Friday the 13th

I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to blog on a Friday the 13th.



I do not recall since when I have been aware of the so-called "unluckiness" of Friday 13ths. I probably read it in some book when I was a kid. Although I do not believe that any Friday that falls on the 13th is more unlucky than any other day in the calendar, I do not deny that many... unfortunate events have happened in the past to make it seem that way.

L from Death Note doing the Caramelldansen dance. Don't ask me why.

With just a little skepticism and a whole lot of morbid curiosity about this superstition, I went through the wikipedia pages and here's what I found...

• The fear of Friday the 13th is called paraskavedekatriaphobia, a word derived from the concatenation of the Greek words Paraskeví [Παρασκευή] (meaning Friday), and dekatreís [δεκατρείς] (meaning thirteen), attached to phobía [φοβία] (meaning fear). The term is a specialized form of triskaidekaphobia, a simple fear of the number thirteen appearing in any case.

• In numerology, the number twelve is considered the number of completeness, as reflected in the twelve months of the year, twelve recognized signs of the zodiac, the twelve Apostles of Jesus, whereas the number thirteen was considered irregular, transgressing this completeness. There is also a superstition, derived from the Last Supper, that having thirteen people seated at a table will result in the death of one of the diners. (I remember Professor Trelawney in Harry Potter having this same superstition during their Christmas dinner.)

• Friday, as the day on which Jesus Christ was crucified, has been viewed both positively and negatively among Christians. (TGIF, anyone? O_o)

• Any month that begins on a Sunday will contain a Friday the 13th. Every year has at least one and at most three Fridays the 13th. The longest period that can occur without a Friday the 13th is fourteen months.

Several events that are linked to Friday the 13th:

1. The arrest of the Knights Templar on Friday October 13, 1307.
2. The Uruguayan Rugby team infamously crashed in the Andes mountain range on Friday, 13 October 1972.
3. The "Friday the 13th Storm" struck Buffalo, New York on October 13, 2006.
4. UNIX time will reach 1,234,567,890 decimal seconds on February 13, 2009 at 23:31:30 GMT. (This isn't scary at all. I mean, how cool is that!)
5. The asteroid 99942 Apophis will make its close encounter on Friday, April 13, 2029. (Uhhh... okay. O_o)

Now for the finishing touches to this post. If these posters don't make you LoL, scream in terror or have some kind of reaction, I may just have to kill you. For more hilarious horror, check out Worth1000's "Mate A Movie" gallery for more of where this came from.


An instant classic, if it were ever made. XD


Wouldn't we all like to know... +_+

Have fun avoiding ladders and black kitties today! Happy Friday the 13th!! ^^