Mars in the sign of Cancer meets Jupiter today in the manner of a soccer dad promising to feed the entire team. What this means for you is that matching demand to supply is a balancing act. If the hot dog buns fall on the ground (ugh!), it's an invitation to be creatively resourceful. There's always a way to satisfy everyone.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). What you have to offer is well worth the wait. It definitely is! However, you may not get the calm response you want. It's only because patience isn't valued highly in this instant gratification kind of world.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Explore, expand and expect more from life. Your wanderlust will be grander with the right partner — someone who is equally eager to see and understand the big wide world.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). You've been hurt — it's good to acknowledge. Wounds heal by degrees. So trust that things are getting better, even if you don't feel it all the way yet. Soon you'll be as good as new.

CANCER (June 22-July 22). You're connecting with people you used to know well and finding out how their lives have been lived, and how they have changed over time. It's a wonderful learning process.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). New influences are coming into your life. This includes people who work for you, helping you in practical ways to make things around you more comfortable and beautiful. Ask for recommendations from trusted friends.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAY (APRIL 24). There's a hint of mystery in the air now — you're not sure what this year will bring, but with your winning attitude, you're sure you're going to like it. In June, it's futile to resist being in love, so just give in! Singles meet eligible and exciting partners in a school of some kind. You'll travel in October. You hit it off famously with Libra and Pisces. Your lucky numbers are: 6, 20, 19, 30 and 1.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Give yourself a tight deadline. If you don't, you'll wind up making a mountain out of a molehill and stretching your work into several hours instead of compacting it into dynamic minutes.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). It was probably a wise (cracking) Venus-ruled individual who once said, "Chocolate, men, coffee — some things are better rich." You have opulent taste now and can relate to the sentiment.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Your perfect relationship allows you the freedom to be strange, offbeat, quirky — if that's how you're feeling.

And that's how you might be feeling tonight.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Long-run success depends on your ability to keep acting toward lofty goals. Your fierce drive to complete projects your own way will have others standing back and taking notes.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). You admire someone and would like it very much if this person felt the same way. However, you have little control over that. Besides, you don't need to impress anyone. You are enough!

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Of course you want to strengthen the relationships that are profitable to you. But there's tangible benefit from working on the relationships that seem right now to be deficits. Time will tell.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). Regarding the pain that one of your family members is experiencing — you can't know it because you haven't been there in this lifetime. Yet something deep in you seems to understand and empathize immensely.

ASTROLOGICAL QUESTIONS: "Last year I bought a business. I felt like I was on top of the world for about a month. Then, unexpectedly, I lost someone close to me. Nine months later, my business is failing and I'm depressed. I'm a Gemini who feels like I have nothing to look forward to but the dread of failure."

With the sun inching toward your neck of the zodiac, there are better days ahead. In the meantime, these days are not quite as bad as you think. My advice is to accept that you're still grieving, and will be for a while, and to take good care of yourself. Don't mentally beat up on yourself because your business isn't where you want it to be. Pray, cry, go for walks — and talk! As the sign of communication, Gemini can work through any problem by talking it over with a wise someone. In your case, a therapist or spiritual counselor (a Pisces, if you can find one!) will help you get back your groove. The end of May brings a breakthrough. And you can look forward to new relationships and plans at the start of July.

CELEBRITY PROFILES: Of all signs, Taurus people have a reputation for their beautiful voices, and Kelly Clarkson is no exception. Every sign "rules" (or owns) a part of the body, and Taurus rules the throat. Her musical voice has been described as "friendly, earthy ... fierce," which captures the energy of the bull. Her star continues to rise this year as friends and collaborators play a larger role in her career.

Holiday Mathis is the author of "Rock Your Stars." If you would like to write to her, please go to www.creators.com and click on "Write the Author" on the Holiday Mathis page, or you may send her a postcard in the mail. To find out more about Holiday Mathis and read her past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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