WINDSOR, Ont. - The number 11 just won't stop following Therese Rose Papineau around - and she's not alone.
Today, on the 11th day of the 11th month in the year 2011, Papineau celebrates her 56th birthday. She was born in '55 - divisible by 11 - 11 years after her mother married, making her the 11th grandchild in her family. Papineau's address and phone number have the number 11 in them, her first two names combined have 11 letters and, like her mother, she gave birth to her daughter after 11 years of marriage.
``None of that was planned in any way. It's all coincidence and it's just very strange how it all happened,'' said Papineau, a retired police officer and entrepreneur who lives in Tecumseh, Ont. ``And as 11/11/11 was coming up, I started thinking about it more.''
Around the world, people have been meeting on Internet message boards, planning weddings and even hunkering down for the end of days. It's all in preparation for a date and a number they're convinced is significant.
A Facebook page for people like Papineau who notice the number 11 popping up at opportune times in their lives, or find their eyes are drawn to it, has more than 632,000 ``Likes.'' Search a little more on the Internet and you'll find people discussing long lists of ways the number 11 was involved in the 9/11 attacks and other historical events.
One of the biggest boosters of the 11 phenomenon is Uri Geller, a United Kingdom-based psychic and television personality known for bending spoons from a distance. Geller said he's received thousands of emails from people touched by the number 11 since posting a lengthy article about its meaning on his website.
Geller said he believes people are drawn to the number 11 ``at times of heightened awareness.'' People like Papineau who find it shows up again and again in their lives have a special gift, he said.
``I think the people who encounter 11/11, they're not better than you or anyone else, but maybe they've been chosen, maybe they're more ready than other people who don't see it. Maybe they're ready to step into that greater reality. Maybe they're ready to lead the way for others into a new way of living, into maybe a greater love or a shift from duality into oneness.''
If that's true, expect Brandon, Nathan and Christopher Peralta to be some pretty powerful people when they grow up. The triplet boys are turning 11 on - you guessed it - 11/11/11.
Their mother, Amy Peralta, said her father, grandfather and uncle all died within six weeks of their birth. She said she's not sure she believes in lucky numbers and mysterious forces, but it's certainly an incredible coincidence the three men were replaced by triplet boys weeks later.
Brandon, however, said he does believe 11 is a lucky number. ``It's my favourite number. I don't really know, it just stands out to me. I've always liked that number,'' he said.
Myron Hlynka, a statistics professor at the University of Windsor, said he likes the number 11, too - but that doesn't mean it has magical powers.
Today, on the 11th day of the 11th month in the year 2011, Papineau celebrates her 56th birthday. She was born in '55 - divisible by 11 - 11 years after her mother married, making her the 11th grandchild in her family. Papineau's address and phone number have the number 11 in them, her first two names combined have 11 letters and, like her mother, she gave birth to her daughter after 11 years of marriage.
``None of that was planned in any way. It's all coincidence and it's just very strange how it all happened,'' said Papineau, a retired police officer and entrepreneur who lives in Tecumseh, Ont. ``And as 11/11/11 was coming up, I started thinking about it more.''
Around the world, people have been meeting on Internet message boards, planning weddings and even hunkering down for the end of days. It's all in preparation for a date and a number they're convinced is significant.
A Facebook page for people like Papineau who notice the number 11 popping up at opportune times in their lives, or find their eyes are drawn to it, has more than 632,000 ``Likes.'' Search a little more on the Internet and you'll find people discussing long lists of ways the number 11 was involved in the 9/11 attacks and other historical events.
One of the biggest boosters of the 11 phenomenon is Uri Geller, a United Kingdom-based psychic and television personality known for bending spoons from a distance. Geller said he's received thousands of emails from people touched by the number 11 since posting a lengthy article about its meaning on his website.
Geller said he believes people are drawn to the number 11 ``at times of heightened awareness.'' People like Papineau who find it shows up again and again in their lives have a special gift, he said.
``I think the people who encounter 11/11, they're not better than you or anyone else, but maybe they've been chosen, maybe they're more ready than other people who don't see it. Maybe they're ready to step into that greater reality. Maybe they're ready to lead the way for others into a new way of living, into maybe a greater love or a shift from duality into oneness.''
If that's true, expect Brandon, Nathan and Christopher Peralta to be some pretty powerful people when they grow up. The triplet boys are turning 11 on - you guessed it - 11/11/11.
