Super-Duper-Stitious: The best and strangest superstitions

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Jen (00:00):
Hello, mavens! This is Jen and I am joined by Yasmine and

(00:06):
we are on video.
So this is new for me, for sure.
But the show is in the processof some very big changes, some
very awesome changes.
And Megan is gonna be switchingto hosting a book club where she
talks about books that she'scurrently reading.
And she reads like, I don'tknow, three or four a week.

(00:27):
It's something crazy of, yeah,sci-fi and fantasy novels.
So look out for some moreinformation coming very soon
about that on the website.
And as I know, and social media,and as I know more, I'll
announce it in our episodes, butshe is still seeking some input
from you guys on a name for thebook club.

(00:49):
I have not been super helpful inthat.
So if you have a good idea sendus an email at
mavensofmisdeeds@gmail.com.
But so with that, she isstepping away from the regular
podcast show and.
But she might pop in from timeto time.
But anyway, joining me now as myco-host on this spooky endeavor

(01:10):
is Yasmine and I'm gonna let hertake it away and introduce
herself.

Yasmine (01:16):
Hi guys.
So like Jen said, my name isYasmin.
I use she her pronouns.
Just a little introduction aboutmyself.
I have an awesome, hilarioushusband named Nick.
We've been together for 14 yearsand we have two amazing kids.
Max who's 13, an artist andgenuinely funny kid and Henry
who's nine.

(01:36):
He loves baseball and his dogs,and he has a potty mouth to
rival a 14 year old We havethree Huskies, Lokey, Leica, and
Rex, a sweet corn snake we callpoppy and a treat begging
goldfish named Frederick.
We live in the desert ofSouthern California, not as
close to the cool stuff, as itsounds.

(01:58):
We're close to family, so it'snot all bad.
As far as hobbies go, I run thePTO at my kid's school.
I'm a baseball mom and I makeinappropriate hand embroidery.
I'm interested in true crime,folklore, historical, historical
culture, and all thingsparanormal and unexplained.
I turned 37 this year andalthough my life is full of love

(02:21):
and fun, I see this podcast asan opportunity to do something
just for me, indulge mycuriosity and maybe make some
new friends while I do it.
Hello everyone.

Jen (02:32):
Awesome.
That was an awesomeintroduction.
Yeah, in, in meeting and talkingwith, I realized I didn't even
have my own introduction, so youcan look for that coming very,
very soon, probably by the timethis episodes out on the website
as well.
And one new thing, like I saidwe're gonna try the whole video
thing and you will figure outvery quickly that, you know, the

(02:56):
hands I just, I can't speakwithout the hands.
So, you know, sorry if that'sultra distracting for anyone,
but there'd be no way I couldchange it.
So we will see how that goes.
We're gonna be working.
Everyone knows that I am thehistory Maven and Megan was the
tech Maven.
So that speaks for itself,probably in the fact that I

(03:17):
don't know how we'll do this,but Yasmine is gonna put the
assistance of her, her kiddoshelp us figure out a YouTube
thing.
So you can see us on a channel.
That's the word I was lookingfor so that we can, you can
watch the video if you want to.
And as we learn more about that,who knows, we might get really
creative with backgrounds andstuff like people do, you know?

Yasmine (03:38):
Yeah.
I think between the two of us,we'll figure it out.

Jen (03:43):
exactly the, they'll the ones figure that's for our first
episode together.
We are gonna be talking aboutsuperstitions and I have always
sort of wondered where in theworld we get some of these
things from, you know, I knowlike a big one that I could

(04:06):
think of just right off the batthat I do is the knock on wood,
you know someone will saysomething, you know I know
nurses a lot of times, you know,it's a superstition.
If someone comes in and says,wow, it's so quiet in here
tonight, you know, in theemergency room or on the floor
or something like that.
And, you know, everyone freezesin panic and you've got to go,

(04:28):
you know, like knock onsomething or, you know, cross
yourself or maybe all of theabove because you, you know,
Famous last words.
Right.
So so in thinking about this,it's funny how even in 2022,
where we are now, how we stillhold on to some of these
superstitions.

(04:48):
So they've evolved quite a bityeah, quite a bit over time, but
the, there are still thoseremnants that are there that we
don't even know why wenecessarily are, are doing that.
But what we do know, I guess, isthat in some way, shape or form
in, in carrying that on, youknow, knocking on the wood or

(05:10):
whatever it is that you feelbetter for, right?
Like, you know, or why elsewould we do it?
You know,

Yasmine (05:17):
like, okay, we're good now

Jen (05:19):
exactly.
Like I just canceled out all ofthat negative, you know, Juju
that you just brought into ourrealm.
You know but, and that's, youknow, we, we just, we do it.
And for some very few thingshave I think survived as long as
some of these, thesesuperstitions and these things

(05:39):
that we do.
So to start off, superstition isthe word is defined in Miriam
Webster as a belief or practiceresulting from ignorance, fear
of the unknown.
Trust in magic for chance or afalse conception of causation.

(06:03):
And cuz they didn't knock usdown enough on that.
And a notion maintained despiteevidence to the contrary.

Yasmine (06:12):
Oh my goodness.
So even when we know better, wedon't know better.

Jen (06:17):
exactly.
Even though, you know, ifsomeone, you know, sat down and
intellectually forced you tosay, why did you just knock on
wood?
You know, why did you just dothat?
I mean, our best answer is gonnabe, I don't know.
Yeah, it just made me, that'sjust what we do, you know, I

(06:38):
don't know.
Yeah.
What I would have like a grandanswer if you know someone with
more degrees many more degreesthan I have or something were to
ask me.
But I will say that was a bigreign on the superstition
parade, Miriam Webster that washarsh, but you know, not
inaccurate so many people woulddeny being superstitious today,

(07:02):
or at least I guess, you know,seriously superstitious.
But have you ever known thosefolks, but then like seen them
or caught them doing somethingthat is

Yasmine (07:18):
honestly in researching this?
I realize that I do stuff and Idon't consider myself as
superstitious person.
Right.
But I'm like, I do the knock onwood thing.
Right.
But why I have no idea the saltover the shoulder.
I have no, like, yes, no idea.
exactly.
But overall yeah, like it comesup all the time and, and the

(07:41):
kids have asked, like, why do wedo this?
Why do, why do we say, blessyou?
What does it even mean?
Like right, bro, I don't know.
You're being polite.
you know, so just do it.
I dunno.

Jen (07:54):
I don't know if they're gonna be excited that after
this, when they ask thequestion, you might be able to
give them a very long windedhistorical answer.

Yasmine (08:01):
I'll just be like, come here, listen to

Jen (08:04):
Jen.
Yeah.
So it, it is it's, it's veryinteresting.
But we, we do, like I wrote inmy notes, I'm like, we laugh it
off and I'm doing it right now.
Cuz I, you know, can imaginewhen I was researching this the
thoughts that maybe go throughmy head, really?
It, you do it so instinctuallyyou know, if you have one, but
it's for some.

(08:25):
People, it is a very much eventoday, a very real thing, you
know?
Yeah.
Um, So on the contrary, if youcan think of people that maybe
are a little bit more like us,we just do it.
Like it's a, you know, some justthing you do or you also
probably have met someone thathas at least one that is a very

(08:46):
serious, you know, superstitionthat they will absolutely make
sure that they, you know, I'mnot sure the word I'm looking
for is that they don't crossthat they don't, you know you
know, they don't wanna tick offany, any gods or demons.
So before, so to really get intothis, you really have to take
your mind back.
And I, I love this.

(09:06):
This is where my, my history,you know nerdiness will, will
come into play.
But so if you really putyourself back before computers
before laboratories beforeinstant gratification, certainly
not even close before grocerystores yet, how would you
describe or make sense of inyour own mind in your community,

(09:31):
a lightning strike a tornado.
How would you account for entirefamilies and towns completely
wiped off the face of the earth?
By disease.
I mean, how would you,

Yasmine (09:46):
I have I'm thinking about it.
You would blame those people.
It didn't happen to me.
It happened to them.
Mm-hmm they should have donesomething or maybe they did do
something that they weren'tsupposed to do.
Yeah.
I mean, you're trying to figureout a pattern where there's no
pattern, you know?
Yeah, no, that's, that's reallyout there to think about,

(10:07):
because I mean, I'm amillennial, right.
Older millennial, but whatever.
We've always had computers thatwe've always been able to go to
the grocery store.
We've always had access to theinternet probably since I was in
high school at least.
Right.
Ways to explain things.
But before that, like how wouldyou you'd have to ask other
people and what kind of accesswould you have to more

(10:32):
knowledgeable people you don'tknow exactly.

Jen (10:35):
Interesting.
Yeah.
You think about, you knowliteracy and even written word,
not being something that youcould pop on over to the library
or right.
Any of those things.
I mean, we still have illiteracyin America today.
Right.
So if you just think back, youknow, even further when that you

(10:57):
were surviving, essentially.
Yeah, exactly.
That was your job every singleday to somehow survive.
So.
To kind of go back to with that,all of that in mind for
everyone.
Because it is very hard for usto, to think like that because
of what you just said.
I mean, we can't remember youknow, Yasmine and I are very

(11:17):
close in age I'm 39.
We can't remember a time when wedidn't have, you know, pretty
much the answer to whatever, youknow things that happened, you
know, or someone that could tellyou, at least the

Yasmine (11:32):
access to be pointed in the right direction.
I mean, I remember my parentshad those encyclopedias yes.
Encyclopedia britanicas andthose were my favorite sit and
just pick a letter and just gothrough it.
But even those before access tothe internet were accessible.
Exactly.
So I mean, but way back when,who knows.

Jen (11:53):
Yes.
And so we even, you know, just,I'm trying to think what the
last generation, even just thesethings of natural disasters and
things like that, even by, youknow, the 19 hundreds.
So we, we don't have anybodyreally alive today that can you
know, really think about nothaving, like I said, libraries

(12:15):
and written word and things likethat, you know?
Right.
It's that's sort of, that wasreally kind of a big thing to
me.
I was like, wow.
I mean, here we are now in 2022.
And really, I mean, obviouslywe've had major medical advances
and we understand, you know,science and all of that right.
A lot more, but they stillalready by this time.

(12:35):
Anyone that would be alivetoday.
You know, they already knewthat, you know, charms and
ambulance were not the answer todisease and warding off the
disease and all of those things.
So it's really interesting to,to think about, but so
superstitions they can actuallysome of the most popular
superstitions.
And I'm gonna talk about thosefirst before doing several that

(12:58):
are lesser known, or at leastthey were lesser known to me.
They can actually be traced backto Babylon.
Wow.
Wow.
So another thing that I had readalong the way pretty much was an
answer to the question.
You know, when did superstitionstart?
How did they start?
You know, one source was sort oflike pretty much the Dawn of man

(13:19):
Yeah, I did.
So for sure though, we can getback to, to Babylon.
So fourth

Yasmine (13:29):
century

Jen (13:31):
basically a good view of the, the, the world and your
understanding of your place inthe world, meant to have an
appropriate piety in.
Which they had the Greek word,which we know I'm gonna butcher

(13:53):
this, but I'm gonna try DASApneumonia.
And so in the third century theytalk about excessive piety.
Okay.
Which is becoming a very, verynegative thing, especially to

(14:15):
the more elite and learned insociety.
And their belief on that was theGreek gods should not be feared
and nothing should be done inexcess.
Okay.

