Friday The 13th...Very Superstitious

On a recent trip to my acupuncturist, I was reminded that Friday the 13th is a really easy day to get an appointment. She told me that people won’t book appointments, because they won’t drive. Some people don’t even leave their house, or their bed! I was once again, for some reason, surprised; mainly because I consider myself to be a very non-superstitious person. I’ve actually been known to walk under ladders, as long as a black cat isn’t crossing my path at the time.

My curiosity was once again aroused so I couldn’t wait to get home and investigate the whys, wheres and hows of this apparently wildly held superstition. The good news for those who believe in this superstition, is that 2011 only has one Friday the 13th, which falls in May this year. The number varies from one to three per calendar year and every month that begins on a Sunday, will have a Friday the 13th. Good to know, I thought. And, the longest period of time without a Friday the 13th is fourteen months.The fear of Friday the 13th is called friggatriskaidekaphobia (Frigga the name of the Norse goddess whom Friday is named after and triskaidekaphobia meaning the fear of the number 13) or also, paraskevidekatriaphobia. The impact of this day is so widespread that the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute in Asheville, North Carolina, estimates that 17 to 21 million people in the United States alone are affected by a fear of Friday the 13th. Wow, that is a lot of people. I wondered if these people will go to the horror movie Friday the 13th because I admit, I personally don’t like horror movies and always wondered about the type of person who does. That’s another story, so back to the major influence this day has. Donald Dossey, behavioral scientist and founder of the above Institute, also reported that “It’s been estimated that $800-$900 million is lost in business on this day because people will not fly or do business they would normally do”. That’s an enormous impact related to one superstition, some say the most prevalent superstition of all.There are varying reports on where Friday the 13th, as a superstition, started. According to folklorists, there is no written evidence of the superstition before the 19th century. There are several theories that it is a modern amalgamation of two older superstitions. The obvious one is that the number 13 is an unlucky number. The other is that Friday is an unlucky day. Being interested in numerology, I do understand that 12 is the number of completeness. We see this reflected everywhere in our world, in the twelve months of the year, the twelve signs of the zodiac, the twelve hours on the clock and even the twelve Apostles of Jesus. The list of 12s goes on and on. Because thirteen is irregular, it infringes on this completeness. There are both biblical and Norse myths which relate to the “unlucky” associations with the number 13. If I stop to think about it, the fear of the number 13 is so prevalent, most apartment buildings and office towers don’t even have a 13th floor and many don’t have any rooms with the number 13. When I was recently checked in to a room on the 13th floor of a hotel, I admit, I didn’t even realize it might be unlucky, until I was in the elevator with another guest who had been placed on the same floor. We fearlessly rode to the floor, commenting and laughing that we might be the only ones checking in who were okay to take a room on the 13th floor. For me, the positive was that I had a great view of the city.

Friday, however, as an unlucky day could date back to the 14th Century and The Canterbury Tales with other professions regarding Fridays as a bad luck day to start trips or begin new projects. Black Friday, the infamous stock market crash day, is just one of the unlucky associations tied to a Friday. Personally, knowing Friday is Venus day, I love it and look forward to it. I know there are many working girls and guys who spend many of their weekdays waiting for it and proclaiming TGIF, (Thank God it’s Friday) when it arrives. Maybe just not when it’s a Friday the 13th, I suppose.

There is so much written about Friday the 13th, I was encouraged to find that there is good news, relating to overcoming this fear of it. Dossey, among others, offers ways of changing the negative “bad” luck association with this day, by thinking positive, pleasant thoughts which in turn creates more pleasant feelings, which might then help diminish the overwhelming aspect of the fear. Folklore remedies offer up the following: Climb to the top of a mountain or skyscraper and burn all the socks you own that have holes in them. Or, stand on your head and eat a piece of gristle. Reminds me that if you are open to finding it, there is always hope.

So, whatever you decide to do this coming Friday the 13th, I wish you all good luck and an especially wonderful day. As for me, I know for sure I’m getting out of bed, leaving my house, getting in my car and driving to have an acupuncture treatment.Beverley Golden

Biography

Beverley Golden is a freelance writer and songwriter who lives in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Having written everything from full length magazine articles to song lyrics, she loves to research, design and build stories. She is the author of the upcoming book, Confessions of a Middle Aged Hippie, her first full length book; a memoir combining her anecdotal stories taken from her years in the entertainment industry, coupled with her stories of survival, from a lifetime lived with health issues. She has lived her life as a “self professed guinea pig” willing to find and test unconventional ways to take what she is told is impossible and transform it into possible.

