I?ve been reading Kirk Little?s ?Defining the Moment? and thought of my replies to this thread when I came to the following passage on pages 30-31. The emphases in the text quote are mine.

"For Cornelius, a chart could violate those technical strictures and still be radical, since for him, the move to interpret is largely a ritualistic move, rather than a technical decision. In this regard, he follows Marc Edmund Jones, who cautions the astrologer who interprets, despite the strictures, to maintain ?some deeper consideration or hidden factor, which must be then taken into account.? Whereas in the Ptolemaic model, radicality always implies the causal-temporal origin in a birth or ?radix? chart, in the divinatory approach, the astrologer assigns radicality to a horoscope because it is symbolically fitting or appropriate. Thus, a horoscope with powerfully appropriate symbolism may be chosen over one whose impeccably timed credentials yield a map lacking in symbolic resonance."

http://www.astrozero.co.uk

I felt that this horary chart was very meaningful despite the late Ascendant, due to the Moon?s prominence and involvement.

Deb wrote:

Beyond this ?missing the moment? aspect, the charts I have had with late ascendants are where the querent asked whether they should do something they have already done (or in some way they are asking about something that is too late to be rectified ? without telling me this); where they are consulting with two astrologers simultaneously, where they know a lot more than they are revealing, so that I?m presented with a false scenario of events; where there is the sense that this matter has already been dealt with and closed, and then there is that traditional warning of trickery ?[...]

Deb, I?m sorry for being so late in thanking you for such useful information. So- one could start with what you wrote above regarding the Asc. and take a look at what is indicated by this chart's Moon concerning the querent and situation. The Asc. offers a warning; the Moon offers a description of the situation.

Edited to add:
I want to clarify that in calling the querent "my fellow Portlander" in an earlier post I was not implying that we are acquainted. I have no personal interest in this chart.