Wednesday; Good Luck;

Ladybird a symbol of good luck;

Bona Fortuna;

Luck is merely a name we give to events after they occur which we find to be fortuitous and perhaps improbable.

Cultural views of luck vary from perceiving luck as a matter of random chance to attributing to luck explanations of faith or superstition.

The Romans believed in the embodiment of luck as the goddess Fortuna. 

Lucky symbols are popular worldwide.

The English noun luck appears comparatively late, during the 1480s, as a loan from Low German,  luk, a short form middle High German gelücke.

Luck is a way of understanding a personal chance event. 

Luck can be good or bad

Luck can be accident or chance

Examples of luck:

Break a leg

You correctly guess an answer in a quiz which you did not know.

Fortuna, the Roman goddess of fate or luck, was popular as an allegory in medieval times, and even though it was not strictly reconcilable with Christian theology, it became popular in learned circles of the High Middle Ages to portray her as a servant of God in distributing success or failure in a characteristically "fickle" or unpredictable way, thus introducing the notion of chance.

Rationalists  feel the belief in luck is a result of poor reasoning or wishful thinking. To a rationalist, a believer in luck who asserts that something has influenced his or her luck commits the "post hoc ergo propter hoc" logical fallacy: that because two events are connected sequentially, they are connected causally as well. 

A definition of good destiny is: enjoying good health, having the physical and mental capabilities of achieving set goals in life, having good appearance, has happiness in mind and is not prone to accidents. 

There is also a series of spiritual, or supernatural beliefs regarding fortune. These beliefs vary widely from one to another, but most agree that luck can be influenced through spiritual means by performing certain rituals or by avoiding certain circumstances.

Luck is a form of superstition which is interpreted differently by different individuals. Carl Jung coined the term synchronicity, which he described as "a meaningful coincidence".

Christianity, in its early development, accommodated many traditional practices which at different times, accepted omens and practiced forms of ritual sacrifice in order to divine the will of their supreme being or to influence divine favoritism. The concepts of "Divine Grace" or "Blessing" as they are described by believers closely resemble what is referred to as "luck" by others.

Mesoamerican religions, such as the Aztecs, Mayans and Incas, had particularly strong beliefs regarding the relationship between rituals and the gods.

In these cultures, human sacrifice,  as well as self sacrifice by means of bloodletting, could possibly be seen as a way to propitiate the gods and 

earn favor for the city offering the sacrifice. 

Many traditional African practices, such as voodoo and hoodoo, have a strong belief in superstition. Some of these religions include a belief that third parties can influence an individual's luck. Shamans and witches are both respected and feared, based on their ability to cause good or bad fortune for those in villages near them.

Luck is an important factor in many aspects of society.

Games

A game may depend on luck rather than skill or effort. 

Many countries have a national lottery. Individual views of the chance of winning, and what it might mean to win, are largely expressed by statements about luck. For example, the winner was "just lucky" meaning they contributed no skill or effort.

"Leaving it to chance" is a way of resolving issues. For example, flipping a coin at the start of a sporting event may determine who goes first.

Numerology

Most cultures consider some numbers to be lucky or unlucky. This is found to be particularly strong in Asian cultures, where the obtaining of "lucky" telephone numbers, automobile license plate numbers, and household addresses are actively sought, sometimes at great monetary expense. Numerology, as it relates to luck, is closer to an art than to a science.

Buddhism

Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, taught his followers not to believe in luck. The view which was taught by Gautama Buddha states that all things which happen must have a cause, either material or spiritual, and do not occur due to luck, chance or fate. The idea of moral causality, karma  is central in Buddhism. 

Ex mea sententia; Luck is mere Luck!

©Photo/Text Ts

Tuesday; thoughts...

Why then, can one desire too much of a good thing?

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, As You Like It

©Photo Ts

Monday; Ladybirds; are garden buddies;

Everyday when I get the lettuce from the garden I find these tiny visitors in the leaves.

Gently they are transported back into the garden. 

Ladybirds  are generally loved and cherished by many. Also called ladybird beetles, ladybeetles and ladybugs. They are  a spot of bright, cheerful colour amongst the leaves of plants in the garden. 

They are very welcome in the garden, as they will eat up all your aphids, adults consume 2,500 aphids during their lifetime,  scale insects, mites and other enemies of your plants. Ladybirds also eat flower nectar, honeydew from aphids, or plant material including fungus.

