Today is 8-8-8!
Today is 8-8-8!Sorry to bother you but as I have every year since January second of 2002, I must write to you this year on 8-8-8 to celebrate the number 8.
As a kid I knew that I would live through these dates. I thought about it back on July 4, 1976- that I would live through dates like 8-8-88 and even 01-02-03. So I HAVE TO acknowledge this mile stone. The passing of 08-08-08 is particularly important because as a kid I knew why 6 was afraid of 7. Well because seven ate nine.
SOOOOO. This year's missive is brought to you by the number 8.
There are 8 planets after all (sorry Pluto I had nothing to do with it)
When we count -- we count in base 10 because we have ten fingers. (The Myans, they counted in base 2 because they didnt wear any shoes.)
As for me, I learned to count from Sesame Street only it was confusing because the count in Sesame street only had four fingers. I thought he should be counting in base 8.
Most cartoon characters have 8 fingers.
This has left me confused I learned to count in base 11 because I had my hands in my pockets.
In the end there are ten types of people in this world.
Those that know Binary and those that don't.
By the way, in binary 8 is 1000. A grand number indeed.
It is two cubed how bout that? It is the atomic number of Oxygen.
Ooops, I could have had a V-8. hows that for an advertising slogan?
I have an idea lets make a health drink and name it after a muscle car engine. "That thing got a hemi?"
The real reason we need to celebrate the number 8 is that after 8 years we are finally getting rid of the little "W"easel.
As I look into my majik 8 ball and see that he finishes without impeachment he will be only the 12th full 8 (in a row) year presidents.
Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Jackson, Grant, Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Ike, Reagan, and Clinton. (Grover Cleveland served 8 years but not in a row)
The number 8 sideways is the symbol if infinity. Perhaps because the number 8 represents what is beyond time for there are 7 days in a week.
I always thought that was funny when I played 8-ball. Depending on how the ball is sitting you say "infinity in the corner pocket."
In Christianity, Jesus speaks in The Sermon on the Mount of the eight Beatitudes.
- The poor shall have lodging in the kingdom of heaven.
- The Mourners shall laugh.
- The hungry fed.
- Those persecuted for seeking righteousness shall inherit the kingdom of heaven.
- The meek shall inherit the earth (perhaps because they won't complain about what everyone else did to it.)
- The merciful will themselves obtain mercy.
- The pure of heart will see God
- The peacemakers will be known as the children of God.
In Buddhism The Dharma Wheel has 8 spokes. The Buddha's principal teaching -- the Four Noble Truths expands to The Noble Eightfold Path. The branches of the Eightfold Path are embodied by the Eight Great Bodhisattvas (Manjushri, Vajrapani, Avalokiteshvara, Maitreya, Kshitigarbha, Nivaranavishkambhi, Akashagarbha, and Samantabhadra)
The Jewish religious rite of brit milah is held on a baby boy's eighth day of life
Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish holiday that starts on the 25th day of Kislev.
In Hinduism, The Goddess Lakshmi has eightfold forms for it is the number of abundance and the eight seats of wealth.
In Daoist mythology there are eight immortals that can assign a tool to give life or destroy evil. The tools are known as "Covert Eight Immortals."
Perhaps this is why the Olympics are starting in Bejing on 8-8-8. Only thats the date on OUR calendar so much for that theory. So maybe it has to do with the fact that they had a bloody civil war in around 300 AD known as the War of Eight Princes.
In Islam, there are eight Angels carrying The Holy Throne of Allah.
There are 88 keys on a piano. There are 8 strings on a mandolin. And a Bazooki, and A Quatro, and ummmm. A twelve string guitar with four broken strings.
On the musical scale two notes that are 8 whole notes apart -- or an octave - are known as the same note.
I first learned this while listening to "Eight Days a Week" on 8 -Track.
There are "eight maids a milkin."
A stop sign has 8 sides well 10 if you count the front and back.
A figure skater skates in a figure 8.
Steve Young wore #8 for the San Francisco 49ers (4 being of 8 and 9 being one more than 8 hmmm coincidence? I think not.)
My hero, Archie Manning wore number 8 for my beloved New Orleans Saints. His two sons both won super bowls because of it. Archie however, never gave the Saints a winning season. Neither did anyone else though, for a long time.
Cal Ripken, Jr., Joe Morgan, Willie Stargell, Carl Yastrzemski, and Yogi Berra all wore number 8. Dale Earnhardt JR drives car # 8.
My personal favorite is in a festive production when the follow-spot "Ballyhoos" through the audience it follows a figure 8 pattern. Therefore 8 is the number of "Fabulous."
There are 8 ounces in a cup, 8 pints in a gallon and 8 furlongs in a mile.
"Section 8" refers to crazy and I have always loved the game crazy 8s.
8 legs on a spider, 8 arms on an Octopus. I wonder if they are related.
"Oct" ober is the 10th month which never made any since to me but I think it had to do with the vanity of some Roman Cesar or another I bet it wasn't "OCT" avia.
Oh by the way, I am writing this while staying in a super 8 motel right now in Eureka, CA.