時事新聞:你是個迷信的人嗎？

摘要：在中國許多人相信迷信，比如看風水，占卜，算命等等；在國外也同樣充滿着迷信，請看以下相關報道

It's been a busy week for the superstitious. Today is Friday the 13th. There was also a full moon on Wednesday.

I'm not a very superstitious person, but I've taken a few precautions to help prevent jinxing future events. For instance, many Jews, including myself, forgo having baby showers or buying baby gear before the infant is born. It's to help avoid bringing bad luck to the birth of the child not counting your chickens before they hatch.

Following this superstition wasn't exactly the most juggle-friendly thing to do; it meant more sleepy late-night trips to Babies-R-Us and Target to buy gear after our son was born. But on the plus side, our son was indeed born healthy and happy and we probably ended up with less useless gear since we could wait to see what we really needed.

The workplace is also full of superstitions designed to ensure good, productive days or keep away the bad times. Salespeople keep lucky talismans on their desks to help make their numbers. Doctors and nurses have a wide range of beliefs; some hospital professionals are fearful, for instance, of using the word 'quiet,' worrying that it will lead to the opposite result an outbreak of trauma. Many athletes and actors also folllow a wide range of superstitions, including listening to the same, signature song before each game or performance, or avoiding uttering the word 'Macbeth' in a theater, for fear of unleashing bad luck. Such superstitions are typically harmless, but they could slow down a juggle, if they became too time-consuming.

Readers, are you superstitious, at work or in general? Have your superstitions ever helped or hindered your juggle?

對迷信的人來說，三月份的第二週是個多事之秋。那周的週五正好是13號，週三還出現了滿月。

我不是一個非常迷信的人，但也會採取一些預防措施避免招來黴運。舉個例子，包括我在內的很多猶太人都不會事先辦寶寶慶祝會，也不會在嬰兒出生之前購買嬰兒用品。這是爲了避免給嬰兒出生帶來晦氣──不要在小雞孵化之前清點雞蛋數量。

遵循這種迷信並非是最有利於平衡工作與生活的事；對我來說，這意味着兒子出生後，有更多的時候，我得睡眼惺忪地半夜跑到Babies-R-Us和Target商店去買嬰兒用品。但從好的方面來說，我的兒子的確健康快樂地出生了，我們可能也減少了無用裝備的添置，因爲可以等到兒子生了以後看看到底需要什麼。

工作場所也同樣充滿着迷信，人們希望這能保證日子好運高效或是遠離壞時光。推銷員會在桌子上擺護身符，幫助他們完成業績。醫生和護士會有各種各樣的忌諱；例如，一些醫院人員會避諱使用“安靜”形容醫院氣氛一詞，擔心這會招來大量的急診病情。很多運動員和演員也有着五花八門的迷信，包括在每次比賽或演出之前聽着同一首成名曲，或是避免在劇院說到“麥克白”(Macbeth)，害怕這會令人倒黴。此類迷信通常都是無害的，但如果變得耗時太長，就可能會影響效率。

讀者們，你們在工作或是生活中迷信嗎？你們的迷信是否帶來幫助，或是礙事了？