Yasmine (14:30):
so like moderation and everything.

Jen (14:33):
Yes.
And another thing, I mean, it'sinteresting, you think about
like the, the Greek culturetoday and even, you know, people
often say, you know, why canItalians and eat all this rich
pasta and bread and all of thesethings and still, you know, have
these, you know, excellentfigures and whatnot, but that's
still an idea that has carriedover into the Mediterranean

(14:55):
culture.
You know, they still sayMediterranean diet is the, it's
not really like, not meaninglike, you know, crash diets, but
is the absolute best andhealthiest way that you can eat.
Right.
So just interesting.
So yeah, that everything is donein moderation, like you said,
But at this point, there arestill what they called Boger

(15:18):
priests.
And these would've been likeyour soothsayers that kind of
thing.
Okay.
That were definitely by theelite thought of as what they
were swindler.
And, but you still have thosethat don't have access to any
education or aren't entitled tothat education that of course

(15:41):
are gonna fall prey to so Sayersand people that are trying to
explain to people away thesedifferent, you know, phenomena
to them that are occurring inthe, in the world through
sickness, disease, war, all ofthose things.
Right.
So by the first CE theyhistorian that I I was watching

(16:04):
a video he had done about aboutsuperstition, the origins they
call it sort of the bad religionera.
So essentially you now have afocus on what is the right
religion.
Okay.
Starting to happen.
So so you have folks that areparticipating in any of these

(16:27):
alternate.
Beliefs, I guess if you will,mm-hmm they are practicing
outside of the approvedreligion, even though we know
that in the early church therewas a place for magicians and
there sorcerers right.

(16:48):
But they were operating withinthe approved you know,
government, front, whateveraccepted religion at that time.
So that was okay.
But these other things are gonnaultimately become what, what we
will know is pagan beliefs sortof right.

(17:09):
That kinda thing.
So we know then ultimatelyChristianity becomes the
official Roman religion andsuperstition is obviously very
frowned upon As you should notworship or give any credence to
the pagan gods of, you know yes.
Or you Right.
Uh, So it's, it's again, there'sa whole lot to that about why,

(17:34):
you know, these, the church, youknow, soothsayers, magicians,
whatever were still okay.
But.
Other, you know, beliefs orpeople holding on to what was
essentially the same thing Uhhuhwas now not.
Okay.
But that's a whole other wholeother thing it's

Yasmine (17:53):
a whole other

Jen (17:54):
episode to say the, yeah, that would probably be like a,
an eight parter getting into thehistory of world religion.
Right, right.
So ultimately then, andobviously I'm condensing quite a
bit, but ultimately then we getto when the Protestants come in
and they are gonna object to alot of things, but we're

(18:17):
focusing here, I'm tellingmyself that the rituals of the
Catholic church.
Right.
Because as we kinda know, Imean, a lot of these rituals and
things that happen within the,the Catholic faith are, can be
traced just as Christianity can.
So don't like just Christianityas a whole can be traced back

(18:40):
very easily to some paganorigins.
So but that's, you know, part ofthe just the, the Protestants
entering the chat as it relatesto super, so essentially you
really start to see after nowwe've got these two main, you
know, we've got Protestants andwe've got the Catholics and you

(19:02):
start to see things like amuletsbeing a, a big thing.
And I had to kinda laugh becauseI'm a big TJ max fan and love
it.
You see so many of these andlike the clearance jewelry, and
you may not even think aboutwhat some of these, like nifty,

(19:25):
you know, bracelets andnecklaces and, and things are,
but they are most of the time,what I see at least that we get
at our TJ max comes from Indianculture, but most amulets their
purpose was to protect you fromthe evil eye.
Right.
And so when you see these, sonow you'll have to look.

(19:47):
So you'll see.
And I didn't go into the thenames of those and, and all
that.
And I don't know them off thetop of my head, but one that
you'll see a lot is like the,the hand looks like

Yasmine (19:58):
that's exactly what came to mind when you mentioned
it.
Yeah.

Jen (20:01):
Yeah.
And then there were some othersthat and the website will have
links to the video where you cansee on the British museum, they,
they have like the originals ofthese.
And it's interesting becausesome things that I had seen
examples of before, I didn'teven some are obvious the eye
but quite obvious.
other amulets and things.

(20:22):
I didn't even recognize untilsomeone pointed out and now I
can't unsee that there was eyecomponent, you know, to that.
Right.
So the talking a little bitabout the psychology of why we
still have superstitions and whythis is managed to carry on from

(20:44):
of man as, as the, some wouldput it.
So they've done research andalmost 50% of the population
does have, or believe in a, atleast a single superstition and
wow.
Yes.

(21:05):
And I mean, that's a lot, soyeah.
We know, and it seems prettyobvious that your culture and
your family traditions andthings like that play a role.
So I kinda had to see itsomewhere, you know, if I was
just around people like kids inmy elementary school that did it
probably wouldn't have stuckaround to me to, you know, knock

(21:25):
on wood as much as a familyinfluence or, you know, that
kind of thing.
So, right.
So the reasons that the the, theprofessionals, you know, the
psychiatrists and the, thosefolks.
Say is the reason that it hassuch staying power is because
with we live in an uncertainworld we fear very much a loss

(21:48):
of control or lack of control.
Yeah.
Important life events that wecannot be a hundred percent
certain will turn out to well,that will happen.
So like a marriage you know,your good health, that kind of
thing.
Right.
And another one that wasinteresting though, was trial

(22:08):
and error that concept.
So the psychiatrist described itas our personal, lucky items or
actions that we care about comefrom some circumstance that
validated that, that correlatesinteresting for us.
Yeah.
Okay.
Which is obviously what exactlywhat happened for some of these

(22:32):
superstitions to even come intoplay in the first, you know,
some of'em that we'll talkabout, get they're out there.
Right.
But it's, there was somecorrelation that happened that
validated completely validatedyou know, this, this thing
happening and I'm resisting theurge to talk about one that's on
my list right now as an exampleof that, but you'll know it

(22:54):
when, when I get to that one thethe other thing is they talk
about is random association and.
in which well, in China, forexample, the number four is
considered unlucky because thespoken word for that for the

(23:15):
number four mm-hmm sounds likethe word for death.
Oh, therefore, so that the typething they classify as a random
association the number eight onthe flip side is considered
lucky because the spoken wordfor the number eight sounds like
prosperity.

(23:35):
Wow.

Yasmine (23:36):
So yeah, I did not know that.
That's interesting.

Jen (23:39):
Yeah.
So that was I don't know,little, little cool stuff to get
us started on superstitions.
I'm gonna make the face as Iturn the page and I accidently
turned it back again.
so without further ado I wannatalk about some of the ones that
are the most, I don't wanna sayfamous popular, well known
whatever you wanna call it.
13 okay.

(24:02):
Yeah, the 13th.
What is the deal with the number13?
Why do hotels make sure thatthey quote unquote don't have 13
floor for people obviously?
I mean, you have to right.

Yasmine (24:18):
I mean, that's just numbers.
That's math.
13 stairs.
Yes, you can't count the 13thone.
Like what is that?

Jen (24:26):
So there are not surprisingly a lot of theories
about how this became the, thething and there they're a bit
out there.
I really didn't get the answerthat I was looking for on this.
I'll just be honest with you.
So if somebody has another oneor can expand on some of the

(24:47):
ones that I found that I gotcompletely lost in I would
absolutely love for you to reachout and, and tell us because I,
I wanted, I thought this wouldbe an easy one and I did not
find that to be the case.
So one and considered by supersmart historians that is
considered the least likelyorigin comes from Norse

(25:09):
mythology.
And I am currently trying to getmore into Norse mythology but it
is very complicated.
So that's probably why this onedidn't really.
And then once I've read thatthey didn't think this was the
most likely, I was like, Ooh,moving on.
But they relate it to peoplethat followed that belief that

(25:31):
this is the origin of the 13th.
Number 13, being unlucky relatesto the 13 gods in Valhalla okay.
And so.
I will let people, and if youknow more about Norse mythology,
I,

Yasmine (25:47):
I know a little just because my husband can trace
his, he associates his heritagewith Vikings and the Northern
Europe and things like that.
Mm-hmm so we know a little bit,but I did not realize that
having a number of gods could beconsidered unlucky like that.

(26:09):
I don't know how thatcorrelates, like, wouldn't it be
more lucky cuz they were thegods, but not all of them were
Some of them

Jen (26:17):
were very, I was gonna say, and it, it brought in to play
Loki and yeah, theassassination.
Okay.
Yeah.
And it, it got into that kind ofthing and I could not find a way
to make that make sense.
Okay.
my own head.
Yeah.
So that would be fun if you can,since you have a better

(26:39):
understanding of that, it'sfascinating.
Don't gimme it really is.
Yeah.
But to me, for some reason itmakes Greek mythology seem like
basic math.
I don't know.
Yeah.

Yasmine (26:51):
yes.
So and Greek mythology, likethere's some things in there
that you're like, wow guys.

Jen (26:58):
I think it's just more, because we're more exposed to
that from learning, I guess,about the civilization and all
of that.
I think that's maybe why it'seasier to take.
I'm not sure.
But so I would love to learnmore about this theory in
general and do a lot more juston Norse mythology and their
legends and things, cuz they,they sound fascinating.

(27:20):
But anyway, it starts just togive you a head start, Yasmine
if you want follow up on thisone day 13, it appreciates with
13 gods in Valhalla and I knowthat it was about something
about Loki and the assassinationand somehow that made it unlucky
and I could not follow.

(27:40):
So the second one, this is alsoconsidered not super likely by
people that study this.
But more likely I guess, thanthe Norse mythology is the
Knights of Templar.
Okay.
So they, because this was in along story short a group
arrested on Friday the 13th of1307 and burned at the stake.

(28:05):
And for anybody that might notbe familiar, the Knoghts of
Templar basically they were partof the crusaders in Europe that
should trigger right.
A little bit to help folks ifthey're not as familiar.
So that actually I felt waspretty, pretty good.
I was yeah.
All in for that.
However they historians believethe absolute, most likely origin

(28:27):
is, comes from the last supper.
Where they had 13 at the

Yasmine (28:36):
table.

Jen (28:37):
So the last supper where there are 13 seated at the
table.
So that again, I, I honestlystill didn't see, that was
almost like the the 13 God, theValhalla to me, I still was
like, I don't see how, I meanthat I, I don't see it.
I still don't see it.
So I, I could not follow.

