Dr. Drang of Leancrew.com makes me smile with his ingenuity and depth of knowledge. Yesterday was the third Friday the 13th of 2012. Of course, I stayed in bed all day with a packet of ginger nuts and a flask of strong tea because I have a chronic case of paraskevidekatriaphobia¹.
Not so, Dr. Drang. He was up and about and brave enough to debunk a tweeted assertion that such a misfortune as triple Fthe13s occurs only once every 666 years (get it?). He proved that calendars usually repeat every 28 years and that is why this year has exactly the same structure as 1984. Creepy, as he says.
____________________
¹ This wonderful confection comprises the Greek word for Friday, Paraskevi, with the number thirteen, dekatria. According to Wikipedia, it is also called friggatriskaidekaphobia, which I rather prefer because it is friggin’ frightening. This version features the good old Norse goddess Frigga, she of our Friday, and the Greek figure, this time written as three-and-ten.