Weirdos of Whimsy Pod

Very Superstitious: Don't forget the Salt!

Stevie & Jacklynn Episode 41

Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.

0:00 | 55:35

This week, Jacklynn and Stevie are diving deep into the world of superstitions—or as Jacklynn calls it, being "a little stitious."

In this episode, the Weirdos unpack the ancient, often terrifying origins behind the things we do to avoid a hex. We’re traveling from the sacred triangles of Ancient Egypt to the gallows of medieval England to find out why we’re all so afraid of ladders and broken mirrors.

In this episode, we discuss:

  • Knock on Wood: Are you thanking tree spirits or just trying to drown out your own bragging from spiteful fairies?
  • The Great Salt Toss: Why throwing salt over your left shoulder is basically a tactical move to blind the Devil. 🧂😈
  • Ladders & Sacred Geometry: Why walking under a ladder was once considered "breaking" a holy space (and why Stevie spent his childhood purposefully walking under them).
  • Friday the 13th & Triscodecophobia: From Loki’s uninvited dinner party antics to the "super unlucky" combination of Fridays and the number 13.
  • Black Cats & Treason: How King Charles I’s bad luck started a centuries-long PR nightmare for our favourite void-coloured felines. 🐈‍⬛
  • Sneezing Souls: Why saying "Bless You" is actually a spiritual door-lock to keep wandering witches from hopping into your empty body.

Plus, we talk about Osiris the Cat, the mystery of the 13-month moon calendar, and why Jacklynn got kicked out of music class for "aggressive sneezing."

Send us Fan Mail

Want more Weirdos of Whimsy? Check out https://bio.site/weirdosofwhimsy to find everything in one place! From there, you can subscribe to our YouTube channel, grab some official merch, or follow us on Instagram to chat!

Have a bone-chilling story of your own? We want to hear it! Send your scary encounters to weirdosofwhimsy@gmail.com or DM us. Your story might just make it onto a future episode! 

SPEAKER_00

Okay. Because when I was younger, anytime I would come across a ladder, I would make sure to walk under it. Purposefully walked under it. I did.

SPEAKER_03

Did anything bad happen to you?

SPEAKER_00

Maybe that's why my I'm cursed.

SPEAKER_03

Maybe you know what? Yeah, it's your fault.

SPEAKER_00

My fault.

SPEAKER_03

Way to go, Stevie. You guessed it, Whimsical. Hi, my name is Jacqueline.

SPEAKER_00

And I'm Stevie.

SPEAKER_03

And today we are talking all things superstition.

SPEAKER_00

Very superstition.

SPEAKER_03

Right in on the wall.

SPEAKER_00

I feel like I was channeling that when I decided this outfit today.

SPEAKER_03

A hundred percent. And I love it. I'm so happy that you did it. It looks so good.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

You rock that look so hard. Thank you. Very much the even got the bell bottoms on.

SPEAKER_01

Ooh.

SPEAKER_03

See that you can see that we can stand up. I really wish we could stand up. I went with she's a little stretched. This is a baby tee for someone who's maybe not this show. You know what? I don't care. Wear whatever clothes you want.

SPEAKER_00

Own it.

SPEAKER_03

But with my magic eight ball.

SPEAKER_00

I wish I could fit into a baby tee.

SPEAKER_03

So no one said anything about fitting. I'm just wearing. But yeah, so you know, magic eight ball, right?

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

For our superstitions. Superstition. So don't be suspicious. Oh, wait, no, that's suspicious.

SPEAKER_00

That works. Don't be suspicious. Don't be suspicious.

SPEAKER_03

Don't be suspicious. Don't be suspicious. That's so good.

SPEAKER_00

Do you know that was all improvised?

SPEAKER_03

That's amazing. I love that. I'm also not shocked because they're brilliant.

SPEAKER_00

Hilarious.

SPEAKER_03

They're so funny. But we're not talking about suspicious. We're talking about superstitious. You know, I'm not superstitious. I'm just a little sushi.

SPEAKER_00

I was just a little sushi. Michael Scott. Ayo.

SPEAKER_03

Um, Steven, are you in fact a superstitious person?

SPEAKER_00

I don't think I'm like wildly superstitious. Okay. Where like if I were to like miss doing one of the little things, then I'd be like, oh my God, like the world is over.

SPEAKER_03

It's not gonna ruin your day.

SPEAKER_00

It's not gonna ruin my day.

SPEAKER_03

Right.

SPEAKER_00

If I remembered it in the moment, I mean, do I knock on wood when I'm talking about certain things? I do that.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Um the throwing the salt over your shoulder, I don't do a lot.

SPEAKER_03

Right. Well, are you spilling lots of salt?

SPEAKER_00

I spill everything.

SPEAKER_03

Okay. Fair enough. Are you? Um, I definitely think that I practice a lot of these.

SPEAKER_00

Yes. I mean a lot of them are very witchcraft. Correct.

SPEAKER_03

I think it's like a more ritualistic than if I don't do this, something's gonna go wrong.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Um, dare I say superstitious is like OCD adjacent.

SPEAKER_01

I mean right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Um, but I do, yeah, like there are certain things that I will forever always do. Yeah. And we will get into what those are.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, there we go.

SPEAKER_03

Um, but there are certain, yeah, like there's some that I'm like, no, forget it. Yeah. As a kid, though, I was like religious about these kinds of things.

SPEAKER_00

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_03

Um, so I guess we'll find out.

SPEAKER_00

There we go.

SPEAKER_03

Shall we dive in?

SPEAKER_00

Let's do it.

SPEAKER_03

All right. So many of the common superstitions we still observe today are centuries old echoes of ancient religious practices. Like you said. Um, either religious practices, medieval fears, or really even early common sense kind of activities that eventually morphed into something mystical.

SPEAKER_00

I could see that.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. So here are a few popular ones and the fascinating stories behind them.

SPEAKER_00

Here we go. So, first we have, I mean, which I said earlier, very common knocking on wood. Yes. Uh, so this is one of the most universal superstitions used to avoid jinxing good fortune. Right. It likely traces back to ancient Indo-European or Celtic cultures who believed that spirits and deities lived inside trees. To request a favor or offer thanks to these spirits, one would touch the bark. Another theory suggests that people knocked on wood to create a noise that would mask their bragging from malevolent spirits who might want to steal their good luck out of spite.

SPEAKER_02

Right.

SPEAKER_00

I've heard the um spirits and fairies and deities in the trees. That's a very um old thing. Yeah, sure.

SPEAKER_03

Absolutely ancient.

SPEAKER_00

Ancient, if you will.

SPEAKER_03

Um, so in my research, I found an article on Reader's Digest from 2025 by Joanne Liguri. Sorry. Um, and it included notes from two language experts. Okay. Um, one of them said that while this phrase alludes to being around since like ancient times, as we just kind of discussed, he has a hard time believing it because the Oxford English Dictionary's first account of this phrase of knocking on wood um only truly appears in 1907, apparently.

SPEAKER_01

Okay.

SPEAKER_03

Um and touch wood was actually in 1898. I gotta tell you, I in my old age, I've started saying touch wood as opposed to knock on wood. Really? I don't know why. I don't know when the f the flip happened, but I absolutely say, oh, you know, touch wood instead of knock on wood, which I used to say all the time.

