11-11-11 brings hopes of good luck

By MATT SEDENSKY - Associated Press

In a Monday, Nov. 7, 2011 photo, twin sisters Betsy, left, and Katie Overman pose for a photo in Madison, Wisc. The twins will turn 11 on Nov. 11, 2011, or 11/11/11. (AP Photo/Wisconsin State Journal, Craig Schreiner)

Place your bets! Tie the knot! Make a wish!

Friday is the 11th day of the 11th month of 2011, and around the country, many people are planning to mark the triple convergence of 11s with a splash, hoping it will bring them good fortune or at least amuse them for a day.

Marjaneh Peyrovan, who just moved to New York, plans to buy 11 lottery tickets (each, of course, including the number 11). She will check out apartments she has been eyeing. And precisely at 11:11 a.m., she will walk into the office of Diane von Furstenberg, the fashion designer for whom she has long dreamed of working.

"People say on 11/11 things happen, things will come true," she said. "You never know."

Twins Betsy and Katie Overman of Madison, Wis., will celebrate their 11th birthdays with sweet bread topped with a buttercream number 11. Their mother, Julie Overman, plans to put 11 candles in their meals and snacks. And the twins will wear socks festooned with 11s.

"They also found the 11 date is supposed to be lucky for relationships, but they still think boys are gross," their mother said.

In Atlantic City, N.J., some restaurants are advertising $11.11 meals and the Trump Taj Mahal is planning drawings every 11 minutes for up to $1,111. The Riverwind Casino is Norman, Okla., prepared for an onslaught of gamblers eager to roll the dice or double-down in blackjack.

"Gamblers are a superstitious bunch," said Jack Parkinson, the casino's general manager.

In Las Vegas, Clark County Clerk Diana Alba got ready for an onslaught of weddings, with some 3,200 applications already filled out, more than three times the normal number. She is expecting the number of couples to surpass the crowd on 08/08/08 and equal the throng on 10/10/10. It may not, however, reach the turnout seen on July 7, 2007 — a date that consists of three lucky sevens.

"That was like the granddaddy of all dates," Alba said.

Bryan Savage of Oklahoma City is among those tying the knot on 11-11. He said the number 11 is meaningful to him and his fiancée, Tara Melton, because his birthday is in November and they met in November.

"It's just kind of cool and we didn't really want Valentine's Day or a holiday, but we just wanted something memorable," he said.

Plus, he added, it will be easier to remember his anniversary.

In Des Moines, Iowa, Dr. Ross Valone, an obstetrician-gynecologist, will refund any fees he collects from delivering babies Friday. In Bellevue, Wash., Jason Brown will open his new grocery store at 11:11 a.m.

Fans of the movie "This Is Spinal Tap" plan celebrations honoring Nigel Tufnel, the heavy-metal guitarist whose amp's volume knob went up to 11, while lovers of corduroy planned a smattering of events on the theory that the fabric's ridges resemble lines of ones.

But some also planned to put the quirkiness of the date aside to observe Veterans Day, which grew out of the World War I armistice that took effect at 11 a.m. on Nov. 11, 1918.

"We as Americans, we like doing things like that with the numbers. I just hope that people do realize, if they can, just thank a veteran," said Genaro Alvarado of Los Angeles, who served in the Marines.

Vikki MacKinnon, a numerologist in Calgary, Ontario, said she expects the day to be a "cosmic wake-up call."

"Eleven is a number of illumination and enlightenment, a number of insight, blinding flashes of the obvious, and a number of transformation," she said Thursday. "I think really good things will come out of tomorrow."

Melissa Patrick, right, and her partner Sheila Barnett share a laugh during an interview Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2011, in Port Charlotte, Fla. The couple won a dream wedding on Facebook and will be married on Nov. 11, in New York City. As Barnett and Patrick pack their warm clothes and nearly identical dresses for the ceremony , they are trying not to think about this one fact: when they get home to Florida after their whirlwind, fairy-tale weekend, their marriage won't be legal in Florida. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)