Linda Goodman's Sun Signs (42 page)

Soothing
his
hurt feelings when he's been offended is another matter altogether. It's difficult to figure just what annoys or pleases the Libran employee. What brought a twinkling laugh or a wreath of tolerant smiles one day can bring a severe frown of injured innocence the next, or vice versa. It's those scales again, of course. How can Libra tell in advance what his mood will be toward any given subject when he doesn't know himself how far he'll be dipping to one side or the other? Ask his coworkers. Does that fellow (or girl) with the dimpled grin have unpredictable reactions? You'll get answers like, “Well, the other day I asked her if she had gained a little weight, and she smiled at me so sweetly, I got the idea she thought it was becoming. This morning I called her ‘Chubby' in jest, and she won't speak to me.” Or you'll get a reply like, “Well, last week, he showed me a CD he got online—one of those vintage “Best of Glenn Miller” albums—and I remarked that big bands are as outdated as dinosaurs. He just grinned, and said he was a student of ancient history. Today, he heard me telling the receptionist that big bands are square, and he nearly took my head off and called me a Top 40 flunkie. He had a great sense of humor about it last week. How was I supposed to know he collects big band albums, lights a candle every night and listens to them like he's in a cathedral?”

Libra will love you today for what he hated you for last month, and he'll despise you tomorrow for what he found delightful yesterday. It's a little delicate to deal with his changeable reactions, but underneath all the ups and downs, the Libra nature remains basically fair and sane. His frowns are only skin deep. His smiles are real. Ignore the first and hang on to the second. In fact, nothing rocks the typical Venus person more than unnecessary shouting and tension. He's far more likely to avoid nasty scenes than to court them. There's never any vinegar in the Venus anger. There may be a little ice around the edges, but ice does eventually melt, you know.

Female Libran employees often remind you of a slice of whole wheat toast. There's a sort of Campfire Girl mystique about them. Of course, a few may have maple sugar spread on the whole wheat, in the form of dove-like voices and soft manners, but it's a pleasing sweetness. You'll rarely find a Venus girl who looks tough and battered with jaded eyes and blatant sex appeal. Hers is more of a fresh and mellow appeal, like the red and gold hues of Indian summer, against clear, blue skies. The Libra cupcakes who drip with syrupy icing are in the minority. You'll probably get the instant impression that this girl can handle herself nicely in a game of touch and tackle.

She may like to go on long hikes, and spend a lot of time at the library. If not, you can safely wager that she takes long walks, and belongs to a book club. The physical activity and literary leanings are always present. It's just a matter of degree. But there will be long rest periods between the walks or hikes, as she replaces energy with lassitude and lethargy. (That's when she catches up on her reading.)

Your Libra salesman may be studying for a law degree on the side, or he could have a hobby that's practically a second career. He may be a professional in some area outside his job, and have an expert knowledge of deep subjects you never dreamed he would think about. One thing, however, you can be sure he thinks about: Girls. Women. Feminine pulchritude. At least ninety percent of all Libra males subscribe to a
Playboy
type magazine. Even if he's bashful about it, the Venus man will enjoy a few discreet glances at the pictures of curvy bunnies who are wearing little more than a dazzling, provocative smile. He likes seeing them in person even more, which is why you'll frequently find him following the nightclub circuit, though he may leave after the floor show, when the noisy crowds begin to topple his harmony. The happily mated Libran will seldom carry his interest in the opposite sex any farther than obvious visual appreciation, but the single ones can be real Lotharios.

Librans are always either married, engaged, divorced or in the middle of an important love affair. They never paddle their canoes alone. Echoing across the blue lagoon, you can always hear the stealthy footsteps of a squaw or a brave in the Libran's lodge at eventide, under the pale moon. For every Libra Hiawatha, there's a maiden, and you can reverse it.

Keep your lovely, pretty Libra women and your handsome, gentle Libra men happy with piped-in music while they work. Don't ever shout at them, and be sure you always give them logical reasons for doing things. Respect their intelligence, because they'll have more of it than the average person, and never subject them to tension.

