OH, I do have a superstition. I almost forgot.
I never say “OK, the bugs are all fixed; this will work.”
And I never put the cover on something before testing it (unless necessary for safety reasons). If there’s anything that the gods hate, it’s hubris.
I finally thought of one i do. Whenever tiny son goes out to ride his bike, i call out “Dont get killed!” i figure what are the chances, after that?
Dead people, in my case. Especially since I was thinking of the villages’ cemeteries in the countryside where I was brought up (where it’s highly unlikely anybody could be present at night), not about a cemetary in the middle of Paris, for instance. When I think of it, I wouldn’t be nearly as affraid of a Paris cemetary. Not sure why.
In my case, that’s probably more folktales (I was an avid reader of them as a kid, even though some terrified me) rather than movies (There wasn’t even a TV in the house, and the nearest movie theater was 20 km away. Without car.).
On afterthought that might be the reason why I don’t care that much about urban cemeteries. Tales (or horror movies) are generally evocative of old countryside cemeteries, not of the nicely arranged rows of tombs in a modern urban one.
OUR (mine and my dog’s cemetery) is a big old New England cemetery, with elaborate grave markers to the sky and others just flat tablets. They even lean every which way! There are some above-ground crypts. As cemeteries go, it has a lot going for it. You can’t see outside it when you’re walking in it.
I told my dog once that it was a Pet Semetary. You should have seen the look on his face!
I do the salt throwing thing. The idea of the devil lurking behind my shoulder and getting a pinch of salt in the eye is freaking hilarious!
I enjoy a lot of superstitious/ new age-y things (knocking on wood, reading about weird remedies, ideas, and “spiritual” crap, trying ayurvedic stuff), the more ridiculous the better. It drives my husband crazy because he doesn’t get why I would participate in things I obviously don’t believe in. I think I just really enjoy ritual, and my lifestyle has very little outlet for it.
Before I open the door to let the cat out, I stroke him and say “you be a good boy outside now”. If I don’t do this something bad WILL happen.
I have taught the new girlfriend to do this as well.
I’ve had more than one person tell me “dorme bem”. I’d guess you can use that.
Sunday was my Father’s birthday. Saturday was the anniversary of his death. He always played his 4 digit birthday as a pick 4 number on his birthday. One year he forgot and it hit for about $2000. Ever since his death I have always played that number on those 2 days. Part tribute part superstition. I just know it will come out if I forget to play.
I buy lottery tickets on a semi-regular basis. Not really a superstition, exactly, but I think it falls in the same area. I also still pick up found pennies, not just because “hey! free money!”, but because I hope that they’ll actually attract luck. But it’s only good luck if it is face up. If face down, then it’s just a free penny.
Recently, I was reminded of a local legend that freaked me the hell out as a child (la lechuza) and has made me a little bit afraid of the dark again, so I’ve begun carrying packets of salt in my pocketses. You know, just in case.
I throw a few bucks down on the big games just because of the dream of big payouts. I only play the pick 3 and 4 on certain days for superstitious reasons.
I’m not an atheist, but I do try to avoid superstitions (save for those atheists would say are related to my religion). However, there is one thing I take for granted: Murphy’s law. And, more importantly, I use it to my advantage. If I plan something, it seems less likely to happen. I just can’t help but believe it.
Bullshit. Are some funeral directors crooked? Of course. But the majority truly want to help people deal with their grief and are willing to work with those on a budget. (We’re not talking about people who want the whole dog and pony show but claim they can’t possibly pay for it, and want freebies, of course, but you run into that in any industry)
Funerals are for the living.
Basically none, aside from basic polite sayings which are cultural rituals rather than a belief system. I don’t say “god damn it” because I believe Jahweh will smite the offending object with lighting, I say it because that’s one of the things you say in English when you’re pissed off.
I have no OCD tendencies or whatever it is that seems to cause people distress when they don’t do something the “right” way. Any habits I have were established for good reasons and could be changed with no emotional distress if there was a need to do things a different way. It’s not that I’m coldly rational about everything, I just don’t get any comfort from pointless rituals and it’s really odd to me that there are so many supposedly rational people who do.
Only for safety reason, never walk under a ladder, and on sneezing its been your forgiven, I’m not good at giving blessings. The walking on cracks, we she broke my back so why shouldn’t I get her.
Finding money, well beggars shouldn’t be picky. I have a black cat, and my ex-husbands birthday was the 13th. The use of salt is probably the only thing that would be considered a superstition, but having used it to ward off evil in many ways and on many people I’ll keep that and how to do it properly for myself, this is very old knowledge, from very knowledgable sources.
You dont think the funeral director is first and foremost a business person? Ever seen one sell down?
But If a $15k casket helps you with your grief, then by all means “upgrade” from the $7k one. A lot of people grieving are too vulnerable to consider it–and theyre only told abt the 15k.
Who said they weren’t? But the implication that all funeral directors are greedy and only want to take advantage of those who are grieving is an insult.
A lot of funeral homes are owned by corporations nowadays – the old family run businesses aren’t as common as they once were.