MERCURY WAS IN RETROGRADE DURING THE EQUINOX.

That might have made for interesting Women's Studies gatherings.  It gave two Northern Star columnists something to hash over.  Both have female names, no April foolin' here!

First up, Lucy Atkinson had an opportunity to note that astrology is so much bunk.

Astrological topics like Mercury retrograde and zodiac signs are no doubt interesting conversation starters, but they shouldn’t play a dramatic role in dictating your hopes for daily life.

For many, anticipating Mercury retrograde evokes a sense of spiritualism and magic, which is a perfectly human thing to seek. We all benefit from a little more magic and a little more wonder in our everyday lives!

Beginning March 14, Mercury will be in retrograde until April 6. Mercury retrograde is a period that occurs a few times a year where Mercury appears to travel backward across the sky.

But the science behind the phenomenon that occurs during Mercury retrograde is magical in its own right.

The phenomenon of planets reversing direction in the firmament was the anomaly refuting any claim that the earth was the center of the universe, once Homo sapiens got sapient about using the movements of stars and planets to work out time and position.  But we get none of that in her column.  The controversies over planetary movements shook the foundations of faith itself, plus the anomalies led to a lot of descriptive mathematics.  In astrology, Mercury in retrograde too often enables dysfunction.

The Mercury retrograde is also special for its grand theme. More powerful than your average optical illusions book with “magically” looping circles and double images, Mercury retrograde forces our minds to consider the unending universes beyond Earth.

But believing this awesome illusion to be something that can directly – even negatively – impact your life threatens faith in your own capabilities.

To be certain the Mercury retrograde will induce positive outcomes sets yourself up for disappointment.

Likewise, expecting to experience complications during your day psychologically increases your chances of actually having a worse day.

Research supports the notion that when we believe we’ll fail or that something will go wrong, we’re more likely to fail – essentially self-sabotaging.

Her colleague Nia Jackson would undoubtedly draw up pessimistic charts for everybody's signs all through those three weeks.

This period may be difficult for some astrological signs. It may include a revisit of past issues, miscommunications, a time for reflection or conflicts and chaos. Sometimes, Mercury retrograde might not affect you at all.

Many people, including me, believe that Mercury being in retrograde affects them. There have been times in my life when I could not explain all the bad things that were happening. When learning about spirituality and astrology, I began to believe the planets and the stars could be influencing my life. Not to say these are the only things influencing my life, but they could be contributing to some aspects of it.

During Mercury retrograde, many people online believe that they are affected by Mercury retrograde and it is the reason for some of their problems. Every time there is a Mercury retrograde, it trends on social media because of all the misfortune that it may cause people.

But must all charts be re-reckoned depending on whether or not Pluto is a planet?  That might have been a fun question to raise at the equinoctal gatherings of the women of the fevered brow.