Today is October 10, 2010. That is 10-10-10. Sounds almost magical.
Our society seems fascinated by numbers. We love to play the lottery. Almost everyone has a “lucky number”. I am not sure what makes it lucky, but many people I know make decisions in their life which include the consideration of this number in one way or another.
There is a golden birthday. My daughter-in-law, a very smart woman, recently celebrated her golden birthday. She mentioned that as a young teen, she felt bad that she had to wait until she was 28 to have a golden birthday. If you are not familiar with the concept, it is when you turn the age of the date that you were born-thus turning 28 on the 28th of July. It wasn’t a big deal to her, but she still acknowledged it as her golden birthday.
There have been huge predictions for the end of the world on dates which appear to be important. Thus, at the turn of each century, there are those who truly anticipate that the world will end. Somehow, they have always gotten it wrong. It does not stop the next prognostication. The current favorite for the ending of the world as we know it being December 21, 2012. I am not sure why the Mayan prophecy has now become the favorite, but I have a feeling that we will still be here to celebrate New Year’s on January 1. 2013.
Let’s just say I am not a big believer in lucky or unlucky numbers.
A calendar is a creation of the human mind. There is no time keeping being managed by the universe. We as humans have a need to keep track of things, whether it be days, seasons, years, decades, or centuries. The orbit of the earth around the sun is a handy measure. The spinning of the earth on its axis causing day and night is a simple way to keep track of things. The numbering of them is truly irrelevant to anything happening in the heavens.
Is there really a God sitting there, x’ing off each day, waiting for a cute combination of numbers to knock over this earth like so many children’s blocks which s/he built as our world?
I don’t buy it. Numbers are just figures used to represent concepts humans have a need to define. There is no magic. Mathematicians, I apologize-there is a game to be played with these concepts, but it is truly a human invention. Numbers may give us a way to explain concepts in a way which makes sense to (some of) us. The numbers on the calendar simply gives us a way to keep track of the turning of the earth.
But in reality, 10-10-10 is just 3 10’s. Kinda cute. Sort of a rhyme.
The rest of the universe doesn’t care.
Just My Life 
I don’t pay too much attention to numbers either. So far, nothing terrible has happened to me on Friday the 13th – and if it did, I wouldn’t blame it on the date 🙂
With all of these people predicting the end of the world, someone is bound to get it right at some point…and then it would be just luck (not skill in number analysis). Sorry…I’m rambling 🙂
By: jannatwrites on October 10, 2010
at 1:43 pm
I suppose that statistically, if everyone chooses one date, someone may have it right. Fridays are Fridays, and usually are pretty good just because of that, 13th or not!
By: chlost on October 10, 2010
at 6:10 pm
I was working on a post called 10-10-10 just now.
I don’t believe in magical numbers or end-times prophesies. Life unfolds as it will.
By: secret agent woman on October 10, 2010
at 4:21 pm
I don’t believe in magic, either. Reality is crazy enough!
By: chlost on October 10, 2010
at 6:08 pm
Chlost..Chlost..Chlost….. Now what have u done? I just saw on the news that a massive meteor is heading for a particular upper midwest state…..a tragedy that was foreseen by the ancient Mayans thousands of years ago….. I hope you got a good basement! 🙂
By: redriverpak on October 10, 2010
at 5:15 pm
Yup, I am sure that there is a target on my forehead now! Thanks for the warning!!
By: chlost on October 10, 2010
at 6:08 pm
Interesting: I wonder whether numbers were only invented by humans?
Animals can be trained to count: some seem to understand without being trained. Parrots understand the concept of zero. I can only just about grasp that!!
Intriguing post 🙂
By: sweffling on October 10, 2010
at 8:48 pm
I believe that I read somewhere that parrots have the intelligence of a human 5 year old. As human children are able to learn to count, with the numbers that we teach them, I am not surprised that a parrot also could do so. I wonder about monkeys, too.
By: chlost on October 11, 2010
at 10:35 am
You are so RIGHT ON!! You would feel right at home amongst the company of us Skeptics. So many people attach magic to numbers, but you hit the nail right on the head.
Yes, predictions of the end of the world have ALL come and gone… no event! What a surprise !!!! LOL
By: Robert the Skeptic on October 10, 2010
at 10:38 pm
Thank you.
By: chlost on October 11, 2010
at 10:33 am
I figure it’s par for the course in western society to assume that our calendar is the one on which the universe hangs, as if there are no other calendars, as if ours has been around since the beginning of time!
Today is the 2nd day of the 2nd month of the 5771st year on the Hebrew calendar. I’m not coming up with anything from them at the moment…
Interesting about animals being trained to count. I also wonder why it is numbers are so natural for people with autism.
By: Yael on October 11, 2010
at 10:07 am
I met a man who was a savant, like Dustin Hoffman’s Rain Man. He could tell you the day of the week any date was, in the past or future. That was very interesting….and he used the western calendar. What if he had been exposed to a Hebrew calendar, or the Greek calendar? Would it work the same way?
By: chlost on October 11, 2010
at 10:33 am