The Atlantic Diaries – the aftermath – Uranus in Gemini

I write this blog in the days immediately after Uranus moved into Gemini, the last of the outer planets to have finally changed signs. As we know, it has been 500 years since all three outer planets changed signs in the same year (allowing for the fact that Pluto technically moved into Aquarius at the end of last year), and the last time Uranus was in Gemini, we had the American Revolution, followed by the American Civil War, and we also had World War II.

What we have seen worldwide in the weeks leading up to this most important of outer planetary transits has been a frighteningly speedy oppression of free speech and the right to demonstrate peacefully. In London 83 year old Reverend Sue Parfitt was amongst 27 people arrested for defying the UK ban on Palestine Action as this non-violent group has now been officially designated a terrorist organisation by the UK government. The terrifyingly secretive and ongoing ICE swoops, arrests, deportations and jailing throughout Los Angeles and elsewhere in California, by nonuniformed, unidentifiable ICE officials continue. 

Since I started writing this, Donald Trump has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Benjamin Netanyahu and the USA government has imposed sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the Italian born UN special reporter for the Occupied Palestinian territories. The Gaza Freedom Flotilla is once again underway, this time on the Handala ship. It left from Syracuse, Sicily, yesterday.

Trump continues his never ending ranting and now threatens to deport whoever he wants, whenever he wants. The comedian Rosie O Donnell who relocated to Ireland when he was re-elected for example. The USA government now insists that those applying for certain visas set their social media accounts to “public”. 

This is exactly how the build up to World War II started. Except this time round we have social media spreading both vast lies and total truth around what is happening. 

Which truly, gives us enormous hope.

In the Middle East we are seeing the spread of media organisations whose only goal is to spread the truth of what is happening in this cruellest of all wars. In the UK, we have had the recent BBC attempt to censor acts like Kneecap and Bob Vylan at Glastonbury backfire spectacularly. Helen from Wales (who is unlikely to receive any sort of UK knighthood award any time soon!!!) smartly outwitted the BBC by streaming the entire Kneecap set live on her TikTok account, receiving almost 2m views (at the time of writing this) in the process. This woman will be getting free Guinness in Ireland any time she visits for sure. 

Music and art is finally becoming political again, after a hiatus of almost 50 years. Interestingly the 40th anniversary of Live Aid is the very week I write this blog – 13th July 1985. When I look back, it is magical to remember how blessed us Irish were for the extraordinarily musical summers of the 1980’s. Imagine going from having seen Bruce Springsteen live outdoors in Slane Castle on 1st June that year, to being glued to my tiny bedsit television for 16 hours straight barely six weeks later to watch the greatest concert of all time. 

Organised by Bob Geldof (who is Sun Neptune) and Midge Ure. Bob Geldof infamously told the at the time UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to “f…k off” when she tried to tax the single “Do they know it’s Christmas”. 

And she did! 

And for those who don’t think music was political in that decade, it sure was. We had the stunningly poignant song “Belfast Child” by Simple Minds written in late 1987, after the horrors of the Enniskillen bombing. “Fields of Fire’ was written by Big Country in early 1983 in response to the Falklands War along with “Where the Rose is Sown” with a similar theme. 

And who can ever forget the early years of U2 marching out on stage, carrying an Irish flag, launching immediately into the electrifying “Sunday Bloody Sunday” but – by saying first – “this is not a rebel song”. That song, one of their most famous, has frequently been re-worded during their live concerts in protest at other wars around the globe.

40 years later, it remains one of the best antiwar songs of all time. 

And the iconic Bob Dylan is banning mobile phones from all his forthcoming European concerts. Takes an iconic artist like Bob Dylan (whose Uranus return finished earlier this year, aged 84) to start the tide turning against the scourge of mobile phones. 

At friggin’ last.

I am personally experiencing Uranus in Gemini in a far more fascinating manner than I ever expected. I recently did one of Karen Kingston’s online courses – the “Clear Your Paper and Digital Clutter” which was a month long. Karen has long claimed to be the most advanced space clearer in the western world. The course was far more detailed than I expected, to the point of overwhelm. Nevertheless, I completed it, totally chuffed with how much I had achieved. Some days later, I got an email from Karen telling me in effect what a very, very bold girl I had been for over posting and going off topic in the online group and that I was not going to be allowed do further courses with them unless I changed my attitude!!!

Well there you have it!!! 

BOOM! 

Uranus in Gemini. 

Suppressing my helpful comments in the group notice board. Banning me totally from further courses unless I do them in the order she wants me to do them in, and then I get reviewed by her and her husband to see if I am a good “fit” for future courses. Forcing me to do courses I actually don’t need to do.

I have long had issue with her claim to be the finest space clearer in the western world – she actually only has three people trained as space clearers worldwide on her website, one of which will not travel outside the UK. She has trained some new clutter clearers, but no new space clearers in almost a decade. 

Her latest book, which is supposedly a rewrite of “Creating Sacred Space with Feng Shui” has now been divided into two books called “Space Clearing Volume One” and “Space Clearing Volume Two” which were published last year and neither of which I can recommend. They are merely fleshed out versions of the original book with both books repeating tons of the same information. 

I have no issue whatsoever with her running tons of online courses, that is entirely her prerogative. She is also perfectly entitled to charge whatever she wants for her courses, training, and books. But if she is no longer training people as high level space clearers to focus on writing more books instead, why can’t she just say so?

