Friday, the Thirteenth

In the mood for some jaw-dropping Friday the 13th knowledge?  But of course you are!

• "According to the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute in Asheville, North Carolina, an estimated 17 to 21 million people in the United States are affected by a fear of this day making it the most feared day and date in history."
• "One author, noting that references [to Friday the 13th] are all but nonexistent before 1907 but frequently seen thereafter, has argued that its popularity derives from the publication that year of Thomas W. Lawson's popular novel 'Friday, the Thirteenth', in which an unscrupulous broker takes advantage of the superstition to create a Wall Street panic on a Friday the 13th."

• "The fear of Friday the 13th has been called friggatriskaidekaphobia (Frigga being the name of the Norse goddess for whom "Friday" is named and triskaidekaphobia meaning fear of the number thirteen)"

• "Friday has been considered an unlucky day at least since the 14th century's 'The Canterbury Tales', and many other professions have regarded Friday as an unlucky day to undertake journeys or begin new projects."
• "Black Sabbath's eponymous debut album was released in the UK on Friday, February 13, 1970."
  

Happy Friday the Thirteenth and I'll talk with you on Monday!

- D

NOTE: My wonderful grandparents Bill and Mary Draper celebrated their 53th anniversary today.  Happy Anniversary to them!

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