I shall indeed follow up more on Jim Harrison -- reading his wiki bio has sparked even more curiosity because of where he lived.
As far as astrology is concerned, I would say I half-believe... looking at the topic through a psychological/archetypical lens helps me to accept it more than thinking that the stars absolutely compel certain outcomes. I like thinking of it as different periods of time having different qualities to them.
It also appeals to my mathematical side and highlights the need for precision in creating a birthchart and the uselessness of pop astrology based on the sun sign alone. Just recently I have been creating a birthchart for a friend who is unsure of his birth time but has it within a one-hour window... the thing is, in his case, the difference of even a few minutes would result in him having a different ascendant, thereby affecting his house placement and a bunch of other stuff as well. Based on his persona and physical characteristics, I am pretty sure that I have established a correct birthtime for him; now it just remains to write up the rest of the natal chart interpretation...
I've rambled, I'm afraid, so I'll wrap this one up but simply noting that I feel the idea of helical time resonates the most with me.