SPEAKER_00

I say knock on wood all the time.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, that was I don't know what I wonder if it was like came from my grandma. I'm not really sure, but I flipped to touch wood. Interesting. I don't know why.

SPEAKER_00

I mean, you are leaning into like you're aged now.

SPEAKER_03

I really oh my gosh, show me shit.

SPEAKER_00

I was just gonna say we have to party people. This is on you. It's on me.

SPEAKER_03

It's comp it was entirely my I'm happy about it. idea. There's this sound, and I really want to dig up. Oh, it was it was called like ACT tune buzz or something like that. And I will be Googling that now that I just remembered it in this moment. Um but there's this sound, this high-pitched frequency sound that allegedly people under 40 can hear, and anyone over 40 can't hear.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

And I was frantically searching for the one specifically that I just remembered now, um, couldn't find it, so I found a different one that said, like, anyone over 40 can't hear this, and it was some probably similar frequency.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

I played it.

SPEAKER_00

You played it for myself and Dan.

SPEAKER_03

Uh-huh. And I couldn't hear it.

SPEAKER_00

You couldn't hear it. Dan couldn't hear it.

SPEAKER_03

Dan, who is younger than the both of us.

SPEAKER_00

Than the both of us. Couldn't hear it. I could hear it. This bitch heard it. I have young ears.

SPEAKER_03

Oh my god. I cannot bel now. Does it make total sense? Because I've been to what do you call them? Many a rock concert.

SPEAKER_00

I fair. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

I've been to a lot of shows.

SPEAKER_00

You have, yeah.

SPEAKER_03

But you're a you're younger than me.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I know.

SPEAKER_03

And you heard it and I did it.

SPEAKER_00

I heard it.

SPEAKER_03

I am not listening I am approaching a new decade. I have still a solid year to go before I reach said decade, but that cut me deep. That cut me.

SPEAKER_00

Didn't I you played the under 26 one and I heard that one?

SPEAKER_03

Yes, you are. Yes! Steven heard under 26.

SPEAKER_00

I have very good senses, not for the spiritual realm, but for the physical stuff. My my scent, my hearing, it's a it's a thing.

SPEAKER_03

You I don't think you're ever gonna lose your hearing, which is great. Touch wood. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Really good, really good.

SPEAKER_00

There you go.

SPEAKER_03

Um, okay, well, let's keep this moving right along. Speaking of smells. No, it's not smells at all. I read it as smelling salt. Would you ever? Tell me.

SPEAKER_00

Smelling salt? Would you ever try it? I think I really like sports people do it to like wake and prove themselves that.

SPEAKER_03

You've smelled them in my rep baseball days.

SPEAKER_00

Rep baseball? What is that?

SPEAKER_03

So I don't even know how to So I So not House League, but rep. So like rep was like hardcore. Yes. Um it it it was like explain sports to me. Yeah. So rep was like I it was um more hardcore than house league, which also means nothing to you at all.

SPEAKER_00

I don't know what that means. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

It was like better than most. Let's say that. Okay. More hardcore, more do you have the competitive?

SPEAKER_00

It was smaller. It was a small ball.

SPEAKER_03

It was a smaller ball, um, and it was hard. It was not soft ball. Hard ball, not softball. Okay. Yeah. It was a hard, smaller.

SPEAKER_00

I associate baseball with dandelions in the field.

SPEAKER_03

Yes, you sure do. Okay, so back to smelling salt. Um, there is I did you ever see video footage of like them being like, no, I need something stronger? And then they're like, ugh. Unreal.

SPEAKER_00

It's crazy.

SPEAKER_03

I I want to try one. Do you? To be fair, you've probably experienced things that are way stronger anyway.

SPEAKER_00

Fair.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. Um, but it's yeah, it's not great.

SPEAKER_00

You can taste it a little. Ugh. When you get like the what's that? Post-nasal drip?

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. Yeah. That's exactly what happens. And you're just like, uh, it just like burns. Yeah, uh, it's not good.

SPEAKER_00

Anyway.

SPEAKER_03

Okay, spilling salt.

SPEAKER_00

Not to be confused with smelling salt.

SPEAKER_03

Right. But if you are spilling some salt, many believe that spilling salt is an omen of bad luck, which can only be countered by throwing a pinch over your left shoulder.

SPEAKER_00

Your left shoulder.

SPEAKER_03

Historically, salt was incredibly expensive and it was used as currency, um, and of course, for preserving food. So to spill it was a genuine household disaster.

SPEAKER_00

There you go. I think the reason I don't do the salt one a lot is because I always forget which shoulder I'm supposed to throw it over.

SPEAKER_03

So Well, there you go. Why don't you tell me about why it's the left one?

SPEAKER_00

There we go. Okay. So the tradition of throwing it over your left shoulder comes from the belief that the devil or evil spirits always lingered on the left side or the sinister side. Oh, right? Because if you were ever left-handed, that was the mark of the devil, right?

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

By throwing salt into their eyes, you temporarily blinded them so they couldn't cause further trouble. Sure. There you go. This is actually followed in different cultures from Hindu to Buddhism, with all relating to some form of protection due to the bad luck that is supposed to come from actually spilling the salt.

SPEAKER_03

Well, there you go.

SPEAKER_00

There you go.

SPEAKER_03

Also, did you know that the word salary comes from the Latin word salt essentially, because Romans were like paid in chunks of salt because it was so a hot commodity.

SPEAKER_00

I did not know that.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. So like sal or sal is the Roman word for like essentially salt. And it was, yeah, like basically. Star swipe moment. Yeah. The more you know. The more you know. Um Yeah. Feel free to fact check me on that. But that somewhere in my random brain of knowledge.

SPEAKER_00

I I could see something like that.

SPEAKER_03

Salary comes from that word of like because they were paid in salt.

SPEAKER_00

I miss I miss the days as if I ever experienced them where you where you weren't paid with money, but it was like bartering.

SPEAKER_03

You were there. Tell me. I was there. What was it like? It was great. What was it like when they invented fire? When they discovered fire. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

The good old days. You know what?

SPEAKER_03

My dad used to say that to my grandmother, who was 102 when she died.

SPEAKER_00

Okay.

SPEAKER_03

Um, he'd be like, what was it like when they invented the wheel? And she's like, oh, go on. Um but yeah, no, it was like bartering. Bartering. I wish it was a still away. There are homesteads, I think, that still do that.

SPEAKER_00

Good old homesteads. Right? With those trad wives.

SPEAKER_02

Oh no. Oh no. Um, what did you say to me the other day? No, it was on a podcast. We're like, you know, football? I'm like, we are not. Remember when football? No, Fupa.

SPEAKER_00

Oh.

SPEAKER_02

And I lost my mind. Yeah. I think it was.

SPEAKER_00

That was that was um was it the mermaid episode?

SPEAKER_03

I don't know, but you should all go back and listen to all of the episodes.

SPEAKER_00

All of them.

SPEAKER_03

Also, hot tip don't just listen, download.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Right? 100%.

SPEAKER_03

We're making sure. Please subscribe and download our podcast, and then go and watch us on YouTube.

SPEAKER_00

And subscribe on YouTube. Please. Um we we we want to like, you know, get going with it.

SPEAKER_03

Apparently, we're at like 40 followers right now.

SPEAKER_00

We're at, I think, 38.

SPEAKER_03

38 subscribers on YouTube.

SPEAKER_00

Spiked in the past week. You love it. Thank you.

SPEAKER_03

Really, really happy for that.

SPEAKER_00

Uh, shout out also. Um, my dad shared us on his YouTube channel.

SPEAKER_02

Thanks, Jim.

SPEAKER_00

So a few people are from his following. Welcome. Thanks, father of mine.

SPEAKER_03

Yay. Um, I was gonna say something inappropriate about the size of my shirt, but now I'm not going to after talking about your dad.

SPEAKER_00

So there you go. He likes it. He draws nude women all the time.

SPEAKER_03

Fair enough. And it's very good. Exquisite stuff. Um, all right. Well, thanks for that. Steven, about salts.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, I was like, for what? What were we talking about? What did I do?

SPEAKER_03

A quick thank. Um, and okay, I just want to I just want to say, first of all, does everyone know the way we end our podcasts, what that's from? Oh. Does that does everyone? Have you explained this before? I don't know. I'm not sure. Here we are, like 42 episodes in.

SPEAKER_00

I only just saw because you didn't you repost on Instagram with something? I sure did. I was like, that's where it's.

SPEAKER_03

You didn't know this entire time.

SPEAKER_00

You told me, but I don't remember. You don't remember that.

SPEAKER_03

But I love that. So, okay. It's from a classic art cinema. Art, good old art cinema.

SPEAKER_00

Short bus? Do you know that movie is?

SPEAKER_02

Oh my god. This is going crazy.

SPEAKER_00

It's late, guys. Sorry. So no. Not short bus. Great movie there.

SPEAKER_03

I thought you were legit trying to come up with the title.

SPEAKER_00

Oh no, no, no, no, no, no. I don't know why shortbus just popped it in my head.

SPEAKER_03

I need to look it up.

SPEAKER_00

That's art cinema.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, okay. Understood. Um this also is Dumb and Dumber. Hello. Excellent piece of Nama. One of my favorite movies.

SPEAKER_00

Of course it is.

SPEAKER_03

And there is a scene in which they're coming out of a convenience store, right? That for the ending, yes.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

But the scene that I'm about to tell you about um was when Lloyd actually spills salt. Oh. Yeah. And he's like, Man, you you have to you throw it over your left shoulder. You have to throw it over your left shoulder. And he just whips the bottle. The whole bottle and whips it and it nails this guy. Anyways, and then hilarity ensues. But, anyways, there you go. Harry is like, you have to throw salt over your left shoulder. And he just whips it.

SPEAKER_00

I love it. There you go.

SPEAKER_03

That's very funny. Anyway, that works. Yeah. My entire life is based around that movie, apparently.

SPEAKER_00

And you incorporate it in the pod without me knowing. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Also, I don't even know why. Like, I just the very day, I said it.

SPEAKER_00

Sino, is that allowed? It is now. It is now. Sorry.

SPEAKER_03

Um okay, let's move on. More superstitions. Walking under a ladder. Okay. Okay. About 5,000 years ago, so really just the other day, in ancient Egypt. Okay. Stephen loves. Yeah, this superstition was born. A ladder leaning against a wall forms a what? A triangle.

SPEAKER_00

A unilateral?

unknown

From a ladder.

SPEAKER_00

Maybe. I may I made it. I made that's the first triangle that popped into my head. So I don't know. Wow. That is a triangle, right? A unilateral triangle. And there's an isn't an isosceles. Isosceles and a cute. Oh, and a cute.

SPEAKER_02

And a cute. Um.

SPEAKER_00

Also, I don't think that has anything to do with it. Ladder? A ladder. Unilateral.

SPEAKER_03

Back on track.

SPEAKER_00

Anyway.

SPEAKER_03

Okay, so a ladder leaning against a wall forms a triangle.

SPEAKER_00

Okay.

SPEAKER_03

In the space between said wall and ladder. Of course, we know that the triangle was a sacred shape, below pyramids, um, a holy trinity, if you will. And walking through that space was seen as breaking a holy space or defying the gods.

SPEAKER_00

Okay, so here's how I know I might not be superstitious. Oh, okay. Because when I was younger, anytime I would come across a ladder, I would make sure to walk under it. You purposefully walked under it. I did.

SPEAKER_03

What? Did anything bad happen to you?

SPEAKER_00

Maybe that's why my I'm cursed. I swear my family is cursed. We have bad luck here and there.

SPEAKER_03

I mean, maybe you know what? Yeah, it's your fault.

SPEAKER_00

My fault.

SPEAKER_03

Way to go, Stevie.

SPEAKER_00

Yep. Sorry, guys.

SPEAKER_03

That is one that I will. I mean, I've had to do it a few times because it's like if you're holding something, like if you're holding it for someone, you have to do it. Um, but there's many times where I will physically stop and walk around it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

So um in medieval Europe, a leaning ladder resembled the gallows used for executions. Walking under it was seen as inviting your own death or brushing up against the spirits of the departed. Whoa. In fact, we read on live science.com, good old science, uh, that in England during the 1600s, they would make condemned people walk under a ladder on their way to the gallows to meet their fate. Just rude.

SPEAKER_03

Kick in the ass. Right. Because you're already on your way to Damn. Ugh, not great. Um, let's move on to Friday the 13th.

SPEAKER_00

Love it.

SPEAKER_03

We love a Friday the 13th. Um, as many of you could probably guess or know. Um, fun fact there are three Friday the 13th in 2026.

SPEAKER_00

There are.

SPEAKER_03

Two have already passed.

SPEAKER_00

Yep.

SPEAKER_03

One in February, one in March. Um, and the next one is in November. Love it. I was supposed to see you on March Friday the 13th.

SPEAKER_00

You were.

SPEAKER_03

The weather destroyed me.

SPEAKER_00

You got dumped up.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, big time. It sucked. Um, and February, fun, fun little story. February 13th was, of course, Galantine's Day, the day before the 14th.

SPEAKER_00

Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_03

And me and my friend Amy went out, and it was so much fun. What a great time. Yay.

SPEAKER_01

Yay.

SPEAKER_00

So the fear of this specific date is a mix of two separate superstitions. Fearing the number 13 is actually a named fear, which is Triskodecophobia. Triskodekophobia.

SPEAKER_03

Nailed it. I'm sorry, Steven. I did it to you again. I didn't even mean to.

SPEAKER_00

Fuck you. Man. In Norse mythology, twelve gods were having a dinner party when the thirteenth guest, the trickster Loki, good old Loki, arrived uninvited, starting a ruckus and ultimately caused the death of the beloved god Balder, who was everyone's favorite. Sure. Baldur was the son of Odin and was the god of light. So of course, this made everyone hate Loki. And forever linked 13 with him, as he was the 13th guest of the party. Got it. This carried over into the Christian tradition. Judas was the 13th guest at the Last Supper, and we know what happened there.

SPEAKER_03

Judas!

SPEAKER_00

Do we?

SPEAKER_03

I mean, I do.

SPEAKER_00

Did he kill Judah?

SPEAKER_03

He betrayed Jesus.

SPEAKER_00

He betrayed Jesus. Judas killed God.

unknown

Jesus!

SPEAKER_03

Judas! Oh no! Um, yeah, Judas betrayed Jesus.

SPEAKER_00

How?

SPEAKER_03

And that's why.

SPEAKER_00

Do we know how? Uh is he actually wait, no, I was gonna say Jesus isn't He didn't get Mary pregnant.

SPEAKER_03

Mary's his mother. He gave him up to the Romans, and that's what ultimately led to his crucifixion, but I don't remember what it was about. I must have skipped Sunday school that day.

SPEAKER_00

There you go.

SPEAKER_03

And for all the religious talk I did in my last episode. I am failing on pretty basic level here.

SPEAKER_00

I just thought it was Lady Gaga was cheating on.

SPEAKER_02

Nailed it. Yeah. I sound exactly like her.

SPEAKER_00

That's great.

SPEAKER_03

Um and why Friday? Why Friday? Well, historically, Friday was considered an unlucky day for many. And it was the day of the crucifixion, as I just mentioned. And in some traditions, the day that Eve gave Adam the apple. Eve gave Adam the apple? I thought Eve made it.

SPEAKER_00

I thought the snake gave the app. Well, the snake gave it.

SPEAKER_03

Yes. And then I think Eve was like, you should eat this, and Adam didn't, and Eve did. I'm pretty sure.

SPEAKER_00

Oh. So Oh, because the the women were swaying the men.

SPEAKER_03

Don't get me started. Um so with these two, the the fear of 13 and the fear of Fridays combined, this created a super unlucky day of, of course, Friday the 13th.

SPEAKER_00

I have a story about Friday the 13th.

SPEAKER_03

Hit me with it.

SPEAKER_00

I actually learned this in my little conspiracy theory deep dive.

SPEAKER_03

Love it.

SPEAKER_00

So 13 is actually a very um holy, blessed number and day, not in regards to like Christianity or religion or anything, but there actually used to be 13 months.

SPEAKER_03

Yes.

SPEAKER_00

13 months. And there's 13. Moon cycles.

SPEAKER_03

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_00

And it the 13 cycles is very with the earth and how things rotate and how we're actually supposed to be on these 13 cycles. And it's very in tune with nature. And the church and all of that decided to get rid of 13 so that we weren't as in sync with the earth. And it threw our whole system off. And they created the whole thing against 13.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

And it's actually a good thing. And look at us now. And look at us now.

SPEAKER_03

Thank you for sharing that, Steve.

SPEAKER_00

You're welcome.

SPEAKER_03

I was born on a Friday.

SPEAKER_00

Okay. So it's a great day. It's a great day. Great day.

SPEAKER_03

I was gonna say, does that mean it's unlucky for my parents and the rest of them? I am a menace together.

SPEAKER_00

I don't know what day I was. Maybe a Saturday? I can't remember.

SPEAKER_03

You should check it out. I know exactly what day, what time, where.

SPEAKER_00

Hold on.

SPEAKER_03

Okay, holding. So it was a Saturday. A Saturday. There you go.

SPEAKER_00

The day after you. Ah.

SPEAKER_03

So cute. A year and like two weeks after each other.

SPEAKER_00

That's true.

SPEAKER_03

Um, okay. Well, we love, we love Friday the 13th.

SPEAKER_00

Love Friday the 13th. It's actually a good thing.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, we enjoy it. And um speaking of superstitious, a group of people stand by Friday the 13th, which is Motorcycles. Correct. Yeah. And they go to Port Dover. Port Dover. I wonder if they went in February.

SPEAKER_00

Maybe. Rob's not. My mom and stepdad just bought a motorcycle.

SPEAKER_03

Wow. Yeah. Good for them. Yeah. Nice. Nice. Do you know what kind?

SPEAKER_00

A black one.

SPEAKER_03

Great.

SPEAKER_00

I think it was black and silver.

SPEAKER_03

I don't know. I don't know anything about motorcycles. No.

SPEAKER_00

So I they actually kind of scare me a little.

SPEAKER_03

Well, here's the thing I've always said about motorcycles, because Kyle was an avid motorcycle. Really? Did I know this? I don't know. He got rid of both of his bikes like as I started dating him. So I've never known him to have one. But um in our conversations, I I and I stand by this with everyone. Like, it's not you as the rider, it's everyone else around you.

SPEAKER_00

A thousand percent.

SPEAKER_03

You like how many times do you hear that a motorcyclist has been killed because some jagoff is like texting or not paying attention or falling to the wheel? Like there's nothing between you and the road.

SPEAKER_00

It's so true.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, but scary but fun. Yeah. Sure. I've been on the back of a five.

SPEAKER_00

Have you? Oh yeah. I don't know if I would go on one.

SPEAKER_03

It was fun but scary. And like something happened both times.

SPEAKER_00

I yeah, well, that's what I'm so unlucky with that kind of shit that something would happen.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

So yikes. Speaking of it. Anywho, speaking of speaking of what's the next superstition? Breaking a mirror. Talk about love. Yep. So the idea that a broken mirror brings seven years of bad luck is a mix of Roman medicine and ancient psychology. There you go. According to historians, this is likely to have started in ancient Greece, where divination was quite popular. The story goes that Greeks believed they could see their own souls while gazing at the reflection in pools of water, ponds, etc. Then, when the Romans created glass mirror, it was very common for people to consult with mirror seers. Tough to say mirror seers. They would dip the mirror in water and have you look into it. Their reflection was analyzed, and if your image was distorted in the mirror, you were probably gonna die. If it was clear, you were fine.

SPEAKER_03

Well, I mean Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

But mirrors and divination are a huge thing. Black, black mirrors.

SPEAKER_03

Yes, absolutely. Scrying.

SPEAKER_00

Have you ever done scrying in like yeah? Yeah. Have you seen anything?

SPEAKER_03

Tough to say because so no, but my vision changed. Oh, okay. Big time. Cool. Um, but I didn't see anything that wasn't like normal. I just it just things around me. But you know when you stare at something for long enough that your peripheral just like does things anyway. Yeah. Um, it doesn't help that like, you know, it was dark and I was like in candlelight. Yeah. So like I can't be sure.

SPEAKER_00

Fair. Um I know never stare at yourself in the mirror when you're on shrooms. It is demonic.

SPEAKER_02

Well, the good news is You would never do shrooms.

SPEAKER_00

Never do it. Okay. Oh my god.

SPEAKER_03

That would be terrifying. What do you see?

SPEAKER_00

I turn into like a demon. I it was it was weird.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, no, don't like that. Yeah. Don't like that. Um, so the Romans believe that the soul was, of course, reflected in the mirror. Oh god. Which is also super bad news for you.

SPEAKER_00

I'd be a demon. I'm okay with it.

SPEAKER_03

Um it was considered disrespectful to break a mirror as it would anger the gods. To break the glass was to shatter the soul and therefore brought misfortune. But for only seven years. So why seven years? Well, the Romans, the Romans, the Romans, the Romans also believed that the human body underwent a total physical regeneration every seven years.

SPEAKER_00

There you go.

SPEAKER_03

Therefore, it would take exactly seven years for your shattered soul to fully heal and for the bad luck to expire.

SPEAKER_00

Did you know that your allergies change every seven years as well?

SPEAKER_03

Shut up, really?

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, so this makes sense.

SPEAKER_03

Seven years. Seven years. Also, seven. Lucky number.

SPEAKER_00

Lucky number seven. Look at that.

SPEAKER_03

13, 7, something to be said. What's it called? Numerology.

SPEAKER_00

Numerology.

SPEAKER_03

I think. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00

There you go. Uh, so we also have iron over the door or the horseshoe. Right. Horseshoe over a door is a big one.

SPEAKER_03

Huge one.

SPEAKER_00

Uh well, today we hang horseshoes for general good luck. The original intent was purely defensive. In folklore, supernatural beings, including witches, fairies, and demons, were believed to have an intense physical aversion to cold iron. It was thought to burn them or nullify their magic.

SPEAKER_03

Right. And placing an iron horseshoe over the threshold of a house, often with the points up to catch the luck, or down to pour protection over those entering, was a way to create a magnetic like barrier that no malevolent force could cross.

SPEAKER_01

There you go.

SPEAKER_03

Or like it would take away the powers or yeah, keep unwelcome, sort of dangerous spirits out of your house.

SPEAKER_00

Interesting. And little did they know that witches actually use iron in their practices. Yeah, oh, for sure.

SPEAKER_03

And iron has also been said to like keep um ghosts away. Like if you don't want a ghost in your home, you can hang some bits of iron.

SPEAKER_00

Well, and weren't the um was it I think Shar shared that witch's gate with us. It was made of iron. It's to keep us out, keep us out of um graveyards and holy areas.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

We should go there and walk through. I'm in. Yeah. Um Okay, this is another common one. We have the sneeze blessings.

SPEAKER_03

This one I for sure have to say to everyone around me.

SPEAKER_00

Which one do you say? Do you say the same one every time or could does it like vary?

SPEAKER_03

I say bless you every single time. Every single time. And maybe I shouldn't because like maybe people won't want that.

SPEAKER_00

But I Well, that's my thing. That's why I kind of stopped saying it. Um, as and when someone says God bless you, I'm like, Oh yeah, no. I should start doing that actually on the page.

SPEAKER_02

You should, you should, you should.

SPEAKER_00

I also like the Gazuntai. I don't know what that means. It could be God bless you.

SPEAKER_03

Honestly, I should have looked it up and I didn't.

SPEAKER_00

But I just like the sound of it. Sure. Um, so the phrase God bless you is so common we don't even think about it.

SPEAKER_02

Some of us think about it. Some of us think about it clearly.

SPEAKER_00

Uh, but its roots are tied to the vulnerability of the soul. Right. It was once believed that during a sneeze, the force of the air was so great that it briefly expelled the soul from the body. Right. There you go.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. So this split second of emptiness was the perfect window for a witch or a wandering spirit to hop inside and take up residence.

SPEAKER_00

I mean, someone didn't bless us one time. We sneeze.

SPEAKER_03

Saying bless you acted as a quick spiritual seal to shove the soul back in and lock the door before anything else could get in.

SPEAKER_00

There you go.

SPEAKER_03

Two things.

SPEAKER_00

Okay.

SPEAKER_03

One, learn this from the Simpsons long ago.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, good old Simpsons.

SPEAKER_03

Bart and Milhouse are like rough, you know, rough housing playing around. And I don't remember what it was for, but Bart like essentially is like, I'll give you my soul for XYZ.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, yes, okay.

SPEAKER_03

And Milhouse was like, that's not even like funny. Like you shouldn't even mess around with that. And then he says, like, when you sneeze, that's your soul trying to escape and saying, Bless you, crams it back in. And Bart's like, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. And he's like, Here, I'll sell you my soul. And he writes on a piece of paper, like, you now own Bart's soul and gives it to Milhouse. And then it like Marge comes in and hugs him. She's like, That's weird. You feel weird. You feel different. Because his soul was sold to Milhouse.

SPEAKER_00

Sold to Milhouse.

SPEAKER_03

So thank you, Simpsons, for educating me.

SPEAKER_00

There you go.

SPEAKER_03

Um, point number two Do you sneeze loudly? I've heard you sneeze.

SPEAKER_00

And I think I think I do.

SPEAKER_03

I think you sneeze.

SPEAKER_00

It depends on where I am.

SPEAKER_03

Right. Okay. Okay. What's like a true blue like decibel level of your sneeze?

SPEAKER_00

It's loud. Yeah. You don't know the decibel level. I can't tell you.

SPEAKER_02

I probably can hear it because I'm so old.

SPEAKER_00

True. I sneeze at a level that only under 40 year olds can hear.

SPEAKER_03

Um, I don't want to do it because Osiris just walked down here and he'd be so scared. I am aggressive.

SPEAKER_00

I could see that.

SPEAKER_03

As is my father. I always look at that.

SPEAKER_00

You're aggressive in many ways.

SPEAKER_03

I am aggressive in many ways. My sneezing is like borderline ridiculous. Okay. But so is my dad's, and I feel like that's where I got it from.

SPEAKER_00

Fair.

SPEAKER_03

Um it sounds like we're screaming.

SPEAKER_00

Okay, yeah, mine's not like that.

SPEAKER_03

Oh no, mine is ridiculous. I we talked about um middle school music class last episode.

SPEAKER_00

Yep.

SPEAKER_03

Randomly. Um, go listen. It's a w it's a trip.

SPEAKER_00

It's we go on a sneezing.

SPEAKER_03

We sure do. Um, I got kicked out of music class. Because of sneezing? Right. Because she was like, You're putting it on. I'm like, I'm really not. I have no control of this.

SPEAKER_02

Have I heard this? Man, it's loud.

SPEAKER_00

Maybe I just, you know, it's normal now.

SPEAKER_03

Uh maybe. Because everything else I do is ridiculous. Yeah, no, I sneeze very loudly.

SPEAKER_00

If I'm uh somewhere where people are, I definitely try to hold it in. I'm like, fuck, my eyeballs are gonna pop out.

SPEAKER_03

Oh yeah, which doesn't that isn't that like actually a thing?

SPEAKER_00

I yeah.

SPEAKER_03

I don't think you can sneeze without like you have to close your eyes.

SPEAKER_00

Yes. Crazy, crazy, crazy. Yeah. I'd love to see that. I know, Michelle. An eyeball pop out.

unknown

Bobby Wyle.

SPEAKER_00

That reminds me of the hostel, the movie. Where the eyeball popped out.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, never seen it. I refuse.

SPEAKER_00

I watched it before I went to Europe and stayed in hostels because I'm weird like that.

SPEAKER_03

Oh asking for it. Asking for it.

SPEAKER_00

Um, okay. Next we have oh, thanks for giving this one to me. We have the black cat. So many cultures regard black cats as an omen, but it varies from good and bad. Ancient Egyptians revered and even worshipped cats, obviously, including black ones. So naturally, the belief of a black cat being a lucky or good omen started here. And Osiris was just walking around. Osiris was, just I have my little black cat. Uh, so its luck continued. Yes. So it seemed in England when King Charles I owned and cherished a pet cat.

SPEAKER_01

Yes.

SPEAKER_00

He believed it brought him so much luck that when it sadly died, he was afraid something terrible was going to happen. According to Livescience.com again, the day after his pet black cat died, he was arrested for treason.

SPEAKER_03

I mean So that started it. There you go.

SPEAKER_00

There you go. Uh love a black cat. Love a black cat. Always have a black cat.

SPEAKER_03

Of course, as you should. Uh, and of course, we know that during the Middle Ages in Europe, black cats were seen as familiars of witches or even witches in disguise themselves.

SPEAKER_01

Yes.

SPEAKER_03

This started the belief that a black cat crossing your path meant the devil was watching you and that no good would come of it. Um, the pilgrims really leaned into this belief, and when they traveled to America, um, they're likely responsible for keeping the negative view of the black cats going for so long, even to this day. And we've discussed this as friends, but I don't think on the pod, but like cats that are black are neglected in shelters all the time.

SPEAKER_00

All the time. They have there are specific sites and shelters for black cats because people don't want them. Yeah. And they will abuse them, they will throw them out, you know, cars and windows and all sorts of shit. And they people do not like black cats.

SPEAKER_03

Well, fuck you, y'all. That's insane.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

But it's true. Like, this is the probably the biggest, longest running. I yeah. And like anyway. Yeah. Don't you want to befriend a powerful being like that? I'm just saying.

SPEAKER_00

There he is.

SPEAKER_03

Hi, buddy. Oh, he's frozen. He's like, You're speaking to me.

SPEAKER_00

He is the wimpiest black cat because he Do you think he'll do you think he'll come up to you?

SPEAKER_03

Maybe. Hi, buddy. You should show him off. You coming up? Osiris.

SPEAKER_00

Hold please.

SPEAKER_01

Here he is.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, that was perfect timing. You heard us talking about it.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

So this is Osiris. That's him. You can see that. Yeah, he doesn't really like attention.

SPEAKER_03

Hi, baby. Yeah. And isn't his name Egyptian?

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, Osiris. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

There you go. So perfect little baby. He's like, I want to get the box. Too much.

unknown

Too much.

SPEAKER_03

Um, okay. So before we get into some that we didn't cover, the ones that we did talk about, like, do you so black hat, obviously, we do not follow because we cherish them and love them. We follow the fact that it's good omen.

SPEAKER_00

100%. Uh, which I would say a lot of these, I actually think the reverse of.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, yeah?

SPEAKER_00

I think they're more good. Like Friday the 13th.

SPEAKER_03

Yes, we love, and like obviously it well, iron over the door, protect him, breaking the mirror. I guess breaking it.

SPEAKER_00

I am too.

SPEAKER_03

I can't.

SPEAKER_00

I agree with you there.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Um the only time I would do that is if it was for like a DIY craft project and I needed to break it.

SPEAKER_03

Fair enough. Yeah. Um, okay, cool. So when it comes like we could we could have gone on and on. Oh, for sure. There are so many. So, what are some superstitions that we didn't cover? Well, of course, there's the sports superstitions.

SPEAKER_00

The only one I can think of is no sex.

unknown

Okay.

SPEAKER_00

A lot of them will do that.

SPEAKER_03

That is also a scientific one.

SPEAKER_00

Oh.

SPEAKER_03

Yes, because my past life in fighting has taught me this. Okay. Yeah. Like the more testosterone you have, you know, you're not like.

SPEAKER_00

Does it work for guys and girls?

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. Oh, for sure. You're like, well, obviously much more for guys because testosterone to them is everything. But um, yeah, no, you're not supposed to have sex before you like the night before your fight. Because you're supposed to like keep all your hormones and like, yeah, yeah, yeah, pretty much. Paritima.

SPEAKER_00

Weird. Another reason to hate sports.

SPEAKER_03

Right.

SPEAKER_00

Boo.

SPEAKER_03

Um, but also like the playoff beards, you know, like in hockey or not washing the jersey. Yeah. That's a gross one.

SPEAKER_00

Um heated rivalry with his little socks. Oh my gosh. Or his superstition of having the smoothie.

SPEAKER_03

Love heated.

SPEAKER_00

Love it.

SPEAKER_03

Much like everyone else on Face Yards. Yeah. Um, yeah, the socks, that's a really big one. Right. That's a really big one. Um, I have also seen, you know, they'll touch the emblem, whatever team it is, like they'll touch their emblem as I'm giving.

SPEAKER_00

Is the um, again, he to Ravelry, is the kissing of the Stanley Cup, is that a thing? That's a super is that a superstition?

SPEAKER_03

I don't think that's a superstition. I think that's more of like a ritual that you do. That's just like something you do. You kiss the cup. That's like the thing you do. Um, who knows? Maybe it was steeped in superstition from back in the day.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Um, but yes, every single one of them lift it and then kiss it.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Um I think that's kind of most of the sports ones that I can think of.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Um we can also talk about we've got holding your breath while passing cemeteries in your car.

SPEAKER_03

Did you I did that all the time as a kid?

SPEAKER_00

Sometimes I did.

SPEAKER_03

I did it every single time. And the one in Hamilton on was it York Road? Uh it's huge.

SPEAKER_00

And you're like huge. Yeah.

unknown

I'm not gonna make it.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, I made it, thankfully.

SPEAKER_00

On that note, there's also the whistling when you're either walking through or going by a graveyard. What? Where it's like uh uh if you whistle while you're going past it, it um um uh makes it so that the ghosts don't attach or come near you or something.

SPEAKER_02

Really?

SPEAKER_00

But then remember we talked in the Appalachia episode where it's like whistling forces. It's sad.

SPEAKER_03

Yes.

SPEAKER_00

Because it will draw them in.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, yeah, yeah. So interesting.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Um this one is super random, and I've only heard it from one person, but now it's something I do every time.

SPEAKER_00

I've never heard of this one.

SPEAKER_03

I'm not friends with this person anymore, so like it pains me to say it. Um lifting your feet while driving over train tracks and touching the glass of your window.

SPEAKER_00

Like paired together.

SPEAKER_03

Correct. So like touch, lift, and go over the tracks.

SPEAKER_00

What if you're driving?

SPEAKER_03

I mean, yeah, dangerous move. Yeah. Uh I do it every time.

SPEAKER_00

Interesting.

SPEAKER_03

Every time. Isn't that so weird?

SPEAKER_00

That is weird.

SPEAKER_03

And like it was from this person that I learned it, and now I can't stop doing it.

SPEAKER_00

Wow.

SPEAKER_03

I don't even know why. I don't know why. I have no knowledge as to where this came from. It's just this person started doing it all the time, and then I started doing it, and now I can't stop.

SPEAKER_00

There you go.

SPEAKER_03

And it feels weird when I don't do it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

So maybe you do have a little OCD.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, for sure. I got some I got a lot of things going on.

SPEAKER_00

You got a lot of things.

SPEAKER_03

I got a lot of things.

SPEAKER_00

Um, we also have naming of boats. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

That's a big one. The whole idea is like if you are are you have to name your boat, your boat. Yeah. Which like I mean, I have a boat, is it named? We name it ourselves, yeah. But it's not like on it, and it needs to be on it. So it's like what's your boat's name? Oh, I mean Bodie.

SPEAKER_00

Oh Bodie, obviously. Bodie. Come on.

SPEAKER_03

Um, yeah, it's nothing like smart or cool. Bodie McBoat face. Pretty much. Yeah, that's that's kind of it.

SPEAKER_01

I love it.

SPEAKER_03

There are like I really like a lot of the like there's always like the naughty boy. Okay. Like booy and naughty, like nautical knots.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Um, I like when we pass by all the time in our marina that's um this is the ring. So instead of like an engagement ring. Oh, cute. We got a boat. This is the ring. Yeah, yeah. So, but there are some cute ones out there. Yeah. Yeah. But nah. Uh naming a boat, important.

SPEAKER_00

Bodhi.

SPEAKER_03

Um, Bodie. Can't wait to get Bodhi out. Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, I can't wait to go on it, Taylor. A couple more months, and we'll get Bodhi out. So good.

SPEAKER_03

Um, opening umbrella indoors. Dare I say, this is one of those common sense ones where like you just don't do it so that someone started.

SPEAKER_00

This is another one I made sure to do.

SPEAKER_03

Really? Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Okay. So not like not all the time, but there were a few times where I was like, haha, I'm a rebel. And I would like open an umbrella inside.

SPEAKER_03

That's hilarious. And also, especially because I was just saying that it was a common sense.

SPEAKER_00

I don't have common sense. Come on.

SPEAKER_03

Only simply because like you're gonna explode something everywhere or knock something over.

SPEAKER_00

I would do it in a room that was big enough that it wouldn't touch walls.

SPEAKER_03

Fair enough. I physically cannot do that. I can't do it.

SPEAKER_00

Because you're not a rebel.

SPEAKER_03

I am a rule follower, yeah. And I for sure have some sort of like, you know, tism or something.

SPEAKER_00

100%.

SPEAKER_03

I just I can't, I can't do it. Again, superstitious or on the spectrum.

SPEAKER_00

Fuck the system.

SPEAKER_03

You tell me.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. I am a rule breaker.

SPEAKER_03

See, again, Steven is the cooler one of us both. That's why his name is Cool Stevie Steve.

SPEAKER_00

That's saying something because I'm not cool, guys.

SPEAKER_03

Um yeah, what about this one?

SPEAKER_00

Uh okay, yeah. So we are finding a penny on the ground. Find a penny, pick it up, pick it up, all the time. All good day.

SPEAKER_03

All good day.

SPEAKER_00

All good day, you'll have good luck. All day long, you'll have good luck.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, see a penny, pick it up all day long, you'll have good luck. Which of course we can't do anymore. Nope. Which is so stupid.

SPEAKER_00

I always wanted to do either the penny floor or the penny countertop. Stuff like that. When you like epoxy over it.

SPEAKER_03

That would take forever.

unknown

Forever.

SPEAKER_03

Because you have to do it by hand.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, that'd look really pretty.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

I think that'd be cool. You can maybe choose like a wall somewhere to do it. Yeah. Right? And like a bathroom or something. Yeah. Um, this is not superstitious, but it kind of goes to like spiritual belief. Okay. You know, I've been finding a lot of dimes.

SPEAKER_00

Oh my God. Uh, yesterday, the day before, I was getting my hair done. Yeah. And they were talking about this because the one girl, her and her dad, who had passed away, they had a thing about dimes. And that day, she found around uh the salon where she works at at different times, five. Different dimes that she was picking up, and then the girl who was doing my hair found two when she after this girl would talk about it.

SPEAKER_03

Something about dyes. So that's a mess. So specifically, dimes are a message from a past level. They are. Yes. Yes.

SPEAKER_00

Cute.

SPEAKER_03

Yes. And I've been finding them a lot. Obviously, this person that's wild that she found five.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Um, yeah. Wild. The the day actually, so my one of my relatives passed away last weekend. And on the day she died, there were two dimes directly below me, like at the gym when I like was working out, whatever. And then I'm like, oh, there's two dimes.

SPEAKER_00

What what sign would she want to be giving you?

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. Remains to be seen. I guess we'll find out. I guess we'll find out. Find out. Um, R.I.P., love you. Who knows if the feeling was mutual? Um I'm sure it was. I'm sure it was. For sure. Just people have different ways of showing their love and affection, right? So that's all I have to say about that. But yeah, dimes are for sure like a sign. That's cool. Um, when my friend Brian passed away, I found a dime the day.

unknown

I love that.

SPEAKER_00

Um again, it's because you're more sensitive. Nothing ever happens to me. No. This is why I break mirrors and walk under lauds to make something happen.

SPEAKER_02

I want it. We're not gonna use it. We're not gonna do that.

SPEAKER_00

We're gonna guess that.

SPEAKER_03

Um, okay. Well, how about how about this, Steven? How about this? How about this?

SPEAKER_00

Uh so we've got uh regions, different regions with high levels of superstition. Yeah, yeah. Uh so the first one is the Philippines, uh, often cited as having highly superstitious populations with strong beliefs in urban legends, ghosts, and the evil eye. Sure. Also known as Usog or Ballas. Sure. Even among the religious, the evil eye for the case.

SPEAKER_03

The religious and superstitious. Usually they don't go hand in hand. But um so and another sort of um region with high levels of superstition here, India. Yeah, deeply rooted in superstitious culture, including the belief that this is interesting. Cutting nails at night or on a specific day brings bad luck and avoiding travel on certain days as well. Interesting. Very interesting. I never would have thought that. Yeah. Also, do you love that I have nails now?

SPEAKER_00

Love them.

SPEAKER_03

I don't have to do jujitsu anymore. So true.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

This is literally why I have nails.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Um, we also have China. Superstitions such as the avoidance of the number four, which sounds like death.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, maybe in Chinese Mandarin or something. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Uh often influence business and architecture with many buildings emitting a fourth floor.

SPEAKER_03

Wow, that's like the floor. So instead of 13, yeah. Because that's actually something we didn't talk about.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Is buildings legit not modern, I think it's hit or miss. It depends.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, because I go into a lot checking to see if there's a 13th floor. And most times there is now. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

But they used to skip it. They used to go 12, 14, which did nothing. Because 14 was his 13th floor, but that's fine. Yeah. Uh Russia and Eastern Europe. Okay. Regions with high levels of belief and bad omens, such as never returning home for something forgotten or refusing to shake hands over a threshold.

SPEAKER_00

Wait. Never returning home. Never returning home for something forgotten. So if you were to leave for the day and you forgot something at home, you can't go back for it. Weird.

SPEAKER_03

Interesting. Huh. Interesting. Or refusing to shake hands over something. Over a threshold.

SPEAKER_00

Which makes sense in that little liminal space. Liminal space. Liminal spaces. TBDs. TBD. Um we have Japan. Sure. Many people believe in ghosts and are superstitious about items like mirrors and sleeping positions, often aligning, for example, hospital discharges with lucky days.

SPEAKER_03

Isn't that interesting? So, like in Jap in Japan, there are like lucky days. So if they're in the hospital, they don't want to really be released on an unlucky day. Oh, yeah. They want to be released on a lucky day.

SPEAKER_00

Interesting. Wait, what are the sleeping positions?

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, like specific sleeping positions, they just don't do it.

SPEAKER_00

Oh God.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, interesting.

SPEAKER_00

I need to change my sleeping position because it's fucking my neck and backup. But I can't sleep otherwise.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

I'm a side and stomach sleeper.

SPEAKER_03

What do you do with your wrists?

SPEAKER_00

Oh, I'm the very same.

SPEAKER_03

Like I'm curled up and uh I literally it's got it's so bad now that I can sleep like this and my hands are beside me and they still go numb. It's probably a bad sign.

SPEAKER_00

Probably a bad sign. Probably really bad.

SPEAKER_03

You know, that's future, Jacqueline's project. Future. Yeah. Um all right. Well, let's look at examples of extreme or specific superstitions. So let's start in South Korea. Fan death. Um, a widespread belief that leaving an electric fan running in a sealed room while sleeping can kill you. Well, that's terrible news because I have a partner who cannot sleep without a fan.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I feel that. Does a ceiling fan count as an electric fan? It's run by electric fan.

SPEAKER_02

I mean, it's yeah, I guess.

SPEAKER_00

Because we have that. I need it. But yeah, that's funny. I was thinking fan death, but literally.

SPEAKER_02

Literally death, yes.

SPEAKER_00

Damn. Uh so in Argentina, a tradition that the seventh son in a row will turn into a werewolf, often leading to the presidential godparenting to break the curse.

SPEAKER_03

I don't know what the I don't know.

SPEAKER_00

Often leading to presidential godparenting to break the curse.

SPEAKER_03

So, like I guess your godparents need to somehow break the curse, but I'm interested.

SPEAKER_00

The seventh son is a thing. Also, that's a great movie. Oh, the seventh son of a seventh son is all magic and shit. Like that's very cool. That's cool.

SPEAKER_03

Um, going over to Turkey. Turkey. So they have the belief that chewing gum at night turns into rotting flesh.

SPEAKER_01

Oh.

SPEAKER_03

Or that an itchy right hand means impending wealth. I mean, from one extreme to another. Yes.

SPEAKER_00

That is, yeah, two very extremes there. Yeah. Yeah. Ugh, I miss gum.

unknown

Dog, yeah, you can't.

SPEAKER_00

I can't do it with my visual orange. I become a mint girl.

SPEAKER_02

Mints are great.

SPEAKER_00

Mints are great.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Um, Italy. Friday the 17th is considered the unluckiest day rather than predatory.

SPEAKER_03

So interesting. Very different. And closing it out with Germany, the strong superstition against wishing someone a happy birthday. Early.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, it has to be on the day.

SPEAKER_03

It has to be on the day. Great segue. Because I will have to tell you, when this episode comes out, it'll be the day before your birthday.

SPEAKER_00

Great segue.

SPEAKER_03

So, like, sorry, but happy early birthday.

SPEAKER_00

True. Unlucky, great. Thank you.

SPEAKER_03

Happy early birthday, Steven.

SPEAKER_00

Thank you.

SPEAKER_03

So thankful to have you in my life. I love you. I cherish you, even though you're younger than me and can hear things.

SPEAKER_00

I can hear things way better than you.

SPEAKER_03

This is for you. So happy birthday.

SPEAKER_00

Baby, I love you.

SPEAKER_03

Um, superstitions. Did we miss any? I'm sure of it.

SPEAKER_00

I'm sure we did.

SPEAKER_03

Are there anyone, like, is there something that we didn't talk about that you do or subscribe to? Or um. Oh my gosh. I can't believe we didn't talk about this one. The don't step on a crack.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, I meant to talk about this one. Yeah. I did that as a kid. Not step on a crack. I made sure not to. Got you. Because I never wanted to break my mom's back.

SPEAKER_03

Your mom's back. Yeah, absolutely. Um, yeah, that's that's that's a big one. I can't believe we didn't discuss that.

SPEAKER_00

Um I got very good at my stride where I could step in the middle of each sidewalk thing. And it was one stride at a time, and I got so good at it.

SPEAKER_03

Very good. Yeah, man. I have a question. When did we learn about superstitions?

SPEAKER_00

Like, was this something they taught us in school or was it just I think it's just one of those you learn in life.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And the parents maybe tell you. Yeah. Cause like there are a lot of things where I'm like, are the children learning about X, Y, Z?

SPEAKER_00

I think it's just, yeah, passed down. Yeah. It's like old wives' tales and stuff like that. Is the superstition No that's an old wives' tale. Or is it superstitious about eating after you swim or before you don't go swimming after you eat?

SPEAKER_03

I mean, you could argue that it is in fact superstitious, but I think it's an old wives' tale where it's like they thought that was an unhealthy move.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Um I did it all the time.

unknown

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Who did it? Yeah. Swimming and eating Pop Tarts was like my jam. Oh. Oh. My grandma Wade had the best pool. She had the best snacks. She took good care of us. She always brought out these wonderful little treat trays. Pop-tarts and pool top tarts, baby. I love it. Um yeah, but that's a really good question. Um, yeah, write in. Let us know what superstitions you follow. Yeah. Let us know.

SPEAKER_00

Um, anything else before we actually on the note about writing in, sure. I really want to do an episode of people writing us about their supernatural ghost stories. Yes. I know at least one of you. I'm looking at you. Should I say their name? Do it. I'm looking at you, Wendy. You said you had a bunch of um hospital ghost stories. So write us in. Give it to us.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. There have been a couple people who I know in my like real life who have said that.

SPEAKER_00

I feel like Ali has some too. So Allie.

SPEAKER_03

Send it in. Send it in everybody. Um, write us at our email. Yeah. Send slide into our DMs. Slide into our DMs. The children still say.

SPEAKER_00

I really want to do, yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, that'd be awesome. Honestly, if we get enough of them, we don't have to say your name.

SPEAKER_00

Even though we just didn't know. We just did. Yeah, I apologize. Yeah. I want to do it coming up.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, no, for real. Okay, let's start pushing that now.

SPEAKER_00

Yes.

SPEAKER_03

Send us your supernatural or weird sort of tales. Yeah. We don't have to say your name. You can let us know if you want us to say your name or don't want to say your name.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Um, but write in, please, and we'll read it and we'll tell everyone and we'll just kind of talk about it and unpack it.

SPEAKER_00

I just think it would be so cool. Yeah, I think so too. Hear about all those. Yeah. Maybe we can also do like a just do you remember Creepy Pasta? Of course I've got to be a good one. Creepy Pasta Stories.

SPEAKER_03

Um if you really want to get hardcore, are you afraid of the dark?

SPEAKER_00

Or Freaky Stories.

SPEAKER_03

Remember that? Freaky stories.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Loved that show.

SPEAKER_00

So good.

SPEAKER_03

Um okay. Well, thank you, Steven. That was really smart. Okay, so thank you so much for listening to the Weirdos of Whimsy. We will be back again soon with another episode that guides you through the weird and whimsical journey that is our brains. Be sure to follow us on Instagram and YouTube and TikTok at Weirdos of Whimsy Pod. Watch that space for updates, re release dates, and other treats and delectable morsels. Say goodbye, Stevie.

SPEAKER_00

So long farewell, everybody.

SPEAKER_03

And as always, big gulps, eh?

SPEAKER_01

Well, see you later.