Some of the funnier ones that I haven't really bought into:
1. You never step OVER a child who is laying on the ground (always walk around them), or else you will stunt their growth. But then again...maybe someone stepped over ME when I was a baby and THAT is why I'm vertically challenged. Hmmm...
2. You never give a candle to someone as a gift, because it means you want them to die (unless, of course, you actually want them to die - then give away!). Although, I do have to say that I half-way buy into this one because I never give candles as a gift since I know what it means, but I'd never be upset if I got a candle as a gift.
3. You never eat a meal with money sitting on the table (not even coins) - it's bad luck. This one doesn't bug me so much because: a) It means I actually have some money and b) I am usually way to lazy too clear off my table of the cluttered junk mail, so moving change to another location just to eat isn't really high on my priority list.
Some of the ones I do buy into, and for whatever reason, seem to "work" for me:
1. You always store some money (any denomination) in your purses you're not using. This ensures you will never be broke. My mom always stores at least $1 in her purses not being used; I'm a bit of a cheap skate, and pretty lazy, so I just leave the leftover change that's in the bottom of the purse (from when I was using it).
2. You NEVER put your purse on the ground - not at home, not at a restaurant, not at work, not in a public restroom (NASTEEEEE!), not anywhere. If you do, you will lose your money and end up broke. Aside from never wanting to be broke, I am also a big fan of this one because putting your purse on
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| Would you smear shit all over this gorgeous purse? Hell no! source |
3. You have to have the little Catholic "altar" somewhere in the crib. Here is where you display the crucifix, the statue of the Virgin Mary, and any other "holy" figurines (for us, it's the Santo Nino - patron saint of the Philippines) or items that you have to display your Catholic-ness. I have bottles of holy water and my special rosaries accompanying my Catholic staples on my altar. *Additionally - in order to further add to the superstitious fodder and extol your Catholic-ness, you must also have a rosary on display in your car. And for good measure - I have a rosary hung on my bed post AND a palm frond (from a Palm Sunday mass) origami-folded into a cross under my mattress. All of this coming from one of the poorest excuses for a "Good Catholic Girl" that there ever was!
And now, some of my own superstitions that I've managed to figure into my daily life:
1. I smudge my house with smoking sage every so often. Gotta get that fucked up, nasty, bad-mojo energy out of your space, doncha know??
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| Rub that tummy fo some money! source |
3. I have the Hotei Buddhas (the fat laughing Buddha) all up in my crib. For good luck, of course.
4. I have a collection of elephant figurines - but all of their trunks have to be in the up position, like they're trumpeting, and the trunks all have to face toward the front door. That's also for good luck.
5. Then, there's the whole Feng Shui thing. Holy SHIT is there ever the Feng Shui thing. Just a few of them: three three-toed frogs with gold coins in their mouths, all at the front door, positioned like they're coming into the house; three gold Chinese coins on a red ribbon hanging from the doorknob of my front door; the sofa in the living room is ALWAYS against a wall as an "anchor" and has to have a clear view of the front door; same thing with the bed in each room - has to be anchored to the wall that gives you a clear view of the door and anyone entering; and numerous other aspects of Feng Shui that are more cumbersome and complicated (I'd have to get into the whole notion of "shar chi" - or negative energy and "poison arrows" and blah, blah, blah).
I know there are a bunch of superstitions that I'm forgetting, but I'm getting older - that seems to happen more frequently these days. What's my point in telling you about all of these superstitions? I have no fucking point. Give me a damned break. I'm just getting back into the blog, for fuck's sake. I haven't worked up a good froth yet. I'm still thinking about one - or else I'm just waiting for a news story to hit my eyeballs and enrage the ever-loving Angry Asian lady who lives inside of me.
Get off my nutsack for now though, I'm still practicing. And for the love of the Sweet Korean Baby Jesus, if you notice any spelling or grammar errors, please TELL ME. I haven't blogged in quite a while, so I'm rusty.
