i have a strange relationship with the number four.

A few years back, driving home to Virginia, I stopped to use the restroom at a gas station and was greeted by one of those odd fortune-telling machines that really has no place being in a public restroom. On a whim, I decided to cough up the quarter required and eagerly awaited my "future." I honestly don't recall what any of it said except for the lucky numbers. Usually these things give you a couple of different numbers, I guess so that you have more reasons to feel lucky if you come across them. All I got was 4 4 4. Not long after, I seemed to just happen to glance at the clock in my car or my phone at exactly 4:44pm. This happened more than once, and still happens to this day. I've never really read into these sorts of things, but I notice 444 whenever it pops up anywhere, which tends to be receipts, order numbers, and anything else you could really think of. The number follows me. It's not always 444, because now I even pay attention to a single 4 or the double, 44. For whatever reason, 4 has become my number. I like it. I really like it.

Tonight, it made another brief, unexpected appearance. So, I won't be counting to five.