Usually when I ask people their birthday, what time they were born and what city, they roll their eyes or they are alarmed by the requested information.

The eye-rolling is generally because they know I am about to read their personality based on astrology.

The funniest part is most people tell me they do not care because they think it is bogus and fake.

But, as soon as I start telling them the attributes of each sign, their element and their birth chart, they are suddenly captivated by what I say.

This is probably because people love to hear about themselves. However, if I list off a negative attribute of their astrological definition then they no longer care.

When it comes to relationships, people are usually most compatible with people of their own sign or of their element.

Fire signs include Leo, Aries and Sagittarius. Water signs include Pisces, Cancer and Scorpio. Air Signs include Gemini, Libra and Aquarius. Earth signs include Capricorn, Taurus and Virgo.

I have also read that fire signs and air signs are compatible and earth and water signs are compatible.

Of course, there are exceptions to these things. Your birth chart can change several things about compatibility.

Generally the most important things to look for in a birth chart are your moon sign, rising sign and your sun sign.

Your moon sign determines how you deal with things emotionally and your rising is how you come off to people when you first meet them. Your sun sign is your normal sign.

You can also look for your Venus, which is the planet of love. My significant other’s Venus is Sagittarius, which is my sign. Mine is Scorpio, which is his sign.

You can find out your birth chart on Café Astrology’s website.

While I might follow astrology, you have to take some of the things you read with a grain of salt.

Even though astrology categorizes us based on personality, we are obviously still individuals with differences from everyone else.

For example, there is a stigma that all people who are Gemini are fake and terrible. This is not necessarily true.

I think there is a different perspective for each sign on who they like and who they generally have issues with.

Personally, I am not a huge fan of people of the Taurus sign and they are known to butt heads with the Sagittarius. This is because they are as stubborn as bulls, the visual representation of their sign and Sagittarius are generally blunt and to the point.

I realized my disdain for these signs are from a trash ex-boyfriend, but on the other hand, my mother is a Taurus. I, of course, have quarreled with her, but I do not hate her.

I just think astrology is an interesting way of making guidelines to why people work the way they do, and there are some interesting truths behind it.

Abbey Whittington is a junior journalism major. She can be reached at 581-2812 or anwhittington@eiu.edu.