(28:59):
And as in a very much like withChristianity, I'm very much, you
know, aware of that, but I couldnot follow why that would be
the, the way.

Yasmine (29:10):
So when talking about the Knights of Templar did
Friday the 13th come up in yourresearch.
Yes.

Jen (29:17):
So, okay.
It, that was actually yeah,apparently.
So that day was they, it was aFriday, the, the 13th of 1307.
So you've got a trifecta thereof 1307 I guess.
And it be Friday the 13th andwell, the Friday would come from
that.
Well, not necessarily cause Ihave a superstition that

(29:40):
revolves around Friday.
So yeah, like I, me, that oneseemed the most likely to me
mm-hmm as the origin than theother two.
But anyway so, and also just alittle fun fact about the 13th,
where we were talking aboutelevators, not having, you know,
that and your, your number, youknow, your room number, not

(30:00):
being, you know, 13 and all ofthat.
80 Percent of the buildings inNew York city that could have a
13th floor do not have one,

Yasmine (30:10):
it just stop at 12 or 80

Jen (30:18):
percent of the buildings in New York that could and should
have you know, that option.
just.
They don't because this is sopervasive.
Yeah.
And they also mentioned, I readalong the way to really pay
attention to like flight numbersand things like that, that
they're not gonna have, but theydo have the seats.

(30:38):
I do know this because I havebeen seated in, you know, like
the 13th and I was just like,

Yasmine (30:45):
are we good?
Everything Working?
Yeah.
good.
Right.

Jen (30:48):
Everybody's good.
Everybody's feeling thismorning, limber ready for
anything.
It's funny.
I do actually remember it wasn'tthat long ago.
But I do actually rememberhaving that moment of you gotta
be kidding me.
here.
We're OK.
Here.
We're and here I am.
So it was fine.
The and just one other thing,cause I didn't go into this

(31:09):
right before I start talkingabout some other superstitions.
I just, I jotted this down themiddle, even though it doesn't
fit here, but just wanted tolike talk about mirrors.
Does anybody else slightly freakout?
If you break a mirror, do youhave a moment where you're like,
no.

Yasmine (31:30):
So this is one that I've heard a lot, but I don't
know if I've ever actuallybroken a mirror.

Jen (31:42):
Is your life great?

Yasmine (31:44):
Probably ups and downs.
you know, like normal, but like,I don't know if I've ever
actually

Jen (31:49):
broken one.
So fun fact.
And I think this is what made melike, have to like throw it in
there and I'm meant to put itmore towards the beginning, but
obviously I forgot to, to, youknow, cross it off here and do
that.
But I broke my very first mirrorabout three weeks ago, first
mirror ever in my entire life.
We'd had some close calls, thismirror and I it was a very, very

(32:12):
small mirror you know, littlehandheld thing.
Mm-hmm and yeah, but I just, Ihad to talk because a lot of
people, you know, they're like,well, why would breaking a
mirror have been, you know, sucha superstition?
And it was just cause they werevery expensive.
You know, now that makes sense.
Most people didn't have them, sothat's gonna be very bad luck if

(32:33):
you've broken something that,you know, is extremely expensive
and you know, not many peoplewould have them.
Yeah.
Um, But this was something that,that somebody mentioned that I
was like, wow, never would'vethought of that.
To be able to see yourself, theability to have something where
you could actually see yourselfwas considered mystical and
magical.

(32:54):
Yeah.
And I was like, wow, think itmakes sense.
Take that.
So for granted to just thinkabout the fact that there's no
words, I was just like, itthat's amazing, you know?
Yeah.
So.
Little side, little detour downthe path.
But I could not forget to, totalk about that.
One other thing along that St.

(33:16):
Well, now another little path.
What do you think are the mostsuperstitious countries cultures
in the world?

Yasmine (33:26):
I mean, I don't wanna like call anybody out big time,
but I am, I'm Mexican, I'm halfMexican.
My mom's family.
They're, they're prettysuperstitious, but I've always
tied that to also religion.
We've got a lot of Catholic inthere.
What is an example?

(33:47):
I'm trying to think.
So I would say like Mexico,maybe, you know, a lot of, lot
of superstitions there.
You know, we have a lot ofassociations with like how they
treat the dead and how theyhandle, you know, their, their
loved ones as they pass.
My mom always talks aboutbutterflies and how that's, you
know, what some past personvisiting or what have you, even

(34:10):
though it's an insect in theworld, you know,

Jen (34:14):
I see that other thing might be Cardinals oh, huge
thing here.
Yeah.
Okay.
Okay.
So that's yeah, veryinteresting.
You might be interested to knowMexico did not even make the top
five really Nope.
Actually they weren't, I didn'twrite down the entire list.
But I didn't want to bolt, youknow, allow myself to go down
this side path too long.

(34:35):
But India.
Okay.
And China.
Okay.
Thailand, three of those, prettymuch.
If you look for different listsone of those three would be
number one and different lists.
And Philippines.
So essentially Asia Japan.
Okay.
Was another, but yeah, so Mexicoand the United States were not,

(34:59):
again bright even like we werealmost like neck and neck and
yeah, definitely didn't make thetop top five.
Wow.
Oh, okay.
Very interesting.
Yeah, so anyway, India, that'swhere the, the evil eye that I
was talking about, the jewelrythat you know, that I see.
Yeah.
So that comes from, from India,a strong, very strong thing
there.
So, okay.
Gonna come back to the main mainroad here.

(35:22):
So number one of, I didn't evencount the 13th cuz I couldn't
even find anything to, you know,like nail it down.
So right.
The number one aside from thatmost common.
Superstition that we still,everybody almost knows about.
And you may still very muchbelieve it.
My husband is one for this, thisone right here, walking under a

(35:42):
ladder.
Oh, wow.
Yeah.
I can't tell you how many timesI have been that annoying person
and done it just to annoy him.
Mm-hmm household projects andhe, but he can't tell me why you
just don't do it.
You just do not do it.
So one thing that you're gonnasee in pretty much, I feel

(36:04):
fairly confident saying formemory in these superstitions,
the church is gonna have a huge,huge, almost the, the role in,
how these came about and whythey are the way they are.
So the, and they're so obviousonce you really think about'em.
So you can't walk under a ladderbecause it forms a triangle.

(36:29):
So even if you have a modernladder that, you know, has the
two sides at the triangle, evenif you had the ladders that they
would've had where it just leansup against something, still a
triangle that is gonna representthe Trinity, the holy Trinity.
And don't you even be bustingyour regular, butt through the

(36:54):
holy Trinity, break it right.
So, and, you know, yeah.
So that was that if you weregoing through that, you might as
well have had a sign and said, Iam here to violate God.
That is, this would it'sserious.
Yes.
So this can be traced back thewhole triangle and having that

(37:14):
super importance.
Even though to them, it wouldn'thave been well, let me just say
it then I'll backtrack likethat.
So since ancient Egyptian timesthink about it the triangle has
played a huge part yeah.
Had major importance.
Let's just say over a culture.
So to them, the triangle was thesymbol of life.

(37:38):
Oh, wow.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I know.
I felt like everybody, like evenknows they're listening to this
in the future.
I feel your brain's likeclicking back thinking, oh,
about Egyptian.
Like this makes so much sensenow.
Yeah.
It's like

Yasmine (37:51):
so obvious, but yes, not

Jen (37:54):
really.
Yeah, exactly.
So that was probably one of likethe most fascinating like aha
moments that I can't believe Inever stumbled across before.
So yeah, so that would be thewalking under a ladder.
However, there are some moremore thoughts behind it.
And to me, these are gonna bemore ways that it has had
staying power.

(38:16):
The medieval gallows until thelate 18 hundreds hanging was
done by the short drop method.
So that would be from a cart ormaybe they would have you just
step off of a ladder with the,you know, noose surround your
neck.
And so when they, and so thesuperstition though is gonna

(38:38):
remain because even once theybuild scaffolds and they get
away from this short dropmethod, mm-hmm ladders are still
gonna have to be used by thecondemned to get up to and on
top of the scaffold to be hung.
Right.
So the belief is, was that theirsouls, the condemned souls

(38:59):
loitered underneath the ladderand that delayed their trip
either.
Well, they would just straightup believe to hell.
But I would like to, you know,say, you know, it could be
either way.
So it was very, very, very ultracan I overstate this unlucky to
mingle with that soul under theladder that is still hanging

(39:21):
around.
Oh

Yasmine (39:22):
yeah.
Yeah.
Not good news.

Jen (39:25):
Yeah.
Do you have.
Ladder now I'm like, I don'tknow.
I may not be, you know, justrunning

Yasmine (39:33):
maybe try and find a way to annoy our husband.
I can find

Jen (39:39):
so, so that was that.
So I am interested to see ifthis second one I'm gonna talk
about is a Southern thing.
I'm very to do this.
So I'm trying to decide, shouldI just read the quote?
So have you ever heard thisphrase?
So somebody you're just talking,it's a normal conversation.
The sun is shining.
It might be, you know, hot as,you know, blazes like it is

(40:01):
today.
And some go, oh, chill just wentdown my spine, somebody's
walking over my grave or aversion of that.

Yasmine (40:12):
I don't think I've ever actually heard a person I'm
speaking to say that like, I've,I've heard it in movies and
shows only mm-hmm but never likea friend or somebody that I'm
talking to.
So may yeah, maybe

Jen (40:27):
it is a, yeah, so I mean, it didn't start off as a, just
strictly American Southern thingfor sure.
But that is something thatinterestingly has prevailed that
has had staying power, at leastin the south where, where I am.
See this is actually sort of twoconcepts here merging or two
superstitions merging.
So the first thing would be, andyou may, you may have this one

(40:50):
or no, this one that you justdon't ever walk on a grave, if
you're in a cemetery.
Yes.
You path you that is that youjust should not do that.

Yasmine (41:02):
I always thought it was just outta respect for the dead
that's there or their familythat might be around.
You don't wanna see themtrampling.
You don't wanna be tram theperson trampling on somebody
who's grave.
Its just

Jen (41:14):
respect thing.
Yeah, I thought that makessense.
I guess.
So as early as 319, B C 3 19 Ohwow.
Yes.
This concept whatever you wannacall it was mentioned by the

(41:34):
Greek scholar Theas butcheredit.
Sure.
Who studied what he did.
He studied human nature.
And so this belief was able to,that you do not walk on a grave
has carried on through medievaltimes with where you had.
Well, and even in 319 DC a superlow life expectancy.