How Seth Godin Reminded Me and Tim Ferris Confirmed....

Lately, I’ve become a fan of all things Seth Godin. Although he has been a popular and well known author, blogger and marketing guru, for many years, I confess I only recently found him. I am, however, committed to playing catch up and I’m absorbing all he has written, as fast as I can. In Godin language, I have become a true enthusiast.

I admit that at times I find myself a bit intimidated by his constant reminders about being “remarkable”. Godin says in Small is the New Big, “Working hard doesn’t make you remarkable. Doing a good job doesn’t make you remarkable. What makes you remarkable is being amazing, outstanding, surprising, elegant and noteworthy!” Gulp! Okay. Am I putting myself out on a limb; setting myself up for serious scrutiny? No matter what, in 2011, I’m taking the leap. I have always thought that being ordinary, normal and average were not things to aspire to anyways. Somehow reading Godin confirms for me that I was right to think that way all along. He also continues to remind me that fear of change, not by me alone, but by the population in general, has led to a persistent belief in what he calls “lies that people tell to maintain the status quo.” Of the ten he lists in his rant “Mail...the check is in the” I relate to the one that affects all of us who travel frequently. “A bottle of Evian is dangerous to airline security and must be surrendered.” We have accepted this as truth or at the very least an imposed truth. He goes on to say, “...people will embrace patently false ideas if it helps them deal with their fear of change.” 

This kind of modern day myth permeates all areas of our lives. Once they take hold they seem virtually impossible to dislodge. Which brings me to the title of this article. In the areas of health and weight loss, this kind of popular “lie” has without much effort, been ingrained into the mass consciousness relating to the part calories play in healthy weight loss or weight gain. Although there is much research over many decades to the contrary, I would bet that most people, when asked, would confirm that if you eat fewer calories than you expend, you will lose weight. Simple, right? Even though there has been increasing evidence that not only is the kind of calories important, but that calories, if they count at all, are merely a small and maybe insignificant piece of the overall complex weight puzzle. Yet, the idea persists that if you cut your calories and do more exercise, you will lose weight. The old calories in - calories out theory. This brings me now to Tim Ferriss and how reading his new book The Four Hour Body confirmed that the weight gain, weight loss issue has little, if anything, to do with calories. I must admit I’ve also become an enthusiastic fan of Ferriss’ and luckily for me, he only has two books, so I’m pretty much on track with all he has written. In very succinct Ferriss style, in explaining the subject of calories, Ferriss says, “as usual, the focus is on the least important piece of the puzzle. But why do scientists harp on the calorie? Simple. It’s cheap to estimate and it is a popular variable for publication journals.” He then goes on to call this “parking lot science” and I suggest you read why, in what I think is a current and informative book.

I personally have understood for a very long time that calories don’t really count. In my ongoing search for ways to continue to improve my health, (which at times has been so bad that it was feared I might die of malnutrition and at other times I was so heavy no matter what I did the weight didn’t come off), I have read many, many books and tried even more programs. I have faithfully counted calories and could never explain the lack of significant results. Yet, the widely held calorie myth is hard to dislodge. It appears on food packages and we are constantly reminded about calories and their relationship to weight, seemingly everywhere we go. I have always been willing to go against the popular belief of the moment. The recommended daily dose of vitamins and minerals has never resonated with me either. I take 3,000-4,000 mg of vitamin C daily, thanks to what was once controversial research by Linus Pauling. This is much higher then the suggested RDI which is between 60-75 mg, but it doesn’t seem to have hurt me in any way. Dare to explore what works, I say. 

Now that a new year is here, I have given myself a challenge; to question some of the widely and long held “truths” that just may not work anymore and in fact, may not have ever been true at all. The start of this new year, 2011, brings us all an opportunity to be open to make changes, some people call them resolutions, as even small ones can make a big difference in our own lives, and can inevitably have an impact on those around us. Personally, I am ready to give up the lies I have bought into over the years. I am committed to being remarkable and an enthusiastic enthusiast as Godin suggests and to becoming superhuman and having incredible sex, if I learn from Ferriss. If I can do this, well 2011 just might be the best year of my life to date! In advance, I thank Seth Godin and Timothy Ferriss for challenging me to be better and to do better. What will 2011 look like for all of you?


Thanks to: Beverley Golden for the article
http://www.beverleygolden.com