Venus Retro.

Venus

In mythology, Andromeda, a beautiful Ethiopian princess, was the daughter of Phoenican king Cepheus and his queen Cassiopia. Cassiopia was so proud of her daughter's beauty that she boasted that not even the divine nymphs, daughters of Neptune, could hold a candle to her! Ooops. The nyphs (Nereids) complained to Neptune, who naturally enough sent the sea-monster Cetus to ravage the vain queen's coastline. After consultation with an oracle, Andromeda was then chained to a rock by her parents as a virgin sacrifice to the ravaging sea-monster. Fortunately, she was saved by the hero Perseus, the Gorgon-slayer, who, arriving on his winged sandals in the nick of time, turned the sea-monster to stone with the Gorgon's Head and married the princess. Just as it should be, really. Alpheratz is a star of the nature of Venus, awakening grace, popularity, independence, and honours, so the retrograde Venus phase this year is likely in some ways at least to be more pleasant than it was last time! But read on, dear reader, as there's more to be said...
The fixed stars form patterns in the heavens that are called constellations. Constellations are not the same as Signs of the Zodiac, though some of them bear the same names, because in times gone long by, the signs coincided with the constellations of the same name. This is because of the phenomenon known as the precession of the equinoxes, whereby the stars in the Sidereal Zodiac move backwards with regard to the Vernal Point, which is always the first degree of Aries in the Tropical Zodiac. Andromeda is an important constellation, but not a Sign of the Zodiac.

Fraught with Seriousness

Over these weeks even the most casual interactions tend to become fraught with seriousness, intended or not. Female relationships, partnership and other alliance, and joint ventures of any kind fit this pattern. Older or more mature people seem especially interesting. More structure and seriousness imposed on relationships can mean more stability and commitment. Artistic endeavours should become more focused and organized, though originality and imagination can suffer from the tendency to stick to tradition or whatever methods or patterns you know best. This is not the best time for beauty treatments, cosmetic surgery, or redecorating projects. Social gestures and diplomacy are likely to be self-serving.
A planet is described as retrograde when it appears to be moving backwards through the zodiac. This traditional concept arises in the illusory planetary motion created by the orbital rotation of the earth, with relation to other planets in our solar system. Planets are never actually retrograde or stationary, they just seem that way, due to this optical illusion. Click here for more on the science of retrograde planetary motion.