(41:59):
and yes.
And so essentially you did notwant to do anything that could
hasten your own death, right?
So even by having your feettouch a, a grave where, you
know, you know, someone has beenburied mm-hmm would be seen as a

(42:23):
bad moment, if you will, or morelike you're bringing on you're
increasing your chancesbasically of having something
very bad, like death before you,because you, you know, have done
this, you have I don't what theword I was, keep thinking
desecrated, you're notdesecrating it, but I mean, they
kinda almost, you know, had thatakin to it

Yasmine (42:43):
coming in contact almost

Jen (42:45):
with, I think, I think so.
So they also, and this is forthe medieval times still believe
that the soul hung around aslong as possible, starting to
see a tie back with the laddermm-hmm as long as possible
before ascending or descending.
However you wanna look at itduring this time.

(43:06):
So they would be seeking companyfor the trip.
Okay.
Either up or down.
Okay.
If you are.
Yeah.
If you are just right therearound it and all that, you're
basically inviting troublebecause that soul is still
there.
I guess, waiting to see ifthey're going, you know, up the

(43:27):
elevator or down.
And they very well could just belike, oh, I'm lonely.
I'm gonna take you with me.
So you're basically borrowingtrouble by doing this.
So let's see by the 18thcentury, it just becomes general
bad luck.
You just don't do it.
You just don't walk on, youknow, great.

(43:47):
You just, yeah, it's just badluck in general.
We don't know what will happen,but it will not be good.
So now the earliest mention ofthe one I talked about where you
it is just so common in Southernculture that it's just unreal.
When somebody just, you know,gets a shiver and they usually
will like do that, like thatthing, you know, a cold chill

(44:08):
thing that can be traced back toat least 1738 in a gentleman by
the name of Simon Taff.
He wrote a book called the, orcalled A Complete collection of
Genteel and IngeniousConversations.
And in it, he actually, thequote is,"Ooh, you might

(44:32):
explain.
Someone's just stepped on mygrave".
And so that second part of thissuperstition from that you can't
even, you know, just walk onsomeone else's grave Uhhuh also
comes from at least that theycan trace back medieval believes
where they accepted that yourfate or your destiny was already

(44:55):
pre-planned.
Yeah.
Okay.
Okay.
It already sort of is what itis, basically your, the time of
your death, the way of yourdeath, all of those things it's
already predetermined and theplace of your death.

(45:16):
Oh goodness.
Where you're going to be.
Well, some would say, well, Iguess, place of your death, but
where you're going to be buriedwas also predetermined.
So that is where if some, and,and of course they're not gonna
have fancy, you know, cemeteriesand all of these necessarily
places where you know, you know,you're gonna be buried after you

(45:36):
die.
I mean, you might be right.
You know, just buried in yourfield.
You might have just killed overand there you, you know, right
there you are are exactly.
And that's why we're gonna buryyou and put a, you know,
something maybe in the ground ifwe like you.
And and that's.
Or, you know, if there's diseaseand all of that, like if we're
in the plague, then you're justgonna be put in a mass grave,

(45:59):
you know, very big enough tohold that sort of thing.
So so it'd be very possible thatthough, you're you feel fine
right now and all of that thatsomebody could be walking
somewhere that is gonna be theplace where your body is going
to be buried.
Oh, wow.
That's starting to sort of alittle more sense.

(46:19):
Okay.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So that's where, yeah.
So that's where that comes from.
And they actually did makemention of this, the in the
sources, again, they'll, they'llbe on the website, but that it
very much spread viaimmigration, of course, to the
United States, right.
Had much staying power and itsays became very popular in the

(46:42):
Appalachian mountain regionwhere I reside so, and, and
that's interesting because mostof our heritage of, or vast
majority traces back to Irelandand Scotland.
Okay.
So that's very interesting thatjust when you piece it all
together, I think so it's, youknow, that's the predominance in

(47:02):
at least our of course theAppalachian mountains are very,
are very long, but that's true.
But in our area in Virginia, inthe, in the looking at them
Appalachian mountains, Yeah,it's a scotch Irish heritage.
So that's just a really coolthing, but it, it remained very,
very popular remains.
I mean, to this day, a popularthing that people will say.

(47:24):
So now another good Southernthing, I feel like.
But it, it's not just thisSouthern thing because we know
Germans, they do it and all thisis bless you.
Right.
And someone sneezes.
So interestingly, this isprobably one of the absolute
oldest that they can provideproof of.

(47:47):
And so we're talking 77 ad.
Wow.
Okay.
Yeah.
So, and you're gonna actuallyhear from this, this guy a lot
in my coming in coming one.
So Adam, not a hundred percentsure.
Pliny the elder P L I N Y forsure.
Anyway, he wrote Natural Historyand he is it's written.

(48:10):
So it's written on this datethat, or in this year that they
he's questioning the practice ofit.
So he's acknowledging that thisexists.
Okay.
So a lot of people, me included,assumed I never like tried to do
research on it or anything.
I assumed wholeheartedly.
It was a byproduct of theplague.
I just, that made sense.

(48:31):
Okay.
And if you look it up, a lot ofplaces that, you know, don't,
you know, just general sourcesof information, not like actual
scholarly will say things Uhhuhthey will very much attribute it
to the plague, but not the casein any way, shape or form way
before that.
Okay.
So it was though born out of apestilence but just not the

(48:56):
plague.
Okay.
So I think a lot of times it'seasy to forget that, you know,
it wasn't just like disease,like major, massive devastating
disease started, you know in thewhat, 1344 or something around
that.
Yeah.
With, with the plague.
But no, you know, this is, thishas happened of course way
before that many times.
Exactly.
So we know that and, and I doknow I didn't write this down

(49:20):
but I do know that Pliny, theelder was referring to the
practice of the bless you of, ofsaying that was related to a
specific pestilence that wassent on Roman Christians.
That was very devastating andcaused death.
Well, like the plague, but not amuch faster than even the plague

(49:40):
would.
Wow.
Okay.
It was a very much yeah, verydevastating thing.
And so.
That's what he's referring to.
But then they historians havealso found a text from 1275
from, and it's, it was apopular, very popular religious
text of the time.
And it is my, my Latin and allof that is equally as bad as my

(50:02):
Greek.
So Aria Legenda it describesthat, that pestilent that was
sent to pestilent, pestilent, Iwanna say disease that was sent
to Roman Christians.
That's where that, thatinformation comes from, where
they talk about that, where thathad happened to, to Roman
Christians and, oh, I did make anote.

(50:23):
Yeah.
It said you could be dead inliterally minutes from wow.
Yes.
And so they added a phrase thatwas so basically by the time we
get to the actual plague, by thetime we get to this, this has St
power, this, you know, bless youor whatever.

(50:44):
They would've actually saidlike, God help you or Christ
help.
Okay.
And they, of course, also duringthis time, they also believe
that when you sneeze, you lostcontrol of your soul during that
time of the sneeze.
Oh, my goodness.

Yasmine (51:04):
So I, as a kid, I heard that your heart stopped when you
sneezed.

Jen (51:09):
Yep.
I've heard that.

Yasmine (51:10):
So is that what they thought or the soul thing is
like, I've never heard that.
That's incredible.

Jen (51:17):
Yeah.
I had not heard that.
My original thought is I wasreading through, I thought
that's where they were goingwith it because Uhhuh, the mind
was putting together.
Oh, okay.
So you had in 77 ad, you've gotthis pestilence sent on Roman
Christians that killed themwithin minutes.
So that's where like the heartstop, you know, thing is still

(51:42):
pervasive today.
That's what I thought.
Yeah.
But no that's not necessarily,you know, I'm not sure where the
whole heart stop thing, butthat's what I'd always heard.
I had never heard about the soulleaving the, the body.
Yeah.
During the time of a sneeze.
And I'm not sure what happens ifyou have one of those like rapid
fire, like, you know, sneezesessions.

(52:03):
I'm not sure what that probablymeant other than you probably
cursed beyond belief is what Iimagine probably happened.

Yasmine (52:10):
You're still fighting to come back.

Jen (52:13):
Yeah.
So so yeah, no, that's, that iswhat I had about the blessed.
Yeah, it's very interesting.
Little intense.
Yeah.
So now the, a little bit of thelesser known superstitions at
least, like I said, lesser knownto me, other people may be like,
of course, but I have not, theseare not popular, at least in

(52:36):
Southern culture that I'm aware.
So the first one is loose orbroken shoelaces

Yasmine (52:44):
have never heard anything.

Jen (52:46):
OK.
So this is just in general badluck, so, okay.
You just the, yeah.
Darned, if you do not cool,don't do it.
Isn't well for you.
Mm-hmm so basically, if thishappens, what you should do is
continue to walk another ninepaces before you even think
about fixing this issue of yourlaces or, you know, tying

Yasmine (53:11):
them.
So you don't do it right away.
Like we tell the kids to do forshoes.

Jen (53:16):
You do that.
They are now tied to bad luckfor the rest of the day.

Yasmine (53:23):
stop.
just for the day though, or likeuntil you tie your shoes time.
Okay.

Jen (53:33):
So this superstition is mentioned that somewhat loosely,
I think, but in 45 BC by Cicero,the Roman philosopher.
Where in a text he mentionsstumbling, breaking a shoe
latchet and sneezing.
Okay.
In reference generally broadlyto not great things, but it was

(53:57):
very loose.
I wanted to mention it justbecause, you know, but funny,
but yeah, so a sort of morelighter tone and take on that as
time went on and your imminentdeath was not, you know,
forefront on your mind from atleast the age of seven a loose
lace of loose lace.

(54:18):
Now this isn't broken youngwomen thought that their
sweetheart was talking aboutyou, who just had a loose lace.
Now that's the leftspecifically.
I'm sorry if the right is theone that's loose.
Oh no, no, no, Nope, Nope, Nope,Nope.
This is, this is why these aredangerous, cuz I just got'em
backwards.

(54:38):
Left is they're speaking ill ofyou, right.
Is loose.
They're singing your praises.

Yasmine (54:47):
Oh, you know, that reminds me of the ear ringing
thing.
Have you heard about that?
No, no, no.
This one is one that I've heardsince I was a kid, everybody.
So when your ears are ringing,the left, one means somebody's
talking bad about you.
And the right one means thatthey're talking good about you.
Oh my gosh.
So

Jen (55:05):
yep.
There you go.

