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Personal Superstitions

Little Yellow Screwdriver Update

So far no earth-shattering or weird news stories involving (little) (yellow) screwdrivers except for this nasty little one about a man you was kidnapped by a gang with a screwdriver and tortured for 12 hours:

Rolling Meadows Man Beaten, Left for Dead

Although unusual, this story (and the fourteen others I got when I Googled "screwdriver September") isn't the same class of event as my previous coincidences, so I will keep my eyes open.
 
my personal superstition is to always turn on the shower water before i enter the shower. This is to avoid blasts of hot/cold water i guess.
I also have a distaste for the number 4. i can't explain away that one....

---'goblin
 
compulsions might be a better word.

wow i never knew about those superstitions of yours freya, next time i see you i'm going to pester you and my brother about them!

ok my 'compulsions' and superstitions.

Magpies, and the rhyme, generally feel like i have to say the bit of the rhyme that goes with it.

one for sorrow
two for joy
three for a girl
four for a boy
five for silver
six for gold
seven for a secret never to be told.

pages!! like others i have problems with thirteen and books! won't stop reading at the end of chapter 12 cos thirteen is about to start, of course won't stop at end of thirteenth or fourteenth because if i missed any of the fourteenth chapter then i've only read 13 and a bit chapters haven't I? and same idea with chapters that add up to thirteen, or four, or multiples of either as well as the chapters before and after. not many chapters i can stop after is the result.

Will never say that Freya and my brother (Laton) will have anything other than twins as their first child/ren, but thats more me trying to make it happen with force of will! :D

if i start something (like counting Freya's dice) i have to finish it, no matter how many people laugh at me doing it.

when i sleep i must have my wrists, fold of my elbows and legs completely under the cover when i fall asleep, incase somebody tries to slit them.

i stick with the theatre thing of not saying good luck and saying break a leg instead before a performance, because in one of our dance shows somebody important said good luck to a dancer and one of the lights set the safety curtain on fire.

i don't follow the not passing on the stairs one because its hard not to do when you're trying to get on for a dance number. my dad and i figure that comes from olden times when stairs at the front of the stage were the only ways to get on stage and it would be dangerous to pass on those stairs.

i have to say 'see you tomorrow' to my parents and them say it back cos otherwise i fear that they might die during the night. sometimes same with my brothers.

thats all i can remember right now and i've rambled on for long enough, sorry!
 
Little Yellow Screwdriver Update

Since I put the little yellow screwdriver in my "magic" tray at work (see page 6 or so of this thread) there has been a number of news stories involving screwdrivers.

I did a Google News search on "screwdriver" and came up with a total of 130 stories since September 10, out of a total of 221, which is slightly more than half. The oldest story, 221, dates to August 31.

Does this qualify as a "hit"? Probably not. About half of the stories are before, and half after my posting, and the uptick in screwdriver related incidents is probably not statistically significant, although I didn't actually count incidents--just hits.

Well, either the run of coincidences is broken or else I am missing something.

The weirdest story was about an eyeglass screwdriver being confiscated in Paris by airport security--they must be worried about James Bond or possibly Ninja Warriors running amuck on airplanes because who else could do any damage with an eyeglass screwdriver?

Some of these security stories suggest that the authorities may have a few superstitions of their own: you can put a man in a crate and ship him across the United States (a really dumb thing to do) but you can repair your eyeglasses or clip your finger nails when you travel by air.

Note to terrorists: stock up on personal care items and take the bus.
 
nikita said:
Me and my sister say "Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit" everytime we see the clock turn to 12:34. Iv'e never heard anyone else do it, so I wonder where it came from.
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Hey... I do that. Wonder where it came from?
 
ginoide said:
i was outside smoking when another superstition came to my mind:
if there are 3 ppl who want to have a cigarette they mustn't use the same match. otherwise bad luck and disgrace will hit them.
the explanation would be as follows: during wwI, which was mainly fought in trenches, if a guy lit a fag in the dark of night the enemy would spot him. while the second guy lit his fag with the same match, the enemy would take aim; when it came to the third soldier to light his cigarette, the germans would finally be able to shoot and kill him.

i think it's an italian thing, or at least a continental thing. anyway, have you ever heard of this?
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Darrenxyz said:
It was also a superstition held by many British soldiers too.
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And upheld by many Scotsmen I bet.

