“If you must play, decide upon three things at the start:
the rules of the game, the stakes, and the quitting time."
– Chinese Proverb

Did you buy a lottery ticket when the prize reached $1.5BN? Some time ago I heard a debate about the ethics of lotteries and their benefit to society. I don't remember many of the details, but an economist pointed out that for many people, $1 has no real value, but a thousand stacks of a million dollars is life changing. Someone is going to win, even with impossible odds.
I thought about this as I read a headline about pro golfer Phil Mickelson gambling as much as $1BN over time. That seems extreme, but I figure he must win a lot. Or maybe he gets a real charge from the build up, and winning/losing don't matter so much. Hard for me to say because I've not been bitten by the gambling bug.
In the early days of my wedded bliss we were cash strapped. One of my friends wanted to go to the casinos, but I didn't have any cash, so I politely declined. He has a bit of gambler in him and needed company, so he gave me $20 to come along. I put it in a slot machine and in the first few spins won something like $150. It was very exciting. I gave him his $20 back, then proceeded to lose most of my newfound wealth. When I was down to my last $40 or so, my friend and I grabbed steaks and beers. My treat. This was the early 1990s. $40 went a long way. I came with nothing, left with nothing. It was fun.
When I returned to our tiny apartment and recounted the story of my adventure, my lovely bride just stood there, holding a fussing baby, staring, like she was confused. So I told the story again, a little louder, in greater detail. Adding more drama.
"You won $100, and spent it," she said, turning around and heading back to our only other room.
Message delivered, message received.
So maybe I have been bitten by the gambling bug before, but I'm vaccinated. Or something like that.
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