Yasmine (55:08):
Must be like some kind of derivative or something right

Jen (55:11):
now.
I'm gonna be curious why I leftit.
Yeah.
That's interest.
Yeah.
So then the tradition of tyingshoes to like newlyweds cars,
which I don't know that peopledo that anymore, but I did know
that was a, you know, that's athing.
It comes from the 16th centurytradition so written in 1598 by
John Haywood.
And his book was"dialogue of theEffectual Proverbs in the

(55:37):
English Tongue ConcerningMarriage.
Oh my.
And all I could think of readingsome of these titles, I'm like,
you know, you guys didn't havethe greatest of, you know,
printing presses.
You had scribes like that oneguy.
Why are your

Yasmine (55:52):
titles so long, so long, big, concise, like

Jen (55:57):
anyway that's what, so the quote from that is,"and home
again, hithertowards quick as abee now for good luck cast an
old shoe after me", which I feltwas a bit of a stretch, but for
rhyming purposes, but that'sokay.
So that is where the traditionof tying shoes to the bumper of

(56:22):
a car and it being a good luckthing.
That's where that came from.
So anyway also they believed youcould undo this bad luck by
tossing the offending shoe thathad come undone or broken in the
direction of someone that youwish.
Well

Yasmine (56:45):
I love you at you.
Yes.
That

Jen (56:48):
was not the direction.
I had to read that a coupletimes.
Wait minute.
I feel like they mean a personthat you do not wish well, but
that is not knowledge

Yasmine (56:59):
well, you'd probably have more access to somebody
that you do wish well thansomeone that you don't.
Right.
I mean,

Jen (57:05):
maybe I just, I Don know.
So anyway, that was a lot

Yasmine (57:08):
that's funny.

Jen (57:10):
so the next one that I had no idea about was that it is bad
luck to use scissors on newyear's day.
I have not heard about that.
Yeah.
So so again, this goes back tothe Romans and so basically
because resolutions new year'sresolutions take back to the

(57:31):
Roman.
When loosely they would attemptto win favor with Janus is who
was the God of beginnings I'mtrying to yeah.
Yep.
That's right.
Janus.
The God of beginnings, JanuaryJanus.
Yes.
To ensure a lucky year, so,okay.
I won't go down.
That's a lot of rabbit holes.
So anyway, that's the, theorigin of resolutions and the

(57:52):
whole bringing luck into the newyear.
So,

Yasmine (57:56):
but why no scissors do the scissor cut

Jen (57:59):
the luck?, You guessed.
No, I'm kidding.
Yeah, we're getting there.
So that, that sets up just thethe origin of why we make
resolutions.
Okay.
And why we believe we can setour look good luck or bad luck
for the coming year.
So now the, so in folklorescissors can be given the power

(58:24):
or a power, the power tobasically cut more than just
paper or household, you know,whatever.
So right now enter, you know,the witches are gonna enter the
chat.
So for the next several ofthese.
Yeah.
So they, scissors could be usedas protection from witch.

(58:45):
By and especially superprotection.
If you open them in the shape ofa cross and keep'em there, but
then you are the crucifix.
Yeah.
Mm-hmm so you would hide thosein your house.
Like literally like under thecushions or something like that.
And if a witch came into yourhouse, she, he, or she would

(59:07):
feel very uncomfortablepotentially.
Cuz they're sitting on scissors.
I don't know, but they wouldfeel uncomfortable and they
would have to leave before theycould pass any evil, the spells
or curses or anything like that.
Mm-hmm so, and that goes backto, I think the about like the

(59:30):
metals that were used and thestrength of, you know, cuz of
course we think about ourscissors today and that's not
gonna be, you know, we'retalking like some hand forged,
like scissors, you know wow.
Yeah.
So they are gonna have greatvalue because you can't run to,
you know, your like 19th dollargeneral down the street and you

(59:51):
know, that kind of thing.
So and then there's just,there's a lot of folk floor
mythology, things like a brownyou know, metals and I'm not
well versed in that kind ofthing and crystals and really
that realm of things.
So even I'm just gonna stopmyself right now.
But anyway, I do know that thatwas part of it too.
The, the metal was, was alsocould have even extra protection

(01:00:16):
right.
Were made of that.
Yeah.
Wow.
Okay.
So you let's see another'ssomething else.
Oh, so using the scissors, thereason you, you should not use
them on new year's day isbecause using such a powerful,
potentially powerful householdobject on the first day of the

(01:00:38):
year.
That is a no go because youcould sever your good fortune
for the year.
Oh

Yasmine (01:00:46):
my gosh.
Yeah.
So I, I could see how it kind ofties together how, you know, you
can follow that thread ofthinking.
Yeah.
That makes sense.
Yeah.

Jen (01:00:57):
So continuing again with the, with witchcraft and bats
even today you will still runinto people who either love them
or are I love them, so I'm gonnasay it unjustly totally
ridiculously terrified of them.
Right.
I have bat houses and all that.
So I, I love them, but do youreally?

(01:01:19):
Yeah, that's cool.
They're great.
I mean the insect control andlike, I hate spiders.
I don't kill them unless they'regonna actively, you know, try
and kill me.
I mean, I love them.
There is nothing that you shouldnot love about them.
But anyway, they do look alittle freaky.
I will give people that, but sothe first, one of the first

(01:01:40):
mentions of, of bat, so theRoman poet Virgil he's the first
that we know had written word tolink bats to evil in Iliad.
And that's just a little sidething, I don't know.
And so the first century ad thebones of bats were used in

(01:02:03):
charms to ward off evil.
Okay.
So my question on that was, arewe still thinking though that
they're evil, so we're likefighting fire with fire Uhhuh
that the thought, I guess maybeam I, am I missing something
while you would then wear the,

Yasmine (01:02:27):
I mean, maybe they're they have their connection to
like supernatural, so yeah.
I don't know.

Jen (01:02:38):
Yeah, I dunno.
Yeah.
Okay.
And I may have missed somethingin that, but I, I couldn't quite
see how we then so quickly, youknow, switch anyway.
So medieval Europe it's bad luckto see a bat in the daylight.
I would argue that a lot oftimes we, you know, should be
appropriately cautious if we seeany nocturnal animal in the

(01:02:59):
daylight, honestly

Yasmine (01:03:02):
their home.

Jen (01:03:04):
Yeah.
Cause it, it's not normal.
So there could actually be alittle thing called rabies.
You know, so anyway, so yeah, Icould see where this could have
definitely been a bad thing tohave seen, you know, something
like this and of course they'renot gonna understand rabies and
that's devastating.
Right.

Yasmine (01:03:21):
So you see a bat, it bites your dog, your dog gets
sick, you know, you get bit, youget sick and you know, it's all
bad.
Sounds terrible.
Yeah.

Jen (01:03:31):
100% fatal.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So and then of course it's evenmore like bad luck if it
actually gets into your house.
Now I'm pretty sure thisfortnight somebody, basically
someone is going to die soon,just end of discussion.
And so again, it's justinteresting, you know, you know,
you've got high death rates youknow, infant mortality, all of

(01:03:53):
these things, right there be sohigh that, you know, no
antibiotics.
So you cut your finger onliterally anything a splinter
gets infected and mm-hmm thatcould be sepsis in the end of
you, you know, and of coursethey're gonna know, you know,
these things, but, you know,heck even if they did know, they
wouldn't have had the, you know,the tools, the, the antibiotics
or, you know, whatever to combatit.

(01:04:14):
So So it makes sense how you'retrying to always explain these
deaths that are occurring, youknow, or these bad things that
would happen.
These, you know, accidents, youknow, things like that.
Yeah.
So of course, as you can imagineby the 18th century, a, you
know, not well known novelDracula, just

Yasmine (01:04:33):
that old thing

Jen (01:04:34):
yeah, pretty much there were any holdouts by the 18th
century that bats were justfantastic.
It, it was, it was

Yasmine (01:04:44):
gone.

Jen (01:04:45):
Yeah.
Turned of course, against bats.
With that.
And Europe also is one thatlinked a if you get bats in your
hair, then you'll go crazy.
Oh, oh, batty.
Yep.
Okay.
so loosely, we still have likebats in the belfry.

(01:05:05):
So yeah, so basically they wouldspecifically link bats to mental
illness because they are of, orbats can be used by witches.
So that basically meant,especially if one got tangled up
in your hair, I guess mm-hmmthat the, which had sent a not

(01:05:28):
devil demon Uhhuh that is nowtaken over your body.
so that is the way they would,you know, any mental illness.
So things, especially like yourschizophrenia, things like that.
And epilepsy, that is a bigthing that they tried so hard to
attribute so many things in, inhistory.
So, so that's basically that ina nutshell and it really has not

(01:05:50):
been until fairly recent timesthat that that's, you know, are
protected species in most placesand, and all that good stuff.
So, right.
I try to tell everybody, if youhate spiders, you love bats.
right.
So putting a pin prick in youreggshells,

Yasmine (01:06:07):
what that are you supposed to do that?

Jen (01:06:10):
Yeah, we all should be doing that.
Evidently.
So as far back as the as, as onenumber one ad

Yasmine (01:06:20):
two, please.
Okay.
Could

Jen (01:06:22):
use intact shells to cast spells on the people who had
eaten the egg.
My question is this, I love hardboiled eggs.
How the heck are they gettingthese shells off?
So awesome.
Because I, to this day cannot,you know, make that happen

(01:06:43):
without a hot mess.
Right.
So whatever, but anyway, soagain, we talked before about
planning the.
This is a quote from him in thatsame book that I mentioned.
So"there is no one who does notdread being spell bound by means
of evil implications and hencethe practice after eating eggs

(01:07:06):
or snails of immediatelybreaking the shells or piercing
them with the spoon" to preventa witch, I guess, lurking in
your garbage.
I don't know.
But anyway, finding an unbrokenish shell and

Yasmine (01:07:26):
yeah, so you're supposed to break it no matter
what, but then how do you getthe egg out of the she without

Jen (01:07:34):
breaking?
Exactly.
That's where I'm very

Yasmine (01:07:36):
confused.
That is witchcraft

Jen (01:07:40):
Ah, yeah, very so in 1486, the Catholic inquisitor Henrich
Kramer wrote in, and this is ofcourse the English translation
"Hammer of Witches" that witchesuse these intact shells to cause
epilepsy or falling sickness.
But they also could use it likea voodoo doll, so they could

(01:08:04):
take like pins and inflict painon the person and it gets even
better.
Well, not better.
This is not good.

Yasmine (01:08:12):
You know, much worse.
OK.
This

Jen (01:08:14):
gets worse.
But they could also use it tosimulate like a boat and cause
shipwrecks, what?
Yeah.

Yasmine (01:08:23):
that that's intense.
I could like

Jen (01:08:25):
make a storm Uhhuh with the egg show.
Yes.
But making true.
Yes.
By making the eggshell, likemaking it simulate a boat Uhhuh.
And I don't know if they've gotlike their trough of water and
they're like, I don't know, butthat's my envisioning of, of how
that would happen.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So that's that one.
So changing a bed, changing yourbed on a Friday.

