We’ve all felt them … Those moments in time when everything seems to be going backward.

Well, it is upon us once again, the period of the infernal Mercury Retrograde when the masterful Hermes, god of communication turns into Loki the trickster and everything that can go wrong has a darn good chance of going wrong (known as Murphy’s Law). Since Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun and its orbit is quite short, there are more instances of Mercury retrograde than any other planet, reversing its direction three or four times per earth year. Scientifically no planet reverses its movement – it only appears that way to us here on Earth because of our geocentric view. Yet somehow during each Mercury Rx period and plethora of a variety of mishaps always seems to occur.

This cycle, Mercury choicely chose February 6 to start its backward jaunt for three weeks ending on February 28. I do hope you do not throw yourself in a tizzy anticipating this event for life does go on despite good old Mercury especially for those born with a Mercury Rx who apparently aren’t bothered by it one jot. Yet, what would we do without Mercury Retrograde to blame for everything that annoys and frustrates us?

Mercury Retrograde can stir up all kinds of things some of which you may not be aware so here’s a list of the more common Mercury trickery that astrologers over the years have compiled:

Your cell phone gets cut off inexplicably for the duration.

New batteries don’t work.

Faxes don’t come through or are smeared or garbled.

People complain, complain, complain and on top of it all, tell you don’t listen.

Mail is late or missing.

Cable service is lost for more than 5 minutes at a time.

Internet connections are slow or non-existent.

You agree to meet someone and both of end up in different locations.

You have a fight with your significant other.

You have a fight with your friend.

You have fight with your boss or co-workers.

You have a fight with the neighbor.

You’re mad at the world!

You write a check that bounces.

A check deposited takes a month to clear. In the meantime the bank doesn’t know what happened to it.

Your computer catches a nasty virus and you lose important files.

Your back up computer files but something goes horribly wrong.

You have a fender bender.

Your pet has turned into a maniac and is misbehaving horribly.

The weather report is completely wrong. Every day.

You struggle to finish a project.

You cannot speak clearly and are tongue-tied which is a departure from your usual glibness.

You break up with a partner.

A package arrives too late.

Your contacts or glasses bother you.

The copy machine runs out in the middle of a job.

You have several really embarrassing moments.

Your request for a raise or promotion is turned down.

Your commute to work takes almost twice as long.

Your car breaks down due to electrical problems.

You hear of bad news about a relative.

A friend or family member becomes seriously ill.

You seem to be more prone to cuts, bruises or even broken bones.

There are problems with medical records or tests. Tests may be lost or inaccurate.

You filled out forms and somehow missed several sections or put down wrong information.

Your subscription doesn’t come on time or doesn’t come at all.

You set a timer to record a show but ended up recording the wrong show.

Your clock starts displaying the wrong time.

You pay your bills on time but the payments arrive late.

There are errors on a bank statement.

An appointment gets cancelled.

You get a toothache.

You get an earache.

You get a traffic ticket.

You call the wrong number and end up talking to someone you don’t like.

The keys on your computer keyboard get stuck.

Mailed letters are returned for missing postage or wrong addresses.

You make expensive mistakes.

The ATM machine eats your bank card.

You misread schedules.

An air flight gets cancelled or delayed.

Your bag is lost during a flight.

You lose your internet connection for no apparent reason. Continually.

You lose your keys or wallet.

You wait on hold for an inordinate amount of time and then get disconnected.

You buy clothes that fit fine in the store but miraculously don’t fit when you get home.

You set an alarm as usual but it goes off at the wrong time.

An email you wanted to keep secret goes public.

You open a fortune cookie but there’s no fortune.

There’s clothes missing from your dry cleaning.

The washing machine eats your socks.

Food spoils before its expiration date.

You forget someone’s name right after you’ve been introduced.

You toss coins into the toll booth basket and miss.

Your fav restaurant is out of everything you want to order.

You but tickets for an event and then it gets cancelled.

Your mail is delivered to your neighbor’s house.

You try to return a purchase but can’t find the receipts.

Your bank balance drops and you get hit with charges.

Your favorite weekly program is pre-empted by news.

You have to take someone you care for to the emergency.

You take the wrong dose of medicine.

You forget to buy an essential item from your grocery list.

Your pen runs out of ink, your printer runs out of ink, everything that uses ink runs out of it.

You miss an important event by a few minutes.

A warranty expires just when you need service.

Your insurance company doesn’t receive your premium payment.

Your pay check has the wrong deductions.

Your car won’t start.

You get stood up for a date.

Your friend takes a joke the wrong way.

The pharmacy gives you the wrong prescription.

You try to make a purchase and realize that you don’t have a credit card or cash with you.

Your stereo equipment stops working.

The neighborhood experiences a power outage.

Hotel reservations get screwed up.

You get off at the wrong exit.

A store refuses to take its own coupon.

You lose all your important phone numbers.

Someone spreads a false rumor about you or gossips behind your back.

So, what’s a poor hapless human to do besides roll with the punches? Here’s some suggestions:

Make sure to return all your calls but don’t talk too long.

If taking a trip, make sure to take your maps or make sure your GPS is working. (Take the maps anyway!)

Be kind and patient with your computer. If you hit it you’re likely to get hurt and need medical treatment.

Write down information when listening to your messages. Do not rely on your memory.

Don’t sign any contracts. Reread them… once, twice, thrice, microscope and still don’t sign it.

Try to smile at everyone rather than snap.

Compliment your boss even if you hate what he/she’s wearing.

Have a glass of wine with dinner but don’t polish off the whole bottle because you’ll want to.

Clean up your closet and give the old clothes to charity. Make sure you check the pockets.

DO NOT GET YOUR HAIR CUT. Especially in a new style.

Reflect on mistakes – don’t repeat them.

Think about buying a new car or house … I said THINK about it, DON’T BUT IT until the retrograde is over.

Pay your bills on time.

Plan to look for a better job but DON’T QUIT ... until well past the retrograde.

Apologize. Don’t make excuses.

Be tolerant but do not tolerate intolerance.

Mediate on your shortcomings rather than worry about them.

Use common sense but don’t forget to enjoy a little nonsense.

Practice Tae Bo but don’t forget to warm up.

Go hiking but don’t forget your compass and water bottle.

Play with the dog but don’t neglect the cat.

Plan to be fifteen minute early for an appointment because you’ll probably run fifteen minutes late.

Examine yourself honestly but don’t criticize others.

Slow down – don’t rush.

A side note: As mentioned previously … If you were born with Mercury Retrograde you may feel quite at home when things are going backward. I’ll bet you’re even one of those annoying types who reads the last chapter in a novel first. At any rate, you might even feel quite lucky during Mercury Retrograde periods but, it doesn’t mean you’re totally immune so don’t get too smug. You still have to deal with all the rest who are in a tizzy so stay out of the line of fire when your neighbor is backing his car out of the driveway!

Another side note: Some people still undergo problems even after Mercury has gone direct. They are experiencing the Shadow of the Retrograde and don’t get relief for a few more weeks until Mercury returns to the point where it started retrograde motion. This doesn’t happen all the time there is a retrograde but is very frustrating when it does.

And yet another side note: If a Moon Wobble occurs at the same time as a Mercury Rx, the propensity for plenty of mistakes regarding decisions can manifest easily since emotions rather than logic rule the day. [A Moon Wobble is an astrological cycle that was discovered by American astro-mathematician and astrologer Carl Payne Toby. It occurs approximately four times a year when the transiting Sun makes contact with the Lunar Nodes by conjunction (0° alignment) or square (90° angle).]