WED., JAN. 3, 2007

It seems perfectly reasonable that you should get lucky in ’07, so let’s run with that. Hey, maybe everybody will get lucky in ’07. Wouldn’t that be freaky? Then again, something like that might be a sign of the impending apocalypse, a sort of Godly reach-around for the flesh-loving heathens right before the rapture. He could at least give you that, couldn’t He? Or maybe you don’t believe in luck at all. Maybe you’re one of those people who make their own luck – one of those firm handshaking types with bleached teeth, an encyclopedic knowledge of self-help books, and a fitness regimen that requires setting your alarm clock for 4:30 in the a.m. You don’t need luck. You’re already lucky. You’ll probably live to be 120. Oh joy, oh sweet, sweet bliss. The rest of us, however are fluffy white feathers being buffeted by the winds of fortune until we come to rest next to Forrest Gump’s shoe. Yes, life is like a box of chocolates, as long as some of the chocolates taste like shit and have rocks in the middle. Even the most irrepressible optimist has to admit it’s not all sweet. Most people have to eat a lot of shit before they get to the sweet stuff. Maybe that’s why the moments of sweetness are often attributed to luck. Of course, luck depends a lot on your perspective. If you’re able to get right with waking up at 4:30 in the morning (which most people might see as eating one of those shit-covered rocks) you can probably twist your mind into believing damn near anything, including believing you’re lucky. That, as nearly as anyone has figured out, is the key to luckiness: Feeling lucky. You probably have a lot of reasons to feel lucky, so just consider the ’07 thing icing on the cake. Who knows, it might be the thing that puts you over. Or it could be the Viva Las Vegas screening at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown this Monday. Elvis’ birthday is the biggest post-holiday celebration in Austin, and this Alamo screening features an Elvis impersonation contest (the lucky winner gets a bucket of beer) plus an optional Elvis feast that includes fried peanut butter and banana sammiches, corn bread soak, and meatloaf. Later, if you can shake off your carbo coma, you can attend the Dale Watson Elvis Birthday celebration at the Continental Club – all for one low price of $26. If you can’t feel lucky about that then ’07 may not be your year.