OK, OK, it was a REALLY bad joke. :eek:
 
I'm quite devout in my religion and I truly belive that "a superstition is a disbelief in the Gods" but ...

I've found that if I daydream about the outcome of an event (such as daydreaming that I get a job I've just applied for) it will not happen. I've got quite concerned when trying to force myself to "forget" something that I really want!

Perhaps it's "wishful thinking" for something I subconciously "know" I will not get.

I dunno. All I know is that it does my head in when I'm conerned for an outcome and I try not to think about it!
 
oooooooh, i do that too. if I really want something to happen I dare not think about it, in case I tempt 'the gods'. Perversely if a nasty thought drifts into my head i will hold it there and fully analyize it and make sure I noticed it, in that way i believe that i can ward off bad events by facing them head on and scaring them off.......i really think i need help.:D
 
Blueswidow said:
oooooooh, i do that too. if I really want something to happen I dare not think about it, in case I tempt 'the gods'. Perversely if a nasty thought drifts into my head i will hold it there and fully analyize it and make sure I noticed it, in that way i believe that i can ward off bad events by facing them head on and scaring them off.......i really think i need help.:D
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You don't need help ... you need reassurance!
:)
If everything is preordained then we have no worry. If we are given choice in our life then no worry!

I may be an alien but you humans worry too much!
 
I agree, if I have been for a job interview I simply DO NOT get my hopes up or dwell on it....best to leave well alone...
Another superstition...
I am also 'nice' to my car, beleiving it will be 'nice' back to me.
However, if it ever fails to start, etc then it gets a damn good scolding!!!
 
Not sure if this one's cropped up before, but while in the Baltic States I was told by several people (in response to my friend, a smoker) that lighting cigarettes from a burning candle endangers sailors' lives.

Not sure of the rationale or mechanism, but there you have it.

By the way, everyone should visit Tallinn in Estonia. It's beautiful.

EDIT: Perhaps Rynner can shed some light on this?
 
No, no sticks involved....rewards include a full tank of petrol or a wash and wax though....she seems to like it....
 
Just noticed that on a photo I took of one of my dogs, my jacket is clearly visible on the bed.

I can almost hear my long-dead Gran sucking in her breath in horror- you NEVER put a coat on a bed! Brings Death to the house! :eek:
 
For some reason it is in my head that whenever I see a hearse I have to hold my collar until I see a four legged animal. Now I've written that down I realise it is insane. Will probably continue to do it though.
 
My Gran also believed that to hear a can being kicked in the street was unlucky, in the sense of bringing death to those whose house it was left outside. It's also unlucky to look out of the window to see which house it's at, in case the curse settles on your house instead. :rolleyes:

I'm not superstitious. No sirree.

But when those noisy schoolkids have gone past I might just wander down to bring the bin in, and any litter lying about, well, it's only polite to pop it in the bin........................
 
I'm going to sound weird here but...

I have to tap out rythems.

For instance: Second fingure...well you tap that once, middle fingure twice, third fingure three times and then you reverce it.

Actuyaly I havn't done that for over a year...perhaps I'm not so mentaly ill these days? :confused:
 
I'm not what I would call superstitious, although I do follow superstitions. Work that one out! :D

I do walk under ladders. It doesn't bother me. Umbrellas in the house don't bother me. Number 13 doesn't bother me

I do, however :

  • salute magpies - obsessively
  • panic at shoes on the table
  • eat my food in a certain order (don't know where that one comes from.
  • hate slamming doors, or doors being slammed. Either way.
  • crossed cutlery
  • avoid peacock feathers
  • don't like red and white flowers together (blood and bandages)
  • I won't do laundry on Good Friday, or Easter Sunday. Actually, I try to avoid it on Fridays and Sundays altogether, but definitely not on those days.
  • if I spill salt, I throw it over my left shoulder. Get nagged a bit from t'Other Half for doing this, especially if he happens to be standing behind me.
  • I don't like being between two mirrors

There are probably more that I can't think of right now. I have routines I follow, especially about my bike. I'm not sure if some things are superstitions or a case of mild OCD. Ah well.
 
I have only JUST stopped saying "Good morning Mister Magpie and say hello to your lady wife" whilst saluting, every time I see a lone magpie.

Various people say different things..."Hello Mr Magpie, How's your lady wife today?'."

"'Good morning Mrs Magpie, how are you and your children today?'."

"Good afternoon Mrs Magpie, how are you and your three children?"

