Ep. 56 Astrology with Vanessa Hardy

“Working as an astronomy teacher in Lone Tree, Iowa, Ellen Harding Baker quilted this representation of the cosmos for her students. News of its completion reached the national press, with the New York Times lightly mocking her pedagogy as “somewhat comical”, but nevertheless praising the quilt’s accuracy and its maker’s diligence for undertaking a trip to a Chicago telescope to view Coggia’s 1874 comet. Using a color palette resembling that of Orra White Hitchcock’s scientific classroom illustrations, and exhibiting a scalar ambition that rivals Emma Willard’s maps of time, Baker joins a lineage of nineteenth-century American women educators who produced visual aids for teaching that are also magnificent works of art.” Source

A real story in my life is being into things that a lot of other people are really annoying about. Astrology is definitely one. It’s not just a way to talk about yourself, or state truths you feel uncomfortable claiming, or a cool thing to put people down about believing in. All those takes feel so beyond tired they’re convalescing somewhere like the Victorians used to do (also should we bring that back?).

It can be a super helpful tool and system to understand the chaotic soup we are all swimming in. It can be a way to understand themes around belonging, the collective and purpose.

I also wonder is astrology denigrated so often because it’s a pursuit associated with women?

Vanessa has an approach and take on astrology I really love. She studied with Anne Ortelee an incredible astrologer and teacher. Vanessa approaches astrology less from a what’s going to happen standpoint and more a what are we being tasked with reckoning with?

I am deeply appreciative she chatted some astrology basics, what we’re still feeling from 2022 and what we can look ahead to 2023 for with me.

xx. A

P.S. Autumn Fourkiller is coming back to interpret your dreams! You can email them to me at annatoonk@gmail.com or you can tell them to us here.

What Vanessa’s into right now:

I just finished binging all three seasons of Ramy and I think it is a perfect Jupiter Neptune conjunction piece of work. This show explores so many ways of connecting to and questioning god, it is full of love as well as illuminates and deconstructs ideas and ways of loving, and it feels like we are watching a religious parable or mythological story with all sorts of morals and messages tucked throughout.

I second this, it’s an incredible series

When I first discovered this album, I just lost it. I listened to it all the time and I was obsessed with these ladies. Their vibes, immaculate. The outfits, I would wear. But then! While watching Ramy, I was beside myself to hear “Runs in the Family” beautifully placed at the end of an episode. I cried, it was beautiful. And I have been listening to the album all week getting very nostalgic and connecting to myself after this Cancer Full Moon.

Some Astrology recommendations:

Obvs book Vanessa for a reading

Alice Sparkly Kat is incredible, their writing on the nodes and each rising sign are chef’s kiss

Love Ryan and Leslie as well. They both give you more information than you could believe in a session. Incredible.

Mystic Medusa cracks me up and I find her take refreshing if slightly bonkers

Recently bought The Book of Hours from Saipua and love it

Learned a lot from Anne’s podcast