Bad news or bad luck comes in threes

Setting:
Two friends, Priya and Jason, are sitting in a cozy café in Boston on a rainy Saturday afternoon. Priya, an Indian-American data analyst in her early 30s, is highly superstitious, while Jason, a biology PhD student and science communicator, is all about logic and evidence. They’re sipping coffee and catching up.

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Priya: (groaning)
Jason, I knew this was going to happen. First, my car battery died yesterday. Then my kitchen flooded this morning. And just now? I dropped my phone and cracked the screen.

Jason:
Yikes. That’s rough. But… wait—don’t tell me…

Priya: (nodding solemnly)
Bad things come in threes. I told you. The curse has been fulfilled. Now the universe can chill.

Jason: (laughs)
Priya, come on. You don’t actually think there’s some cosmic accountant tallying up your misfortunes in neat little sets of three, do you?

Priya:
Yes! It always happens this way! Three bad things, and then life resets. It’s practically a rule. Like Newton’s laws, but for disaster.

Jason: (grinning)
Ah yes, the fourth law: For every action, there shall be exactly three unfortunate reactions, followed by a coupon from the universe for calm.

Priya:
Mock all you want, but I’ve tracked this. Last year? Sprained my ankle, lost my job, and had food poisoning—all in one week. Three things. Boom. Then? Peaceful bliss for months.

Jason:
Okay, but think about this—how many good things happened to you after that week?

Priya:
Well… I got a new job, I started dating Ravi, and I finally beat that impossible level on Candy Crush.

Jason:
So good things come in threes too? Or do we just notice the patterns when they fit?

Priya: (pauses)
Look, maybe we do notice patterns. But it still happens too often to be a coincidence.

Jason:
That’s the thing—our brains love patterns. Even when they’re not real. It’s called apophenia. Like when people see Jesus in a grilled cheese sandwich.

Priya: (laughs)
Okay, I admit that’s a bit of a stretch. But still, don’t you ever get the feeling that the universe is… nudging you? Like giving you signs?

Jason:
Sure, I get feelings. Like when my advisor emails me “We need to talk.” That’s a sign… that I might have messed up. But not because of cosmic alignment—because I forgot to submit the grant proposal.

Priya:
But what about my aunt’s parrot? It always screeches before someone in the family gets sick. It’s like our feathered Grim Reaper.

Jason:
Or maybe it screeches all the time and your family only remembers it when something bad happens afterward. That’s confirmation bias.

Priya:
You’re so annoyingly reasonable. Why can’t you let me have my weird beliefs?

Jason: (smiling)
Because I care about your brain! And I want you to understand the world in a way that empowers you. Bad stuff happens—it’s random. Not because you walked under a ladder or broke a mirror.

Priya: (playfully)
Fine. But if a black cat crosses my path today, I’m calling a priest.

Jason:
I’ll counter it by throwing salt over your shoulder and doing a backflip in the rain. That should neutralize it, right?

Priya: (laughing)
Deal. But if your day falls apart now, I’m texting you “I told you so” in all caps.

Jason:
And I’ll reply with a graph, a study, and a snarky meme.

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[They both laugh and clink coffee mugs.]

Priya:
You know what? Maybe we’re both right in a way. Beliefs give comfort. But facts… well, they help fix flooded kitchens.

Jason:
Exactly. Believe what helps you—but don’t let it stop you from calling a plumber.