An Asteroid Story
Dorothy Oja
It was the weekend before the big Woodstock Bash (Round 2), August 7, 1994. A group of astrologers (myself included) were having our own party, organized by Julienne Mullette. It was the final day of brainstorming about the coming planetary changes and their meaning for societal trends in the arts, sciences, education, politics, etc. We had a diverse group including Zip Dobyns, Jacob Schwartz, Jeanne Mozier, David Arner, Richard Mogey, Axel Harvey and Julienne Mullette. Zip had a listing of the current asteroid positions. During one of the breaks, I looked at this 2 page list to see if there were any “hits” to my planets. You know how we astrologers are, always using our own charts first, for research purposes.
So there was this asteroid I didn’t even know had existed until then—it was called Toyota! Well, I was interested because oddly enough (coincidentally) I happen to drive a (you guessed it) Toyota. The other thing that caught my eye was the fact that this asteroid was conjuncting my natal Mars at 19 Gemini exactly. Having had enough experience to know these little critters do “work,” my imagination turned on. I was leaving Woodstock that afternoon and promised myself I would be vigilant on the road; no speeding, drive defensively, etc. Happily I made it safely to my sister’s house in Pine Bush about an hour away and enjoyed an all too short visit with her, my brother in law, niece and nephew.
Monday, after lunch, I found myself on the road again facing a four hour drive to Boston. Again, I reminded myself to drive carefully and get home safely. Which is what happened. I pulled into my driveway relieved that Toyota conjunct my Mars did not mean a traffic ticket or a highway accident. I rationalized that indeed it was time to get an oil change and perhaps look into a new set of tires. I was satisfied that perhaps this was the message the asteroid brought—to take action regarding these things. As we will see, this deduction proved to be incorrect.
I had just acquired a new roommate who had a small Datsun truck. Now my one-car driveway widens at the end, opening out into two spaces in front of a two-car garage. One belongs to me and the other was being used to store my landlord’s car. My roommate has to park in front of the left garage belonging to the landlord. When I want to leave, I have to back out of my garage on the right and angle out beside my roommate’s truck at which point the driveway becomes one lane again. I had explained to my new roommate that because her truck was longer than a regular car, she had to be sure to pull it right up to the garage door and as far as possible over to the left so that I could angle out with enough room. She had been faithful in complying until that night.
In the evening, my daughter came to visit, upset over an argument with her boyfriend. To cheer her up, I suggested we go to the movies. In the dark, I proceeded to back out of my garage and angle backward next to my roommate’s truck, thinking I had enough room. Before I knew it, I had caught my front left fender on her rear bumper. She hadn’t pulled up far enough. I was hooked. In attempting to get out of it, I crinkled my fender more. The damage eventually cost me $500, the amount of my deductible, of course. Her truck was not damaged at all!
So, there you have it. Draw your own conclusions. But never, never underestimate the importance of an asteroid, even one called Toyota!
Dorothy loves to teach, lecture, write, consult with clients and watch obscure asteroids when they aspect her chart. She’s been particularly interested in the first four asteroids: Ceres, Pallas, Juno and Vesta. You can reach her at 227 Beech St., Belmont, MA 02178-1940 or call (617) 489-1379.