Twelve, Twelve, Twelve

Today is Wednesday, December 12, 2012, or 12/12/12 for short. Some people believe this repeating-number date brings luck, planning marriages and even scheduling caesarean births for today, while others see it as an ominous sign of an imminent doomsday, coming sooner or later, depending on what calendar you use. There's even a horror movie called "12/12/12", but you won't be seeing it anytime soon--it sounds atrociously bad according to reviews on IMDb. 

Earlier today, at 1:21:02 a.m. in the morning, I missed the once-in-a-lifetime palindromic occurrence of 2012/12/12 1:21:02 = 201212-1-212102, while at 12:12:12 this afternoon, I missed the equally unusual passing of 12/12/12 12:12:12.

All the other repeating-number dates that could occur in my lifetime have already passed me by: 1/1/1, 2/2/2, 3/3/3, 4/4/4, etc. I celebrated the Festival of San Fermin in Pamplona with a big party on 7/7/7, but I don't remember doing anything special for any of the other dates. If it seems strange that all of these dates have occurred in the 12 years starting January 1, 2001, it's not magic, just basic arithmetic. The numbers won't start repeating again until we get past all those years with numbers after 12--such as 2013, 2014, etc.--all the way past the years 2099 and 2100 to the first day of the next year, January 1, 2101. Whoever is alive then gets to enjoy the next set of repeating-number dates, starting over with  1/1/1.

While the whole idea of lucky dates seems a bit ridiculous, I'm glad people are finding reasons to celebrate today, even though I don't have any. My husband's firm is having their Christmas party tonight, but, unfortunately, spouses are not invited. Some people seem excited that the iPhone 5 is available in Dubai starting tonight, for those willing to shell out the equivalent of $750 for the 16GB model. That's a bit pricy for me, especially if I plan on getting Christmas presents for anyone else, so I'll hang on to my iPhone 4 for a while longer.

The main advantage I see to having things happen on repeating-number dates is that you'll be more likely to remember the date. As we get older, those familiar dates for birthdays and anniversaries, which seemed so unforgettable in our youth, start to fade and no longer spring to mind so quickly. It's a good thing I have a smart phone with a calendar app that helps me keep dates straight.

Numbers can be fascinating, however, even if math wasn't your favorite subject. Here are Twelve Notable Twelves, as published today in USA Today:

12 months in a year.
12 hours on a clock face.
12 inches in a foot.
12 strikes to bowl a perfect game.
12 people have walked on the moon.
12 face cards in a deck.
12 days of Christmas.
12 apostles of Jesus.
12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous.
12 jurors in felony trials.
12 signs of the Zodiac.
12 pairs of ribs in most humans.

Source: The Cincinnati Enquirer

Hey USA Today! You missed a few. What about the 12 Olympian gods? 12 labors of Hercules? 12 sons of Jacob? 12 tribes of Israel? 12 Imans? The Big 12? The G12? 12 members of OPEC? The 12-tone technique? 12 grades of high school? 12 Angry Men?

Better stop there, since it's getting late, and I need to get this posted before the big date passes. After which, it will promptly be forgotten (like the bad movie version), since I have nothing to celebrate. Cut!