"'Good morning, good morning, good morning, Mr Magpie, go home to your wife and kids'."

"I say when I see a single magpie 'Good morning Mr Magpie, good morning Mr Magpie, good morning Mr Magpie, how's Mrs Magpie?'

'Good morning Captain'

'Seek thy mate'

etc etc etc
 
Helen said:
[*]eat my food in a certain order (don't know where that one comes from.
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That's actually more common than you think because it mostly has to do with unsupervised eating habits (not making any assumptions in your case) as children have a tendency to do this. SOME parents do tell their children to eat evenly across the plate. My mum never did because she didn't care as long as I ate it all. Her solution actually was to mash it all together, and thus was born my favourite meal, steak meat mashed with mash potato and pees.

:)
 
You don't want to get me started on my weird eating habits, Hook! Let's just say, if my mom could get me to eat one meal a day, she was onto a good thing. One meal in three was more like it. Bullying, bribes, threats - none worked. And it's no good saying, "If you don't eat that, you don't get anything else" because that certainly didn't work. Probably goes a long way to explain my completely knackered metabolism. :rolleyes:

I tend to salute the magpie, and say,"Morning, Captain". If I can't speak, I salute; and vice versa, but usually they get both.

(oh yes - I don't like the food touching each other either, although I have learned to stand a small amount of contact - I'm weird. Best leave it at that.)
 
The ex always ate the meat last. Something to do with, I dunno, it being the 'best' part of the meal.

I'm not generally superstitious but one thing (apart from the angels) that creeps me is plain white crockery. Brrr.

Apparently this is a Roma (gypsy) thing.
:confused:
 
You don't want to come to my house for dinner then. I've got white china with a gold trim. :D

I don't rationalise the way I eat. I just don't like to eat any other way. To mix the food together on my fork - well, even the thought of it makes me feel physically sick. :cross eye

I don't like gravy much, either. But if I do have it, I have only a spoonful, and only on the meat. Can't stand it anywhere else.

Anyway, I really should shut up about my eating habits. Makes me sound like a freak! :D
 
Helen said:
To mix the food together on my fork - well, even the thought of it makes me feel physically sick.
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Mash get smash....Helen runs away screaming!!!!

I vary my food a lot. I ask a lot of pregnant women what weird food cravings they get THEN catalogue them and make that part of my diet (mostly when I'm cranking out ideas for stuff). I have a cast iron gut as a result and have only been sick once (raw garlic and sun dried tomatoes covered in nutmeg and tamerik oh and sea -salt....oddly, it was the sea-salt that did it).

When I was a kid I used to eat dog food. I don't mean that I experimented, I ATE A LOT OF IT. But I hated bonio biscuits. Now, I can safely say I'm not partial to it, though given a nuclear fallout, I'd be tucking into the dog food long before the human stuff ran out:)
 
Re: superstitions

MsClaireVoyant said:
Also, when I am driving at night, and a I see a car with one headlight burnt out, I HAVE to slap my dashboard.
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Pididdle!


My only weird eating habit is having to dismantle certain things, especially junk food. I have to peel and unroll Swiss Cake Rolls, I have to eat those peanut butter wafer bars layer by layer, I have to take the Oreos entirely apart. I guess it's just more interesting that way?

I also get nosebleeds every so often, and consider them to be bad omens. *shrug*
 
I've only recently got rid of eating Yourshire Pud before everything else. (More pudding you eat more meat you'll get)
 
I just heard a really weird noise out in the garden, and went to investigate. There I found a totally black cat playing with (or trying to catch and eat) a large green toad. Next door's daschunds were going crazy. I shooed the cat away, and the toad made several big hops for freedom before vanishing into the undergrowth. Black cats and toads seem a bit "witchey" to me, and I've never seen the cat or any toad round here before. Maybe it's a sign...maybe I should have some superstitions. :eek!!!!:
 
intaglio: "I've only recently got rid of eating Yorkshire Pud before everything else. (More pudding you eat more meat you'll get)"

Well if that's a personal superstition, it strangely replicates the alleged
origin of the delicious pud! It was traditionally served first to break the
appetite*. So I can imagine some thrifty types telling their kiddies the fib
about more meat to come!

*Orwell recalls a similar but nastier dish, IIRC, served in the same way in
his horrid account of public school food. Probably in DAOIPAL. :cross eye
 
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