If they're treated right, your Libra employees will never cause friction in the office; they'll be angels of tact and diplomacy, getting along with almost everyone. The Venus worker brings his own personal aura of grace and beauty to everything he touches. Let him help you with sales strategy, and encourage him to attend the top brass brainstorming meetings. Might as well let him get the hang of how the executive level operates, because Libra is a cardinal sign, and he won't be an employee without status forever. He wants to lead, and he's well-qualified. As soon as you can, put him in charge of something, then watch how effortlessly he handles red tape, petty grievances, knotty problems and bottlenecks. He'll dress like a man of distinction, and behave like one, too. He's great for company image. As for her, a Venus woman will get what she wants eventually, in her own sweet way. If it's a promotion she wants, let her have it. She probably won't let you down. There's quite a smart head on those shapely shoulders. Why not take advantage of it?

Your Libra employee may have a little trouble making up his mind at times. His train of thought never runs at breakneck speed when the destination is a decision, but it seldom goes off the track. After he's finally pulled into the station, he'll probably have the right answer, even if it was like watching a two-headed giraffe do his bending exercises to get it out of him.

Librans are extremely artistic and musically inclined, with a flair for law and a philosophical bent. They bring their calming influence most often to hospitals, show business, publishing companies, the halls of science, courtrooms, gardens, politics, department stores, interior decorating and the ministry. But regardless of where you find them spreading harmony, the Libran thermostat will usually read about seventy degrees Fahrenheit. It seldom plunges to freezing or rises to scorching. It's like having a human air conditioner in the office, with automatic repair service when it breaks down. You don't get guarantees like that from the mechanical kind. You say machines can't talk back? Well, that's true, but on the other hand—now wait a minute—stop weighing everything I say, back and forth. You sound like a Libra!

 

“The horror of that moment,” the King went on,

“I shall never, never forget!”

“You will though,” the Queen said,

“if you don't make a memorandum of it.”

 

An encyclopedia describes a scorpion as a nocturnal arachnid that attacks and paralyzes its prey with a poison injected by the long, curved tail, used for both defense and destruction. Its sting is sometimes fatal.

People often draw back visibly when someone says he or she was born in November, murmuring, “Oh, you're a Scorpio!” either in frank fear, or in awe and respect. Sometimes there's also a giggle that obviously refers to the legendary Scorpio passion. Scorpios are fed up with these reactions to their Sun sign, and who can blame them? But they are ruthless and dangerous, right?

Wrong. It depends. First, you'd better learn how to recognize the sign. In self-defense perhaps—or because you seek a really superior human being.

Scorpio likes to travel incognito. Thanks to his well-controlled nature, he usually succeeds, but there are a couple of short cuts which will make it easier to penetrate his disguise at midnight or at noon.

Look at the eyes. They can be green, blue, brown or black, but they'll be piercing with hypnotic intensity. Most people feel nervous and ill at ease under Scorpio's steady gaze. You'll have to break the spell and look away first. He'll outstare you every time. It's a foolproof identification of the Pluto personality. Scorpio eyes bore deeply into you, mercilessly, as if they're penetrating your very soul. They are.

Next, listen to him speak. The tone can be velvety soft, husky or sharply cutting, the speech slow and measured or clipped and staccato, but what he says will never be self-effacing. Scorpio has total ego. He knows what he is and he knows what he is not, and nothing anyone else thinks will change this knowledge. Insults roll right off his back, and compliments don't move him a fraction of an inch. He needs no one to tell him his vices or his virtues. At best, he'll calmly agree with your appraisal; at worst, he'll suspect your motives.

The next time you're with a group of people, bring up a discussion of Sun signs. Mention that, with a little practice, it's fairly easy to recognize them. When someone fastens you with a hypnotic gaze, and states with supreme confidence, “You can't guess what I am,” say firmly, “You're a Scorpio.” It may be the first time he's ever blinked. But his stare will waver only for an instant, and he'll quickly regain the cool composure he exhibited before you exposed his careful disguise. If you ever come across a chattering Scorpio, whose eyes wander, chalk him up as an astrological exception as rare as the dodo bird. There are some November people with heavy planetary influences of restlessness in their nativities, but you're trying to learn to recognize the typical Scorpio. You'll find very few of the nervous kind. The nature can be modified by other natal influences, but only slightly.

