Superstitions: Watch out for that black cat!

By ERINANDERSEN

Rationally speaking, most of us know that if this Friday turns out to be a bad day, it really has nothing to do with the date on the calendar: February 13.

Or do we?

Since the dawn of humanity, superstitions have guided, swayed and even all-out directed our lives:

n Sing before 7, cry before 11 (i.e., it's bad luck to be too happy in the morning).

n Cut your nails on Monday, cut them for wealth. Cut them on Friday, cut them for woe.

n Put your right shoe on first for luck.

n An itchy nose means you're going to have a quarrel. An itchy ear means someone is talking about you. Itchy feet mean you are about to embark on a journey.

n To cure your cough, pull a hair from your head, put it between two slices of buttered bread and feed it to the dog while saying: "Eat well, you hound. May you be sick and I be sound."

Of course, there is no scientific basis for nearly all of these superstitions.

Still - we tuck our lucky rabbit's foot in our pocket, cross our fingers, wish upon a star, knock on wood or even toss a bit of salt over our left shoulder - for luck.

Some can argue it's habit.

But on a much more basic level, it's because we believe - not so much that superstitions work in our favor, but that if we don't follow them, they will work against us.

It's odd.

It's illogical.

But it's the way our brains are hard-wired, said Michael Shermer, noted skeptic, columnist, publisher of Skeptic magazine and author of "Why People Believe Weird Things: Pseudoscience, Superstitions and Other Confusions of Our Time."

The human brain connects A to B, he said. Literally it grows a neural connection - regardless of whether A and B are really connected, Shermer said.

"It is how we were designed by evolution to learn," he said.

So if we turn counter clockwise three times and it doesn't rain, the brain may reason it actually prevents rain.

"It does not have to be foolproof - and it isn't," Shermer said. "But it was right often enough for us to survive and reproduce."

So why risk it?

In fact, "the more risky and chancy the situation you are in, the more likely you are to be tuned in to superstitious behavior," Shermer said. "You are looking for control."

Superstition gives us that bit of control - even if it is simply perceived.

Webster's Dictionary tell us a superstition is a belief "based on fear or ignorance, that is inconsistent with the known laws of science or with what is generally considered in the particular society as true and rational."

Yet "intellect has nothing to do with superstition," Shermer said. "That's why smart people believe weird things. - We all rationalize what we believe."

And what we believe certainly does not have to be based on anything logical or intellectual.

Nearly everyone is superstitious, author Lore Cowan proclaimed in her book "Are You Superstitious?"

Marlene Dietrich shunned anything with the number 13.

Architects typically avoid designing 13th floors in buildings - rewriting numerology to go 11, 12, 14.

Skateboarding legend Tony Hawk may worry about Friday the 13th - after all it was on such a Friday that he suffered his only serious skateboarding injury: a fractured elbow.

Charles Dickens always made sure his bed was aimed toward the North Pole because he believed proper alignment with the earth's magnetic fields fostered creativity.

Actor Billy Bob Thornton always makes sure the lit end of his cigarette stub faces away from his children before grounding it out - lest he bring them danger.

Prior to the re-election of Ulysses S. Grant in 1872, there was a belief that no man with a middle name could be elected president a second time. After all, John Quincy Adams, Martin Van Buren, William Henry Harrison and James Knox Polk all lost in their bids for re-election.

Perhaps nobody is more superstitious than baseball players, says Byron Embry, relief pitcher for Lincoln's Saltdogs.

"All baseball players - we all have something we do each and every night," Embry said.

Wade Boggs (a.k.a. "Chicken Man") ate chicken before every game.

Former Pirates and Red Sox player Dick Stuart threw his (chewed) gum across home plate before every at-bat.

Gene Mauch, former manager of the Phillies, Expos, Twins and Angels, would not clean his uniform as long as his team was winning.

And Turk Wendell, former Cubs and Mets reliever, brushed his teeth and chewed licorice between every inning.

For the Saltdog's Embry, there are numerous steps to the routine:

"I make sure I am the last one out of the clubhouse.

"I make sure when I get dressed that I look in the same mirror - even if there are six mirrors in the bathroom - I always look in the same one to make sure everything is tucked in and I look nice.

"I always head out to the field 15 minutes before game time. I sign a couple of autographs. And I play catch for no longer than three minutes," Embry said.

That's routine. Not necessarily superstition.

"The superstition starts when I go in the game," he said.

"I always pick up the ball using my glove - never my hand. I always walk on the field in the grass and then jog on the actual dirt. I never jog, then walk. I always walk on."

And before each inning, he says a short prayer.

"It has to happen every single night," he said. "When something gets out of place, I get nervous. I am not in my routine."

"If you see me come out of my routine, hope I don't pitch," Embry said.