©Photos/ my garden Ts

To attract ladybirds to your garden you need to provide them with food. Avoid using chemicals to control garden insects as ladybirds will arrive to do it for you.

Australia is home to over 500 species of ladybirds. The familiar ones are bright orange or yellow with patterned shells but there are also many other varieties that are black or brown and hairy! Ladybirds are most active in warm weather, and adults can fly long distances to find food or a mate. Ladybird copulation typically lasts for 15-60 minutes but can extend for a few hours or even days.

Ladybirds start life as an egg, go through three larval stages, turn into a pupa and finally become an adult. Some species may have two, three or more generations per year. Ladybird larvae look very different to adults and are confused with other bugs or even scale. Leave little unknown bugs in the garden as they could grow up to be gorgeous ladybirds.

To escape from predators such as birds or even curious humans, ladybirds slide to the edge of the leaf and drop to the ground. If you put your hand under the leaf as you approach, the ladybird could land into your hand. It will hide its legs and antenna under its body, but once it feels safe it will walk around on your hand or fly away.

Many different varieties of Australian ladybirds - they come in lots of different colours and pattern variations. Top to bottom, left to right: Traverse Ladybird, Southern Ladybird, Traverse Ladybird, Common Spotted Ladybird, Tortoise-shelled Ladybird, Fungus Eating Ladybird. Photos, left to right, top row: Arthur Chapman, Donald Hobern, Bill and Mark Bell. Bottom row: All John Tann.

TIP

Lure ladybirds to your garden by making a concoction of honey, water and brewers yeast. Spread it in the garden and ladybirds will come to visit.

The scientific family name for ladybirds is Coccinellidae - which is probably derived from the diminutive of the Latinized Greek word 'Kokkos', meaning a seed or berry (like their rounded shape!). Or it could also come from the Latin Coccinus, meaning scarlet colour.

Link  http://www.backyardbuddies.net.au

Thursday; The red and blue hat;

First born grandson, Lucian, born 1989

The red and blue hat;

I wrote for Lucian 1992

Happy,  Miss Flora sits on her stool

in her hands the knitting of red and blue wool,

First she wanted to knit a mat

but, rather she thought, I knit a hat.

Red and blue stripes and a pompom on top

oh, cry key,  she let some stitches drop,  

Beside her, purring, Miss Kitty the cat

watches the progress of the red and blue hat.

The balls of wool dance up and down 

these movements let Miss Kitty frown,

She blinks and thinks a little play

is fun and makes a better day.

She yawns and stretches and licks her fur,

she lets escape a little purr,

Then a sudden grab for the wool

Miss Flora nearly falls off her stool.

Out of doors and down the street runs the naughty cat

tangled in the wool of the red and blue hat, 

Miss Flora cries stop, is quite aghast,

Miss Kitty her cat is so very fast.

She plays with the wool has so much fun

A neighbour's cat comes too for a run,

Meow, meow let me have a go

the pair of them make quite a show.

They run past the butcher- and baker’s shop

nothing will and makes them stop,   

They pass the church and pass the school

still playing along with the red and blue wool.

Miss Flora is all in a flurry

she really must run and hurry,

She sighs and thinks what am I to do

How will I recover my red and blue wool?

Miss Kitty her cat is nowhere in sight

now, this is Miss Floras plight,

She puts on her shoes, her coat and her hat

and follows the spur of her naughty cat.

She finds the red and she finds the blue

tangled up mess of her beautiful wool,

She finds Miss Kitty curled up in a ball

fast asleep and not sorry at all. 

©Photo/Text Ts

Wednesday; food, glorious food;

Filet steak and Potatoes, always a favourite;

In earlier times it was not usual, quite rare to have menu cards for the guests on the table. 

A historian from the 15th century told, that in 1489 the Duke Heinrich von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel heading the Reichstag in Regensburg, attracted a lot of interest, because at the meal he consulted often a note while he was eating. 

The head cook had written down all the dishes in order to be served. The duke could choose which dishes he liked  and  spare his appetite accordingly for the best ones.

Mixed lettuce leaves from Lilli's garden.

Photos/Text Ts

Link

PoeticTakeaway's;

Tuesday; enjoy!

Love the scots...

Monday; just paper;

The amazing art work of Calvin Nicholls. (This is my favourite)

Link http://www.calvinnicholls.com/