(01:08:52):
Are you okay?
Watson?
My cat fell out.
Geez.
He's okay.
He tried to jump on somethingthat, yeah.
So anyway so changing on bed onFriday, or really any domestic
chores, that's a No no bad omen.
So Friday, because, and so nowwe're thinking back to the whole

(01:09:12):
13th and all that mm-hmm Fridaybecause Jesus crucifixion was on
a Friday.
Okay.
And that day was to be set asideas holy.
So farmers would not like begina harvest on that day.
This, this is great.
So if you had been sick andconfined to your bed, but you

(01:09:34):
felt better on Friday, you wouldstay in bed for an extra day so
that you, yes.
Yeah.
And so in keeping with, withthis crucifixion, you know,
Friday set aside all of that.
So in the 18 hundreds, theybelieve changing the bed on that

(01:09:58):
day would essentially allow thedevil to take control of your
dreams for one week to explainnightmares.
Mm-hmm that'd be terrible.
I dunno what you did.
If you didn't change it on aFriday, you still have
nightmares.
I have no idea.
Don't ask If you were to flipyour mattress on a Friday, which

(01:10:19):
of course was something they hadto do frequently because your
bed made of feathers and straw,things like that.
That was an element of deathbecause that was considered
turning the luck.

Yasmine (01:10:32):
Okay.
I have a question.
Yes.
If your bed is made of straw,mm-hmm, how easily.
Do you have access to acalendar?
I guess knowing when Sunday isbecause Sunday was like a whole
village thing, like everybodygoes to church or to mass or
what have you.
So you'd kind of know what dayit was.

(01:10:54):
Mm-hmm what I mean.
I work at a school duringsummer.
I rarely know what day it'sright.

Jen (01:11:03):
And you still gonna have like literacy.
And so even like, probably likehaving a calendar, I know this
is all very interesting to mebecause it almost makes me think
that this was something tiedmore to the wealthy.
Okay.
That would even, you know, beable to read a calendar or have

(01:11:29):
one, one, right.
Period.
Yeah.
But then again, the other partof me is like, well, if they're
that wealthy, they're not doingthe bed.
Something they could say to thestaff staff, you do not do this
on Fridays.
Right.
But my, it, that almost makes meokay.
So it's interesting because weknow that the moon and the, you

(01:11:55):
know, thinking like sun dialsand, you know, things like that
is time keeping method.
I'm, I'm equally curious as tohow and yeah.

Yasmine (01:12:08):
That's interesting.
That's really interesting,

Jen (01:12:10):
but it, yeah, so just, you know, think about that because,
you know, Fridays are not anunheard of day for me to change
out stuff if I've got plans onSaturday.
Exactly.
So another real brief one iswearing a toad around your neck.
If it's a alive or dead, a toad.
So this would be to ward off theplague.
So again, we're imagining theabsolute abject care of a

(01:12:32):
disease that has no known causethat we know or they know of at
this time, the ramificationsation.
So the, the book that I read itsaid, so by 1655 this is, you
know, definitely where theamulets and the good luck charms
and all of these things are inextreme high demand.
And there's even a book writtenin the early 17 hundreds.

(01:12:55):
I'll try to find it and link it,but it was a work of fiction,
but it very much accuratelydescribed conditions of the time
during the plague, like duringthe, the latter 16 hundreds.
So, but it said, you know hedescribes in this fiction book,
but about how the people beingburied in these mass graves with
these crazy concoctions ofcharms and amulets and, and

(01:13:17):
things on their person thatwere, you know, just meant to
ward off the plague, essentiallythe, to tying a that's a frog
and a, to you really extra atoad around your neck was
believed to draw out the diseasefrom your body.

Yasmine (01:13:40):
So you'd put it on a sick person.
Yeah.
Well, or if you're not feelinggood.
Yeah.
So, yeah.
So like we take, what is thatmedicine airborne?
When we start feeling not goodthey would put a, to pop a toe
on and right.
So that was

Jen (01:13:56):
one for some reason was believed that.
Yeah.
So that's just interesting.
And I had to include that incase someone had any more
thoughts about right.
Yeah.
That's

Yasmine (01:14:05):
crazy.

Jen (01:14:05):
So last one for me is touching a corpse for good luck.

Yasmine (01:14:13):
No, no, thank you.
OK.

Jen (01:14:15):
So corpses were believed to essentially be the embodiment of
the veil between life and death.
Okay.
That was the most visual rightthere, you know tangible in your
face, you know, thing.
So.
They believe that the, thecorpse then held supernatural

(01:14:37):
powers that you could harness bytouching it or collecting things
from it to use.
Okay.
And so essentially, if youtouched the forehead, then that
would release you from your ownfear of death.
Oh, oh, oh yeah.

(01:14:57):
And you wouldn't be haunted bythe person.
They wouldn't come back andhaunt you.
Okay.
So here for that.
The hand you that could curewart, because this is great.
It transferred the, the, thewart from you to the corpse.

(01:15:18):
It would shrivel, you couldwatch your wart shrivel up and
going away as the bodydecomposed.

Yasmine (01:15:27):
I like that.
So

Jen (01:15:27):
also now they would treat goiters, tumors and hemorroids
with the sweat of a new, thankyou, Lord corpse because I
guess, I don't know why, so

Yasmine (01:15:43):
I mean, when you don't have access to cream, then.

Jen (01:15:48):
The first of a newly deceased person, right?
Why not?
so, yeah.
Anyway then also if you, in the,I didn't write down no it's 17th
century, 17th century, and a lotof people might have heard this.
So if a corpse has a bloodcoming from the nose mm-hmm that

(01:16:10):
meant that they had beenmurdered and the murderer was in
the room.
So what they would then do wouldbe to have the people, well, you
know, any suspects or, orwhatever, to come and touch the
corpse.
And if the nose bled again, youhad your murderer case closed,
right.
Case closed.

Yasmine (01:16:31):
Wow.

Jen (01:16:33):
That's incredible.
And just as a side note that Iwas like, it said, you know,
however, if you touch the corpseand it's still unusually warm
after, you know, a period oftime or rigor hasn't set in and,
and has like in a expectedtimeframe, then another death
would soon follow.
And all I could think of wasthat was premature burials

Yasmine (01:16:56):
yes.
Yes.
Oh my gosh.
Still they're just unconscious.
Yeah.
Yeah, that is interesting.
I up with good job.
That was a lot of

Jen (01:17:12):
wow.
Oh my, I know I couldn't stop.
I'm sorry, everyone.

Yasmine (01:17:16):
Yeah, no, that's awesome.
Okay.
Let me, let me get ready.
Okay.
Google doc.
I put it all on my

Jen (01:17:29):
phone,

Yasmine (01:17:30):
all right.
So the purpose of superstition,the way I understand it is to
explain the unexplainable tolook for and explain patterns in
day to day, life nature, enrichlife with common beliefs, and it
helps you to recognize like yourpeople through common
experiences and beliefs.

(01:17:51):
I mean, you mentioned yeah,having some Southern
superstitions and, you know, Imentioned one that, you know,
I'd heard, you know, where welive.
And also a fear of newtechnology and desire for a
simple explanation.
Sometimes explanations are a lotmore complicated than we have
understanding where the peoplein the past have had
understanding.
So it just gives us astraightforward answer, whether

(01:18:14):
it's right or not, it'sacceptable.

Jen (01:18:17):
Acceptable.
That's a key word yet.

Yasmine (01:18:20):
okay.
So personally I'm not asuperstitious person, but I am a
little stitious I do enjoyresearching and discovering
answers for things that seem farfetched.
However, I'm very trusting andmaybe a little bit naive.
So that being said, I didmention my mother and her
family.

(01:18:40):
Some of those come fromreligious based beliefs, but
others are just, things passeddown orally through times when
things were harder to research.
We talked about that a littlebit.
Unfortunately that means a lotof advice, especially during
pregnancy when I was pregnant.
Oh, they would not stop with theold lives tales.
Ugh.

Jen (01:19:00):
It's the boy or a girl.
And

Yasmine (01:19:03):
you can lift your hands over your head because it tie it
the cord on the baby's neck orsomething like that, like, oh,
that's not true, but oh, wearinga safety pin or something metal
on your belly during an eclipseto ward off.
Whatever the eclipse does.
I don't know.
eclipse does nothing, but

Jen (01:19:21):
absolutely.

Yasmine (01:19:21):
What is anyways.
Yeah.
With both my pregnancies, therewere eclipse that happened and
my mom always made it a point tolike call me or actually with my
first she brought over like anextra large safety pen.
She's like, oh, you put it onyour, you know, clip it to your
pants or whatever.
I'm like, okay, mom, whatever.

(01:19:43):
So, anyways, so that's just alittle

Jen (01:19:47):
I bet.
So did do her end with two withboth of them?
Yeah.
Like the eclipse.

Yasmine (01:19:56):
Yeah.
So she really, it, it enforcedher thinking, my God, oh gosh,
there's another one, you know,like let's yeah.
Make sure we do it again.
You know,

Jen (01:20:04):
the, and that's like, to me, that's like the, almost the,
the confirmation, you know?
Yeah.
The patterns and things likethat effect.
I can't remember what the actualterm for that was, but anyway,
yes, that's funny.
It just, yeah.
Reinforces that, you know, youdid this and everything was
fine.
Now, here we are.
Again, you

Yasmine (01:20:22):
gotta do again.

Jen (01:20:24):
Yeah.
So

Yasmine (01:20:28):
okay.
So in browsing through thedictionary of superstitions, I
realized that just abouteverything.
A lot of stuff has somesuperstition surrounding it in
some way.
It's really fascinating to flipthrough it.
And I did learn some interestingstuff.
Today I'm gonna talk aboutbaseball first.
I did mention I'm a baseballmom.
It's what I do.
It's what I love.

(01:20:48):
It's who I am.
Mm-hmm so naturally we're gonnatalk about it.
Baseball America's favoritepastime has been around for a
long time and over the years,the superstitions surrounding
wins and losses is ever presentand evolving.
So we're gonna talk about somegeneral wins.
Just kind of like rapid firebaseball cap on the bed.

(01:21:09):
Bad games on Fridays bad.
oh, if you see a member of theclergy, it's bad, seeing your
red head in the stands is good.
Getting a hair pin from said redhaired lady, it's gotta be a
lady is better.
Seeing a truckload of emptybarrels is good.
Excuse me?
What okay.

(01:21:30):
It said that this is this led tothe New York giant streak of
victories one season long, longtime ago when the giants were in
New York left handed pitcher isgood.
And any lefty in the lineup isgood too.
Literally every baseball teamthat my kids have been on over
the.
The coaches will ask for alefty, like any lefties that are

(01:21:51):
in the division.
All the coaches want one.
Wow.
It's crazy.
Some fans will flip their hatsinside out.
Oh, go ahead.
I'm

Jen (01:21:59):
sorry.
I guess cuz it's where that's ofcourse nondominant for most, you
know?
Yeah.
They're lucky because it's morerare to be lefthanded I assume.

Yasmine (01:22:09):
And the way that the pitches go or whatever, they're
lined up a little bit better ormaybe worse for a right handed
pitcher.
And so it's more likely thatthey'll either hit or down base
something, something like that.
Some fans will flip their hatsinside out for a rally or rally
cap usually during the laststemming few more bad ones

(01:22:30):
stepping on the chalk.
Everybody jumps over the chalk,even ump a cross item empire.
like, obviously it's not good anafflicted woman.
Like what does that even mean?
And where can she not be at thefield at all in the stands?

