Friday the 13th! (Revisited, Apparently)

While browsing through old posts of mine, I came across this one.  What is really kind of strange is that it was 5 years ago to the day (well, it would be a multiple of one month).  I guess with the two leap years (+2 days) that makes sense.  Not much to say really, that I haven't said in the first post.  I can't say I've had bad luck on the Friday the 13ths I've had in between, though certainly I've had some bad luck (well, it was others' bad luck) on April 1st and 29th.

Really, it's all just a coincidence.  Bad stuff happens on every day, but we probably focus on it more on days like today when we expect things to happen.  Though this year it's the second of three we'll have (January and July are the other two).  Did I ever mention I was almost born on a Friday the 13th?  Missed it by 10 hours and about 20 minutes.

According to Wikipedia, there are a few possible reasons for the superstition.  I'll let you browse those if you'd like, but I will point out that the reason popularized by Dan Brown in the DaVinci Code is most likely false.

I should also note that this is really only a Western phenomenon.  While in Korea, the number 4 is the unlucky one.  In many buildings, they won't have a fourth floor.  At our school, guess which floor the teacher's office was on?

Well, enjoy your day (actually, I realize that if you're reading this from any of my former countries of residence), it's not quite April 13th yet.  Isn't it neat living in the future?

Friday the 13th

Yes, I know this has nothing to do with food. Sue me.

I thought that since this was such a special day I would mention two phobias surrounding the number thirteen and Friday the 13th.

Triskaidekaphobia: this is the fear of the number 13. Most people know that 13 is considered an unlucky number. This Wikipedia article mentions a few possible origins but I am still unconvinced. Some of the explanations include: the fact that Judas was the 13th person to sit down at the table during the Last Supper and that 13 is one more than 12 (which can be divided by 2, 3, 4, and 6 - I'm not sure what that has to do with bad luck).

Paraskavedekatriaphobia: this is the fear of Friday the 13th. This Wikipedia article discusses possible origins as well. Personally I have had bad luck on Friday the 13th. It was back in December of 2002 that I broke two bones in my foot while running (it was a freak accident). I doubt that had anything to do with the fact that it was Friday the 13th though.

This is turning into a really short post. If I find some time later in the day, I will actually make a post about something food related! I hope this was educational.