Just Realized It's Friday the 13th.

I don't have triskaidekaphobia, and one of the things I supposedly learned when I became a scientist was to not be superstitious.  But aren't we all superstitious to some degree? Haven't you ever "knocked on wood" without thinking about the superstition behind it, or crossed your fingers at a crucial moment? When the chips are down, when humanity fails us, in a crisis, aren't we likely to haul out anything that might ameliorate the situation.  I remember seeing people carry rabbit's feet in my childhood, and many barn doors had a horseshoe on them.

In this age of technology, have you never kicked or thumped a mechanical object that is on the fritz, as a last, desperate measure?  And been surprised when it works.  I once had a highly trained computer tech tell me, "When all else fails, turn the damn thing off and let all the electricity drain off for at least a minute."  Well, I don't believe for a minute that electricity is going anywhere, but 9 times out of 10, it works!

When people name their children, whether after a rich uncle in hopes of being remembered in the will, or because the baby name book says a name means something special, isn't superstition at work? Superstition takes many forms in many cultures.  The old Germans used to say never throw your hair out the window when you clean your hairbrush, because if a bird found it and used it to build a nest you would get headaches.  When a traditional Navajo walks over the track of a rattlesnake, they shuffle their feet to avoid offending the snake.  Many modern athletes are addicted to lucky hats or lucky shirts  or repetitive behaviors they believe gave them luck in the past.


In past decades, there were only a few choice spots one could go to gamble in the U.S., notably Las Vegas and Atlantic City.  In recent years Native American casinos have burgeoned in every state.  Gamblers are indeed a superstitious lot, so there must be a concomitant rise in superstitious behavior.


If I had a point when I started this ramble, I don't remember what it is now.  I suppose what I meant to say was, so we're all a little superstitious, and some of us are very superstitious.  Where's the harm?  If it makes life flow more smoothly, practice whatever little trick works for you.  Happy Friday the 13th!