Plate of Coincidences

My life is full of coincidences. No lie!

So much so I sometimes have to wonder if they mean anything. I've tried to keep track of some of them over the years, hoping someday I'll figure out what's up. I even have a Wall of Weird at my website for them, when I remember to list them that is. And they tend to fall into specific categories to boot!

1) Time - For probably ten years or more I've had weird stuff happen with time. The most recurring one is looking at the clock at 5:55 am and pm. 2:22 is the next most popular, with 3:33 running a close third. We're talking about having this happen at least three times per week every week! Is that odd or what?

This year though, the whole game has changed. Now I've been spotting a ton of sequential number times. Though not always in exact order, they're still popping up sequentially - so like 1:23, 3:12, 4:56, 5:43, you get the gist. It's a little creepy really, and it being 2012 puts a really odd spin on it, with it being the supposed end of the Mayan calendar and all. :P

2) Themes - Some of my coincidence streaks run in themes. For example, just about every show I watched in a week's time had Mark Sheppard as a guest star. And not all of them were current shows either, an episode or two were of series he'd done a spot in years before! Or something I'm watching that comes up with a gimmick, let's say unhook the kidnapper's seatbelt (or he wasn't wearing one) and deciding to smash the car as they will be flung hard over the dash, gets used in several shows in the same week. (My husband is convinced shows only have one writer anymore. But then he's usually watching the stuff with me, so it could be me as well! Doh!)

Sometimes it's more general, like everything we watch ends up having pirates, or the same problem, or same colored clothes.

I've even done this with cars on the road. Suddenly one day I'll see a huge proportion of Toyotas, or red cars, or something else that matches. Never know what's going to be next.

3) Connections - A couple of recent ones had to do with the online MMO Star Wars The Old Republic! I have two characters there, a Jedi in the Republic side (Tarrah) and an Imperial Spy on the Empire side (Larana). My Jedi ran into an NPC with the name Laranna! (Who also happens to be one of the principals in my book Vassal of El!) And yeah, my Larana only has one 'n' but still...! What are the odds? Making it even more amazing is that if I'd played anything but a Jedi Consular I would have never met the NPC, as she's specifically for the Jedi Consular progression quest line!

Also, I play the game with my husband. He's playing a female smuggler who is pretty snarky (you get to pick your dialogue during quest conversations - one of the way cool things about this game). My Imperial spy, (which I play when he's out of town or when he's out) got given an NPC buddy to accompany the character for support during battles and other things (happens to all the players - you end up with like 3 or 4 you can switch between). So my spy gets a buddy who ends up having the same voice actress as John's character! So even with him not there, I'm hearing his character's voice. And this NPC is also snarky! (I can't escape!!!) :P

Oh and I have a weird connection coincidence that just happened Tuesday! I'd submitted a short story to ASIM and Tuesday first thing I'd received an email telling me I'd made the short list (aka round 3). Later that day, I came across a friend's tweet that she'd gotten an email that very morning as well telling her she'd made it to the short list! We didn't know we'd both submitted to the same magazine or anything. Should be interesting to see if we make the final cut and if we end up on the same issue! That'd be fun!

4) Deja vu - Ah, this is one I've had off and on since I was a little girl. Strangely, as some of the other coincidence types have ramped up, this one has ramped down. Still, every once in a long while I'll get that super eerie feeling I've either been or done whatever it is before. Such a weird feeling!



What about you guys? Do you have any kind of coincidences happen to you? Please share!