Roll up your sleeves, tuck in your tie, and get ready to delve into some serious work.

The Virgo new moon on August 30 signals a time of great energy and action. The new moon awakens the spirit of Virgo and all that this sign stands for. Virgo is the sign of the harvest, and one of the deities said to rule over this sign is the goddess Ceres. Corn, wheat, and rice yields may suffer due to the effects of this year’s cold spring and late summer. Saturn, the planet of scarcity and poverty, sits close to the new moon, and will bring his sombre and sobering realities into play.

On August 22, the sun enters Virgo, which is a mutable earth sign. Mutability implies a time of shifting and changing conditions. We have come into a time when we can analyze recent events that have come to pass, such as the Olympic Games in Beijing. We can learn from the positive and negative aspects of what has happened there. The concerns in Georgia may intensify.

Well, kiddies, it’s showtime. It’ll be hard to match the cosmic fireworks that are destined to happen this week. Get some popcorn and find a good seat.

The sun is traversing the middle portion of Leo the Lion. Leo is a fixed fire sign, and we are in the middle of the summer. The heat is on, in more ways than one.

A solar eclipse takes place on August 1, peaking just after 3 a.m. Around here, we won’t see it but we may very well feel it, as eclipses are powerful influences that bring important changes to those who have planets or personal points of their chart connected to the eclipse degree.

According to the mystics, the mind is nothing but a storehouse of karmic impressions. Imagine that, folks.

The moon enters Aquarius eight hours after the full moon on July 18. It passes from Capricorn to Aquarius, bringing a night-and-day effect in the sense that we are less inclined to share our feelings when the moon is in Capricorn.

The moon and the sun united in the sky on the day Canada was formed. The new moon on July 1, 1867, in the zodiac sign Cancer speaks volumes about what we’re like as a people.

The new moon on July 2 occurred close to Canada’s sun, giving the message of a fresh start in a new direction.

Did I mention that Mercury retrograde is a pain in the you-know-what?

The summer solstice takes place at 5 p.m. on June 20. The solstice chart reveals the type of energy that will unfold throughout the summer.

Let’s rock and roll. We certainly will be rocking and rolling according to the stars these days.

The true worth of an astrologer is measured by his or her capacity to help us understand and prepare for the upcoming energy that is presented by the movement of the planets and their effect on our personal horoscope. It is the astrologer’s greatest responsibility to help those that he or she can to comprehend the ebb and flow of life envisioned through the stars.

Special times are upon us. The planetary deities are in a good mood for a change, and have decided to lighten up a bit. We hardly notice when the planets are aligned harmoniously, because we’re on the beach and our biggest concern is whether the guy selling those delicious margaritas will come by again.