Their mother, Amy Peralta, said her father, grandfather and uncle all died within six weeks of their birth. She said she's not sure she believes in lucky numbers and mysterious forces, but it's certainly an incredible coincidence the three men were replaced by triplet boys weeks later.
Brandon, however, said he does believe 11 is a lucky number. ``It's my favourite number. I don't really know, it just stands out to me. I've always liked that number,'' he said.
Myron Hlynka, a statistics professor at the University of Windsor, said he likes the number 11, too - but that doesn't mean it has magical powers.
``Nine, 10, 11, 12, they're all fascinating numbers. Are any of them more fascinating than the others? Well, maybe. But I'm not sure 11 gets into that category.''
Hlynka said the number 11 doesn't pop up in history more often than any other number. He said he tested the claim that leaders frequently have 11 letters in their names by looking at a list of Canada's past prime ministers, finding only two out of 15 met the test.
All the examples cited by Geller and other 11 boosters can be explained by a combination of coincidence and confirmation bias, meaning people tend to notice things that confirm beliefs they already hold and ignore evidence that contradicts them.
``I think it's absurd,'' he said. ``I'll worship all my numbers equally.''
Rob Whent and Louanne Kryk were sufficiently convinced to set their wedding date for 11/11/11. Whent said the idea came to them while they were on vacation in March.
``We said, `That's the date!'' And we called from the poolside,'' he said.
It was available, but they were lucky. Whent said other venues in Windsor were booked long before they called and 11/11/11 is shaping up to be one of the most popular wedding dates in history.
Whent said the date fits nicely with the wedding's unconventional theme.
Whent, an entrepreneur at WEtech Alliance, and Kryk, an assistant foreman at The Windsor Star's press, are celebrating the second marriage for both with a masquerade ball and are donating all the proceeds to the Windsor organization Theatre Alive.
Whent said he's one of those people who finds his eyes drawn to the number 11. However, he's on the fence about whether the number has mystical powers.
``I don't necessarily not believe in it. I believe everybody makes their own luck. It's definitely a strange occurrence. It's happening everywhere.''
At 11:11 on 11/11/11, Whent and Kryk will be signing their marriage certificate, Papineau will be celebrating her birthday with 11 friends and family members and the triplets will be having their own party. As for Geller, he'll be on a stage in Japan, doing what he does every Nov. 11 at 11:11: leading a crowd in meditation and prayer.
``There are no coincidences. Everything happens for a reason in the universe. So 11/11/11 has a major significance to human beings,'' he said.
Hlynka said the number 11 doesn't pop up in history more often than any other number. He said he tested the claim that leaders frequently have 11 letters in their names by looking at a list of Canada's past prime ministers, finding only two out of 15 met the test.
All the examples cited by Geller and other 11 boosters can be explained by a combination of coincidence and confirmation bias, meaning people tend to notice things that confirm beliefs they already hold and ignore evidence that contradicts them.
``I think it's absurd,'' he said. ``I'll worship all my numbers equally.''
Rob Whent and Louanne Kryk were sufficiently convinced to set their wedding date for 11/11/11. Whent said the idea came to them while they were on vacation in March.
``We said, `That's the date!'' And we called from the poolside,'' he said.
It was available, but they were lucky. Whent said other venues in Windsor were booked long before they called and 11/11/11 is shaping up to be one of the most popular wedding dates in history.
Whent said the date fits nicely with the wedding's unconventional theme.
Whent, an entrepreneur at WEtech Alliance, and Kryk, an assistant foreman at The Windsor Star's press, are celebrating the second marriage for both with a masquerade ball and are donating all the proceeds to the Windsor organization Theatre Alive.
Whent said he's one of those people who finds his eyes drawn to the number 11. However, he's on the fence about whether the number has mystical powers.
``I don't necessarily not believe in it. I believe everybody makes their own luck. It's definitely a strange occurrence. It's happening everywhere.''
At 11:11 on 11/11/11, Whent and Kryk will be signing their marriage certificate, Papineau will be celebrating her birthday with 11 friends and family members and the triplets will be having their own party. As for Geller, he'll be on a stage in Japan, doing what he does every Nov. 11 at 11:11: leading a crowd in meditation and prayer.
``There are no coincidences. Everything happens for a reason in the universe. So 11/11/11 has a major significance to human beings,'' he said.
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