Mercury Retrograde: Scream First, Speak Later

Brace yourself! Mercury -- the neutral messenger planet that shoulders the blame for every missing check, delayed train, lost item and text war -- has entered, yes, yet another retrograde cycle.

It's very common for people to protest, "Again?! Wasn't Mercury just retrograde?" Certainly it feels as if Mercury's reversals occur more often than any of us would like, but in fact, they only happen a few times each year. Mercury's current retrograde period, which lasts until March 23 in the firebrand constellation of Aries, could give a whole new meaning to the concept of anger management.

During the next week-and-a-half, your impulse control -- especially when it comes to speech and texting -- will simply fly out the window. Don't be surprised if you find yourself suddenly blurting out obscenities, truck driver-style ... although if you'd like to look at all this in a more positive light, you'll have no problem getting straight to the heart of the uncensored truth about matters.

Patience will be completely absent during this time, so you'll want to hold off on launching into any tirades until Mercury backs into Pisces on March 23. (After that, you can expect more compassion and empathy for any emotionally needy monologues you've got brewing.) During the current Mercury-in-Aries period, you're best off keeping things short ... even if sweet isn't an option.

Furthermore, expect practically everyone to pull out their big guns when it comes to wars of words over the next few weeks, so if there's anyone you've been dying to tell off without any sugar-coating or beating around the proverbial bush, now is your chance to go verbally postal. Just be sure to keep your ego in check in situations where adult behavior and self-control are required.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, for this Mercury retrograde: Don't dish it out unless you can take it!