\nEvery birthday, my Dad would come up with something special about
\nthe number.\n<\/p>\n
\nNine: “Three squared!” Ten: “Double digits!” Thirteen: “A Fibonacci number!”
\nYou get the idea.\n<\/p>\n
\nClearly, I was doomed from an early age.\n<\/p>\n
\nEven when I had moved out of the house, he would come up with something during
\nthe traditional Birthday Phone Call. Sometimes he had to reach a bit.
\nTwenty-three: “A prime number… and you won’t be prime again for six more
\nyears!”\n<\/p>\n
\nLast year was a bit tough. To get anything significant for twenty-six, you have
\nto turn to Gematria<\/a>,
\nthe ancient art of Hebrew numerology. Twenty-six figures
\nprominently throughout the Torah: among other things, it’s the numerical
\nrepresentation of the name of God (YAHWEH), the number of generations from Adam
\nto Moses, and the number of lines that it takes to list the Ten Commandments in the
\nTorah (I bet you thought it was ten).\n<\/p>\n