In July, others may be away on vacation, but you'll be all business, showing others in no uncertain terms that you're on top of your game. Your career will take off like a rocket the moment the month begins. High-energy Mars will zoom through your tenth house of fame, honors, and professional status, giving your best opportunity you've seen in two years to be promoted to (or offered) a better position and to garner respect from VIPs and peers alike in your industry. It's a critically important time, and Mars will remain in this house from July 1 to August 19.

Last month Mercury was in retrograde and created delays, postponements, and cancellations that probably proved frustrating. No more! Mercury is now back in fine form, moving in speedy direct orbit and giving you an open road. This is especially good news for you because Mercury rules your solar tenth house of professional advancement, so when Mercury is strong and chatty with other planets, you always do well, as you will this month. Mercury won't retrograde again until September 24 to October 15, so you have plenty of time to make tracks.

Saturn, the planet that brings rewards through the taking on of heavy responsibility and performing hard work, is currently moving through your same tenth house sector of professional status and career recognition. Saturn first entered this part of your chart on September 2, 2007 and will remain there until October 2009. Over the past year, you have shown VIPs that you are ready to take on more responsibility, and peers have acknowledged that you have come up in the world. Indeed you have and will continue to do so. Saturn may demand much from you, but no planet can help you materialize a dream as effectively. You are now in the process of learning completely new rules and meeting new standards.

You may feel a bit frustrated as the month opens, for Mars and Saturn will be orbiting toward a conjunction on July 10. Mars is the planet that says, "Go, go, go!" while Saturn is the planet with an opposite message, "Stop! Think twice!" Stop and go energy can be a little hard to manage and during the first ten days you may feel a bit frustrated. Saturn, being the slower-moving planet, will win out.

This is not necessarily bad. As a fire sign Sagittarius, you tend to fall in love with ideas and concepts rapidly (sometimes too rapidly), and you may not always be as circumspect as you should be. Occasionally it may be a good idea to step back, reassess your assumptions, and decide which projects are worthy of your time. The Mars to Saturn conjunction on July 10 will remind you to keep the big picture in mind, and to have patience while pieces of your puzzle still need to click into place.

As you move farther away from July 10, you'll find your professional projects and relationships will become smoother and the tempo will pick up. Once Mars and Saturn are far enough apart - separated by eight degrees - by July 23, both planets can help you without tripping over each other's shoelaces. Mars will increase your passion, drive, and sense of authority, while Saturn will help you impart your growing sense of experience, maturity, and practicality.

As I mentioned earlier, Mercury will be quite a busy bee in July, and you will benefit professionally from this activity.

On July 14, Mercury and Saturn will be ideally angled, allowing you to make long-term plans that will stick. If you need to sign a contract, this could be a great day to do so.

Circle in gold the date of July 22 too, when all sorts of unexpected developments in your career will make you jump for joy.

As you get to July 25, you should get even MORE good news about how well you are doing professionally. Money should accompany your rise in status, too. What a win-win day for you!

Against the powerful career emphasis, you will have a concurrent emphasis on financial management. If you are in the process of raising money for your business, are in a court case and awaiting a financial settlement, or have applied for a grant, scholarship, mortgage, or bank loan, plan to open talks, for you stand an excellent chance of seeing your financial goals realized this month. This shiny financial phase will begin at the new moon in your house of "other people's money" on July 2.

That's your signal to start talks. Things may finish immediately or take months (or weeks) to finish, but the fact that you would be starting at such a perfect time suggests a good outcome. If you are ALREADY in the process of trying to get money, you may take a different approach or you may launch a whole new phase.

The reason I am so enthusiastic about this new moon July 2 (plus two weeks) is that Venus will be very prominent and friendly at the time, suggesting you can seal an excellent deal with just a little effort. Jupiter, your ruler (and therefore a planet that "counts" more than most) will partner with this new moon, a very good sign for ultimate success. Uranus will also be working for you too, so get set for a few surprises, such as being at the right place at the right time to get precisely what you want.

Be sure to begin talks the day after that new moon arrives, July 2. That new moon will appear late in the day, so July 3 will be an even better day to start. In the USA, the Fourth of July holiday will come the following day, but if you are in town on July 3, use that day to fill out forms, send letters, have a conference call on the phone, or even schedule a meeting. A new moon provides a window of two weeks, so you will have lots of time to plant seeds.

If you live in America, try to be back to work the week of July 7 to use the energy of the new moon in that week. Keep in mind that Mars and Saturn will reach conjunction on July 10, so the first part of this week may bring difficult sledding for your career in any number of ways. Plow forward anyway. You will find success later.

