I spent last night as I do most clear nights of the summer, laying outside watching stuff happen upwards. If you haven't done that yet this summer, it's a pretty good time for it.
Mars, exalted in Capricorn (or near it, trees in the way) looks like the top of a radio tower, a big red light. Just to the right, Saturn in Sagittarius shows its rings, which only happens ever six years or so since the planet tilts on a twelve year cycle. Jupiter, just to the right of that, creeps toward the claws of the scorpion, and if you bring some decent binoculars and are willing to wait a while, you can watch the major moons revolve around their host.
For me, it is very satisfying to observe astronomical events rather than just plot them with mathematics or a computer program. There is a drama to the movement of the planets, a sense of doings and goings that are not apparent in a drawn chart. I write this post for everyone who involves planetary anything in your practice: get outside and see this stuff in person. Spend a few hours at it, bring some hot cocoa. It's worth the trip.