Ladybug Luck

Is finding a horseshoe in the wilderness a good omen? Horseshoes are supposed to bring good luck, but losing a shoe-in-the-mud sounds more like bad luck for the horse. Consider his uneven trudge home, stepping on sharp rocks with his naked hoof, cursing those lazy humans who forced him to haul their tent into the mountains. He may have become lame by the time he got home. How does his bad luck somehow translate into good luck for me?

I've also heard that for a horseshoe to be lucky, it must be placed like a "U" so that the luck doesn't run out. What kind of logic is that? Luck isn't tangible, yet it can be held in place by steel in the right formation? What if I hang my found horseshoe at an odd angle? What then, huh?

Some people consider ladybugs a sign of good luck, possibly because they can eat some garden pests. But if I see a swarm of any kind of bug, regardless of whether the bugs wear an attractive shade of red with cute black spots, I'd take it as an omen to hurry away from the area.

Finding a penny doesn't seem worth much, but is supposed to be lucky. My man, who scoffs at my blog topic and insists on their being no such thing as omens, refuses to pick up a penny unless it is heads-up. He "doesn't really believe it" but still flips over a tails-up coin anyway. I say, bring on the black cats. Or any color cats, really. Aren't kitties wonderful? They should stop making those worthless pennies, anyhow.

I read that pine cones can be considered a sign of good luck. That must be why I'm eager to hike in evergreen forests so often. I also read that mud is a sign of bad luck (especially for the horse that lost his shoe in it), and my hikes are often muddy from rain or snow melt or stream crossings. I guess the prevalence of mud counteracts the abundant pine cones, or else I would be winning all those lotteries that I don't even enter.

I haven't photographed the mud. Would a mud photograph be considered toting bad luck around, or would taking the picture counteract the bad luck? I just can't keep track of these things.

Weather omens are another tough subject. Initially, one might think that sudden dark clouds looming in the sky could be considered a bad omen, especially above timberline, where one's head is the most evident target to the approaching lightning. But, once back in the protective covering of friendly spruce trees (with cones, naturally, like those pictured...hang on, are my spruce cones not lucky? Is it only pine cones that bring good luck? (Yeah, tell that to all the pine trees dying from the recent beetle invasion. (No, not the Beatle invasion. I'm sure Paul McCartney does not want to ravage the pine forests of Western America. In fact, I bet seeing Paul McCartney would be a good omen (unless he was throwing things angrily in my direction because I put him in my blog without permission (but if he was throwing horseshoes, would that be lucky? Would it still be lucky if my windows got smashed in the process? What if my nose got smashed, too? I could perhaps (luckily) sue him for a large settlement that could pay for my reconstructive surgery as well as a few very nice vacations, and I would always have a good anecdote up my sleeve (Did I tell you about the time Paul McCartney broke my nose with a lucky horseshoe?)))))), the cloud-cover can be welcoming. The forthcoming cool breeze and raindrops chase off the swarms of mosquitoes and may eventually result in a beautiful rainbow: an undisputed good luck omen (unless you're a leprechaun whose gold is in danger of being stolen).

If a pronghorn crosses your path, you will have good luck. They don't wear shoes, either, so your nose should be safe.