The Everyday Lore Project

13 March 2020 – Friday the 13th

13 March 2020 – Friday the 13th

Today I’ve been playing the scratch cards. So what if it’s Friday the 13th, the folkloric equivalent of running with scissors while being chased by bees? Besides, if my highly scientific Twitter poll is anything to go by, as of writing this blog, 93.8% of people who voted don’t pay attention to the bad luck anyway.

I did think about experimenting with some sort of folklore protection today, but I had quite enough to do trying to find toilet roll for my parents. So instead I thought I would test the theory of today being bad luck by doing a spot of gambling. Full disclosure, I very rarely gamble, mainly because I work freelance and have very few pennies to rub together, but also I’m quite rubbish at it. I’m not too creaky at cards, but that’s more skill than chance. 

So I went to my corner shop and using the power of three, bought three different £1 scratch cards: one because it held promises of a £100,000 prize, one because it wafted £10,000 at me, and one because it was called Flamingo Fortune. And who can resist a flamingo?

I also felt confident because Llewellyn’s 2020 Moon Sign Book had signalled I was going to have a fortunate day. It was, however, fortune with a small f, my capitol Fs having been and gone between 4-6 March, but I was still going to take that.

First up was Flamingo Fortune (I balanced my phone on the edge of my Princess Leia candle to film this. She really does empower me…).

I’ve sped up all the videos because delayed gratification can sometimes be overrated. Plus speeded up, my reactions sound like a disaffected chipmunk. 

Flamingo Fortune? Flamingo Fiasco more like! Goddamn pink birds. 

Next up was the £10K one, the Match 3 Tripler. If I’m honest, I have no idea how these things actually work, I just scratch everything off and hope for the best. 

Triple, my arse.

And finally the prize of prizes, the whopper Special Edition With A Bonus Game! £100K card. 

This one is super fast, chipmunk a-go-go…

*Shakes fist at calendar*

THIS is the real reason why I don’t gamble, I am such a sore loser.

But actually, it wasn’t all bad luck today. I had been shit out of it trying to find some loo roll in town, but on my way to get the scratch cards, I remembered the thimble in my pocket, slipped it on and hey presto, first local shop: six rolls. Thimbles are so definitely the way to go. Plus the brownie points with my parents are going to be astronomical. 


Resources

Burdick, A. (ed) (2019) Llewellyn’s 2020 Moon Sign Book, Woodbury, MN, LLewellyn Publications

Published by Liza Frank

Author of My Celebrity Boyfriend. Obsessed with hula hooping, sons of preachermen and fresh dates, sometimes all at the same time. Curator of Folklore Agony and The Everyday Lore Project.

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