WHY IS FRIDAY THE 13TH BAD LUCK?

If you're one of those people who avoid traveling, going to work, eating in a restaurant or signing important documents on Friday the 13th, you have paraskevidekatriaphobia. There is no need to call the doctor. It means a fear of Friday the 13th. Here are some superstitions about Friday:

• Never change your bed on a Friday as it will give you bad dreams. 
• If you start a trip on a Friday, you'll have misfortune. 
• Cut your nails on a Friday and you cut them for sorrow. 
• If ships set sail on a Friday, they will have bad luck. 
• Friday is the witches' Sabbath. 

Here are some superstitions about the number 13:

• 13 is the Devil's Dozen. 
• Should 13 people eat dinner together, all will die within the year. 
• Just as many buildings don't have a 13th floor, going right from 12 to 14, many cities don't have a 13th Street or 13th Avenue. 
• If you have 13 letters in your name, you will have the devil's luck. Don't believe it? Count the letters in these infamous names: Jack the Ripper, Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, Theodore Bundy and Albert De Salvo. 
• There are 13 witches in a coven. 

It's bad luck to:

• Begin a new job or a trip 
• Cut off both ends of a loaf of bread 
• Flip your mattress 
• Put new shoes on the table 
• Leave your hat on the bed 
• Walk under a ladder 
• Pour water on a windowsill 
• Plant potatoes 
• Lean a broom on a bed 
• Open an umbrella indoors 
• Do housework 
• Wear new clothes 
• Cut your hair 
• Sneeze to your left side 
• Have a black cat cross your path 

It's good luck to:

• Cut your finger nails on a Friday to avoid a toothache during the month. 
• Take candy to a friend during your first visit of the New Year. 
• Pick the first violets of spring. 
• When you set the table, place the salt down first. 
• If you drop a spoon, expect friends to drop by soon. 
• If your left hand itches, money will come to you. 
• When you move to a new house, take a broom and a loaf of bread with you. 
• Put a red bow on a newborn baby. 
• Don't sweep dust out the front door or you'll sweep away good luck. 
• Make a wish when you see the first robin of spring. If it doesn't fly away before you finish wishing it'll come true.