Collard Greens and Black-eyed Peas

I was born and lived in GA for most of my life and cannot remember a New Years that Mama didn't prepare some sort of greens made with ham hocks and black-eyed peas. I've got my collards in the fridge and going to put them in the crock pot using this recipe. I'll cook some rice to eat along with the black-eyed peas for hoppin' john and may even make some cornbread to round things up. The greens and peas are supposed to bring good luck.

Epicurious offered up unlucky foods to avoid:

Lobster, for instance, is a bad idea because they move backwards and could therefore lead to setbacks. Chicken is also discouraged because the bird scratches backwards, which could cause regret or dwelling on the past. Another theory warns against eating any winged fowl because good luck could fly away.