Friggatriskaidekaphobiaafflicts millions of people when Fridays fall on the 13th day of a calendar month. These Friday-the-13ths, like today, happen justy1 to 3 times in each of our solar laps.
I am a self-proclaimed scaredy-cat. So I don’t like or watch Jason Voorhees attack people at summer camp, or view Freddy Krueger scissoring folks on Elm Street…
Credit: Gemini.Google.com
Superstition
Like many notable days in our zany world, including tomorrow’s Valentine’s Day, the rest of the story about their origins is fascinating.
Our Greek word origin comes from triskaideka, meaning 13, and phobia, meaning “fear”.
Irrational, intense fear of the number 13, particularly when it lands on a Friday, started with Christian traditions about a 13th guest at Christ’s Last Supper. Good Friday wasn’t all that good for three people crucified on a Friday, was it?
Not to be outdone, Scandinavian mythology asserts that a trickster named Lodi showed up as guest #13 at a party before bad things happened to good people. This was definitely not a case of wintry hygge!
This superstitioncauses avoidance of the “baker’s dozen” floor number in buildings like Hilton hotels, shown on this elevator panel here:
Some commercial airline flights skip row 13, and our daily lives can be impacted financially or mentally. Wedding planners tend to avoid Friday the 13th, and some frigga-fearful folks will not fly on Friday the 13th.
As the lyrics of a classic song by Stevie Wonder go, seven years of bad luck for things you don’t understand can become the way.
What would Emerson share?
You may recall that I share written pearls from a forbear of mine, Ralph Waldo Emerson. Well, my great-great-great uncle shared that we should “break through cobwebs of fear“. Sounds appealing – yes?
I offer yet another Frosty acronym for you to ponder:
False
Expectations
Appearing
Real.
This beckons the question, “What about you, Koach Dave?”
My mini-fears?
I get white-knuckled and knee-buckled when I am at a height where I can see over the edge like a restraining rail at the Empire State Building’s observation deck, or see clear to the ground or waterline – like walking on the “catwalks” from the flight deck of an aircraft carrier.
An episodic dream in my REM sleep is that I miss flights or classes. I have read that “missing movement” is a common dream and fear of sorts.
One Newsweek report offered that “Planes take off, and rise higher and higher and take you places, so the dreams of missing a plane likely represent the pressure to accomplish something that will ‘take off’ and help you rise in your career or reach a high goal before it is too late.”
Could it be a Frosty case of FOMO, or that Fear of missing out?
And/or is it my quest to promote the big KAHUNA movement to Keep America’s Healthspan UNAbated?
I sense that these answers are YES.
Dream on, and believe in achieving. Forego Friggatriskaidekaphobiaand work your way through cobwebs of false expectations as I do.
Greetings, and thanks for following these #strongtosave posts…
Before we consider my cryptic title, please tip your hat to the lone dozen survivors of the attack on Pearl Harbor on that fateful Sunday morning, December 1941.
God bless this special dozen of centenarians for what they endured. We are indebted to them, and to the millions of service veterans who wore, wear, and will wear the fabric of our country in wartime and peacetime.
Can we agree that No one wants to catch Crabs?
Full disclosure:
I stand before you with a malignant disease, yet with the prospect of thriving and striving for a very long time…My words are words of conditional hope for coping and beating a dis-ease. They are cancers far more insidious than mine, as they are usually visible.. .See something, say something – right?
Please stay with me as your tour guide on this journey from ancient Egypt, to Hippocrates, to the Dermatology clinics of America that help some of us fend off America’s top Cancers.
Under My Skin
A decade ago, a Navy Dermatologist noted, then biopsied a freckle on the back of my left calf.
He offered, “I don’t think this spot is anything, yet let’s biopsy it – just in case…”
Then, a year ago, a civilian Dermatologist biopsied a freckle on the helix of my right ear. “Just in case”…
Are there similarities in my paired parable?
You betcha
I received same-same yet abnormal messages – outside office hours – to call them right away.
