Day 15: Horoscopes & Astrology

Since I was born on January 17, I am Capricorn.

It always fun to read my horoscopes but I never really took it as the truth. I mean, it is someone who doesn’t really know you, takes a stab and predicts something that has completely no connection to your life whatsoever. But then there is always that tiny hope that a particular daily horoscope, whether it is about love or money, will definitely come true for you today. Even if doesn’t come true, it doesn’t stop you from reading them.

So I don’t really hold horoscopes up on a pedestal. Zodiac signs are different story. Don’t get me wrong, I think your personality traits have a lot to do more with your upbringing than what is “written in the stars” but it is fascinating type of science that is used to predict events and describe people’s personalities, not all necessarily to be true. For instance, these are a few  characteristics of a Capricorn:

I am all these things. But there are some traits that I feel that are completely wrong:

• “With the sign of a goat, it’s no wonder that Capricorns tend to be bossy and somewhat unimaginative.” (Your Literary Horoscope: Turn a Page, Change Your Mood, Jennifer Warfel Juszkiewicz)
• “Capricorns tend to see life in black or white, definitive’s only. There are no gray areas for these are areas that are not understood and this makes Capricorn feel uncomfortable. They tend to be in control in a romantic relationship that way they are never vulnerable to another person.” (Zodiac Signs-Capricorn)
• “They are pragmatic and reserved, and while they tend to be responsible and fair, they can also be miserly, fatalistic pessimists.” (B&N Reads Blog)

See how conflicting astrology can be? One minute it is describing you to a T and the next it describes you completely wrong.

But I guess with any “cultural phenomenon” there’s always a margin of error.

BONUS: B&N Reads Blog, run by Barnes and Noble, list famous literary characters who may have been Capricorn, of course based only on their characteristics. As a fellow Capricorn, why would I want to associate myself with these characters:

1. Ebeneezer Scrooge (A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens)
   
2. St. John Rivers (Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)
   
3. Dick Hunter (Ragged Dick, by Horatio Alger)
   
4. Winston Smith (1984, by George Orwell)
5. George F. Babbitt (Babbitt, by Sinclair Lewis)
   

If you believe in astrological signs, check out the blog to see which literary characters match up with yours!

This is Day 15 of the 30 Day Writing Challenge.