Till now I have kept stumm about my recent horrendous experience on the SV Florette tall ship with whom I did a two week Mediterranean trip, starting from Malta and ending in Vibo, Calabria, shortly after my magnificent Atlantic Crossing on the Blue Clipper Tall Ship in February and March.

How things have unexpectedly unfolded this last week has ended up being hilarious to watch. I won’t go into the details other than to say the SV Florette was not in any way as described – miniscule cabins, no storage room, paper thin wooden walls and only three toilets for 20 guests which were also used by crew and which were often close to overflowing when I used them in the night. Some dinghy runs were done without lifejackets. The age profile was far older than I expected along with an older guest with a major disability on board (who was unaccompanied) which left me deeply uncomfortable as I was unsure as to who would look out for him whilst ashore. Drones were used for photos and other photos were taken without either my knowledge or consent and forwarded to the ships phone and then posted on Instagram. The captain subsequently denied this and then blocked me on Instagram. 

But hey, it’s all about bowing to the God of Instagram these days, right?

Instead of dealing with my email complaint properly, Venture Sail tried to buy me off with a payment of €250 towards my dental work plus a 10% discount on a further trip. But I already have a 10% discount with them to go back on the Blue Clipper.

In the meantime, several emails were exchanged, none of which were satisfactory as both companies went back and forth defending each other. The last few emails sent in early June were totally ignored by Venture Sail. I also contacted the other managing director of Venture Sail on the 20th June via her Instagram account (she is the owner), asking her to look into the situation, and this message was also ignored. 

I then rang my bank in Ireland to apply for a chargeback as I had at that stage ample proof of how much I had tried to resolve matters. I was only asking for a 50% refund plus a few hundred euros compensation for unauthorised use of photos. However, in Ireland the chargeback deadline is 60 days, and I was over that timeframe by 18 days. Chargeback times in Germany are also only 60 days, whereas in Italy and the UK are 120 days – a difference of a whopping two months.

My bank in Ireland (thanks AIB!) were really helpful and verified that they see this behaviour a lot. The company is question simply ignores emails knowing that they only have to drag a complaint out by two months and then they get away scot free.

As Venture Sail deal a lot with Ireland, they would hence be well aware of the fact that Irish charge back times are two months shorter than the UK.

How beautifully convenient.

And then the very day Uranus moved into Gemini it got even better! 

Venture Sail had only sent me a Feefo review request for my two week Florette trip on the 25th June – a whopping two months after the trip ended! Then I remembered I had not received a review request for my transatlantic crossing earlier in the year (I had received a review request for the week long trip in the Caribbean but had not reviewed that trip) on the Blue Clipper. So, I checked with two others who had done that trip – nope! They had not received a review request either! 

I rang Feefo and was initially very reassured to be informed that Venture Sail are supposed to send a review request out to each client after each trip, which I now know they did not do. However, on checking back on the Venture Sail website there was a suspiciously large number of recently posted 100% perfect holiday reviews posted for the very same trip I had been on. Three of whom read as if they had been written by the same person (or else AI) – the fact that these three extra perfect reviews were far longer than normal and by “Trusted Customers” made me even more suspicious. 

So, then I googled Feefo and guess what – they suppress reviews as well folks! They either delete negative comments before posting, or else do a cut n paste job of the reviews they receive before posting. 

Yup – go Google them on Trustpilot! It is full of this type of feedback!

Then when I went onto TripAdvisor to have a look at the reviews of SV Florette, there had been no reviews since October 2024 then suddenly – up pop 10 wonderful reviews many of which again are also remarkably lengthy and highly specific. All of which have also been posted in the last six to eight weeks.

So, to end on an empowering note –

My advice to ye prospective sailors is – do not book with Venture Sail or direct with SV Florette. If ye have, then cancel. If they won’t refund you, then apply for a chargeback with your bank. You’ve got between 60 and 120 days to ask for a chargeback, depending on where you live. 

I recommend a new cutting edge sailing company – Enola Sailing. I know one of the people involved as I sail trained with her. Their website is totally transparent about using social media and photography. 

If you book a trip on Blue Clipper, then I highly recommend you book via their parent company Maybe Sailing rather than via Venture Sail.

Or book a sailing trip via Sail Training Ireland (who also work closely with Maybe Sailing, parent company of the Blue Clipper and TS Maybe)

I am currently setting up two yearly bursaries in Ruth’s name from 2026 and beyond with Sail Training Ireland – details will be announced shortly.

Or better still – hire your own boat between a few of ye and pay a trusted sailing friend to be the skipper – it’s easier than you think! 

And to finish on a Uranian high – here are some thoroughly ethical people who walk their walk so I recommend you check some of them out. 

Zach Bush
The Blue Zones
Jamie White
Theresa Tierney
Najwa Zebian
Natalie Holborrow
Aaron Rose

It is not the first time that by biding my time, the truth came out of its own accord. Literally the very week Uranus moved into Gemini!

Speak your truth fearlessly folks, in whatever area of your life is most important to you right now. For me that’s been sailing. You will have lightning flashes of insight for the coming weeks, as we settle into the electrifying energy of Uranus now being in the sign of Mutable Air.

And you can email me on info@marthaclarkeastrology.com to book a reading as I am still taking clients till 4th August, after which I am taking some personal time until 6th September. Yes, a sailing reunion is involved!

My week astrology retreat is now being scheduled for late September/early October 2026, and will be here in Vibo. Email me if you would like to be put on the waitlist for information. 

Bless you all for journeying with me.