Friday the 13th

I'd completely forgotten that today was Friday the 13th until a few moments ago when I logged into my email and discovered I am a little over $40 better off as my article about this phenomenon sold today at Constant Content.

That was only one of the happy events of today. It rained quite hard in the night and was still raining when I got up this morning, but by 10,30, when I was ready to take Jade for a good walk, it had stopped. Before that I had tucked her into her rainproof coat and let her out into the back garden.

After the rain we enjoyed a grand tramp through the woods and Jade obediently stayed on the far side of the gate while I hotfooted it to the pooh bin at the Upton House car park. The farmer was about to bring his cows across the lane and was really impressed that she stayed exactly where I left her until I returned. I wasn't: that's what I had told her to do. (The picture is by John Lamper, and shows the rather splendid frontage of Upton House, which is surrounded by the country park.)

After that Jade stayed at home while I went to catch up with some of the Streetlifers over a drink at lunchtime. I had to leave them early though to head on to my singing group practice, where we had a hilarious time with all the jokers bang on form. When I got home Jade was looking out of the window to watch for me and we've just had a lovely cuddly hour on the sofa.

So I have enjoyed today. I think Friday the 13th could be good for me.

Some Facts about Friday 13th

Pic is of a tree that fell in a snowstorm on a street in Buffalo, New York, on Friday 13th October 2006. It is by DragonFire1024 at Wikimedia.

Every year our calendar has at least one Friday 13th. This year we've had three, in February, March, as well as today.

If you are among the many folk particularly wary of Friday 13th, you are suffering from paraskevidekatriaphobia, or the slightly easier to pronounce friggatriskaidekaphobia – two names for the same phenomenon. Triskaidekapohobia on its own just means fear of the number 13.

There are plenty of theories about the origins of these phobias.

§ There are 13 witches in a coven.

§ Christian ideas relate it to the crucifixion happening on a Friday, also the last supper attended by Christ and the 12 apostles, the 13th being Judas Iscariot, the traitor.

§ Some believe it had an earlier origin when the Norse god Odin was entertaining 11 of his friends at Valhalla and his crafty brother, Loki, turned up uninvited, changing the party total to 13. It was at this party that Loki managed the tragic demise of Baldur, son of Odin and Frigga.

§ It was on Friday 13^th October, 1307 that the Knights Templar across France were arrested en masse, to suffer torture and death at the whim of the Pope who had been jealous of their power.

Some famously nasty happenings have been linked to Friday and/or the number 13, but sometimes these links do seem rather contrived.

§ The crew members of the Apollo 13 mission failed to land on the moon, and were lucky to get home following an oxygen tank explosion on board. They were launched from Pad 39 (3 x 13) at 13:13 hours (not local time, but Houston mission control time) on 11th April, 1970 (11 + 4 + 70 = 85, and 8 + 5 = 13).

§ Composer Arnold Schoenberg was afflicted with triskaidekaphobia. Born on the 13th day of September in 1874, he died on Friday 13th July 1951 at 13 minutes to midnight. He is said to have predicted his death on this day as it was the first Friday 13th in his 76th year (7 + 6 = 13).

§ An amazing number of serial killers’ names have 13 letters – Charles Manson, Wayne Williams, Pee Wee Gaskins, Thierry Paulin, Fritz Haarmann, John Wayne Gacy, Michael Swango, Theodore Bundy, Herbert Mullin, Jack the Ripper, Harold Shipman, Frederick West, and Peter Sutcliffe, are just 13 of them.

This comes from an article I first wrote a couple of years ago. A version of it was published in Ireland's Own in June last year. Another version is for sale at http://www.constant-content.com/MoreDetails/81155-Facts_About_Friday_13th.htm .