Stilettos, Stoli & Scribbles ~ Served With A Twist

Well, sort of.

Let me back up just a tad. A couple of weeks ago, after K.R. got us thinking about what we could do if we won the lottery, and since I’m highly-suggestible, I went out and bought a Powerball ticket.  Of course, since I’m also a procrastinator I missed that Saturday’s drawing and had to wait for the following Wednesday.

There I was sipping my coffee and watching the news on that fateful Thursday morning when I heard that the single winning ticket for the second largest pot in the history of the game had been sold in Massachusetts.  You’d better believe my heart skipped a beat or two. For once, I had a ticket! Then I heard that the ticket was purchased in Watertown. Which was before lottery officials wiped the Steve Harvey-esque egg from their faces and told us the actual purchase location was Chicapee.

Since I hadn’t been to either of those places lately, my hopes were dashed – again. 

So, no I didn’t win the entire multi-state Powerball jackpot. (I wonder who was more disappointed, me or the owner of that store in Watertown who briefly believed he was getting a cut.) And let’s be honest, if I had, I’m pretty sure I’d be too busy planning my round-the-world cruise and getting in touch with Guy Ritchie’s people* to write this blog post.

“So, why the headline?” you ask. Well, I did win $7 on a Powerball “Quick-Pick” ticket. Technically, I did win. I just didn’t win the whole megillah. (I have no doubt you all just rolled your eyes at me.)

I don’t usually spend my hard earned dollars on Powerball tickets. (Or any lottery ticket for that matter. You have to buy them with cash and I hardly ever have any actual currency on hand any more.) For one, the Powerball odds are usually too high. I understand the adage, “you have to be in it to win it” and all that, and obviously, people do win. Nevertheless, it’s not my lottery game of choice.  Second, the tickets are $2. For half that I can play a daily lottery game we have here in Massachusetts for which not only are the odds much better, but the jackpot is always a flat $100,000 and that’s what you’ll get no matter how many people pick the winning numbers (ie: you wouldn’t have to split it with any other lucky winners).  Hey, I’m not greedy. I don’t need multiple millions of dollars to live happily ever after.  In fact, I’m more likely to buy a Powerball ticket when the jackpot is only a few million, when other people can’t be bothered.

But back to my winning ticket. You might be wondering what I did with a windfall of such proportions.  Naturally I rolled $2 back into another Powerball ticket.  Then I bought two $2 scratch tickets and I still had a dollar to put into my pocket (or the cup of the guy sitting outside 7-11).  You see my goal is simply to keep playing. I get a kick out of buying the occasional scratch or lottery ticket without the expectation of hitting it big, but merely covering the cost of the ticket.  If I spent $2 and I win at least $2 then I can turn it in and get another one, which gives me a little thrill.

For the record: bupkes

Holding an unscratched ticket or one for which the numbers have yet to be drawn is like a little bit of hope in your hand. At that moment the possibilities are still endless.  Today is the first day of classes here on campus, it’s only noon as I write this and I can tell you, I will be buying a ticket on my way home even if I have to dig change from the bottom of my purse.

Happy Monday! Have a great week.

*letting him know I was prepared to bankroll his sequel to RocknRolla