Editor’s Note: We usually cover topics involving industrial hygiene with our regular articles, but with Friday the 13th upon us and Halloween just around the corner, we couldn’t resist the field of safety. F&R regularly performs safety consulting, and several staff members are certified as Certified Safety Professionals (CSPs).
In May 2013, the multi-state Powerball lottery jackpot grew to a then-record $590.5 million. The winning ticket was purchased at a Florida Publix store in a small town called Zephyrhills by an 84-year-old woman who claimed her prize of $370.9 million on June 5, 2013. At the time of the drawing, the author of this article lived between Zephyrhills and Dade City, FL, and I would occasionally purchase a lottery ticket, usually at that very store. A few months later when the Powerball jackpot had grown to a large amount again, I went to that same Publix, a regular stop on my way home from work in Tampa, and decided to purchase a ticket. When I arrived, I was surprised to see about 40 people in line at Customer Service, all buying lottery tickets. I asked one of the local store workers what was going on, and they said every time the Powerball jackpot got to an appreciable size, all the players from miles around came to that Publix to buy their tickets – all because of that enormous jackpot winner in May of 2013. Superstition can be a very peculiar thing.
According to Wikipedia, “A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly applied to beliefs and practices surrounding luck, amulets, astrology, fortune telling, spirits, and certain paranormal entities, particularly the belief that future events can be foretold by specific (apparently) unrelated prior events.” We all grew up with superstitious notions bandied about by friends and family. Who can forget:
- Stepping under a ladder is bad luck;
- If a black cat crosses your path, it’s bad luck;
- Don’t open an umbrella in the house!
- Find a penny, pick it up – all day long, you’ll have good
- Break a mirror and expect seven years of bad
The list goes on and on.
Some superstitions may have some relevance concerning safety and “bad luck .”Some origins of the superstition about walking under a ladder bringing one bad luck are based on the notion that a medieval ladder resembled a gallows. So, if you walked under a ladder you had somehow doomed yourself to an eventual death on the gallows. Other religious beliefs claim that a ladder placed against a wall forms a triangle and that any triangle is sacred. If you walk under the ladder, you break the triangle and bring bad luck down on your head. Realistically, when you walk under a ladder, you could bump it, and if someone happens to be on the ladder, it could be bad luck for both of you. Or, if you have a pail of paint on top of the ladder and bumped it while walking under it… well, you get the picture.
And what about opening an umbrella in the house? Myths abound around this superstition with a couple of favorites: A certain Roman woman opened her umbrella inside her house only to have the house collapse around her minutes later. Or the one about the British prince who received a couple of umbrellas as gifts, opened them inside to behold their splendor, only to die within a few months. But the danger here should be obvious. From poking an eye out to knocking items off shelves, tables, etc., one should not open an umbrella in the house.
Break a mirror and doom yourself to seven years of bad luck? If you break a mirror, the first likely step will be to clean up the glass shards, and in so doing, you may cut a finger or two. Bad luck starts from Day One!
And then later, if you walk around barefoot and didn’t get all the glass pieces off the floor? Ouch! Bad luck continues. So one should exercise a considerable degree of caution with hand-held mirrors and when transporting large mirrors.
If you happen to be one of those people who do believe in superstitions, there are some remedies. In his book “The Encyclopedia of Superstitions,” Richard Webster says you can do this if you have to walk under a ladder:
- Make a wish while walking under the ladder (I assume the wish is that nothing bad happens);
- Walk backwards under the ladder again (this sounds riskier than walking under in the first place);
- Say “bread and butter” as you walk under the ladder;
- Cross your fingers and keep them crossed until you see a dog.
So, as silly as most superstitions might sound, perhaps there is a grain of truth in some of them. We are wishing everyone a safe Friday the 13th!
