The Worst Mercury Retrograde Ever

I have lived to see many Mercury retrogrades. Usually I don’t even notice them. This, one, however, really got my attention, over and over again in a 3-week period. And it hit most everyone I know. And for a time there, there were outbreaks of Mercury breakdowns several times a day.

It began on March 30th, 2011 and will end on April 23rd. It is not done yet but I do think the worst of it has passed.

I have always held the theory that a Mercury retrograde will not really affect you if the planet itself is not making bad aspects to planets in your natal astrological chart. And I still believe this to be true. However, when you think about it, it really goes like this:

• You may not be affected by the Mercury retrograde directly. It is possibly just not aspecting any of your natal planets. I think this happens often.
• However, because it does affect other people around you and people you come into contact with, you will be affected indirectly. You will hear about their problems, though you may not have any yourself. In this manner, most people are affected by it, even though only a portion are being directly hit by it.
• And, I have discovered lately that if Mercury is being poorly aspected by other planets, in other words, it is afflicted itself, that it tends to bring some ill results to all of us.

And this is what happened with this particular Mercury retrograde. As I write this, Mercury is directly opposite transiting Saturn. It is also conjunct Mars, which of course is opposed by Saturn as well.  And these aspects have been in force for about a week. I think having Mercury being afflicted by Saturn is going to give some negative results for everyone.  I count myself lucky really. My best friend had his car break down and need costly repairs. My wife had someone who was making some things for her drop the ball and it ended up costing her a lot of time and money to rectify. For me it has been a series of computer problems. Each appeared devastating at first and had me thinking I would have to buy new equipment.  But after I applied my problem-solving efforts to them, I was able to fix them.

And the funny thing is that Mercury is currently, along with Saturn, squaring my Sun and Mars. You would expect me to get the brunt of this retrograde’s worst. It felt that way a few times. But each time I was able to resolve it, after some effort and a little struggle. And I checked my wife’s chart and my best friend’s charts and Mercury was not making bad aspects to their natal planets. I attribute my good fortune mostly to the fact that Mercury is so strong in my natal chart. I am used to being able to apply myself to a problem and correct it. This may also account for why I don’t even notice most Mercury retrogrades.

For those who are unfamiliar, a Mercury retrograde is not a good time for the following:

1. Automobile stuff, and driving on short trips, air travel, or travel of any kind really.
2. Communications of all kinds, including verbal, written, telephones, and internet.
3. Computers, technical equipment, internet access, cable TV and all things electronic.
4. Items lost or misplaced during shipping and mailing.

And since our current society is so communication driven, you can just imagine the havoc this could play. Cell phone companies, cable, television, internet providers, taxis, airlines, you name it. Most everyone gets affected. I wonder if anyone was not affected by this recent retrograde. Please feel free to comment below, one way or the other.