Being a Gemini

Full disclosure here: I’m pretty much 99% left brained. I’m more analytical than creative, although I do try to keep an open mind and will include thinking outside the box when I can, if only to come up to a logical conclusion. And I’m not really a touchy-feely person; you won’t hear me talking about crystals or chakras or auras. I enjoy yoga, but more for how it makes my body feels than for any spiritual awakening it professes of offer.

A friend of mine once dragged me to a “Psychic Fair” and I had my palm read by some charlatan who declared that I was unhappy at work and having trouble with my car. “I live in Los Angeles!” I blurted out. “Everyone I know is unhappy at work and having trouble with their car!”

And astrology? Explain to me again how a person’s birth date controls their personality traits. Really? Really? But … and yes, there’s a “but” … I was born in mid-June and as much as I try to pretend it’s all coincidental, I am a Classic Gemini.

So what is a Gemini, anyway? According to www.Astrology.com and www.Horoscope.com (and if it’s on the internet, it must be true), Geminis are quick-witted, intellectual and curious. We are smart, but get bored easily. Gemini is a Mutable Air sign, whatever that means, ruled by the planet Mercury, and less Yin, more Yang. Good communicators (a nice way of saying we talk a lot), energetic and smart. What’s not to like?

Gemini is depicted to the world as the twins Castor and Pollux, and this is where it gets tricky. As the twins, we have two sides – two ways of being presented to the world, and two ways of seeing the world. I’ve wondered for years whether I am an extrovert pretending to be shy or an introvert who puts on a really good act in public. And I realize now the truth is a little of both.

I tend to see both sides of any issue, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but I’ve noticed that when faced with a choice, I am pathologically unable to make a decision. Paper or plastic? Chicken or fish? A la mode or not? I have to weigh all the options and consider any possible variables, which makes ordering dinner merely difficult, and buying a new car an almost impossible endeavor.

And I’m in good company: statistically, of course, one twelfth of all people should be born under each of the twelve astrological signs, and I like most of the 8.333% of my peers. Here’s a sampling of my favorites:

Marilyn Monroe

Angelina Jolie

John F. Kennedy

Octavia Spencer

Morgan Freeman

Paul McCartney

Natalie Portman

Clint Eastwood

Judy Garland

Prince

Venus Williams

Lauryn Hill

Pam Grier

Brian Wilson

Gene Wilder

And I’m especially delighted to announce that I share my birthday (June 13) with these wonderful people:

Chris Evans

Kat Dennings

Tim Allen

Stellan Skarsgård

Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen

Ally Sheedy

Mary Wickes

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Walt Whitman

I’ll admit I fell down the rabbit hole and got lost in Googling; even so, I was surprised to find several websites that listed “40 Gemini Serial Killers”. I shan’t name them here, but know that they are out there. Yes, Geminis need activity and movement, but let’s not go there.

I prefer to focus on the better traits: intelligence, flexibility, communication skills. Gemini’s are often called “shape-shifters” and can blend well into any environment. On the down side, a short attention span.

Who, me?

I work best with some structure in my life, even setting aside time for the occasional regular Zoom call with friends and fellow writers. Does that make me a Gemini? Yeah, and I’m damn proud of it.