My Chevy got stolen in San Francisco on a January night some years ago. The thief broke a window and smashed his way into the steering column with a tire iron to get to the ignition wires. Eventually the cops recovered the car and returned it to me. But no repair shop could ever completely fix the transmission, and though the car sort of worked for another 18 months, I was never able to shift it into reverse again. Driving a vehicle that only moved forward presented problems that required creative solutions. It was an apt metaphor for my life at the time, when I found it impossible to go backward in any way. I suspect it will also be one of your operative metaphors in the coming months, Aquarius.

Got enough clues to chew on for a while? If you need more, give yourself the luxury of your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE for the week ahead. You can also still listen to my three-part long-term forecast for 2009.

*

Tune in to my free podcast, Pronoia is a Dangerous Taboo. Excerpted from my book, PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA, it's a meditation on how cultivating an attitude of crafty optimism might be the biggest transgression of all.