I know we all joke about how I’m superstitious and I have to put the left shoe on before the right shoe, but I’ve never bought into the whole stigma of “Friday the 13th” being an unlucky day. And this was going to be a post about how I don’t believe in Friday the 13th. At least, that was the plan until I walked passed the TVs in the lounge area around 1 today and discovered that I’ve been horribly wrong this entire time.

Tim Russert died this afternoon and even as I type that statement, my brain cannot process it. I mean, first of all, it’s an election year. You’re telling me he won’t be here to walk me through the election?? I can hardly remember an election without him. Second, I have spent a great deal of my life learning from this is a man. From Meet the Press to special election coverage, he always struck me as that high school teacher (and we all at least one) who was so excited about the subject he was teaching that he got you excited about it, too. Tim made politics interesting to me.

So, this Friday the 13th was a very unlucky day for us all. We lost a wonderful media icon and I think this entire office will agree with me when I say that Tim Russert will be greatly missed.

I don’t know if Friday the 13th is lucky or unlucky, but I do know that it’s just like any other day: There are no guarantees of luck. Whether you get a flat tire or find a $5 bill in the parking lot, it’s like a roll of the dice. But I’ll still put my left shoe on before my right - you know - just in case it does help.

Posted in aka Jana "My name's pronounced 'John-uh'" Sanders Perry | 1 Comment »