Year of the Rat:
Behind the Whiskers

Years: 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020, 2032...
Positive Qualities: charming, imaginative, ambitious, sentimental, generous (to loved ones), frugal
Negative Qualities: hot-tempeted, overly critical, prone to gossip, pack-rat
Suitable Jobs: sales, writing, publicity
Compatible With: Dragons, Monkeys, Oxen (Cows)
Must Avoid: Horses (and cats)
Ruling Hours: 11 p.m. to 1 a.m.
Season: Winter
Ruling Month: December
Sign Direction: North
Fixed Element: Water
Corresponding Western Sign: Sagittarius



The rat was at a disadvantage during the Zodiac race, but with his nimble abilities and smarts was able to land the coveted first place spot in the Chinese Zodiac. For people born in the year of the rat, this win spells some degree of financial freedom (if they don't marry a sheep), but their hearts will always remain true to family and friends. After all, friends are one thing that the rat can never have enough of.

Cheerful and always optimistic, rats love living in groups and will gladly let a friend or relative crash for any amount of time, be it a night or ten years. Freeloading is not an issue because a rat can always find some kind of work that needs to be done. Even when someone swindles them, rats seldom hold a grudge. They simply lock the bad memory away in their hearts. Keeping their loved ones close and happy is what matters most. Ironically though, rats also hold onto an exorbitant amount of trinkets and mementos from past experiences. This 'pack rat' mentality is detrimental through since rats often pick up or buy thing they really never needed in the first place.

An interesting fact of the rat's personality is that they love to ask questions and have great memories, though they often single out the small nit-picky details and gloss over the other nicer points. It is a minor character flaw, but this cunning insight does tend to make a person born in the rat year a particularly excellent writer.

While misfortune does not befall the rat often, whenever it does strike, a rat will have little to fear since an escape route was always carefully factored into their clever plans. Potential dangers are sized-up and quickly faced down with their fearless attitude, cool demeanor and quick wits. For the rat, perseverance is one of their keys to success. After all, no matter how fleeting success is...success is still success.

Celebrity Rats:
Ben Affleck
Mandy Moore
Alice Cooper
Scarlett Johansson
Rizzo the Rat

^{(c)1998 Natsuki Takaya}

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