These skin problems of mine were defining issues with my largest bodily organ – namely my skin. As a six-foot mesomorph, the surface area of my skin is about 2 meters-squared.
Nature and nurture, by these I mean inherited and acquired cell growth that has gone viral, so to speak, are my kryptonite for the balance of my days.
Yes,… I have skin cancers. My first diagnosed skin cancers were about 40 years ago. I’ll likely trend for more for the rest of my days…
As an equal opportunity host for abnormal cell growth, I have “earned” multiple battle ribbons for:
basal,
squamous, and
melanoma cancers.
Plus, I sport more pre-cancerous knife fights and uncomfortable treatment scars than I care to count.
If you could see me now, I have blue eyes, very light skin, and I live in sunny climates. My traits are not exactly a royal hand for winning a card game with harmful UV rays as my adversary.
Nor can you examine the double helixes of my sainted Mom’s DNA after she succumbed to melanoma.
Remember inherited traits? Boy, do they matter. By the way, my younger sister has also been treated for melanoma… Three is bad company for inheritance of “onkos” gene sequences!
El Sol contributes to many, many deaths in our world. Yes, solar rays can inflame our bodily systems in the near-term and for decades after exposure.
Granted, the Universe doesn’t owe you or me anything at all.
So… we should be smart… We need to be smart in an uncaring universe.
We owe ourselves self care that is “in time”, affordable, and effective.
Yes, a PREVENT Defense can help you and me extend our game of life via self care and early interventions!
Back to that largest organ in our bodies, by “real estate” …that expansive Epidermis and its underlying layers… And, back to Crabs….
Did you know that the gent whose oath defines western medicine generated the term “Cancer” 25 centuries ago?
– Good ol’ Hippocrates observed bodily spots that were swollen, hard, and showed radiated blood vessels resembling CRABs or KARKINOS in his language.
– Or, perhaps the image of some “thing” grasping or pinching a body to generate pain factored into his terminology?
If a ancient Greek patient had KARKINOS, her or his treatments might include one of these 3, namely:
1) cauterization,
2) binding the CRAB (Tumor) site with fresh meat, then shifting to grease, honey and lint as topical treatments until the patient recovered, or DIDN’T.
3) Nothing – if the CRAB was growing in a female’s breast region.
Aren’t we fortunate that we have progressed from fresh meat and doing nothing?
I’ll toss in another scary word of Greek origin “ONKOS” meaning Tumor.
Do you remember the IMMACULATE RECEPTION in Pro Football history?
Well, 1 in about 100,000 patients with an ONKOS may miraculously gain Spontaneous Remission.
Yup – 0.001 percent of patients that oncologists treat heal themselves. Get this – The experts don’t know why Spontaneous Remission can occur.
Is the Universe laughing at us?
As laughter can be medicinal in our world, what do you think of this situation in an Oncology Ward…
An Oncologist walks into the exam room with 2 types of news . He says, I have not so good news – you have a tumor .
Our “Good news is that your small tumor has a big sense of humor.” The diseased patient asks, “Really? How do you know?” The oncologist replied: “Because we radiate it… and it lightens up.”
I told my Mohs skin surgeon I was worried. He said, “Stay positive — we’ll shrink the problem together.”
Whether it is nature or nurture that causes cell growth to grow outta control, what I call Fire water can be applied early and with gusto – for pre-cancerous patches and non-malignant, superficial tumors.
Fire water? Informally Yes. Formally no, although I have been tempted to swill an alcoholic fire water as an analgesic in this regimen…
For 35 years, my Dermatologists have prescribed my topical chemotherapies with the official name of Flurouoracil (phonetically pronounced floor-oh-YOOR-uh-sil or in medical shorthand 5-FU).
5-FU has marketing names like Efudix and Carac. 5-FU is a prescription-only topical chemotherapy that treats sun-damaged skin and some early forms of skin cancer. It works by destroying abnormal, rapidly growing cells while doing little harm to our normal healthy skin.
