As editor, I get a lot of emails about statistics on random topics that I usually just gloss over. However, being St. Patrick’s Day, a recent email on luck caught my eye and I thought it fitting to write about.
According to the email: “Potawatomi Hotel & Casino recently analyzed Google search volume for more than 200 different superstitions to find the most popular superstitions in every state across the country. They also surveyed over 1,000 Americans to learn more about their belief in superstitions.”
The survey found that 65% of Americans are superstitious, with 83% believing in good luck and 50% believing in bad luck.
According to the survey, four of the most common superstitions in the U.S. are throwing salt over your shoulder (for good luck); that bad luck comes in threes; a rabbit’s foot is a good luck charm; and that Friday the 13th is an unlucky day.
The number 13 itself is considered unlucky, opposite of the number 7. In fact, there’s even a word for the fear of the number: triskaidekaphobia. (I had to copy and paste that. If you can spell it correctly without looking it up, I’ll buy you a shot of Irish whiskey.)
As for the infamous date — which occurs in months that begin on Sunday — 37% of Americans believe the day brings bad luck. In non-Leap Years, we get two in a row in February and March.
There are several origins of the superstition, including one based in Norse mythology and one regarding The Last Supper. One of the most famous stories is that it was the date many of the Knights Templar were arrested in the early 1300s.
St. Paddy’s Day, on the other hand, is believed to bring good luck, according to 34% of those surveyed. Sixty percent of Americans say they wear green on the holiday.
However, March 17 was bad luck for bars across the state in 2020 when Gov. Roy Cooper ordered them to shut down. Some still have not reopened, although they are now allowed to have a limited number of customers indoors.
The most popular superstition in North Carolina, according to the survey, is that black cats crossing your path bring bad luck.
I guess that explains a lot for me.
In 2015, I adopted a black cat — on Friday the 13th.
With my love of music — and to counteract the double bad luck — I named him Mojo.
He’s crossed my path many times over the past six years.
The fifth-most popular superstition in the country is that ladybugs bring good luck.
I should be so lucky.
In the past several months, my house has been infested with ladybugs — although a quick look around while writing this column only found one.
Mojo likes to try and catch the ladybugs when they’re crawling or flying low enough for him to attack. I’m not sure how that affects my luck.
I could make a joke about getting lucky, or the lack thereof, but as columnist Joe Weaver — who is of Irish descent — often points out, this is a family publication.
Sometimes, I identify with that old tune from “Hee Haw”: “ … if it weren’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all …”
Self-deprecating jokes aside, my luck isn’t all that bad.
I’m fortunate to have a job that I enjoy, a supportive family (albeit 200 miles away) and a great group of friends who keep me from being a workaholic hermit.
Lucky me.
William R. Toler is an award-winning journalist and managing editor of the Richmond Observer.
