Thirteen and the odd

W Brewer brewerwa at GMAIL.COM
Fri Nov 29 20:21:29 UTC 2013


<<thirteen-and-the-odd>> WB's random thoughts.
WB:  (1) There are 13 cards in each **SUIT** (spade, heart, club, diamond),
plus the (odd) Joker. Hence the connection with clothing & esp. the
cracker-jack uniform.
(2) Ultimately, all references to 13 go back to the Last Supper & the
superstitions surrounding the number 13 at dinner (one of the diners must
die). "The odd" could refer to Doubting Thomas, who later replaced Judas
Iscariot. (My brain also has <odd Thomas> as meaning a strange man or boy.
I was unaware of the recent 2013 movie "Odd Thomas" until a search a few
minutes ago.)

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org



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