(Parenthetically this chemotherapy is also used for some major malignant cancers inside bodies…)
Well, you may get a Freddy Kruger and/or a bad sunburn appearance for a few weeks, as I do, with my wacko skin issues. This guy “has it easy”.
Keep this water soluble drug away from your eyes as it intentionally causes pharmacological irritation to its applied areas in short order
You just heard that 5-FU (Fire Water or ointment) does not affect malignant melanomas. Yeti, it can deny some squamous cells that can evolve into malignant melanomas.
So, apply (don’t drink 5-FU Efudix) as early as possible.
Accept discomfort and pain to gain an upperhand over non-linear cell growths like mine.
Note: Yes, there are other topical treatments for what 5-FU tackles that involve irradiation with light. I’ve tried those too and naturally nicknamed those as “blue light specials”.
I have nothing against the high income and easy lifestyle that Dermatologists earn for treating my epidermis and dermis.
I am against stupidity, as I showed in my case with my few deep sunburns as a teenager.
If trivial pursuits interest you,
The oldest ONKOS was found in a South African humanoid’s skeleton that was dated to be 1.7 million years old.
Melanomas in the USA had a death rate of about 2 per 100,000 people in 2021, about 8,000 deaths annually… That is a high number, yet Australia and New Zealand have higher incidences. It is good to rank low when melanomas are the morbid matter!
Muerto!
A melanoma death occurs each and every hour in America. I don’t have a precise number or percentage of how many melanomas are preventable. Yet, whatever the number, it is too lofty. We can do better. Let’s start today.
Takeaways?
Cancers are not new. Tumors and Crabs have been diagnosed since 3000 BC.
Most skin cancers are preventable with common sense and avoiding “bad” sun exposures.
When prevention wasn’t present, or when nature picked on you and your BRAF genes, see your medical teams often. I mean that!
By all means, Accept a month of redness and irritation from topical fire water to hopefully avoid the scalpel and malignant tumors that can kill if not treated early.
Be careful out there and protect the largest organ in your physical portfolio!
DF
ps – Conservative MDs want us to apply sunscreen every day, whatever the season or UV level.
As a first Hold On matter, yesterday marked the passage of the legendary performer Brian Wilson. Brian was the father of two members of a great female singing group called Wilson Phillips.
Wait, Wait
You likely know of Brian as the creative keyboard genius for that niche group named The Beach Boys. Brian was not an ancient surfer. Yet he had health issues as many of us do as our calendar years advance. I’d love to see what Brian’s Epitaph will read… Could the etched-in-stone lesson read,
“God Only Knows”?
Date Check
Watching out for black cats, let’s converge on several calendar dates. I’ll list them and then we’ll think about those and then we’ll get to the subject of staying well past 40.
Courtesy of our Red, White and Blue
I selfishly wish that many other nations would choose flag colors that are not “our” red, white, and blue-hues. By my count, 29 nations missed the exclusitivity memo… Oh well, the Good ‘ol US of A is still numero uno as our world’s policeman and proponent of freedoms.
Flag Day is this Saturday, June 14th. Please put out your Colors, or other flags like a Gold Star flag if you had a heroic member of your family die in the service of our country.
Or perhaps you and I hoist the state of California flag for those of us living in the Golden Bear state.
But Wait
Also coming up is the 250th anniversary of our US Army’s founding. Yes, I tip my cover, yet the US Navy is mentioned in the Constitution while no other branch of our wonderful armed forces is.
Huzzah! For our US Navy with its own 250 years of loyal service that good ‘ol Navy George Washington insisted upon.
The Whites of Their Eyes!
We celebrate the 250th anniversary of that gallant yet losing stand on Bunker Hill and Breeds Hill against British invaders on June 17th, 1775.
I do not work for either the Charlestown or Boston Chamber of Conmerce, so this is an unbiased suggestion:
On your next trip to the great city of Boston please visit Bunker Hill and Breeds Hill. Our National Park Service has a magnificent display in Charlestown. Count your steps as you climb the famous Bunker Hill obelisk :). Your heart will acknowledge your aerobic efforts!
