kebechet Report post Posted April 13, 2007 Happy Friday the 13th, ladies and gents! We have a small update tonight, and, for the first time, we’re extending the “live” time for 13. It will be up on the site until midnight on the dreaded 15th of April in a small gesture intended to cheer some people up at tax time! Milk Moon, Minotaur, and Taurus are also getting a slightly extended stay, and will be live until 13 comes down. And now, on with the show: 13 13 is significant, whether you consider it lucky, unlucky or just plain odd. Many believe it to be unfortunate… … because there were 13 present at the Last Supper. … Loki crashed a party of 12 at Valhalla, which ended in Baldur’s death. … Oinomaos killed 13 of Hippodamia’s suitors before Pelops finally, in his own shady way, defeated the jealous king. … In ancient Rome, Hecate’s witches gathered in groups of 12, the Goddess herself being the 13th in the coven. Concern over the number thirteen echoes back beyond the Christian era. Line 13 was omitted form the Code of Hammurabi. The shivers over Friday the 13th also have some interesting origins: … Christ was allegedly crucified on Friday the 13th. … On Friday, October 13, 1307, King Philip IV of France ordered the arrests of Jaques de Molay, Grand Master of the Knights Templar, and sixty of his senior knights. … In British custom, hangings were held on Fridays, and there were 13 steps on the gallows leading to the noose. To combat the superstition, Robert Ingersoll and the Thirteen Club held thirteen-men dinners during the 19th Century. Successful? Hardly. The number still invokes trepidation to this day. A recent whimsical little serial killer study showed that the following murderers all have names that total thirteen letters: Theodore Bundy Jeffrey Dahmer Albert De Salvo John Wayne Gacy And, with a little stretch of the imagination, you can also fit ‘Jack the Ripper’ and ‘Charles Manson’ into that equation. More current-era paranoia: modern schoolchildren stop their memorization of the multiplication tables at 12. There were 13 Plutonium slugs in the atomic bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki. Apollo 13 wasn’t exactly the most successful space mission. All of these are things that modern triskaidekaphobes point to when justifying their fears. For some, 13 is an extremely fortuitous and auspicious number… … In Jewish tradition, God has 13 Attributes of Mercy. Also, there were 13 tribes of Israel, 13 principles of Jewish faith, and 13 is considered the age of maturity. … The ancient Egyptians believed that there were 12 stages of spiritual achievement in this lifetime, and a 13th beyond death. … The word for thirteen, in Chinese, sounds much like the word which means “must be alive”. Thirteen, whether you love it or loathe it, is a pretty cool number all around. … In some theories of relativity, there are 13 dimensions. … It is a prime number, lucky number, star number, Wilson Prime, and Fibonacci number. … There are 13 Archimedean solids. AND… … There were 13 original colonies when the United States were founded. Says a lot about the US, doesn’t it? A base of cocoa absolute and white chocolate with thirteen baneful and beneficial bits: cardamom, fig meat, grains of paradise, rice flower, chamomile, sandalwood, catnip, clove, and a bundle of five blessed blossoms and herbs. BAD LUCK WOMAN BLUES Did you ever have a bad luck woman on your trail? Did you ever have a bad luck woman on your trail? Always keeps you broke, always keeps you in jail. I used to be happy, (as good Lord), all the time, I used to be happy, (as good Lord), all the time, but soon as I got this woman, (lost) all I can call mine. My bad luck woman is a jinx and a worry too, My bad luck woman is a jinx and a worry too, I can't get rid of her no matter what I do. I tried to make her quit me by callin' another woman's name, I tried to make her quit me by callin' another woman's name, She said, That is all right, he loves me just the same. She keeps a ra't's foot in her hand at night when she goes to sleep, She keeps a ra't's foot in her hand at night when she goes to sleep, to keep (me with) her, so I won't make no midnight creep. My bad luck woman keeps me feelin' blues, My bad luck woman keeps me feelin' blues, I can't get rid of her, she sticks to me like glue. Keep that bad luck woman away with a blend of Spanish moss, black pepper, mullein, sweet sage, vandal root, cypress, cigar tobacco, and a puff of goofer dust cloaked by a swarthy cologne of vetiver, lime, dark musk, caramel accord, and lilac. LADY LUCK BLUES Bad luck has come to stay Trouble never end My man has gone away With a girl I thought was my friend I'm worried down with care Lordy, can't you hear my prayer Lady Luck, Lady Luck Won't you please smile down on me There's the time, friend of mine I need your sympathy I've got a horseshoe on my door I've knocked on wood till my hands are sore Since my man's done turned me loose I've got those Lady Luck blues, I mean I've got those Lady Luck blues Lady Luck, Lady Luck Won't you please smile down on me There's the time, friend of mine I need your sympathy I've got his picture turned upside down I've sprinkled goofer dust all around Since my man is gone I'm all confused I've got those Lady Luck blues Find my good man I've got those Lady Luck blues Lady Luck, please smile down on me. A melancholy scent, aching with longing, created to appease Fickle Fortune. Honeyed Bulgarian rose, vanilla flower, benzoin, tonka, black plum, peony, and iris. Lady Luck Blues, © 1923 William Weber & Clarence Williams. Recorded by Sidney Bechet, Bessie Smith, Mamie Smith, and the Clarence Williams Orchestra. Bad Luck Woman Blues, © 1926 Aletha Dickerson. Recorded by Papa Charlie Jackson. This weekend will see a Black Phoenix Trading Post update. Please keep your eyes peeled! May crickets chirp in your homes, may four-leafed clovers fill your gardens, and may every chimney sweep that you pass blow you a hundred kisses. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
