good fortune

“Bird poop brings good luck!
There is a belief that if a bird poops on you, your car or your property, you may receive good luck and riches. The more birds involved, the richer you’ll be! So next time a bird poops on you, remember that it’s a good thing.”
~Bird Poop Expert

What about if a single bird poops on your head while you’re driving in your car? You know, moving target and all. That feels like a whole lotta good luck coming your way—along with super silky hair, right?

I’m about to talk about poop, a lot!
Bird poop to be exact, so if you’re eating your eggs, best to put down your fork right about now. Or oatmeal or yogurt for that matter. Just stop eating until you’re finished reading, okay? Studies have shown that reading while eating can lead to something serious and most likely deadly, like choking while laughing, so in essence, I just saved your life.
You’re welcome.

And now, back to the bird poop.

Many people the world over believe that if a bird lets loose on you, then good things are coming your way. One idea is that it’s a sign of major wealth coming from Heaven (the place where ALL real wealth resides), based on the belief that when you suffer an inconvenience (like a head full of bird shit), you’ll have good fortune in return.

The most popularly held belief is that if a bird hits your noggin, it is so lucky, so random and rare (statistically speaking it is rarer than being hit by lightning), how can a lottery win be far behind?

A Case in point — and true story:

Can a head full of bird poop be lucky, you ask?
A Bay of Islands man swears it is, after winning $100,000 on an Instant Kiwi ticket. The man said a bird recently pooped on his head, and his friends told him it was a sign of luck coming his way.

“This win gives me the funds to be able to get down there and be able to help out in any way I can in the city’s rebuild,” he said.

Let me just start by saying that the man in the story is WAY more altruistic than I’ll EVER be. Or maybe not. After he pays off his debt and relocates, how much city rebuilding can he do? I’m worried about him and his financial planning abilities. He has to make that money last and $100,000 doesn’t go as far as it used to. Maybe he’ll have the free time to volunteer. Okay. I feel much better now.

Anyhow, on Saturday the hubster and I decided to get a jump-start on Valentine’s Day being that we had flaked, waiting until the last-minute and all the good ideas for Sunday were taken. Left to our own devices, we hopped into the car, put down the top, and decided to drive really fast out of the beautiful, summer-like temperatures and head into opaque whiteness of a foggy purgatory, the beach. Faced with the choice of putting the top back up or leaving fog-ville altogether and going for a big lunch, you guessed it, THE BIG LUNCH WON! (No surprise there).

Winding our way through the tree-lined upscale neighborhoods at a brisk 40 mph (oh, don’t get your panties in a bunch, it wasn’t a school zone and besides, it was Saturday. Nobody drives below 40 mph. on Saturdays), on our way back into town and our search for the perfect kabob, I felt something clobber my cranium.

“Hey!” I exclaimed, hands on my head looking around like a freak. You have to admire my economy with words. Don’t feel bad. I’m a writer.

Anyway…

At first, I suspected it might be space debris or a tiny piece of meteorite, and it was only when hubby, with his two bare man-hands, picked a rather large and thankfully solid piece of avian excrement out of my hair—that I realized my good fortune. Lottery WINNER!

Can I just take a moment to thank my husband for his courage, strong stomach and lack of any real hygienic awareness? (He’s French). You are my hero and I will split the money with you AFTER I rebuild a city.

Needless to say, when the laughter subsided, (thankfully we share the same warped sense of humor that causes us to laugh at another’s misfortune), we hightailed it to the diviest Liquor Store we could find (because everybody knows THAT is where REAL wealth resides — not Heaven), and bought us some Power Ball, Super Lotto and Mega Millions tickets —and a box of Triscuits—the Rosemary and olive oil kind.

Then with big shit-eating grins on our faces (that’s an idiom, not literally, mind out of the gutter people, Ewwww), we drove to lunch.

Lottery or not, nothing says LOVE like picking bird poop out of your beloved’s hair—so I’m already a winner!

Love you my Big Handsome!

I know. You guys envy my life of glamour and romance. What can I say? I’m one lucky girl. Maybe YOU had a better Valentine’s Day than me? Huh? I don’t think soooo but I’ll listen!

Carry on,

xox

You Guys!
I’ve started playing this new game recently. Actually, I’m obsessed with it.

It’s called seeding. No, I’m not planting wildflowers, I’m planting money$.

Yes, you heard me, I’m leaving money on the ground wherever I go.

It’s a practice that’s been around for a while, and I was recently reminded of it by something written byPam Grout of “E-Squared” fame.

The idea is to leave a few dollars on the ground or indiscriminate places along your daily path. It’s more than just leaving a few extra bucks in the Starbucks jar, it involves the element of surprise.

You know the thrill you get when you find twenty dollars in the pocket of a jacket you haven’t worn in a while?
I do the happy dance when that happens because I love an unexpected windfall. Hey, who doesn’t?

What about finding money on the ground?
I used to find dollar bills or wads of cash on my hiking trial on a regular basis. It made me feel lucky and special and …rich.

And that’s the point.

I don’t really have the extra money to be throwing around right now, but I’m getting such a rush from this game that I can’t help myself.

I wrapped a five dollar bill inside of a one dollar note because of the wow factor. That happened to me recently and it made my day.
I thought I found a couple of bucks but as I unpeeled the wad each bill got larger. It was twenty-eight dollars in all –– an absolute found fortune and it bought my friend and me lunch!

I’m a firm believer in what goes around comes around, but I swear you guys, that’s actually secondary to how much fun this is, picturing people finding your little seed money. (You WILL start finding money BTW.)

Trust me, NO ONE is so jaded that finding some cash doesn’t make them smile.

What I know for sure is that the money finds it’s way to the people who need it. That’s the intention behind this little experiment, so don’t be worrying that Joe Fat Cat is gonna run away with your seed money. It ain’t gonna happen, so don’t use that as an excuse.

Believe me, the ones who find it will be extremely grateful. They will feel blessed and fortunate and lucky. Those are the seeds you’re planting. What a gift you’ve given them –– and yourself.

Try it. A couple of dollars isn’t going to make or break you and I swear –– it’s addictive.

My friend leaves a buck or two under her seat in the subway.

I drop a wad of ones outside my car just before I drive away.

I left three dollars in the park.

I leave dollar bills under tables and booths in restaurants, for the person who sweeps up to find as they close up.

I scatter money on my walk in the mornings (no, I won’t tell you the route).

I live in a walking neighborhood with lots of families, kids and dogs, so I left some cash in front of my house between my driveway and my neighbors and no one found it for a whole day. (As a side note, it’s weird, most people don’t look down at the ground.) Anyway, I kept checking and when it finally disappeared…it felt like Christmas –– I smiled my ass off.

I left four dollars on the floor of my car at the car wash –– and the lovely, honest guy who was vacuuming came and found me to give it back. Don’t you just love humanity?

Drop some seed money this week and write and tell me how it went and how great it felt. You won’t be disappointed.

Carry On,
xox