FREEDOM TRAIL provides a great stroll if the Baaston weather isn’t too hot or rainy in the summer season. Don’t forget your SPF-15 or 30 when you do.
June is Men’s National Health month
What better time is there to talk about the tragedy of American males committing suicide at a lofty and higher rate than do women.
Perhaps our new Health and Human Services folks will figure out some magic to deal with this wastage of American talent. As we hope – please say something if you see something amiss with someone near you!
Summer’s comin’
We’re approaching the summertime. I can tell because our local sunset is now at 8:00 pm, pacific time. In fact, some of you may have taken a walk under the beautiful Strawberry Moon that just graced our June skies. Those of us in the Northern hemisphere’s mid- latitudes start to see longer days for another week until the Summer Solstice.
Let’s be mindful of hydration – like 8×8 consumption – meaning at least 8-8 ounce cups a day. Enjoy appropriate vitamin D exposure too. Being in nature a very healthy thing for heart, mind and body.
Now I do know that folks in the Upper Midwest are experiencing poor air quality due to terrible Canadian wildfires and prevailing winds that are pushing those airborne fire residues southward. Take care of your pulmonary tissues!
However…
I still encourage folks to figure out a way to safely exercise your body even if you step back on aerobic practices to protect your lungs I encourage you to work inside for your resistance training. And always, always work toward better flexibility and stability as part of your no fall insurance policy rider.
If you thought I was going to gloss over that great American holiday – Father’s Day – on Sunday June 15th in the United States – ha, you’re wrong.
Kudos to perhaps the 100 million American males who are called Dad or who are in a position to be a Dad one day.
It’s not an easy job being a dad. This we know in any day and age. But particularly today it seems that dads have to be Masters of so many things in parallel fashion.
Dads. get in a wonderful workout. I suggest that you don’t wash the car. Don’t do any big chores on your special day. Just my counsel…
Self Care Reigns
Rather, loosen up that Bod with a World’s Greatest Stretch, or WGS for short. Here’s a depiction of an uber-fine movement!
Then, I recommend a long slow distance swim in the pool, or a spin on the exercise rower or on a bike. Or take a long walk, perhaps as a little ruck up a hill to get that heart rate elevated. Then, Dad, you can come back down to your surprise gifts from your kids or main squeeze.
Stay well past forty,
DF
ps. See – I did not offer a dad joke or a dad bod joke. There are certainly many out “there” for you to consider – with or without AI help.
Well, May Gray days have passed for those of us in Southern California. And, with our May flowers brought to bloom, some of those allergenic (achoo) histamines that hit folks like me are lessening.
You won’t get complaints from me for that seasonal advancement, nor for the added “eco” presence of bees and monarch butterflies…
June Gloom in my San Diego region is upon us.
When we wake up to dog day summer mornings in July and August we can reflect that cool and gray days of May and June were appreciated.
About the only downside at our home is lesser power generation and energy storage in our solar panel roof system.
Odds Are
Our newsgram addresses what I call our 1-3-5-7 Summer Span Ex. And yes, I hope that we committed folks will make the most of our longer days in the northern hemisphere to thrive and strive a little bit extra. Even for vacation or staycation time… We have more daylight hours to take charge and move out after a rise and shine and of course making our bed. Do contact me if you want more rationale or context for these Odd number Challenges for June.
1 – Move 15% more each day to get ready for the pool or beach.
3 – Make it a 3-D day!
Move in all three of our body planes daily –
a. Front to back (sagittal movements)
b. Side to side (frontal plane movements) and
c. Twisting / Corkscrew (transverse plane efforts.)
5 – Move your body isotonically with 5 types of resisted movements
Lift things
Push Things
Pull Things
Twist while holding things and
Carry things.
7 – No, I don’t ask you to pursue extra METAs on all seven days of the week, or on the Beatles’ 8 days a week 🙂
I do suggest that you and I take a META holiday one day each week. (I use the term META to mean Metabolic Equivalent of Tasks and Activity.) I made a separate post that details this caloric accounting system for our physical banking.
