Horoscope Review: Rock with Real Astrologer Daniel "Whelland" Dowd

Daniel "Whelland" Dowd, salt-of-the-earth astrologer from Buffalo, NY, is a mellow Libra who writes kickin' weekly Sun-sign forecasts. Easy to use, with a slightly psychedelic look, Dowd's recently renovated site Weeklyhoroscope.com always prefaces its general weekly forecast with rock-and-roll song lyrics chosen to characterize the current week. (This week of the hurricane, it's "Eli's Comin'.") Each sign gets its own specific reading, not necessarily of the future, but of the best ways to use current planetary energies.

Say "Daniel Whelland Dowd" out loud, and you might guess why he adopted that jokey middle name. If you can handle that, you'll like advice like, "Keep the faith. Better Days & Higher Love are comin' soon..." and Dowd laughing at his own jokes ("hehehe"). Some might not care for his offhand style ("With Jupiter in your 11th House, you bet your ass that good fortune will not be found in the standard places or methods") but I prefer his forecasts to those generated by humorless computers. He knows how to say a lot in few words: "Mercury retrograde is the universe telling us to slow down and to lighten up," he writes, and that is all you truly need to know about Mercury in retrograde.

Dowd is one of the few online astrologers whose premium service I have to believe must be worth paying for--$49.99 a year for longer and more customized forecasts and full Tarot--because the free stuff is so flavorful. Also on the menu are free daily 'scopes, monthly 'scopes by Daniel's co-worker Bud, and feature articles such as A List of Spiritual Laws. Computerized offerings include single-card Tarot readings and Mayan birth horoscopes (mine, very creepy, said, "All born under this sign. . .were to be blind, lame, maimed, pimply, leprous, claw-handed, mangy, bleary-eyed. . ."). On the "Fun Pages" are game-like "oracles" for romance and finance. Scroll down to the bottom of the Home page to see the array and make your selection. A phone app is being designed.

On the minus side, animated advertising for iHOP-at-Home breakfast foods, Bergdorf Goodman or Febreze will distract you, so click on a tiny link called "Ad Choices" to opt out. You'll still see ads, but you won't be targeted and pursued.The "opt-out" courtesy for site visitors is truly appreciated. Weeklyhoroscope.com could also use a search box, and I found a bug in its birth-chart calculator, so use the one at alabe.com.

I visit dozens of horoscope sites every week, hunting for the site that has everything, that could be worth the price of membership. Dowd's comes close.

Sylvia Sky, experienced astrologer, monitors online horoscope and psychic sites for quality and accuracy. Copyright 2011 by Sylvia Sky.