Beijing numerology

Apparently the Sichuan earthquake happened 88 days before the Olympic Games are due to start.  Traditionally “88″ is considered a lucky number in China.  It’s associated with prosperity and in SMS messages it’s used as a short-hand for “bye-bye” (8 is “ba” in Chinese and “baba” sounds like “bye-bye”).  It is not a coincidence, after all, that the Olympic games will begin on August 8 — on the eighth day of the eighth month.   But lots of Chinese are now worried that “88″ has changed its meaning.