Again, I don’t mean total skipping of motion on your “off day.”
I do mean a taper day with some stretching, plus balancing acts, so to speak, for spatial awareness/fall prevention, and perhaps a little bodyweight work in your activity of daily life (ADL).
When you resume your HEALTHITUDE movements on the following day, you will be revitalized.
Rest and Restoration are important at any any, yet more so when those calendar years creep up on us. Trust me…
Span Ex
7. And, the last entry in our 1-3-5-7 Rubric is a combination of Upgrade and X-Factors in my new book, Burden? Or Banish!
Are you ready, Healthituders?
Mentalspan (yup – Mind-Body Alignment or MBA reminder to treat your hippocampi well.)
Socialspan (No man or woman is an island – right? The social aspect of pickleball is nearly as important as the physical activity.)
Strongspan (Commit to 2 or 3 dedicated sessions of moving stuff or isometric muscle contractions every week. I do 2X/week, at my calendar age of 72. Gen X or younger may do nicely with 3 resistance workouts weekly.)
Windspan (strive for at least 15% more aerobic motion above our Government’s guidelines). And I quote, “Adults who sit less and perform any amount of moderate to vigorous activity achieve some health benefits.”
PNSspan (enhance parasympathetic feed and restore efforts including restorative sleep, as opposed to chronic fight or flight stressors)
Safespan (Remember that your living to 100 calculator highlights proper use of seat belts, dental floss, and sunscreen. Limit your exposure to forever chemicals, plastics, blue wavelength light, and beware of electronic radiation (5G EMF).
Here’s to your and my daily progress for HEALTHITUDE.
As a refresher, I use eleven (11) HEALTHITUDE letters to encapsulate enablers to Keep America’s Healthspan UNAbated – yup – the big KAHUNA:
Heart
Endocrines (Hormones)
Adaptation
Lungs (Cardiovascular Health and mindful breaths) and Liver function
Transcend for that “lil bit extra” –
Hormesis and Homeostasis
Investment in our physical portfolios
Training
Upbeat Attitude
Desire to move past glothic ways (of sinful gluttony and sloth)
Exercise efficiently and effectively
Stay well past forty,
Dave
Postscript. Here is my “gloomy” humor of this June day to help with our weather-guessing:
“I’m pretty sure the fog is just jealous of how beautiful and sunny our neighborhood is supposed to be.”
Today, in addition to being a ‘ol college roomie’s birthday, marks the 50th anniversary of my Graduation from America’s Naval Academy.
We were sailors then, and are salty veterans now. We had 801 Graduates in our exceptional class on June 4th, 1975. Four years earlier, 1330 young men raised their right hands and made their solemn oaths to protect and defend.
Yes, that is an uncovered me at the right side of this polaroid picture, with a botttle of bubble in my right hand, and with “Ensigns’ “butter bars” on my shoulders. As a newly commissioned officer, I had a monthly pay of $666.00. Those were different days, with Vietnam just evacuated and with a Red Storm Rising in the Cold War. I was in love, yet not yet married to a saint who has tolerated me for 49 years of marriage.
Wayback then, I had just received two awards in addition to my B.S. Diploma. I was a co-recipient of the Rusty Callow Award for Navy Crew. I was one of 7 recipients in my class for “Outstanding Student Athlete” status.
Those were meaningful service recognitions that stick with me to this day.
What does the next half-century 🙂 look like for this 1975 college graduate?
Heck if I know. After all, predictions about the future are hard to make, according to Yogi Berra.
I intend to keep on truckin’ as long as I am able.
A third non-fiction book, to be released this year, is one goal that I will crack a bit more bubbly over.
Stay tuned for more sharings of my big KAHUNA effort – to Keep America’s Healthspans UNAbated. Yes, we can. There is no affordable alternative. TINA.
Stay tuned, keep using motion as your very good medicine, and commit to a thriving and striving campaign as did I.
Safespan (Remember that your 
