Free Will Astrology

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Collectors prefer wild orchids, says William Langley, writing in the UK's Telegraph. Orchids grown in nurseries, which comprise 99.5 percent of the total, are tarnished with "the stigma of perfection." Their colors are generic and their petal patterns are boringly regular. Far more appealing are the exotic varieties untouched by human intervention, with their "downy, smooth petals and moistened lips pouting in the direction of tautly curved shafts and heavily veined pouches." Whatever your sphere or specialty is, Aquarius, I suggest you model yourself after the wild orchid collectors in the coming days. Shun the stigma of perfection.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): While doing a film a few years ago, actress Sandra Bullock stumbled upon a stunning secret: Rubbing hemorrhoid cream on her face helped shrink her wrinkles and improve her complexion. I predict that at least one and possibly more comparable discoveries will soon grace your life. You will find unexpected uses for things that were supposedly not meant to be used in those ways. Here's a corollary, courtesy of scientist Albert Szent-Gyorgyi, that describes a related talent you'll have at your disposal: "Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought."