Are you suddenly avoiding black cats, tall ladders or broken mirrors? Have you found yourself throwing salt over your left shoulder just in case? Or knocking on wood?
Did you look at the calendar and notice that tomorrow is Friday the 13th?
Those of us who are superstitious tend to be very careful on those Fridays that fall on the 13th day of the month.
According to the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute in Asheville, N.C., an estimated 17 million to 21 million people in the U.S. alone are affected by a fear of the day, so they avoid making major decisions, stay indoors or won’t travel.
There is some validity to that. A 1993 study by the British Medical Journal showed a greater number of traffic accidents on Friday the 13th than on other days.
Or maybe it’s just because people expect something to happen so it does.
Am I worried? Not one bit. That’s because I’m so lucky. At least that’s what the customers of a store once told me after I hit the grand prize on the wheel of fortune at the store’s one-year anniversary celebration.
My prize was a 20-pound bag of rice. My family and I have been eating lucky rice for years. And my luck has held all that time.
But even more promising is that this Friday the 13th is followed by Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day, and I’ve also been lucky in love.
Being lucky in love is something that Boulder City residents Billie and Ed Waymire know well. The two will celebrate their 52nd anniversary in September and are more in love with each other today than they were when they married.
You can see it in the way that Ed dotes on Billie and hear it in the way Billie talks about Ed.
“I am blessed and very lucky to have met Ed and have him as a husband,” she said this week.
Though their courtship started slowly and proceeded cautiously, today neither can imagine life without the other.
They have supported each other through good times and bad, all without an argument.
“My theory is if your wife is happy, that’s the end of it,” Ed said.
He said she is devoted and makes no secret about how much she loves him. In return, he showers her with affection and anything else she likes or wants.
“Ed is so wonderful. Anything I like, he likes,” she said.
Just like many married couples, they have shared a variety of adventures and introduced each other to new things. Billie helped Ed conquer his fear of opera, and he “bribed” her to give flying and boating a chance by naming his plane and boat Mrs. Billie.
They have traveled from Boulder City to New York twice towing a travel trailer and hiked much of the Southwest, including nearly every trail in the Grand Canyon.
As long as they were together, it didn’t matter much what was happening around them, such as the time they were hiking to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and the temperature reached 108-degree, breaking a heat record.
“We do things together,” Billie said. “If you want one of us, expect both of us or we won’t come.”
Their love for each other is infectious. You can’t help but smile and get warm, fuzzy feelings when basking in the glow of their affection.
They said their time together has passed quickly and they take advantage of every moment. This is even more true now because Billie spent 64 days in the hospital last year and “I almost lost her three different times,” Ed said.
He applies many of the principles he used in his successful barrel-and-drum business to keep his love happy.
Billie said Ed was able to anticipate his customers’ needs before they knew what they needed.
That’s how he cares for his wife. If she sees something she likes, he gets if for her. There’s no need to wait for a birthday, anniversary or special occasion like Valentine’s Day.
For the Waymires, every day is a day to show each other how much they care.
They are indeed lucky.