Superstitions.

I think - for anyone who has read here for any length of time - you will know how much of an influence my grandmother had on me.  It was wonderful - and a problem all at the same time.

My grandmother was extremely superstitious ............ had her fortune told regularly by god only knows who - gypsies probably - and fussed over everything from spilled salt - to broken mirrors - to umbrellas open in a house - god the list was endless.

My favourite - in a perverted way - was the day I got married.  She was in charge (self proclaimed boss of good omens) of handling all the little extras .......... from the something borrowed something blue - right down to a penny in my shoe (for wealth, good luck, and list of other things) 

It was a hot muggy day when I got married.  The penny was put in  my shoe as I walked out of my parent's house.  By the time I started to walk down the aisle - I realized something was wrong.  The penny had lodged itself just under the ball of my foot and was wedging itself into my foot.  

By the time the service was over and all the pictures - I couldn't wait to get into the limo and take the damn penny out of my shoe... my foot was asleep - not just pins and needles asleep - but dead asleep - numb - no feeling at all !!!   The imprint of the damn penny lasted for 2 days..... the bruise from the penny for a week !!!


So....... all of that to explain how I grew up having a sense of foreboding over certain things.... like black cats - umbrellas open in a building - and most definitely pennies in one shoe.

Friday the 13th is the worst superstition I inherited from my grandmother.  I live in absolute dread of it.  The first Friday the 13th was only months after we got married.  My husband agreed to let me have his "baby" the MGB for the evening.  (He was working) I was so damn excited !!  I was gonna get to drive HIS baby to pick up my baby brother - bring him back to our apartment for dinner and take him home after.  Everything went fine till I had to take brother home.  I managed somehow to scrape the brand new MGB down the wall of the garage breaking off the side rear view mirror.  Then ......... in the middle of an intersection the car died.  DEAD.  The garage was called and the mechanic knowing nothing about MGB's managed to put the battery cables on the wrong batteries (positive on negative and vice versa) - for those of you who don't know the MGB has 2 batteries - one positive one negative.  The mechanic managed to blow up the batteries.  My father towed the car and me home....... in tears. 

So ........ ever since then I have lived in dread of Friday the 13th.  Most of the time I manage to ignore the number and just focus on the day - a FRIDAY.  

Yesterday - which for those of you who didn't take note - was Friday the 13th.  I managed like always - to focus on the fact it was FRIDAY - and kept my mind focused on what I planned to do this weekend................. 

Until............... 

Joyce ( my long time favourite anonymous commenter) jinxed the whole focus thing by wishing me a "Happy Friday the 13th !!!  It all went downhill from there........ 

From having to discipline an employee (I hate doing that!!) ......to being chastised by my principal for a forgotten "heads up" ......... to a case of chicken pox in my program......... to a case of head lice ........ to receiving an email that informed me that my lil PreK out on the Island - would not be able to rent space next year. (virtually - unless a miracle happens in the next week - shutting it down permanently!)

I HATE Friday the 13th............ and can only thank the powers that be - that I survived the day and woke to see Saturday the 14th !