GOOD AND BACK LUCK OMENS

Do You Know Why You Aren't Supposed To Open An Umbrella Inside?

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We can agree that logic and science are universally praised, without them, the modern world wouldn’t be as it is, right? Yet, superstitions can easily get into our minds and make us believe that doing certain things can instantly turn the tables and curse us forever.

Who hasn’t felt the eerie energy of a Friday 13th or changed paths to avoid walking under a ladder?

In this article, we’ll go through ten of the most common superstitions and where they come from, are you brave enough to test your luck?

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This superstition is so common around the world, that there is even a word to describe the phobia to it: friggatriskaidekaphobics. However common it may be, the superstition itself is rather new, dating back to the 19th century. Fridays have long been considered unlucky by the Christian tradition since Jesus died on a Friday. The number 13 isn’t always a favorite either so, the two of them combined raise all kinds of suspicions. Are you afraid of them?

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Umbrellas can be a useful tool to protect oneself from the rain a other events, but they should always be closed once you step inside your home. If you do otherwise, you may be stuck with bad luck. Why? Well, there are many legends surrounding this superstition. For example, one British tale says that a prince welcomed a visiting king who stepped inside under an umbrella and died a few months later.

This sounds a bit far-fetched and we might as well believe that the superstition was only a means to prevent people from opening an umbrella inside and poking someone in the eye!

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Superstitions are not always around bad omens, some superstitions are meant to bring good luck. Crossing your fingers as you hope for something to happen is the most classic example.

And, if you pay close attention to your fingers, you might guess where it comes from. That’s right, Christians! The crossed fingers resemble a cross and that is how this good luck omen began in the first place! The gesture is not exclusively linked to Christianity today, but it’s rather interesting, isn’t it?

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This one is not meant to attract good luck but to protect your luck from going South. It is so popular and so fixated in some communities that only saying it is enough to make it work.

Where does it come from? Well, there is no certainty about its origins. Although, many seem to believe it is connected to the belief that spirits reside in trees. So, rather than providing anything for you, the action’s purpose is to avoid annoying any spirits that can turn against you!

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Again, only the word "wishbone" is proof enough that some superstitions are almost inherent in our culture. After all, haven’t we all made a wish on a wishbone during Thanksgiving?

That's the tradition, and it dates back a long way! The legend says that Romans, who used to fight over wishbones and often broke them, considered it good luck when they got the larger part, as it was believed to make a wish come true.

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The origins behind this superstition might make you think differently of mirrors. Legend has it that mirrors hold the souls of every person who has ever been reflected in them. This belief led people to think that, if a mirror breaks, all those souls contained would break free and wander around, hence anyone responsible for breaking a mirror would be cursed with seven years of bad luck!

Why seven? There is no definitive reason for that, but seven, much like number thirteen, has always been considered eerie and a bad luck omen.

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When it comes to unlucky numbers, we should also mention number three. This number is so unlucky that most people believe that if two things go wrong, there is a third one coming their way.

This is a superstition, but there is some science behind it. When we know bad things are happening to us, our brains tend to seek out evidence that reinforces this belief. So, part superstition, part neuroscience, this is one to look out for!

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Good luck omens take all kinds of forms, after all, we need all the protection we can get, even if it makes no sense: Like keeping a rabbit’s foot in your pocket.

Now, amulets like this one are as old as time, and this one in particular is believed to come from African American folk magic, although it was a very common talisman during the early twentieth century. We don’t know if it works, maybe it’s worth the try, isn’t it?

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If these poor animals hadn’t had enough, Poe wrote a short story that didn’t help their case! For the most part, cats are some of the most beloved pets, they keep you company and warm. We’ve got Egypt to thank for our obsession with cats.

But black cats are a bit different. Why is that? They are closely associated with witches; it was believed they were not so much animals as people who transformed into them. Poor witches, maybe they just wanted some company too!

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To finish our article on superstitions, we’ll mention one that is believed to bring good luck: If you find a penny on the floor, pick it up and keep it! Dirty as a penny can be, especially if you find it in the street, they are considered to be a good luck omen. More specifically, finding a penny is believed to attract more money.

There is even a rhyme that goes: "See a pin and pick it up, all the day you'll have good luck; see a pin and let it lie, bad luck you'll have all the day." So if you see a penny… It can’t harm, can’t it?

FANS OF "THE BEAR" WILL RECOGNIZE SOME OF THESE TERMS

10 Kitchen Jargon Terms That Distinguish Chefs From Beginners

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Just like every craft has its own slang, the world of restaurant cooking is an infinite trove of phrases, lingo, and idioms used to describe actions, places, things, and many other aspects that need an accurate description. What does it mean if something is dying on the pass? Or what is a rail doing in a kitchen? Scroll on to find the answers to these and a few more terms that make up the colorful kitchen slang.

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In a restaurant environment, the dining room is referred to as the floor. When anyone from the kitchen walks out onto the floor, their uniforms are supposed to be clean and they should act appropriately in the sight of guests.

Managers typically do rounds and walk the floor several times during a shift to check on customers.

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The act of waxing a table means that a dining space is being prepared for a special guest. This VIP service is usually reserved for important guests like the restaurant owner's family, a critic, or regular customers known as big tippers.

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As it should be, restaurant dining room tables are identified by how many guests they can accommodate. A table that seats two is called a two-top. A table that seats three is called a three-top. Similarly, for example, there are four-top, or six-top, as well. This system of categorizing tables by their capacity helps streamline operations in busy dining environments and ensures a smooth flow of service.

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Kitchens can be a very busy place, especially during rush hours. Therefore, to avoid collisions with other staff members scurrying around, it's considered polite to clearly say, "Behind," as you pass behind another person.

This is particularly important if you are carrying a full tray of food, a hot pan, or a rack of glassware. Variations of this expression like "Sharp behind," or "Hot behind," to indicate someone is passing by carrying an object that could harm another staff member, are also used.

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A fancy way of saying that something is done in a hurry, the kitchen phrase a la minute is a French term that translates to at the minute or on the minute. It describes a cooking method that relies on freshly prepared ingredients, but it's also used to signify a dish or condiment must be made to order.

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The expression dead plate is used to describe a dish of food that is unservable, either because a customer sent it back or because it was prepared incorrectly. It might be added that, while dead plates are usually considered fair game for servers or cooks to eat, this depends on each restaurant's policy.

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If a dish needs to be reheated quickly, the cooks will flash it with high heat on the charbroiler, or the oven. This usually comes as a request from a server when a dish is undercooked, the customer has asked for it, or it has been sitting in the window too long.

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When you go to a restaurant and ask for a certain food -usually meat- to be very well done, the servers will tell the cooks to kill it. Killing a steak or a chicken breast means to overcook it. What tastes like charcoal to somebody, will be perfectly right for somebody else, right?

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The pass is the window where cooks leave the dishes ready for the servers to take to the diners. A dish dying on the pass means that it has been sitting for too long in the window and is at the risk of becoming unservable because it's drying up, getting too cold, or due to other issues.

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The cooks in a restaurant use a rail or board to hold all of their incoming tickets. It's a strip of metal above the food window that holds tickets in place so anyone on the line can read the orders. Clearing the rail means that all the tickets have been completed. Efficiency and communication are key to a successful service.