Jen (01:22:48):
Oh, I wonder if that has to do with menstruation, maybe

Yasmine (01:22:53):
all it said was afflicted.
So yeah, probably

Jen (01:22:57):
you know where women were, you know, they couldn't go to
the temple.
Right.
I don't know.
That's.
That's the only explanationthat,

Yasmine (01:23:05):
right.
That's a regular thing anyway.
Exactly.
Play with a damaged bat.
Not good, obviously.
Yeah.
A bat line crosswise in front ofthe dugout, not good losing an
item of team clothing and a dogwalking on the field during play
Okay.

(01:23:26):
So that, those last two reallyget me as a baseball mom for a
long, long time.
Keeping all the baseball geartogether is an art.
Honestly, in itself, we havesystems and plans and special
places to keep things.
But I mean, how many timesshould I actually go buy a red
belt?
and where the heck are the sockswith?

(01:23:46):
No, when the holes come on, likethings get lost, things get
damaged.
So

Jen (01:23:51):
I know off, off, like you had mentioned that they didn't
have a great season.
Oh yeah.
And now is it the missing socks?

Yasmine (01:24:01):
May?
Yeah.
I'm telling you, my son probablyplayed every game with a hole in
his socks or we'd buy new socksbecause they'd be, think it was
maybe the new socks.
Maybe I just shouldn't washsocks all how it happens.
Great.
One less thing to do.
All right.
And then the, the dog on thefield thing.

(01:24:23):
So most of our fields are atparks dogs, actually that
accidentally get on the fieldsometimes.
Okay.
Let me tell you.
I've actually had to tell grownadults not to walk their dog
through our games again.
Like somebody would do it.
Okay.
They're leaving.
But then they come back.
It's like excuse me, you'regonna get hit by a ball.

(01:24:44):
What are you doing?
It's distracting for everyoneannoying.
And I'm glad it's not asuperstition.
That is a fact because it'sactually a regular occurrence,
regular currents.
So team superstitions are aliveand well now too.
The Phillies had a potted plant,a bamboo that they credited with

(01:25:04):
wins in 2019 and bamboo they'relucky, but you're right.
But they took it with themeverywhere.
Yeah.
And they would talk to it andyou take care of it.
So, yeah.
Yeah.
And there's like the

Jen (01:25:15):
money trees, right.
People will give daily

Yasmine (01:25:19):
Wes and things.
Yeah.
That I have killed many times

Jen (01:25:25):
just middle of the road, you know

Yasmine (01:25:26):
in 2016, a large praying mantis was credited with
helping the Royals win a series,turning their season around It
just landed on one of theplayer's hats and it was lucky,
so, oh, okay.
so a few ways that baseballplayers can safeguard their luck
is spitting in their gloves,girls, ah not sharing their bat.

(01:25:52):
It's thought that the bats havea certain amount of hits, like,
okay.
And then that's it.
Lucky bats, gloves, specificsocks.
And of course, each player seemsto have their own rituals at the
plate from stepping in with acertain foot, tapping the plate
with their bat, kissing arosary.
My son actually says if heswings at a bad pitch, he'll

(01:26:12):
repeat the mistake in his head.
Hoping it'll keep him fromswinging at a pitch like that.
Again, I don't know if that'sreally a superstition or more of
a ritual, but wow.
Even as young as nine years old,he's already.
Yeah.
Cause this thing.
So we take all the things welove.
Seriously.
Baseball is loved by a lot ofpeople, so I'm not surprised

(01:26:33):
that at all by most of these andI'm sure there are many more.
The other thing that I findinteresting is that even though
there are a lot of individualsuperstitions surrounding a
player's game, but the teams andfans get on the superstitions
and rituals as.
I'm sure we all know someone whodoesn't wash their team Jersey

(01:26:54):
during regular season play andsometimes no shaving during
championships, which is reallyinteresting.
We've seen.
So yeah, that's it on baseball?
Do you have any specificallythat you know of, or that you
guys do?

Jen (01:27:09):
I do not.
Not with baseball.
And I think because I'm a redSox fan it is what it is.
Yeah.
I that's all I'm gonna say.
Yeah.
That's all right.
I did though.
Well, no, wait.
So I did, I'm a huge antiquecollector and things like that.
And so I did find at a, a fleamarket one time, I think we were

(01:27:32):
in, I think it was in Maine ared Sox, like baseball player
child doll, like a stuffed, youknow, I mean having a hard time
explaining it anyway, but he wasin the red Sox uniform mm-hmm
and so I got that and gave it tomy dad for Christmas mm-hmm and
he will set him up.

(01:27:54):
What he did, he used to set him.
Beside the TV during baseballseason.
Oh, wow.
And I wish I could remember.
I can't remember what year.
I mean, certainly after the, thelast time that they won world
series, but that, well, thatprobably says enough right there
that,

Yasmine (01:28:13):
yeah.
So no more at all.

Jen (01:28:15):
No more.
No, no.
Okay.
So yeah, we've joked, but he, helikes him, so he keeps him keeps
him, but but no, I don't really,I'm more the we're doing a lot

Yasmine (01:28:26):
of like, come on

Jen (01:28:27):
and move.
Yeah, yeah.
That stuff.
And then after it ends, I'm theone that's like explaining to
everyone why the red Sox do notsuck, you know?
Right.
Even when it was like the worst.
But yeah.
So no, I,

Yasmine (01:28:42):
yeah, yeah, not really heavily.
Super.
I know my husband has he's a NewYork giants football fan and he
has a particular sweater thatdoes not get washed during the
season.
Oh.
So, okay.
I try not to touch it.
right.
I like, that's your thing.
Mm-hmm anyways.

(01:29:04):
So another topic that I foundreally interesting and that has
a few superstitions surroundingit is drunkenness.
Oh, people love to try and keepdrinking in a sweet spot and
enjoy, eh, enjoy, avoid hangoverbut some really hilarious
superstitions have grown out ofdrunk people trying stuff.
So here we go.

(01:29:26):
A modern belief for saying isliquor before beer in the clear
beer before liquor never beensicker.
I think that's it always getthat wrong?
Yeah, me too.
I, I hope that I got it right.
then I

Jen (01:29:39):
don't drink beer.
So I feel like I'm in the clear

Yasmine (01:29:44):
sure.
Yeah.
Me either.
so like, but what about Seltzer?
Where does that fly?
Is that more like beer or isthat more like,

Jen (01:29:52):
I'm just now?
Yeah.
Somewhat into the, the truly,so,

Yasmine (01:29:56):
yeah.
And what about wine?
Like where does that fall?
Can I have a shot when I'mdrinking wine?
No, probably not.

Jen (01:30:05):
Wine is bad.
There

Yasmine (01:30:08):
is it bad news spirit.
Good.
Oh, so I haven't officiallytested that there's been no, you
know, trying it out because Idon't drink beer.
I don't like it, but it alwaysseems to come up when drinking
with friends.
So.
Common cures for the dreadedhangover hair of the dog, that

(01:30:31):
bit you so like a bloody Marywith breakfast mm-hmm or fried
food to soak up the alcohol,which sounds gross.
But but back in history, someonewould've slipped, something
gross into your drink to get youto slow down, such as owls,
eggs, a few drops of thedrinker's own blood.

(01:30:53):
Like, do you collect that first?
No.
Thank you.
Or do you cut them while they'redrunk?
And they already give alcohol ontheir bloodstream?
Like they wouldn't have knownthat,

Jen (01:31:01):
but they was that like part of like the DD duties,

Yasmine (01:31:05):
a dead man's ground up bone.
Sprinkle those in a drink.
And live eels.
you just have one of those inyour back pocket.
Ready to go.
what am I gonna do with it?
Put it in the drunk person'sdrink.
I don't know, like how big is mycup?

(01:31:27):
How big is your cup and whereare you keeping it?
Like, I have no idea.
These cracked me up cuz I.
This is outta control.
Just trying different stuff,because the people trying to get
the person to slow downdrinking, they were probably
drinking too.
Just maybe, you know,

Jen (01:31:47):
very true

Yasmine (01:31:48):
that we get real creative so nowadays, if we
wanna sober up quickly, we'llchug some water, have a coffee,
have something to eat but backin the day, the drunk one would
be rolling manure.

Jen (01:32:06):
Oh, that would sober me up.

Yasmine (01:32:07):
Yeah, same.
They would be made to drinkolive at oil.
Hm.
Forced to smell his own urineand bind his genitals in the
vinegar soaked rag.
Gross.
Whose job would that have beenagain?
The get over here, vinegar, likeagain, so what if the drinker

(01:32:31):
was a lady?
Like how would she sober upthen?

Jen (01:32:37):
and these idiot men, I don't, I don't

Yasmine (01:32:40):
know.
Just urine.
Maybe they wait, what was Isaying?
Oh, maybe they weren't allowedto get drunk.
Who.
Okay.
I'm sure it was probably very

Jen (01:32:50):
unladylike.

Yasmine (01:32:51):
Right.
The Welsh believed that eatingthe roast lungs of a pig would
allow the person to drink allday.
Awesome.
Now we just stay drink while webarbecue or binge watch Netflix.
So we just take it easy.
See so yeah, that's, that's iton drunkenness.
I thought that was really funnyand interesting.

(01:33:13):
I did wanna talk a little bitabout cats.
That's more of like a commonsuperstition that you hear a
little bit more.
Yeah.
More widely known superstitions.
Black cats specifically.
I did see a cat in yourbackground.
Do you only have one or do youhave more than one?
I

Jen (01:33:29):
have two.
I have one that is a, bengalthat should have been the one
that you saw in here.
And then I have a solid whitecat with blue eyes.
He is deaf as most cats withwhite cats with blue eyes Uhhuh.
50, 50.
I'm not sure what the statisticsare, but they'll be deaf, but
the white cat.
I adopted him after my previouscat.

(01:33:50):
Who was very, very, very, veryold.
She passed away, but she was asolid black cat with gorgeous
green eyes that we had adoptedwhen she was very, very, very
young.
And I have to say the Grumpiestcat I've ever owned, and I've
always had cats all my life thatI've ever had grumpy all the

(01:34:11):
time, the black

Yasmine (01:34:12):
cat oh my goodness.

Jen (01:34:16):
Yeah.
Quite a bit of mileage out ofthat.
And and Megan has spaz who he isa, a very older gentleman mm-hmm
and he is a solid black cat andhe has major, major attitude.
He's a major attitude.

(01:34:37):
Yeah.
So yeah, people that have ownedblack cats, I will have to say
they do usually say that there'ssomething

Yasmine (01:34:46):
about, yeah.
Something, a little extra littleattitude or something.
I love it,

Jen (01:34:51):
but I think we're probably just looking for it based on the
superstition and the, or justour back knowledge of

Yasmine (01:34:58):
yeah, yeah.
Yeah.
So I love cats.
But I'm so allergic.
I grew, it's a bummer cuz mykids want a cat so bad.
I grew up always having cats.
My mom's a cat lover.
Maybe someday.
I don't know.

