Paraskavedekatriaphobia is the name psychologists have given to people who suffer from a disabling fright of a Friday that has the date 13. Friday the thirteenth is fraught with superstition, bad luck and fear.
Superstitions, bad luck and fear; they go hand in hand. Step on a crack and break your mother’s back. Spill the salt and its bad luck. Walk under a ladder and take your chances. Break a mirror and suffer seven years of bad luck. Beware the black cat walking across your path.
Today, Friday the 13th, we enjoy, or fear, or loathe, or detest what is the granddaddy of all superstitions. There is something about the day. It takes us a little longer to get out of bed, we linger longer at busy intersections, we take care with salt shakers and avoid black cats.
Some say defiantly that it is their lucky day or that the number 13 is a good number. The fact of the matter is, we, for the most part, don’t perform as well on Friday the 13th. It is estimated that American businesses lose nearly $700 million because of poor productivity on Friday the 13th.
That is nothing new. Friday the 13th is a day of terrible luck around a great deal of the world and has been for a very long time. What about here in Southern Maryland. How does the day affect our little community?
We here at TheBAYNET.com would love to hear your most troublesome time or your greatest triumph on a Friday the Thirteenth. Enter your story right here in the comments and if nothing else we can help each other get through the day together … and perhaps have a little bit of fun while we’re at it.
