Check in here if you say "Rabbit, Rabbit" on the first of the month.

[swimboy]

I say it first thing when I wake up on the first, for good luck. (I say it at midnight on New Year's just to cover the bases.)

[WCGreen]

1. I dated a girl who did that back in the early eighties...

I scoffed at her...

She later went on to great success and I wallowed due to something I like to call principles...

She looked at life with a precious naivete that I was attracted too and years later when I ran into her again, it appeared she still possessed that certain flair...

[swimboy]

3. I'm glad she was able to retain that as she rose.

Success changes some people. :hi:

[motely36]

2. I've never heard of this before

but of course I lift my feet up whenever I go over railroad tracks.

[Deep13]

4. huh?

:shrug:

[swimboy]

5. It's for luck.

If your first words on waking on the first of the month are "Rabbit, Rabbit" then you'll have good luck for the month. (Or at least you are training a disciplined memory.) It's a more widespread practice than a reasonable person would assume, but it's hard to guess who would do it and how it makes its way into and through the population.

[crispini]

6. Wow, I've never even heard of that.

Interesting.

[In_The_Wind]

7. I'll add that to my things to do list ...

*note to self* remember what day of the month it is ...

say Rabbit Rabbit on the first day of every month ...

[malta blue]

8. I do it too

although the never really thought about it at midnight on new year's.

[swimboy]

9. Cool! At the turn of the millennium party, a friend of mine said it and

then turned to me (he was feeling no pain) and said "We're gonna be SO lucky!"

[swimboy]

10. Kick for night crew.

[Lars39]

11. I remember reading about doing that in a Trixie Belden book.

:)

[swimboy]

12. I read about it in an Edward Eager book, then we moved next to a

British family where the kids said "White Rabbit"

[Reciprocity]

20. I love Trixie Belden and have all the books.

I bought most of the hardback books as an adult from junk shops.

[Misunderestimator]

13. never heard of that... freaky

I like black-eyed peas on new year's though, so who am I to say? :)

[swimboy]

14. My family does that. We're not superstitious about a lot, but

if we're traveling on New Year's Day we have a can of black-eyed peas with us.

[bigwillq]

15. My mom says rabbit

when a new month begins. I never got into it though. Just thought it was silly. But carry on! :)

[AussieDave]

16. For me, it's "white rabbits"

and "a pinch and a punch for the first of the month" (and you actually do it to someone, preferable not a stranger)

and at New Year's, my Mom makes a big pot of black-eyed peas.

[seaglass]

17. I did it this morning even though I never heard of it before.

One good thing already happened.:-)

My daughter is po'd that I didn't tell her about this last night though.

[yellowcanine]

18. I don't get it. Why "rabbit"? Why not "mouse" or "duck"?

[Reciprocity]

21. superstition

Rabbit's Foot
Rabbits and hares were considered very lucky animals as they were associated with spring and the return of flowers and other plants. Spring was also a time of fertility and so rabbits were considered good luck to be seen running through the fields. To see a rabbit running through your yard meant that it would be a good year to have children or that your garden would be especially fertile this year.

The manner in which rabbits run gave birth to the superstition about rabbit's feet. Apparently their unusual stride amkes the back feet touch the ground ahead of their front feet and so the back feet were considered especially lucky.

For luck to had, however, the original owner must give their rabbit's foot away and it would be the receiver of the gift that would also be the recipient of the good fortune. If the owner kept the foot for himself, he would be visited by bad luck. If the recipient of the rabbit's foot lost his lucky charm he would also be visited with bad luck.


Other Superstitions for Rabbits:

It is good luck for a rabbit to cross your path

Seeing a white rabbit is a death omen

Seeing a black rabbit is unlucky

Seeing a rabbit on the way to work is unlucky

If you dream about a rabbit it means you will be visited by misfortune

Wearing rabbit-skin socks protects against pleurisy

A child who eats rabbit brains will improve his or her behavior!

Seeing a rabbit cross behind you means bad luck is on its way

A rabbit running down the street means there will be a fire in the neighborhood

When sitting around a campfire, saying "white rabbit" will make the smoke go in another direction

To predict the coming winter, if you see a rabbit with a thick coat, expect a hard winter; a rabbit with a thin coat means the winter will be a mild one

[Reciprocity]

19. Except we say white rabbit.

Welsh custom is to say 'Rabbits' or 'White Rabbits' either once or three times on the first day of the month as a good luck charm. It must be the first word (s) said in the morning or you've just blown your opportunity for the next thirty days.

[CBHagman]

22. A friend told me about that in high school.

And I've said it ever since. I lost touch with this friend, but the custom lingers on.

[dback]

23. Oh my God, I did that this morning!

As many of you know, I lost a good friend in March, my mom died in a climbing accident in July, and we had an incredibly rough move/transition to a new state in September.

Over the past weekend, I found out my teaching credential is probably delayed until the end of the year (so I'm unemployed, but not eligible for unemployment benefits), a check bounced, and three of my screenplays I'd entered in a "sure thing" contest were rejected.

I figured, what the hell! I could use some good luck! :)