LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — If you were feeling a little more anxious than usual Friday, it might have been because of a full moon falling on Friday the 13th.
It's a double dose of superstition. Or a triple dose if more precise as Friday also brought a rare harvest moon.
"Beautiful," said Eric Arquileta. "It's great to have the full moon to serve as our backdrop while we wield our lightsabers around."
The moon provided the perfect ambiance for the Saber Guild of Las Vegas, according to Arquileta.
And the group was fully aware that their presence might reinforce the notion that a full moon brings out the crazies but also giving way to the common superstitions about Friday the 13th.
"I watched a lot of movies when I was a kid," Arquileta said. "So, you know, maybe a little bit. Like I saw a black cat earlier today and I just kind of stepped around it."
But is there any reason to tread a little more lightly on Friday the 13th?
13 Action News spoke to Dr. Daliah Wachs.
"There were a couple of studies back in 1993 that found a pretty large increase in incidents and car accidents when they compared Friday the 6th to Friday to Friday 13th, but that was in the U.K.," she said.
Dr. Wachs also pointed to a 2003 study in Finland that found women had more crashes on a Friday the 13th, but it was negated by another study done here in the U.S.
"I have not found any evidence that Friday the 13th causes mayhem and heart attacks and strokes and bad luck," she said.
Dr. Wachs also said as much you might like to believe there's something different in the air it's really all in your mind.
"My guess is if there are more accidents if anyone does find any anecdotal evidence it's because of the anxiety around it," she said.
"You know people leave the house going its Friday the 13th be careful. So, once you start to second guess yourself, you start to panic, and you might be concentrating on the wrong things."
