This is far from where Nelson’s life began. He was raised Lutheran in DeKalb all his life before he began seeking different spiritual answers to his life.

“I started studying Buddhism and did some meditating,” Nelson said. “I always felt like there was something more to life and better things to do.”

In addition to teaching music lessons at Mr G’s, 360 West State St., in Sycamore, and having an on-air shift at WNIJ in DeKalb, Nelson also works at Subway, 162 West Lincoln Highway. He said his studies give him an opportunity to relate a person’s meal to their past and present life.

“I try to make predictions or connections between the food a person orders and the type of lives they have,” Nelson said. “The rougher foods maybe indicate a rougher life or childhood, and are shown through facial expressions.”

Nelson said he began studying eastern astrology to help him highlight major shifts in his own life.

“It intrigued me from the start. I’ve always been the kind of person that when I find something I’m interested in, everything else goes to the wayside,” Nelson said. “My mind works better that way. The more I got into it, the more I saw the cycles in my own life and a path for my future.”

Astrology goes back in history for thousands of years, said Michael Spires, coordinator for recruitment and public relations at NIU and an expert on religion.

“It’s a belief that the planets’ and stars’ configuration in any moment in time has an effect on a person,” Spires said. “It was huge back in the Roman times, and certain configurations were considered to be a tremendous omen of good or ill.”

Nelson said he has thought about studying at the American College of Vedic Astrology in Sedona, Ariz., which offers a certification in astrology.

Specialized schools have popped up recently that teach a more formal study of astrology.

Kepler College of Astrological Arts and Sciences in Seattle recently awarded the first academic degrees in 400 years in astrological arts and sciences, according to an Oct. 29 press release. Kepler College also received authorization from the Washington State Higher Education Coordinating Board to offer a Master of Arts degree in East/West Traditions.

This is all part of an attempt to “lead to a broader acceptance of the use of responsible astrology in a wide range of businesses and professions,” according to a Nov. 30 Kepler press release.

For those not wishing to devote as much time or money to the teachings, classes are offered every other Thursday night at Styx & Stonz, 1758 W. Algonquin Roadin Hoffman Estates.

“We require [participants] to take an intensive, all-day astrology class that costs about $40 to $50,” said Deanna Blankenship, an employee of Styx & Stonz. “The other classes are $10 and usually have about seven or eight people in them.”