Tag Numbers

Numberology

Michael 13 Comments

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.

ABFCA1A1-5418-4F52-94DD-E8500AAE858B

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.

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!

Selfish Is and Selfish Does

Michael 4 Comments
I’ll start right up front apologizing to all my non-US readers. You’re too kind and don’t deserve to play the innocent bystander but you should know from the start that this is not going to be pretty. 
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Now for the rest of you, my fellow Americans, just how incredibly selfish is this country getting! Not the people in this country. The whole darn shooting match. It’s now a national pastime to do whatever you want regardless of consequences. Go to parties, get on planes, play football, go to happy hour. If you’re reading this you are more than likely among to ever shrinking quantity of intelligent, courteous individuals but you probably know more than a few handfuls of whiny, reckless, selfish bastar…er, jerks. I don’t know how it is where you are (which is the polite way of saying things are getting out of control everywhere) but around here, things are getting out of control. For example: 
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Every day for the past 8 days the morning paper headlines have been [State, County, City] Sets New Record for COVID [Infections, Hospitalizations, Deaths] (they rotate the where and the what so you don’t think they just re-ran the same story). Someone on that same front page is the other inevitable headline [Party, Candidate, Congressmen, Senator] [Claims New Voter Fraud, Decries Latest Fraud Claim], sometimes all the above! While the world is falling apart, these imbeciles are busy engaging in playground “did so, did not, did too, make me!” games. Children have more sense than these disgusting, miserable, adolescent excuses for human beings. (Too rough?) 
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It’s gotten to the point that now I personally know seven people who have been tested positive for CoViD-19 and one who died from the infection. Once removed (as in know someone who knows someone) the numbers are greater than 70 infections, over a dozen hospitalizations, and 2 deaths. There were all cautious, all held fast to safe prevention practices, only one was a nursing home resident (one of the deaths), 18 were health care workers or first responders (including the other death), and a handful of other essential workers. These aren’t great numbers when you consider my state is reporting over 424,000 cases and nearly 11,500 deaths but these “numbers” are people I know. They are people I have shared space and time with, who over the years have been to the same church or party or store or hospital as I have been. They are friends and neighbors. They are not Democrats or Republicans, they are not maskers or anti-maskers, they are not cowards or daredevils. They are people. People who relied on public servants to serve their public rather than serving their egos.
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KeepCalmSo, what can we do about this? I’m staying calm but taking names. Oh sure, today I’ll write a couple letters to my so-called representatives in between  checking in on friends and relatives to see how everyone is doing and that my “numbers” aren’t going up. But some day those so-called representatives who today are busy representative themselves will surely run for office again. That’s when the real letter writing campaign begins. That’s when I will start reminding everybody that when they should have been meeting in chambers, representing us working on health initiatives, equipment and vaccine allocations, or financial assistance packages, our so-called leaders were instead meeting in courtrooms and TV studios representing themselves and working on undermining the security and confidence of the country – all in the name of “did so, did not, did too, make me.” 
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I’m sorry, it wasn’t a very pleasant post today. They made me do it.
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5-1/2 Reasons that Numbers are Better than Letters

Michael Leave a comment

Do you remember the Top 40 Countdown? Do they still have a Top 40 Countdown? Who decided on 40? Why not 50? Was it perhaps a conscious attack on the Top Ten? We all have some fascination with numbers. Sometimes that fascination becomes an obsession, sometimes a compulsion, and sometimes a headline writer’s dream.

I noticed something the other day while perusing the headlines on a national news web-site. Once I got past the REALLY BIG BANNERS IN LARGE, BOLD FONTS, about half of the headlines were counting something.  22 Terrible Songs by Terrific Artists, 5 Hottest New TV Shows, 7 Things that Trigger Alzheimer’s. Again, once you get past the REALLY BIG stories, these are the articles that get mouses clicking. Why is that?

I proposed these reasons why we are fascinated with numbers.

1. Numbers are universal. There is no question that numbers are everywhere. And wherever they are, they are almost always the same. “Five” might be “five,” “cinco,” “cinq,” “cinque,” “fimm,” “viisi,” “besh,” or “ezinhlanu,” but “5” is just plain “5.”

2.  Numbers are easier to read than letters. Until they get really, really big, like 1,817,654,427,003 your brain sees, reads, identifies, and processes “117” much faster “one hundred, seventeen.”

3.  Numbers play favorites. Go ahead, ask someone what his or her favorite number is and you will certainly get an answer. Favorite numbers end up in passwords, on security keypads, on roulette tables, and being played in the daily lottery drawing. Ask someone what his or her favorite letter is and you will get a blank stare.

4.  Numbers are memorable. Spirit of 76, Apollo 13, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. All you have to do is think of the number portion and right away you know the significance of what you’re seeing. That’s why ATMs use PINs, not PILs.

5.  Numbers are pleasing to the eye. Seriously, numbers are attractive little devils. Rattle off 36-24-36 and everybody knows exactly what picture to paint in your imagination.

5-1/2. Sorry, there is no 5-1/2 but it sure did make the title of this post more memorable, didn’t it?

Numbers. As the Science Officer aboard NCC-1701 would say, “Fascinating.”

That’s what I think. Really. How ‘bout you?