WELCOME
FORESTRYJOURNAL.CO.UK MAY 2018 3FROM THE
EDITOR
LETTER
A
RE you superstitious?
Last month was the first of the
year that featured a Friday the
13th. For many, this fills them with
dread. However, there is no real
evidence that Friday the 13th is unluckier
than any other Friday... or any other day,
date or whatever, take your pick.
What I didn’t realise is that the fear
of Friday the 13th actually has a name,
though not one you can easily pronounce.
‘Friggatriskaidekaphobia’ (I did warn
you!) comes from Frigg, the Norse goddess of wisdom after whom
Friday is named, and the Greek words triskaideka, meaning 13, and
phobia, meaning fear.
The bad news is that all years will have at least one Friday the
13th. The good news is that there cannot be more than three Friday
the 13ths in any given calendar year. 2018 has two, the next being in
July. This is reportedly the date of the US President’s visit to the UK.
Mr Trump will hold talks with Mrs May, says Downing Street, with
further details to be ‘set out in due course’. The popular press have
already dubbed it ‘Nightmare on Downing Street’.
Researching Friday the 13th, of more relevance was the fact that,
since 1995, Finland has dedicated one Friday the 13th in a year to
observe National Accident Day. The day aims to raise awareness
about safety – on the roads, at home, and at the workplace.
What a good idea that is. While I know there will be many that
say we should be (and are) raising awareness every day, couldn’t
we adopt this idea and have a preventing accidents day? April
28th was, apparently, World Day for Safety and Health at work, the
International Labour Organisation’s campaign to promote safe,
healthy and decent work around the globe – did you know?Margaret Lunn, Editor
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