Aries Season

Aries, 2017

Spring is here in the Northern hemisphere, which means it’s Aries season! This changing of the guard moment marking the shift of seasons from Winter to Spring is represented by the first sign of the zodiac, the fiery, independent, bold, cardinal fire sign of Aries.

Aries is ruled by the planet Mars, aka the god of war, which is also the traditional ruler of Scorpio, although the modern ruler of Scorpio is Pluto. But the two signs share some superficial qualities, one of which is an innate ability to forge their own path in life with a blithe disregard for social norms or the approval of others. We could all take a lesson from the Mars ruled signs in that regard.

Which is not to say it's always the best idea to go against the social norms of those around you. We have a few choice words for people who do that routinely, one of which is asshole. But Aries and Scorpio people often don't care if others think they're assholes, which can make them either incredibly charming or utterly intolerable.

Scorpio, 2014

Bighorn Energy

Aries is symbolized by the ram, kind of like a bighorn sheep, an animal that fights its rivals by literally ramming its head repeatedly into that of its opponent, until one of them gives up or both are concussed. Do you know anyone who fits that description?

Aries is without a doubt the most skeptical of all the signs, followed distantly by Capricorn, and if you don't believe me, that just proves my point.

I have very few Aries friends. I can count them on a few fingers. Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Sagittarius and Aquarius peeps, on the other hand, I have in abundance.

If you're curious how many Aries friends, or friends have any sign, you have, an easy way to tell is go to Facebook and, under Friends, you can view all your friends listed by birth month.

According to Facebook, I have only three Aries acquaintances (although many of my friends are either not on social media, or I actually see them in real life and don’t need to bother "friending" them). I can only think of two others, who I adore despite their being hardcore skeptics, so they’ll never read this anyway!

They say if you find yourself meeting multiple people of the same sign at a given time in your life, you're lacking some essential quality they bring to the table. Pay attention if you suddenly find yourself surrounded by Aries people. You may be in need of an injection of brash, brave, irreverent, carefree, damn the torpedoes, take no prisoners energy.

Aries original drawing, 2013

The Artwork

The artwork at the top of this page came out of a November 2013 Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School session. Here's the original sketch that inspired it.

In 2013, I started planning my first of four annual zodiac pinup calendars, all featuring models from Dr. Sketchy's. I published them through a site called Zazzle from 2014 through 2017, before starting my badass goddesses series in 2018. I eventually sought out a local printer and found Minuteman Press, which I've been using to print my calendars ever since.

The same model inspired my Scorpio drawing above.

Volatility

In Vancouver, like many northern hemisphere cities, the arrival of Spring is met with a mix of anticipation and impatience, as any day could could be a holdover from winter, a harbinger of warmer days to come, or most likely where I live, drenched in rain and shrouded in clouds.

Complain about the Spring weather in Vancouver and someone will soon scold you, "just wait, soon you'll be complaining that it's too hot."

And I reply, never! It’s never too hot for me. I enjoy every minute of our summers, which can start anywhere from late March to late June, but almost always stretch well into the fall.

Aries Problems

Given the climate of my chosen home, it's no mystery why I find this time of year so frustrating. The lingering vestiges of cold and flu season, the freak storms of sleet and hail that can strike out of nowhere, the days getting longer and longer, but still enveloped in a gray, drizzly, cold, winter malaise...

And then there's the whole April disaster phenomenon. April is undoubtedly the month most associated with historical catastrophes, from the sinking of the Titanic to the Rwandan genocide, Chernobyl and Deepwater Horizon, the Columbine massacre, the Oklahoma City and Boston Marathon bombings, and the deaths of Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Prince and Kurt Cobain. There are countless others. If you don't believe me (or you're an Aries), you can Google it.

So, cherry blossoms aside, I'm not a big fan of Aries season. But Aries season isn't here to make friends, so it certainly doesn't care if some of us don't like it.

Aries fridge magnet poetry

Spring Cleaning

As a Virgo, I can't help but associate Spring with spring cleaning, prompted by alarming midday sun breaks that leave you blinking and blinded, illuminating all the dust and dirt you've been blithely ignoring through the long, dark winter. Last weekend, I went on an impromptu cleaning binge that already seems to have worn off as I look around my apartment.

If it sounds like I'm being a hater, there is of course much to love about Aries and Aries season. The aforementioned cherry blossoms, the sun going down later, the ever-present promise that the rain will eventually stop and we’ll get to roller skate again...

Spring break, if you have that kind of privilege, the promise of restaurant patios opening up once again (even if it is too cold to sit out there without a heat lamp), hockey playoffs and the start of whatever sport comes after that... and this year, season two of The Last of Us! (I’ll definitely be talking about that in the coming months.)

Self Promotion

Check out my RedBubble shop to order your Aries prints, coasters, clothing, phone cases, cards and more.

Order Badass Goddesses, my self-published book, in paperback, hard cover and Kindle format.

Thanks for reading, everyone! Please share this post with anyone you think would appreciate it.

If you’re here for the astrology, check out the Starzology Podcast, hosted by Alison Price and me.

If you’re an Aries and you find yourself reading this, drop a comment below. I'm delighted to see you here!