By the full moon on July 18, certain other financial talks will be wrapped up. This full moon will culminate matters in another house - your second house of earned income and possessions. (Your new moon will appear in your eighth house of other people's money, credit, benefits, and certain financial obligations.) At this full moon, you may hear back on a raise in salary, or if you are taking a new job, you may agree on the salary now. You may also write a large check, but if so, it appears you'll be getting one too. Uranus, planet of out-of-the-blue developments, will be strong and friendly. Jupiter will be near this full moon too, and although I would have preferred to see a closer orbit between the two, I feel Jupiter will be close enough to help you receive upbeat financial news.

You seem to have plenty of news to share about a home, family, or property situation. To say your situation has been unusual is putting it mildly. Although you may have had tense moments when thinking about your living arrangements over the past few years, this month brings only good news, and in mid-September things will crystallize even more. This month you have two days that should dazzle you with fantastic residential / property / family news, and they happen to be the same days that are so very good for your career: July 14 and 22. Put a star on both!

Romantically, if you are dating, this month could bring a difficult situation to a head, especially in the first ten days. Your house of romance is ruled by Mars, and with Mars so close to Saturn, for now the mood will be more somber or possibly fraught with tension or concern. This seems to be a temporary situation, so hang in there - things should get better gradually as you move into the second half.

The move of Venus into Leo from July 12 to August 6 will be your first upbeat social development. If you travel or find yourself in a classroom setting during this phase, all the better. When the Sun moves into Leo on July 22, things will improve further for you, because a fire sign Sun (Leo) blends so much more effortlessly with your sign, Sagittarius.

If you are attached, the new moon in your eighth house should make you very affectionate and loving. You seem to be working hard as the month starts, with many tiny details to attend to. Actually, your to-do list will grow quite long. You may not have much time for love, so when you ARE with your one and only make those moments count! Light the candles, chill the champagne - everyone deserves a little special "just us" time.

One sweet weekend for a little trip for two would be over the weekend of July 26-27, when Mars (love and sex) will contact Jupiter (happiness and luck). You may feel like you want to spend a little more freely this weekend, and if you can afford it, go right ahead. This should be a terrific weekend!

Next month, you will have a total eclipse of the Sun in Leo on August 1 and a full moon eclipse of the moon in Aquarius on August 18. One or both of these eclipses could send you packing on travel near and far. August will be a very busy month but don't worry - these eclipses should not be difficult like the old ones last year in Virgo and Pisces were. (Remember February 20 of this year? That could have marked very hard lunar eclipse moment if you are a November-born Sagittarius or have certain early-degree planets. Nothing like that is due to arrive.) These eclipses seem to be friendlier, by far. I will post Astrology Zone early next month to help get you ready, so be sure to check. August will be big!

Most romantic evenings for you this month are: July 5, 9, 19, 24, 26-27, and 31.

Summary

As a Sagittarius, you are not a materialistic soul. You always seem to have enough cash for whatever you need to do, and if you should have a large outgo one month, you optimistically expect that somehow you'll have more than enough to cover the next month.

Usually this does happen, and it will again, but the difference now seems to be that you need a larger sum of money, so you won't want to passively sit by and hope it will all materialize. With big plans pending, you'll need funding, and happily, you could not wish for a better time to go "shopping" for money.

Your timing is good, so apply the elbow grease and you'll find the money you need with terms you want. Look for venture capital, scholarships, financial aid, insurance money, or child support, or open negotiations concerning a divorce settlement.

Even if you have had problems finding the right financing options in the past, this month could bring you all the right conditions. Fill out forms or open talks and negotiations in the days following the new moon, July 2.

On the full moon July 18, you may also get more money, but this time it comes as money you earn, perhaps as a generous raise or in the form of a new job. That won't be the end of it, though. By July 25 and 26, more good financial news should arrive. You'll be on a roll!

Your residential situation has been unusual to say the least, and you may have had to move house several times in recent years. This month, all news is good news and when it comes, it will happen suddenly. Check out what's up on July 14 and 22. Those dates are not only great for real estate deals and leases, but also for career-related news.

Speaking of your career, in July you will see it become a major hub of activity thanks to Mars, now visiting your professional sector from July 1 through August 18 for the first time in two years. Mars' current proximity to Saturn attests to how seriously you are taking your career and how much energy you are pouring into the projects on your desk. All the hard work you will do will pay off. You have six weeks of hard work ahead, but after that, relief will come - along with the pride you'll feel in all that you've done.

If you should find things tense or frustrating in the first part of the month, and particularly near July 10, have faith that things will improve as you get to the latter part of the month. Not only might your career be frustrating, but romance may be a little maddening too (particularly if you are single). These things happen - don't be tempted to overanalyze things. You have enough on your plate at work! Each day beyond July 10 should improve, and by July 23, you're home free.

If you have a partner, romance should be hot and affectionate this month. Be sure to spend a little time with your partner who may be feeling a bit neglected because of the large amount of time you'll be lavishing on your career. The best weekend to kidnap your mate or sweetheart to take him or her away to lavish all your attention will be at the full moon, July 19-20. Also take a little trip together over the glorious weekend of July 26-27.