I love Friday the 13th. On Friday, September 13th, 1968 I went out on my
first date with Teresa. By Friday, December 13th, 1968, I gave her a ring
and asked her to be my bride.
The next time that ominous date rolled around was Friday, June 13th, 1969,
and we desired to get married on it. But her father wanted her to complete
her college (I was in grad school) in case this no-good lazy bum abandoned
her and she would be on her own. So we put it off until the next June 1970
(no Friday the 13th, though).
That reminds me, I need to look for an anniversary gift. But I digress . .
.
Since every year has at least ONE Friday the 13th (and perhaps as many as
THREE), this is a happy time for us, flooding our hearts with memories.
Some wince at Friday the 13th. But 13 is one of the luckiest numbers and
not at all portending evil. Francis Scott Key wrote our national anthem on
Friday the 13th of September, 1814.
In honor of the 13 original colonies, we all know the flag had 13 stripes
and 13 stars. But did you know the US $1 bill has:
13 steps on the pyramid.
13 letters in the motto above the pyramid (annuit coeptis).
13 letters in E pluribus unum, written on the ribbon in the eagle’s beak.
13 stars appear over the eagle’s head.
13 bars are on the shield.
13 plumes of feathers
13 war arrows are in the eagle’s left talon.
13 leaves on the olive branch in the eagle’s right talon.
Now, excuse. I gotta go snuggle with the wife and celebrate Friday the
13th!
~~
ANSWERS to Wednesday’s quiz.
1. Who is the oldest Major League pitcher to throw a no-hitter? – Nolan RYAN
2. What type of bread is associated with Greece? – PITA
3. When Mae West said “Come up and see me some time”, to whom was she giving
the invitation? CARY Grant
4. What was the name of Mother Goose’s son? – JACK
5. What famous TV captain had the middle name Tiberius? – James T KIRK
6. What actor took Peggy Sue to a Fabian concert? – Nick CAGE
7. What sport is Ben Hogan associated with? – GOLF
8. What color is the “favorite” and easiest for bees to see? – BLUE (not
rose)
9. In the game of hop-scotch, what does ‘scotch’ mean? – LINE
10. Who was the host of the game show that featured “Door #1, Door #2 & Door
#3”? – Monty HALL
11. Chanel #5 perfume was named after whom? – COCO Chanel
12. What would you find a bibliophile sitting down with? – BOOK
13. In London, in what part of the automobile would you put your luggage? –
BOOT
14. What river is associated with Cleopatra? – NILE
15. What was Guy Fawkes caught in under Parliament and ended up in as well?
– PLOT
16. What is often the grassy center of a university campus? – QUAD
17. What attracts my wife when associated with lawn, garage, yard and tag? –
SALE
18. What, along with time, waits for no man? – TIDE
19. What was the legal relationship of Batman and Robin? – WARD
20. What famous captain shares a name with an equally-famous clownfish? –
NEMO
~~
Dr Bob Griffin, www.grif.net
“Jesus knows me, this I love”