Jen (01:35:11):
I told you said you could get one of those hairless.
I can't

Yasmine (01:35:15):
remember whats Sphynx.
That, is that what they were?
I think the Rachel had himfriends Hmm.
Oh,

Jen (01:35:23):
I remember that.
And I lot friends, but anyway,you know, just saying yeah,

Yasmine (01:35:28):
I dunno.
So my mom always had cats.
I got the unique experience ofseeing many kittens being born,
helping care for sick or notthriving babies.
Rehoming caring for injuredcats.
And of course benefiting fromthe occasional cat that picked
me as their favorite in doingthis research.
I learned that while generallyblack cats are considered omens

(01:35:50):
of bad luck, but in othercultures they're viewed as
benevolent and even supernaturalsymbols of prosperity.
Mm-hmm so let's jump in thecultures.
These superstitions are thoughtto originate are ancient Egypt
and Greek mythology in ancientEgypt.
They're seen as divine beingsand being graced with their

(01:36:12):
presence was an honor.
I love that cause cats reallyare so picky with who they love
and how they spend their time.

Jen (01:36:19):
Absolutely.
They will always find the personin the room that does not like
cats.
Right.
And be so into

Yasmine (01:36:26):
them.
Yeah.
It's like they wanna win youover.
They just know.
I love it.
So they're also generallynocturnal hunters.
So, you know, they're not alwaysavailable in the day cause
they're sleeping or whatever.
So they were treasured pets.
A wealthier Egyptian familywould dress some in jewels and
expensive material.
They'd be given delicious treatsand upon their death would be

(01:36:49):
mummified along with theirowners.
So their mummified body would beplaced with their owners or held
onto until their owners passed.
So many gods and goddesses ofEgyptian culture were thought to
have been able to change theirform into animal form.
Oh cute.

Jen (01:37:12):
Oh,

Yasmine (01:37:13):
we're talking about, we need a prompt.
Yes but the only deity able tochange into a cat was bass
dissect.
There are paintings inscriptures that still survive
today.
That honor Egyptian's mostbeloved pet.
I thought that's so interestingthat even now yeah, they, those
things survive.
I love it.

(01:37:34):
So the other side of it in Greekmythology, the goddess, he Getty
the chief presider over magicand spells was thought to have a
cat, not only as her pet, buther familiar.
So I don't know if it wasmultiple cats or the same one
that she's thought to have takencare of, but was also her
familiar, probably multiple.

(01:37:56):
So unfortunately the idea thatcats were associated with magic
and witchcraft persisted throughthe rise of Christianity and the
rise of the Roman empire aspagans and naturalists were
pushed to the edges ofacceptable society.
So were their symbols eventuallyleading to witch hunts in Europe

(01:38:18):
and the killing and torture ofanyone, especially women who
were thought to be witches.
In the 13th century, there's anofficial document where in Pope
Gregory, the ninth declarescats, an incarnation of Satan,
such strong lady, such stronglanguage for our kitties that we

(01:38:39):
love.
Awesome.
This decree marked what isthought to be the beginning of
the inquisition in churchsanctioned violence.
Oh, wow.
So for a long time, Christianitysurvived alongside witches and
practitioners on Wiccan.
You mentioned that where theythe cultures kind of existed
alongside each other, and therewas a place for witches and

(01:38:59):
soothsayers and things likethat.
Okay.
But not for too long.
Unfortunately, cats wereconnected very strongly with
those outside of Christianityand women thought to be witches.
I came across a quote thatactually was, that kind of moved
me a little bit.
So here we go, cats, like thewomen accused of witchcraft tend
to exhibit a healthy disrespectauthority.

(01:39:22):
They don't fawn like dogs uponeven unworthy in the church.
Neither independent women norindependent animals were to be
tolerated.
So this is a quote from Sara winfalling star who wrote broth
from the wisdom journey ofeveryday magic.
Ah, it was.

(01:39:42):
Wow.
Yes.

Jen (01:39:45):
Like, yes,

Yasmine (01:39:48):
it's the church couldn't stand to abide a woman
standing up and of course theirsymbols were not abide as well,
so.
Yep.

Jen (01:39:57):
And and that's just so interesting.
I know, just on the podcastwe've done talked a lot about
the witchcraft and the, thewitches how they were so hated,
but they were also, or feared,but they were also the first
ones that people would seek outwhen yeah.
They had an illness or you know,because they, they were the

(01:40:18):
medicine women, you

Yasmine (01:40:19):
know, right.
A solution to a problem, justplants, that

Jen (01:40:22):
things that we use today, a lot of people don't realize how
much modern medicine relies onYeah.
Some plants and things that havebeen discovered and, you know,
very ancient, you know, times,so right.
It's the people that would havethat knowledge in the, in every
community, you know, there wouldbe one and they would just be
equally revered and feared, youknow, and feared.

(01:40:45):
Right, right.
And unfortunately the churchwould, yeah.
Perpetuate that because again,if they couldn't couldn't
understand it, they couldn'taccept

Yasmine (01:40:56):
it.
Exactly.
Yeah.
So.
Yeah, that's cool.
Yeah, this thinking made its wayacross the Atlantic with the
Puritan colonists mm-hmm and hasmade its way into modern
culture.
Black cats are among the mostabandoned or surrendered animals
during Halloween season.

(01:41:16):
Oh wait.
Those are two separate thoughts.
Black cats are among the mostabandoned or surrendered animals
during Halloween season.
I still see posts on Facebook orInstagram, whatever warning pet
lovers to keep their black catsindoors and protected.
Cause people are still after'em.
The superstition that is, isthat if a black cat crosses your

(01:41:37):
path, that it's on a missionfrom a witch.
And since witches were thoughtto be on mission from the devil,
therefore cats were up to thedevil's work.
It's kind of a little bit of alike witches are on their
devil's mission and they sendtheir cats.
So the cats are on the devil'smission as well.

(01:41:59):
Right.
No

Jen (01:42:00):
surrogate.

Yasmine (01:42:01):
Right, exactly.
And then the thinking of they'rethey're familiar too.
they're so I love it.
So like a, a witch could changeinto a cat.
So maybe that cat that iscrossing your path is the witch
herself

Jen (01:42:18):
shape shifting.

Yasmine (01:42:20):
Right.
Right.
So.
In order to ward off that badluck, you could go be blessed by
a priest or cross yourself thiswhole, you know

Jen (01:42:31):
that, oh, people do the windshield, the, have you
noticed that they're oh, insteadof like crossing themselves,
they'll like cross theirwindshield.
What?

Yasmine (01:42:41):
I haven't seen that.
Yeah.
Know that

Jen (01:42:44):
that was not the, I mean, crossing yourself makes much
more sense.

Yasmine (01:42:49):
like in a car cross your windshield.

Jen (01:42:51):
Yeah.
So if you're in your car and ablack cat runs out, then you
will see people literally taketheir little finger and making X
on their windshield.
Okay.
Wow.

Yasmine (01:43:02):
Wow.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I don't, I don't know what thatis.
Yeah.
So

Jen (01:43:06):
that always comes from crossing yourself, which like I
said, makes so much more sensethan your windshield.
Yeah.
Think about like, why does thismake sense at all?

Yasmine (01:43:16):
I mean, really like, it takes a lot of, kind of
historical and mental gymnasticsto get to the place where a cat
is bad luck, but yeah.
That's where we're so, oh mygosh, that is black cats.
And that is my part onsuperstition.
Awesome.

Jen (01:43:33):
I feel so long

Yasmine (01:43:34):
winded no, I I'll have to add more to the next one.

Jen (01:43:41):
no, I am long winded.
I am known as that on thispodcast, so but I so hope
everybody enjoyed this.
I know I definitely did.
And if everybody you're gonnaget us censored on the internet
Watson and especially if youenjoyed the video component of
everything let us know and we'llkeep, keep doing that.
Oh, what else was I gonna say?

(01:44:01):
Oh, so new thing is that we willnow have a can't think of the
tense of this word transcribedversion of this entire podcast
available.
So that will be on the websitefor sure.
I.
Think there's another way that Ican do that.

(01:44:21):
But I, I will say on the websitefor sure.
And so that'll be awesome andwe're, I'm very glad to be able
to provide that for those thatare hearing impaired and that
kind of thing.
So that's, yeah, that should begreat.
New thing that I'm reallythrilled that that we're able to
do.
So that's cool.
And we'll work on the captionswith the video itself.

(01:44:43):
So this is the first time and wekind of did the whole video
thing on the fly.
But know, I think I saw thatoption that we can do on here.
So we'll work on that too, butthanks everybody.
And of course, if you have anythoughts or any insight into any
of these superstitions,particularly on the Norse
mythology, that's driving menuts on the, the Fri or the

(01:45:04):
13th, the number 13 mm-hmm wewould absolutely love to hear
it.
And so our socials are supereasy and I'm realizing that
Megan normally read those outand but they are super easy.
I can do this.
So the email is mavensofmisdeeds@gmail.com.
And with the exception ofTwitter, everything is just

(01:45:26):
Maven of Mis deeds for Facebook,all that.
But with Twitter, I think youlose the S in mavens.
Pretty sure.
And we are on TikTok as well,have not posted anything on
TikTok, but that will bechanging.
And yeah.
Awesome.
So thank you.
Yes, I'm so excited to have youjoin me.

(01:45:48):
It's been awesome.
And also I always say, let meknow if you've got any topics or
anything on the, the weirdunexplained all of that that you
would like us to cover.
We would greatly appreciate anyinput there,

Yasmine (01:46:01):
so yeah, that'd be awesome.
Can I maybe add one thing?
So in research for this I kindof looked at like local
superstitions, but that led memore to like ghost stories and
local hometown beliefs or whathave you.
So I think I'm gonna delve alittle bit more into that, but
if anybody has their own locallike ghost stories or something

(01:46:23):
like that, that'd be awesome to,to hear from you

Jen (01:46:26):
guys too.
It would be so awesome.
Yeah.
Ya and I have talked off Mic, itwould, I would love to be able
to do a listener stories sort ofthing.
That would be absolutelyamazing.
So if you want to, to emailsomething in or get in touch on
social media or if you want tojoin us and tell the story
yourself, that can be arranged.
Good.
Yeah, that would be fun.

(01:46:47):
I always think it's, you knowReally fun when the person that
maybe has experienced it, youknow, yeah.
I have a few of our ownexperiences with the unexplained
and paranormal.
So we'd be happy to, to chime inshare.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Thanks.
That's awesome.
All right, well, thanks.
All right.
And we will see you next time.

Yasmine (01:47:09):
Bye.
Bye.

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