I've Got Your Number (Thursday Thirteen #13)

Last week, the calendar gave us a “Friday the 13th” spawning many informative blog posts about the number 13. Since yesterday was Little Daughter’s 13th birthday and this is my 13th Thursday Thirteen, I thought I would hold off until this week to write about thirteen.

Thirteen years ago, we said goodbye to Kurt Cobain and hello to Beanie Babies, O.J. Simpson took an infamous ride in a white Ford Bronco, Tonya Harding almost took out Nancy Kerrigan in the “Why Me? Whack Heard Round The World” and we all learned that “Life is like a box of chocolates” from Forrest Gump, (which by the way, received 13 Oscar Nominations.)

After a lot of research and a trip down memory lane, I’ve discovered these things about the number 13.

Thirteen THIRTEENS 1. Everyone knows that there were 13 original colonies in the United States and that there are 13 stripes on the US flag representing those colonies. What I did not know was the significant amount of “13” things in the Great Seal of The United States. • 13 stars (in the crest) • 13 stripes • 13 arrows in the eagle’s talon • 13 letters in the mottos "e pluribus unum" and "annuit coeptis" • 13 olive leaves • 13 olives on the branch • 13 brick levels of the pyramid (on the reverse side of the seal) 2. There are 13 major joints in the human body. Shoulders (2), Elbows (2), Wrists (2), Hips (2), Knees (2), Ankles, (2) and Neck (just one of those :). 3. The “Fruit of Life”, considered to be the blueprint of the universe because it contains the basis for the design of every atom, molecular structure, life form and pretty much everything in existence, has 13 circles. 4. A period of 13 years is called a tridecennary. This word is rarely seen in print and appears only in the oxford English Dictionary. 5. Speaking of periods, women normally have 13 of them within a calendar year. This is because women’s cycles tend to follow 28 day lunar months instead of the 30 day calendar months. 6. The Beatles released 13 albums in their 13 years together. 7. Michael Jackson had 13 #1 hits. 8. If you see the number 13 on a patch worn by a member of a biker gang, it stands for the 13th letter of the alphabet (M) and it signifies they are a marijuana smoker. 9. NBC’s “ER” is currently in it’s 13th season. The real mystery of this is why I continue to watch it. It's terrible lately. 10. While Dan Marino and Wilt Chamberlain both had success wearing the number 13 on their uniforms, no #13 car has ever won a NASCAR Nextel Cup Race. In fact, some tracks do not even have a #13 pit stop. 11. There were 13 Popes named Innocent. It's terrible and I am embarrased, but I didn’t even know there was one Pope with this name, much less 13 of them. 12. There are actually 13 Signs of the Zodiac. The 12 you already know plus one more called Ophiuchus. The Western Astrological Zodiac omits Ophiuchus because a few of it’s stars fall below the vernal equinox...or something like that. 13. 13 is considered by many to be an unlucky or “scary number”. There are thirteen witches in a coven and macabre/ mystery writer, Edgar Allen Poe, has 13 letters in his name. There's somebody else who has 13 letters in their name and hearing it should scare the pants right off my male readers! More frightening than any "Friday The 13" slasher movie is the should-be-Ginsu-knife-spokesperson...Lorena Bobbit. (I know a lot of women applaud her, but really....that was gross!) Well, maybe actually hearing her name might scare the pants right back ON you :)

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