Sports psychologist Richard Lustberg says superstitions are coping mechanisms for athletes. Superstitions help them deal with the pressure to succeed.

"Athletes begin to believe, and want to believe, that their particular routine is enhancing their performance. In reality, it's probably just practice and confidence that's making them perform better," Lustberg wrote in an article for Psychology of Sports.

It makes sense to Shermer.

"If you are in complete control and you understand what is going on, you do not need to look for causes," he said.

That's why some superstitions change over time.

"Superstitions are a function of culture and what we need to know to survive," Shermer said.

In ancient times people did not understand the causes of even the most basic of human happenings. Much faith was put on good and evil forces. People attributed many things to gods - seeing spiritual forces in fire, rain, birth, death, good fortune and bad luck.

Life was hard. People blamed it on evil spirits, which clearly outnumbered the good ones. Charms, tricks and unusual behaviors were ways to trick or hide from devils and witches.

People covered their mouths when they yawned because it prevented the devil from getting in.

Similarly, they covered their mouths when they sneezed to prevent their souls from escaping.

People took great care not to leave behind a hair or nail clipping because witches could find it and get you.

Superstitions about right being good and left being evil have existed since the dawn of time. So fierce were the beliefs that ancient Romans used to station a servant at the door just to make sure people entered with their right foot and not their left.

Today, we know there is no validity to these superstitions. Yet we still cover our mouths when we sneeze and yawn and offer a "bless you" when someone sneezes because it is polite.

If you look carefully you will see other remnants.

Most hotel and motel rooms are designed so that the sleeper can get out on the right side - as opposed to the left or "the wrong side" - of the bed.

Many of us still worry about the possibility of bad luck if we:

n Break a mirror. Mirrors were said to reflect the soul, and breaking the reflection will bring seven years of bad luck.

n Walk under a ladder. A ladder leaning against a wall forms a triangle, which is the symbol of family - father, mother, child. Walking under the ladder disrupts the triangle, destroying the wholeness of the family.

n Open an umbrella in the house. Umbrellas once were used to protect us from the sun. Opening the umbrella indoors insults the sun and brings bad luck.

n Cross paths with a black cat. Witches were said to transform themselves into cats. Crossing their paths is sure to bring bad luck.

n Spill salt. Salt is needed for life. If it was spilled, it meant evil spirits were trying to take away the life from a home.

It is also said you should toss salt over your shoulder for luck - your left shoulder, because that is where the evil spirits linger. A few grains of salt over the shoulder is a bribe for evil ones, urging them to be on their way.

And children today still sing the rhyme "Step on a crack, break your mother's back" - although few believe it will happen. And even fewer know the legend behind the saying stems from the fear that the crack is the entry point to the grave.

As research and technology enhance our understanding of life's occurrences. there is less and less need to rely on superstitions, Shermer said.

"Nobody is superstitious about the weather anymore. We understand lightning storms, high pressure and low pressure," he said. "We've got weather down pretty good."

What we don't have down is medicine.

"It's difficult to understand. We cannot explain or even cure a lot of things," Shermer said.

"There are not any alternative weather scams on the Internet. But there are thousands of medical scams," he said. "We understand weather. We don't understand cancer or how to cure AIDS. People are desperate. They make any connection they can."

It is these scams and pseudoscience that take the harmlessness out of most superstitious beliefs. And that is where Shermer tries to draw the line.

But everyday superstitions, be it avoiding walking on the baseline in baseball, carrying your bride over the threshold, or eating an apple a day to keep the doctor away, are relatively harmless. And in some cases, such as eating apples for health and fish for the brain, the superstitions are actually good for you.

So the Saltdogs' Embry sees nothing wrong with keeping his routine.

Even if it means walking back into the clubhouse just to make sure he is the last one out.

Reach Erin Andersen at 473-7217 or andersen@;journalstar.com.

Very superstitious

Good luck and bad

n Cross your fingers. Bad luck will be trapped at the point where the two fingers cross.

n Don't whistle. It is the noise of evil spirits and brings misfortune.

n A four-leaf clover will bring you love, health, fame and wealth.

n To change your luck at the card table, stand up, spin around three times and sit back down. Or walk around the table three times.

n Don't kill a spider or destroy its web. It's bad luck.

n Put a hat on a bed and you will bring on bad luck or an argument in the home.

n Cross your legs at the card table and you will cross out your luck.

n Keep evil spirits from finding you by wearing your clothes inside out.

