Page 27 - November 2013 • Southern California Gaming Guide

by Anna Tennant
What’s in a number? Casino players may tell you a lot! Many have their personal lucky numbers, as well as believing that they will have good luck on speci c dates.
Is 13 a lucky number for gamblers—as in 2013? Many on earth could be either 12-12-12 or 12-21-12. And yet,
numbers, like four in China, and for many, thirteen, are to be avoided. Why is this so?
Psychologists who have studied human behavior tell us that in general, people are more likely to remember positive experiences and overlook the negative events in
gamblers I asked, told me to ask them again in January, 2014. OK. A lot can happen in a few months. One casino player reminded me that there are two Fridays the 13th in 2013: one already past in September; and other upcoming in December. He’s a believer of good luck on the 13th, so perhaps 12-13-13 will be a lucky day for him. I’ll check
back with him next month.
Lucky Consecutive Dates
is November, there is an auspicious date—for the math-minded perhaps—that falls on Tuesday, the day after Veteran’s Day, November 11th, and has a lot of people looking at the prospect of a very lucky day. It’s 11-12-13. Dates with consecutive numbers are about to disappear with next year’s 12-13-14 on a Saturday, the last in this century.
According to an article in USA Today last month about a rash of weddings on 11-12-13, numerologist, Glynis McCants, author of the book Love by the Numbers, says people assume consecutive dates such as 11-12-13 are lucky, and for obvious reasons choose to marry on them.
“ e reason so many people pick it is because they see it as magical,” she says.“When the numbers align like that, it’s got to be a special day. But it’s their belief that makes it exciting.”
Repeated Number Dates
And dates with repeated numbers have also been considered good luck, or like last year’s 12-12-12, a rather infamous set of numbers. According to the Maya, December 2012 was supposed to mark the end of a 5,126-year Mayan calendar, and like many superstitions, the purported date became a reason for casinos to infuse the day with fun and luck- lled events. Casino players can be superstitious by nature, and, after all, 12-12-12 was the last of the alliteration calendar dates for the next 100 years. Depending on what you read and how you interpreted, the Maya prophesied the last day
here we all are.
You could say the repeated
date obsession for good luck began with 07-07-07, then continued the following year with 08-08-08, when many people throughout the world began capitalizing on the aura of luck and good fortune related to repeated number dates. Traditionally in China, the number eight has long been regarded as the luckiest of numbers, bringing not only good fortune, but also signifying wealth and abundance, and giving con dence to everyone who takes advantage of its positive energy.
“This November, there is an auspicious date — for the math- minded perhaps — that falls on
Tuesday, the day after Veteran’s Day, November 11th, and has a lot of people looking at the prospect of a very lucky day. It’s 11-12-13. Dates with consecutive numbers are about to disappear with next year’s 12-13-14 on a Saturday, the last in this century.”
their lives. And if enough people over time have something good happen in their lives, and somehow the event has included the presence of a particular number or symbol, that number gains a reputation that bolsters positive attitudes and becomes part of a culture’s belief.
In his book, e Luck Factor: Changing Your Luck, Changing Your Life, British psychologist Dr. Richard Wiseman demonstrated in his research that people who expect good fortune usually end up receiving it. ey build up a positive attitude
11-12-13?
roughout the world,
certain images and symbols
have always conveyed the feeling of good luck: horseshoes, shamrocks, dice, and wishbones come to mind right away. In the western world, the number eight, when written horizontally, is the symbol for in nity, and often had the meaning of blessing and eternity in medieval tradition. e number eight appears in China as a decorative good luck design known as “double happiness,” which resembles the number 88.
What Do You Believe?
While scientists can’t o er us hard proof that eights or sevens, or consecutive date numbers, or any other numbers we may consider as lucky, can guarantee us success in gaming, many people consider certain numbers to be more fortunate than others, while other
about the conditions surrounding their activities and this contributes to their attitude of good luck. us, it’s possible that lucky numbers can contribute to a winning feeling.
So what’s the bottom line when it comes to the power numbers? As already noted, no proven scienti c evidence exists regarding the potential of lucky numbers. But as long as people keep adding their positive experiences with certain numbers and symbols to the cultural lore, most of us will continue counting on consecutive numbers, or eights or sevens, or lucky sounds and symbols to bolster our con dence to become winners in whatever we set out to do. So casino players, how lucky do you feel about 11-12-13?
Anna Tennant is a travel writer and contributor to the Southern California Gaming Guide. She has a fascination with the concept of luck.
NOVEMBER 2013
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GAMING GUIDE
PAGE 27