Is it live or is it…you remember that. Everybody who’s anybody can finish that line. But how about, is it a number or a numeral?

The same internet search came up with these two answers:

• “A numeral is a symbol or name that stands for a number. Examples: 3, 49 and twelve are all numerals. So the number is an idea, the numeral is how we write it.”
• “Number is expressed with digits, while a numeral is a word describing a number. For example: four is an example of a numeral and its digit representation: 4 is a number.”

I’m not going to identify who said what because I’m a nice guy and I don’t want to start an internet war. But come on guys, this is a little basic math, versus arithmetic. If we can’t even figure out what makes a numeral a numeral, or is that a number, how can we hope to understand numerology?

Well, just because I really do have that kind of time, I ran another internet search and turned up this definition of numerology.

Numerology is the study of particular numbers, such as a person’s date of birth, in the belief that they may have special significance in a person’s life.

If that’s the case, that it is “the study of particular numbers” then why isn’t it numberology? Hmm? There are sites on the internet that can give you a daily numerology reading. But I ask you, yes you the numerologists of the world, oh why, yes why, do I need a daily reading if my birthdate never changes? Hmm?

Who remembers dream books? Have a dream, look it up, and see into the future. The biggest draw to the dream books of yore were the dream numbers.  Aha!! Numbers again! Yes, have a dream, look it up, see what number it represents, and find out what number to play in the daily lottery. Of course everybody has different dreams and different dreams mean different numbers, but only one lottery result is announced per day. Just how do you account for that, numerologists of the word? Hmm? Maybe because they should have been playing numerals instead!

To be perfectly honest, I could case less about numerology but something rattled around in my brain a few weeks ago when I saw this on my dashboard.

What was really significant about this was it happened right at startup, before I had the car in gear and out in traffic, when I could actually take out my phone and snap a picture of it. And I did! And I got to thinking, all those twos, or actually all those 2s must mean something.

Now as I said, I could case less about numerology but these were numbers. Maybe I was on to something when I brought up numberology. Who case what the numerologists say, what does the number mean? So I did some research and dug this up.

Number 22222 is a reassuring message that wonderful things are on the way if you maintain your emotional stability and keep your attitude positive.

Hmm. “Wonderful things are on the way.”

Let’s add a little context. As I said, this was a few weeks ago, actually a month ago, just about the time the PowerBall was sitting at $2,000,000,000.00. That’s a bunch of zeros but it starts with a 2! And the tickets cost $2. And I was staring at the number 22222 taunting me with “wonderful things.”  Now I ask you, what things are more wonderful than dollar bills when they add up to 2 billion of them?

So, I took 2 dollar bills out of my pocket, and then I reached in a second time and took out 2 more dollar billers, and I bought 2 tickets for 2 chances at 2 billion dollars based on the magic number reassuring me of wonderful things, 22222. And it worked! Yes, oh ye of little faith, it worked! On both of those tickets, those 2 tickets, those 2 chances at 2 billion dollars, were 2 matching numbers to the winning numbers drawn. Sigh. Two. Err, 2.

You know what you get for matching 2 numbers? A receipt for $2.

Twice.

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Don’t wait for January to make resolutions. Resolve to do something positive right now, while we still have a whole month to get a running start on a Happy New Year. The goal is to remember there really are good things that happen to us every day, and then to remember them every day! Read more about this in our blog at ROAMcare.org. See you there!

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