#unlucky

Have you ever read your fortune cookie slip and thought “Where on earth does this kind of thing come from??” There are many Chinese superstitions that don’t make sense, but if so many people believe in them, doesn’t it make you want to know what they are? Chinese culture has a strong emphasis on superstitions which often influence a person’s daily life. It’s fair to assume that luck and wealth are a common concern for Chinese people, so it’s not surprising that many of these sayings have to do with that. None of these are scientifically proven, so just take them light-heartedly for a enjoyable mid-day read.

1. Twitching on the left eyelid forecasts fortune; twitching on the right eyelid forecasts misfortune.

You’ve probably experienced your eyelids twitching and wondered why. This superstitious saying has become ingrained into many Chinese people’s minds. If it’s your right eyelid, be careful of a small misfortune that might happen soon. But if your left eyelid twitches, smile and know that you’re about to receive some money.

2. You lose wealth when you shake your leg.

This is one of many examples from the Chinese Feng Shui belief. Many find it stress-releasing to shake their legs, but according to Feng Shui, you’re losing your fortune whenever you shake your legs. If you wanted to get rid of this habit but find it hard to, think about your bank account and this Chinese saying. It just might help.

3. Sometimes it’s better not to give.

Watches. This has to do with the pronunciation of the word “watches” in Chinese. It’s considered ominous to receive a watch on one’s birthday, since “gifting a watch” sounds similar to “sending off the dead” in Chinese. Both are pronounced “Song Zhong”.

“Umbrella” and “lose/fall apart” also sound alike in the Chinese language (“San”). It’s considered inappropriate to gift an umbrella to a friend or significant other, which insinuates that your relationship will fall apart.

4. The unlucky number 4.

The number 4 in Chinese is homophone for “death.” Thus, just like Americans’ attitude towards the number 13, Chinese skip level 4 in their buildings and avoid the number 4 in their lives.

Similarly, 8 is the lucky number since it sounds similar to “fa,” which means to be prosperous.

5. Stepping on manhole covers will cause misfortune.

My deepest fear of living in New York is that one day I’ll fall through the basement entrances covered by two thin iron boards. But here’s an excuse to being scared of those – some Chinese believes that manhole covers are soaked with evil spirits and stepping on them lead to bad luck.

6. One should wear red during one’s “ben ming nian” (本命年)

Like the western 12 astrology signs, China has 12 sheng xiao（生肖）or animal zodiac signs, according to the Lunar calendar. The year of your animal zodiac is called your “ben ming nian”（本命年). Red is believed to be a jubilant and auspicious color. Thus wearing red during one’s “ben ming nian” is a long-kept tradition that is meant to make the year particularly prosperous. Think about it as an all-year-long Christmas.

2017 is the year of Rooster. Find out what your animal zodiac is here.

So I was meeting a friend after I’d been for drinks at a wine bar in sanjou with a girlfriend. I wasn’t drunk or anything but we’d had about two bottles between us. So my other friend - let’s call him K - was coming to pick me up on his motorbike which is an american style so he was waiting for me outside a conbini.

So I’ve ridden bikes before so many times. So I make to sit on the back and the muffler on that bike was much higher up than any other I’ve ridden before. Me being a total clutz my bare leg got completely stuck to the burning hot exhaust pipe (after K had been doing over 100kmp/h just 5 minutes ago). I figured it was nothing so didn’t look at my leg for about ten minutes but then noticed my entire right leg was like shaking violently.

And then I saw the gross giant blister that was already there. Second degree burns woohoo!
This was three days ago and unfortunately I was scared to wash it or do anything for two days but yesterday I literally could walk anymore so I went to the dermatologist.

He said it should heal in two months and probably no scarring but pigmentation that will fade over time. Also there was some damage to minor veins in my leg so that’s why I can’t put any pressure on it (I.e walk properly) without severe pain. I want crutches for the first time in my life haha.

I would upload a picture but it’s too gross.

I doubt you guys wanna see that.

Anyway K has been helping me out- took me to the doctor/ brought me to yakiniku in a taxi (lol that made me feel better) / helping around the house. Unfortunately he’s going to Tokyo on Monday to continue his job hunting interviews but will be back by Tuesday.

Know your bike mufflers, kids!

Roses have thorns too silly.

Poland.
 
1655: Sweden invades Poland with the help of the Tartars and Cossacks. Poland is devistated. A population of 10 million is reduced to 6 million. 
 
1700s: Russia, Prussia and Austria fight over Poland. They settle the dispute by dividing Poland into thirds.
 
1791: Catherine the Great invades Poland to break up its new democracy.
 
1793: Russia and Prussia take over half of what is left of Poland.
 
1795: Poland is non-existent for the next 123 years.
 
1870s: Russia attempts to eradicate Polish culture, making Russian the official language in the Russian partition. Prussia does the same in their portion of Poland.  
 
1890s: Poland experiences mass emigration due to poverty. Four million out of 22 million Poles emigrate to the United States.  This good luck for America.  
 
1915: World War I: Poland becomes a front. Poles were forced into the Russian, German, and Austrian armies and forced to fight against one another.

1919: The Polish-Soviet War.
 
1926: Pilsudski makes himself dictator of Poland.
 
1930s: Poland signs a nonaggression pacts with Germany and the Soviet Union.
 
1939: Germany and the Soviet Union sign a nonaggression pact.
 
1939: Hitler and the Soviet Union invade Poland. Mass arrests, executions, and exiles begin.

1940: The Katyn Massacre was a mass execution of Polish nationals carried out by the Soviet secret police. The massacre was approved by Stalin. The number of victims is estimated at about 22,000, 
 
1941: Poland remains under the Nazi regime for the next three years. Many Poles are deported to labor camps. The Polish intelligentsia are executed. The Germans exterminate Poland’s three million Jews.  

1941: The Nazis also killed roughly five million gentiles as part of Generalplan Ōst.

1944: The planned destruction of Warsaw occurred while Russian “rescuers” prevented the Allies from helping. The capital was destroyed, every monument, every historical building, every church, every library and the entire national archives.  The city was rebuilt by the Soviets into a soulless grey nightmare during the Cold War.
 
1945: The Soviet Union, the United States and Great Britain meet at Yalta and agree to leave Poland under Soviet control.
 
1990: Prices in Poland rise by 250%, with incomes dropping by 40%.

2010: A Polish plane crashed in Russia killing all 96 people on board, including the president and former president, the chief of the Polish General Staff, the president of the Bank of Poland, Poland’s deputy foreign minister, 15 members of parliament and senior members of the Polish clergy.  Russian involvement is suspected by many.  

To sum it all up and to show Poland’s resilience, their national anthem is “Poland is not yet Lost”, which kind of makes me want to cry.

By Glenn Watson on Quora.com

So, during the exam, one of the computer in the lab didn’t work. The guy sitting there was panicking, so I offered him to use my laptop if he can find a mouse. The next thing you know, the guy BLATANTLY copied my entire exam (the TA showed me. Apparently, he took pictures of my screen then replace my name with his. It obviously look like a copy. Note that my exam was done on the lab computer, not the laptop. I really have no idea how he can take those pictures. Cheaters have superpower, I guess). Now, I have a 20 pts deduction on my head because the instructor thought that I let that guy do that. Need to talk to the professor tomorrow morning, and another final is in the afternoon. I wish my life can stop being a soap opera ; (

donkamatic:

type “i am” in the tags and whatever comes up first is your new mandatory kin