Live long and prosper

n Never openly praise yourself or call attention to your good fortune. It will attract the evil eye.

n Cats have nine lives, but cat killers die. Such was the punishment in ancient Egypt for those who killed a cat.

n A $2 bill is unlucky. It is a reminder of the deuce in a deck of cards. And deuce means devil. If you have a $2 bill, you can change your luck by tearing a corner off the bill.

n Putting shoes on a table will invite death.

n Step on a person's shadow and you will bring them harm.

n Wear an acorn for good luck and a long life.

n See a pin. Pick it up. All day you'll have good luck.

n Give a housewarming gift of bread, salt and water to prevent evil spirits from entering the home.

n If a bird flies into your home, it is a sign of death.

Food

n Always completely break the shell of an egg, otherwise a witch may use it as a boat.

n Return a food container empty and you bring hunger upon yourself or the receiver.

n Throw away unwanted bread and you will go hungry.

n Do not take the last piece of food on a plate. If you are unmarried, it means you will stay that way. If you are married, it means you will soon be unmarried.

n Garlic will heal the sick and ward off evil spirits.

n Spill milk and you will have seven days' bad luck. Evil spirits go where they can find milk on the floor.

n Eating fish brings good fortune - and is said to improve your brain.

n Get rid of an unwanted guest by sprinkling pepper under their chair.

n Eat grapes for good luck. In Spain, if you eat 12 grapes in a row on New Year's, you will have good luck all year.

n An onion on the chest will cure a cold; and an onion on the ear will eliminate an earache.

n The onion also can forecast weather:

"Onion's skin, very thin,

Mild winter coming in.

Onion's skin, thick and tough,

Coming winter, cold and rough.

Health

n Cure stomach cramps by laying a pair of shoes over your stomach.

n Pull out one gray hair and 10 more will grow in its place.

n Cut your hair and you will be weak.

Love and marriage

n A groom who sees the bride before the wedding is submitting to her family.

n Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue - all bring good luck to the bride and the giver.

n A bride's wedding veil protects her from being seen by the evil eye.

n The wedding cake stands for good fortune and fertility.

n If a female wedding-goer places a piece of wedding cake under her pillow, she will dream of the man she will marry.

n Throwing rice upon the happy couple wishes them many children.

n The groom carries the bride over the threshold to bring good fortune, and to protect the bride from stumbling and spoiling their happiness.

n And the seven-year itch? It is said the body and mind of a person changes every seven years.

Numbers

n Good things come in threes. Some say three is good because it represents the traditional family - father, mother, child. Others claim bad things come in threes.

n It is believed odd numbers under 10 are good, even numbers under 10 are bad.

n Thirteen is considered extremely unlucky. It is bad luck to be the 13th guest at a table.

n Friday the 13th is especially unlucky. It is said Adam and Eve were kicked out of the Garden of Eden on a Friday, Noah's flood started on a Friday and Christ was crucified on a Friday.

Sports

Baseball

n For good luck, spit into your hand before picking up the bat.

n A wad of gum stuck on a player's hat brings good luck.

n It is bad luck if a dog walks across the diamond before the first pitch.

n It is bad luck to touch the baselines while running off and on the field between innings.

n Lending a bat to a fellow player is a serious jinx.

n If a pitcher is throwing a perfect game or a no-hitter, never speak of it while it's going on.

Basketball

n The last person to shoot a basket during the warmup will have a good game.

n Wipe the soles of your sneakers for good luck.

n Bounce the ball before taking a foul shot for good luck.

Bowling

n To continue a winning streak, wear the same clothes.

n Having the number 300 on your license plate will increase your bowling score.

Fishing

n If a barefoot woman passes you on the way to the dock, the fish will not bite.

n Spit on your bait before casting your rod to make fish bite.

n Throw back your first catch for good luck.

n It is bad luck to change rods while fishing.

n Don't tell anyone how many fish you've caught until you're done or you won't catch another.

Football

n Double numbers on a player's uniform bring good luck.

n It is bad luck for a professional football player to take a new number when he is traded to another team.

Golf

n Start with odd-numbered clubs.

n Balls with a number higher than four are bad luck.

n Carry coins in your pocket for good luck.

Hockey

n It is bad luck for hockey sticks to lie crossed.

n Saying "shutout" in the locker room before the game will bring bad luck.

n Players believe that if they tap the goalie on the shin pads before the game, they will win.

Rodeo

n Always put the right foot in the stirrup first.

n Avoid wearing yellow.

n Always shave before a competition.

Tennis

n It is bad luck to hold more than two balls at a time when serving.

n Avoid wearing the color yellow

n When switching sides, walk around the outside of the court for good luck.

n Avoid stepping on the court lines.

Sources: 101 American Superstitions by Harry Collis; Fact Monster, "Sports Superstitions" by Michael Morrison; "Don't Sing Before Breakfast, Don't Sleep in the Moonlight," by Lila Perl; and "Encyclopedia of Superstitions" by Edwin and Mona A. Radford.