Lucky Thirteen

Okay, Happy Friday the 13th. That's today. Did you stay at home, afraid to venture out for fear of bad luck? Do you have paraskevidekatriaphobia (fear of Friday the 13th)? Or perhaps you are triskaidekaphobic, with a general fear of all things 13. 

Some advice for you, then, from Stevie Wonder: When you believe in things that you dont understand, Then you suffer, Superstition aint the way 

Not all things that come in 13 are bad: The United States began with 13 states, and as a nation we've been pretty lucky. (Until last November, of course, but even that will pass.) 

There are 13 lunar menstrual cycles in a year (13 x 28 = 364 days). If you're a woman not yet in menopause who does not wish to be pregnant, well, you get lucky 13 times in a calendar year. Which always signals that you haven't been getting excessively lucky, if catch get my meaning. 

A "baker's dozen" contains 13, not 12, of something. This helps police departments nationwide to save money. 

13 is currently a lucky number for "American Idol," which has 13 finalists (not 12), and as a result its season has been extended by a week. Lucky for "Idol" fans, yes. (For normal people, I not so much.) 

In China, 13 is considered lucky. But then, restaurants in China often feature rat-on-a-stick as an appetizer. 

Atomic number 13 is a metallic element found mainly in bauxite, which is made into aluminum. Lucky for us, aluminum is a versatile, lightweight metal. Think about that, triskaidekaphobics, as you cower in your home today sipping a beverage from an aluminum can. Perhaps you home has aluminum siding? 

Chapter 13 is can stop the foreclosure on your house. That's good, right?