Most Pluto people have powerful physiques. The features are noticeably heavy or sharp, and clearly drawn, and the nose is quite prominent, sometimes beak-shaped. Ordinarily, the complexion is very pale, almost translucent, and the brows are heavy and knit together over the bridge of the nose. There's a crackling, electric vitality about the very presence of a Scorpio that gives him away. As quiet as he tries to be, such a vital force can't be hidden completely. The males will have a heavy growth of hair on the arms and legs, often with a reddish cast. Most Scorpios have darkish hair and eyes, but don't overlook the frosty blonde types, of which Hilary Clinton and Billy Graham are excellent examples. Frosty on the outside, that is. The poised surface calm of the Pluto character is carefully designed to hide the boiling inner nature.

Such mastery of the personality has to be envied. No matter how his emotions are stirred, you'll rarely see them reflected on Scorpio's frozen, immobile face. These people proudly and consciously practice a blank expression. They command their features to remain firm, and their features obey. (They wouldn't dare disobey a Scorpio.) You'll seldom see Scorpio give himself away by blushing or flushing, frowning or grinning. Smiles are rare, but genuine. The body follows the same orders as the face. There will rarely be any jumping, sudden starts or nervous mannerisms. He'll never flinch with embarrassment or swell up with pride. Reaction is always kept at a bare minimum, because Scorpio's art is to probe your nature and motives relentlessly, while remaining inscrutable himself, and he's an expert at it.

It's important to remember that there is a particular type of Scorpio who moves and speaks rather quickly, and appears to have an open, friendly manner. Look deeply into his eyes and really think about some of his past actions, his true behavior. He's really just playing a game with all his happy talk. Inside, he's as tough and determined as the more typical, poised Pluto people. Perhaps he's even a shade more dangerous because his disguise is better, and he fools you more easily. Start treating him as Charlie-nice-guy, who's completely harmless, and you may be courting some trouble. Be on guard with all Scorpios. I don't mean they're
wicked.
They're just not soft or naive. Some Scorpios, realizing that their eyes expose their inner intensity, wear sunglasses frequently, even at night.

Remark to a Scorpio that he has a great talent, which will someday be recognized, and he smoothly, casually replies, “Yes. I know.” Ask him if he'll do you a favor, and the answer will be equally simple. “Yes, of course I will,” or “No, I can't do that.”

If you're sensitive, don't ask his opinion or advice. You'll get the naked, brutal truth. You asked him, he'll tell you. Scorpio will not pay a false compliment to gain a point or win an ally. It's beneath him to flatter. When he says something nice to you, treasure it. You can be sure it's sincere and unvarnished. If he says you have a good voice, stop singing in the shower and grab a microphone. If he says you have a great voice, you can safely audition for the Met. He may even effortlessly move a few mountains out of your way to help you along. Don't believe everything you hear about Scorpio selfishness. Instead, listen to some of the grateful people who have been on the receiving end of his wise counsel and generosity. Scorpio naturally attracts either fiercely loyal and dedicated admirers, or envious and spiteful enemies. But even the latter give him grudging respect, and you'll notice they're careful not to challenge him openly. The examples of the few who did are vivid and painful reminders that caution is required in an attack against Scorpio and his planet, Pluto. Remember that Pluto rules nuclear power.

Yet, there's a haunting sweetness about these people, and often a gentle sympathy with the sick or despairing. Scorpio's touch can be cool and tender, as well as hot. His Sun position gives him several paths to follow. He can imitate the nocturnal scorpion, who will sting others and even sting himself to death for the pure pleasure of stinging—or he can imitate the glorious, soaring path of his symbolic eagle, who rises above earthly limitations, and uses his strength wisely and justly. Great generals like Douglas MacArthur, presidents like Theodore Roosevelt and scientists like Madame Curie and Jonas Salk are eagles. More United States presidents have been born under this sign than any other.