that was brewing for Robin on August 11, and I hope he has found peace. I pray he has united with the God of his heart, and can see and feel how much we all love him.