Horoscopes

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

Your heart is in need of the kind of wake-up call your mouth gets when you bite into something tart first thing in the morning. It should leave you tingling around the edges, cringing pleasantly from the intensity of the flavor, and it should nourish you with deliciousness. Luckily, this kind of morsel is in reach of your tongue right this second. I can't believe you haven't noticed, or if you have, you've turned up your nose in anticipatory distaste. Fuck that shit. It's been a while since you tried something new, and here's something you might actually likea lot. So open your mouth, stick out your tongue, and lick.

Learn from Leos. They're your astrological opposites, but you're not as different as you think; you're both affable, social, and maintain large groups of friends and acquaintances (but allow only a select few to get close). In fact, the only significant difference between you is not methodology but motivation. In other words, you both do similar things, but while their actions are driven by emotion and the inertia of enthusiasm, yours are prompted by the urgings of your overactive mind and the restless stirrings of imagination and inspiration. In other words, while they could benefit from your logic, reason, and cool-handed touch, you could learn a lot (and go a lot farther, too) with a hearty, turkey-baster-sized injection of their passion.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)

Pull up! Pull up! Just grab that stick and haul back, because the plane you're on is going to nose-dive and crash otherwise. A few months ago, that prospect wouldn't have fazed you, but now that you've achieved some impressive height and even spent time at cruising altitude, it'd be a shame to not only have to start all the way back at sea level but to have to rebuild the plane first. Turbulence and minor dips along the way are to be expected on a journey like yours, but there's no reason to lower the wheels just yet.

Aries (March 21-April 19)

You don't need to tame your body. It's not your enemy. Don't be afraid of the various smells and substances it produces; they're just part of being human. One of the shittiest things about being members of Western culture is that we develop unrealistic ideals about our bodies, regarding how pleasantly scented and perfectly shaped they ought to be. In actuality, while there's no dearth of people who want to sleep with models (thanks to very effective cultural programming), there are also millions who are going to get off on your bigger booty, smaller dick, or stumpy ankles. Since you're more liable to meet and get along with one of those folks this week, own what you got. Be proud.

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

I didn't bother counseling you to construct elaborate vows for this year's New Year's resolution, because you simply haven't needed anything as arbitrary as a clichéd holiday to make decisions for yourself and your life this past year. You've been remarkably self-motivated, as well as self-scheduling. Maybe I was wrong, because this past week you've slowed down, perhaps burdened with too much holiday weight. I can't help believing that you were the only one in charge of all your butt kicking this last year, so why start off the new one with a less effective M.O.? Having said that, I will add: It may be time to give yourself another motivating slap on the ass.

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

I've had a whole series of celebrity dreams lately, mostly focusing on C- or D-list celebs who I couldn't give two shits about. Still, it reflects the widening focus of my waking life: I'm trying to consistently consider things and people outside my usual realm of experience and my modest social circle. Can you please do that too, Gemini? I'm worried that you've become too ensconced and involved in your own limited little world, too carried away by the minor soap opera dramas of your office or household. The solution, of course, is a tripeither mental or physical, to a distant, eminently different location. Dream it or live it; it really doesn't matterjust get out of the neighborhood for a while and meet some new people.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

You've been taking things one step too far lately. You managed to get over the hurdle of figuring out what exactly it is that you want, no problem. But then instead of simply asking for it, clearly, you bite your tongue and start analyzing the best way to ask for it, the one most likely to get results. Unfortunately, your process, by its very nature, outwits and invalidates itself. In other words, you're overthinking things, and it shows. No one wants to be manipulated, and when they can tell that's what's up, it inevitably backfires. This week, be as direct and forthright as possible I suspect you'll be pleased with your results.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22)

Just as a migratory bird returns to the same spots each year, its route based on memorized landmarks it learned from its predecessors, you've been a creature of habit on a grand scale. That is, you've revisited identical mental locations, in the same order, for years now. The hapless fowl does it because it's a matter of life or death, but you do it, frankly, because you're lazy, sometimes. This week, break free of instinct or habit and venture into some totally new territory. Who knows? You could discover a feeding ground more bountiful than the ones you know or pioneer a mating dance that gets all the babes.