BINGO BUGLE

Most people have their usual “Lucky” number (mine is 8, but I’ll go with 4 or 9 in a pinch).  Your average Bingo player usually has a few of their own.  Some players might consider B-11 or O-69 their “Lucky” number, and will try to find bingo cards that have them — even better if that number is in a corner!  Other bingo players might use their date of birth as their “Lucky” numbers.  However chosen, I’m pretty sure that most of us do have our “Lucky” numbers.

I also have what I consider my “Unlucky” numbers.  I don’t care for the number 6 (though I won’t go out of my way to avoid it) and after one ill-fated bingo game, I have a small measure of disdain for G-55.

Let’s look at some “Unlucky” numbers and see how they came to be…

Number 13

I think we’re all familiar with the “Unlucky” number 13.  Did you know there is a big, fancy-schmancy word for people who are afraid of the number 13?  It’s called Triskaidekaphobia.  Now, if you’re only afraid of Friday the 13th, then you get two whoppin’ big word choices:  paraskevidekatriaphobia or friggatriskaidekaphobia.  I can’t pronounce them, but any of those three words will certainly get ya a bucketload of Scrabble points.

Number 4

In several Asian countries, the number 4 is considered unlucky.  This is called tetraphobia.  It’s not unusual to find a building that doesn’t have a 4th floor, so to speak (they skip from 3 to 5).  The reason for this is that in certain Asian dialects, the pronunciation of the number 4 is phonetically similar to the word for “death”.  Okay, if our numbers sounded like “one, two, three, DEATH, five…”, I could totally get behind some tetraphobia myself.

Number 17

In Italy, number 17 wins the unlucky number lotto.  If you write out number 17 in Roman numerals, it reads as XVII.  After a quick rearrangement, a la Soul Train, you get “VIXI”. Vixi in Latin means “I have lived” (past tense), which also translates as “I’m dead”.

Number 3

Number 3 gets a bit of the good luck, and a bit of the bad luck vibes. In some Asian countries, the word for 3 sounds remarkably similar to the word for “alive”, and is therefore considered a LUCKY number.  However, in Vietnam it’s considered BAD luck to have a photo taken with 3 people in it.  Also, I’m sure most of us are familiar with the negative stigma placed on the number 3, such as “bad things come in threes” and “deaths come in threes”.

Number 5

Number 5: In Cantonese, the word for 5 sounds like the word for “not”. When a 5 appears in front of another number (such as 57 or 543), that number becomes an “unlucky” number.  So, I guess my G-55 gets a double-whammy there.

Number 9

In Japan, the number 9 sounds like the word for “pain” or “distress”, and is often considered unlucky.  It’s funny… if you go by that sort of logic, you would think our number 1 would be a lucky number since it sounds like “won”, or maybe 8 would be lucky if you’re hungry… but I digress.

Whether silly or sensible, lucky numbers and unlucky numbers have been around a long time — and I don’t see that trend changing anytime soon.  Afterall, if we didn’t have “lucky” numbers, how would we choose our lottery numbers?  The folks who type on those tiny strips of paper inside fortune cookies would have to put something else on the reverse side. If we didn’t have “unlucky” numbers, who would we blame when Friday the 13th rolls around and it turns out to be a bad hair day?  And it can’t be MY fault when I lose a bingo game after the lady next to me wins on G-55.

Dang G-55!  I was set, too.

If the Emmys are any indicator, the fashion must have for this season is a pickled pussy cat. Stacy Haiduk sashayed down the awards show’s red carpet with this fabulous feline fashion accessory, which she rented from the prop shop of The Young & The Restless. (No you can’t put your lipstick in it.) On the hit daytime show, Stacy plays a mentally unstable character, Mary Jane Benson (a.k.a. Patty Williams), who is known for sharing secrets with her stuffed cat. According to Stacy, quoted on peoplepets.com, the cat gets tons of fan mail. Now, is it just me, or does sending a fan letter to a taxidermic cat seem like a strange thing to do?

Bauer-Griffin/Peoplepets.com

I’ve never heard of her before, but according to Wikipedia, Sally Eilers was an American actress whose film career spanned from 1927 – 1935.

Maybe if she had used something besides “toilet soap” as the focal point of her beauty regimen, she would have been more popular.

I suppose Pears Soap was trying to illustrate the well-known phrase “throwing the baby out with the bathwater”.  But, does this ad entice you to buy Pears Soap?

I’m getting more of a Pears-Killer-Soap-on-the-Loose vibe from this:



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
“Help me, Mommy! Why did you buy Pears’ Soap? Why??!!”

Just for the record, I have used LYSOL® for myriad of cleaning/disinfecting duties.  I find it to be a most excellent product, and have never been disappointed with its effectiveness.

However, I would never, ever, never, ever, never, ever, never, ever use it for what this ad is promoting.  No way, no how, not in a gazillion years.

Seriously.  I mop my bathroom tiles with this stuff.  Who wants to smell like a mop?

Lip gloss that matches your nail polish is so in right now.

Is it possible for Alyssa Milano to try any harder to look like Anne Hathaway?!

Photo by: Alex J. Berliner/BEImages/People.com

Del Monte take note.

I’ve always had dogs in my life.  From the time I was born, until today, I’ve never been without a canine companion.  I’ve watched them; I’ve learned from them.  I know what they like and what they don’t like. I therefore consider myself an expert on canine behavior and preferences.

While browsing through the virtual endless selections of dog food at my local supermarket, I became discouraged.  Sure, “Brand X” has all the nutrients that are good for my dogs, but I know they won’t eat “Brand X”.  “Brand Z” was developed using some scientific garbage, and since my dogs aren’t scientists, they don’t care.  So, I thought to myself… what are the things MY dogs have always enjoyed eating?

Then it came to me – I knew the answer!  Actually, I’ve always known the answer… or at least since I was six years old.

I present to you – the dog food every canine wants:

Kibbles ‘n Bits ‘n Barbie Shoes!

 
(Patent Pending)

In no particular order:

10. Oatmeal for Thanksgiving Dinner.

9.  Teaching the world to sing in perfect harmony.

8.  Save the Mosquitos! Campaign.

7.  Bringing back public flogging.

6.  Dessert recipes featuring SPAM®.

5.  The Man Purse.

4.  Inflatable Dartboards.

3.  The Secret.

2.  Lawn Jockeys.

1.  Family Reunions.