Understanding Cancer Rising

It is very natural to feel that cancer rising people have a crab like face, but this is not the real truth. They actually have a stretched horizontal or vertical face. Besides, the upper and lower lips are usually plumped.  Additionally, jJust like the hard shell of a crab, the Cancer rising natives have a rough and tough look. It is also natural for them to have a good height. 

Interestingly, Cancer rising carriers can have a tendency to steal spotlight. The reason behind this is not only their bigger body size, but also their instant power to make everyone either get scared or feel right at home. The result just depends on the type of people they are with. While the strangers will fear them for their rough and tough look, the family members and friends will see them as most helpful. Why? Because Cancer rising people are interested in being responsible protectors to their loved ones. This actually shows up in their personality.  Unfortunately, this trait of theirs is sometimes taken advantage of by others, leaving them with many hurt feelings. 

In relationships also, Cancer rising people will tend to appear very responsible, yet they might decide to not express their love to their partners all the time. In stable relationships, they need a huge amount of space for their personal growth. At times, they can just be completely withdrawn. This is something that comes from the comfort of the security. So in a way, those who do not believe in space and prefer a great deal of attention in relationships will find Cancer rising natives very frustrating. But are they faithful? The answer to this is yes as long as they know they are in with a stable partner. 

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Descriptions of Mercury in Taurus, Gemini, Cancer and Leo

Last time, we got familiar with how Mercury acts in Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces and Aries. Today, we will learn how this planet shapes up people’s communication and learning style in Taurus, Gemini, Cancer and Leo.

Mercury in Taurus

Here we have a placement that makes sure that there is sweetness in communication. Because of this, when they speak they might sound soft and appealing. But this does not mean that Mercury in Taurus is all about things that are emotional. Apparently, its carriers prefer seeing west, east, north and south before opening their mouth. In short, they have to look at all sides of a matter before saying something about it. Astrologers, that is why, like to claim that this placement is slow to speak. But this is not the case. If the Mercury in Taurus person is quiet about something it is always because they are trying to know whether the words or decisions they are going to process have any value or not. So in a way, they are quite similar to Mercury in Capricorn natives. Since Taurus is guided by Venus, when it is in Mercury it brings out the artistic side of its carrier in daily communication and thoughts. Now because of the Venus relation, Mercury in Taurus people can have a good ability to understand the areas pertaining to home, wealth and architecture. Thus, they have the potential to become great performers in the fields of real estate, banking, interior designing and even home economics. But to do well in school, memorization will best help the Mercury in Taurus student.

Mercury in Gemini

This is the vagabond of communication and thus, can be found chatting almost about everything under the sun. There is no time to stay with one topic. It is just that there is so much to know and discuss. Yes, this is what Mercury in Gemini is all about.  A person with this placement might appear to be Jack of all trades to some, but again think about the next line, “master of none”! So in a way, we can say that Mercury in Gemini keeps a little bit of knowledge about all topics, but does not have the interest to master in anything specific. Despite this, it is one placement blessed with excellent communication style. The reason behind this is that the sign Gemini is quite comfortable in its mother planet, Mercury, allowing its carriers to choose the right words at the right time. However, this can at times, turn into a curse. Mercury in Gemini tends to give into the moments and this means flirting with just about anyone from the opposite sex. Unfortunately, this can create much confusion later especially if the Gemini Mercury was doing it all with no intention of starting up a relationship.  But as a student, they can do well almost in every course because of their liking for knowledge. The professions that best match their abilities are journalism, hosting shows and even writing script for movies. 

Mercury in Cancer

Now here we have a placement that works with emotions. Cancer is ruled by moon after all. Talking is done only when necessary, but it is usually directed with emotions. Guided by intuition, Mercury in Cancer carriers pick up words that will appear pleasing to the other party. So to some extent, it is no different from Mercury in Pisces, but remember Cancer is a cardinal sign. So it is not as passive as some might think. In fact, in Mercury, it can make its carrier a go getter in conversation and intelligence. Yet this placement does well in humanitarian causes. This is due to the fact that it can easily pick up emotions, helping its carrier understand the ones in need. Because of this same reason, Mercury in Cancer natives can see success fields related to sociology and psychology.

Mercury in Leo

This is the dramatic communicator and also the life of the party. The reason is very simple and that is, the sign of Leo is programmed to stand out. In mercury, it is the show stopper!  A little proud of its own thoughts, but depending on mood, Mercury in Leo can easily spread happiness or cause much sorrow in its environment. So in a way, this placement brings both ups and downs in the life of its carrier. Even after all this, Mercury in Leo has the passion to study about the topic of its interest and that is also without getting tired. Yet it must be noted that the topic of its interest usually has broader or artistic characteristics and often involves performing onstage. It is just that Mercury in Leo likes the word “bravo” and sees success in popularity. That is why, we can easily conclude a person with this placement will do well in mass communication. Of course, this major as many different fields, but none will be harder for Mercury in Leo to get into.
Descriptions of Mercury in Other Signs Can Be Found Under Table of Contents

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The Cab Driver/The Persistence of Cancer

I went to T's house to watch the veep debates. This was my first visit to her house, the first time I'd done anything social with her. She's in my yoga class and we've talked politics before. Beforehand I went downtown to hear Bernard Henri-Levy, but I got the time wrong and missed the event.

What can I say about the debates that you haven't heard already? I thought Palin's sentences didn't track. She comes from the Daley school of diction. We showed the white flag of surrender at Iraq: I hope that absurd phrase will dog her for the next month.

I took a cab home. It was driven by a white-haired man with black eyebrows and an accent. He thought the US should adopt the British system whereby the leader could be made to step down after a no-confidence vote, instead of being allowed to serve for four years automatically. He asked where my family was from. I said my grandparents were from Eastern Europe. He asked where. I told him: Lithuania, Moldova and Russia. Oh, he said, Aren't you Jewish? I said yes. He said, Why aren't you observing Rosh Hashanah? I told him that the holiday ended last night. I felt then I had the right to ask him where he was from. He said his father was Irish, his mother was Chinese-Jewish and he was Turkish. Was he kidding? He said the average American doesn't care about anything except getting a drink and finding a loose woman. He also said some poll showed that 62 percent of Americans are involved in homosexuality and alcoholism. I think that's what he said. He kept talking and was parked on my street and I saw the meter go up 10 cents, 15 cents, 25, 50. Enough was enough and I got out of the cab.

I've always thought that the people with the most developed senses of Jew-dar are Jews and anti-Semites. I wonder which he was.

***
A woman at T's asked how we knew each other or got to talking about politics at yoga. I couldn't remember. T said we started talking about the war when I had my head shaved with US out of Iraq. I explained to the other woman that I had been bald because of chemo. Of course that brings us to breast cancer and hair growing back. She was quite excited about my hair and said it was great and looked so healthy. The hair always seems to be the bellwether, because it's so THERE. Maybe it does reflect inner health. For me and my sister, our thick curly hair has always been indicative of our genetic makeup: We come from a family with thick curly hair. Then a man who was there asked what I was working on. What should I say? I wondered. Should I mention my book? I'm through working on it, except for proof sheets that will be coming my way next month, and my marketing report, that I have to finish. I told him I was writing a review-essay about cancer books and humor. Can't get away from that Cancer. It's here. It's there. It's everywhere. It came to rest and was removed but still hovers.

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No, YOU move beyond cancer

Nota bene: a brief article in the New York Times Science section, "Having Cancer, and Finding a Personality," by Ruth Pennebaker. Her description of post-cancer malaise is right on.

"The last time I visited my oncologist after my treatments were over, I felt lost. The image that kept recurring in my mind was that someone with a gigantic pair of tweezers had picked me up, shaken me and tossed me back down. Now what?"

[Link]

I had my own rimshot moments during treatment. Satire can be used to divert aggression; in my case, joking was more productive than punching a hole in the wall. During my last radiation appointment, the nurse gave me a going-away present: a videotape titled "Moving Beyond Cancer." I told her I'd really prefer it if she gave Cancer a videotape called "Moving Beyond Elisa."

Posted by The Fifty Foot Blogger

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Causes, not Cures

"We've been fighting the war on cancer for almost four decades now, since President Richard M. Nixon officially launched it in 1971. It's time to admit that our efforts have often targeted the wrong enemies and used the wrong weapons. Throughout the industrial world, the war on cancer remains focused on commercially fueled efforts to develop drugs and technologies that can find and treat the disease -- to the tune of more than $100 billion a year in the United States alone. Meanwhile, the struggle basically ignores most of the things known to cause cancer, such as tobacco, radiation, sunlight, benzene, asbestos, solvents, and some drugs and hormones. Even now, modern cancer-causing agents such as gasoline exhaust, pesticides and other air pollutants are simply deemed the inevitable price of progress. They're not. Scientists understand that most cancer is not born but made.

"No matter how much our efforts to treat cancer may advance, the best way to reduce cancer's toll is to keep people from getting it. We need to join the rest of the industrialized world by issuing a national ban on asbestos and forbidding smoking in the workplace and other public spaces. We must reduce the hazards faced by those working to build our homes, transport our goods and make the products we consume. We should restrict CT scans of children to medical emergencies, limit the use of diagnostic radiation in general, ban young children from using cellphones and keep the rest of us from using tanning beds. And we must recognize that pollutants do not need passports. Controlling cancer, like controlling global warming, can take place only on an international scale. We can -- and must -- do better."
--University of Pittsburgh 's Graduate School of Public Health, November 4, 2007
quoted on cancerpreventionsociety.org

As the Assertive Cancer Patient says, It's a disease, not a marketing opportunity.

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