Lotto Dreaming

For those of you living under a rock, or overseas, Australia had it's largest Tattslotto prize draw last week. $106 million for first division.

Rewind to the previous week when the first prize was a piddly $50 million. I had never bought a ticket before and admit I got caught up in lotto fever. You'd think with Michael Jackson's death there wouldn't be any airspace for lotto stories on ACA or Today Tonight, but they managed to suck me into thinking "Well, SOMEONE'S going to win it, it might as well be me". So off I went to buy my $20 quick pick and came home, with ticket in hand, like Charlie Bucket, and outlined to Mum my long list of things I was going to spend my money on. Mum then handed me $10 and said, "here, let's go halves". Bloody Hell! In one fell swoop, my winnings had been chopped from $50m to $25 million. What the hell can you buy with that?!

Anyway....I spent the rest of the day asking everyone and sundry, "Got your ticket yet?" only to be met with blank stares or mocking remarks explaining that I had more hope of bonking Brad Pitt on the space shuttle than of winning. Ha! I'd prove those naysayers wrong.

Fastforward to the actual draw and there I was, circling the numbers, getting excited as I had 3 already and I was only up to the 4th number.
I asked Dad, "Does 3 mean anything?"
"No".
"How about 4?"
"I think that's a $5 prize".
"How about 5?"
"Bullshit! You didn't get 5 did you?"
"Yep"
"Not supplementaries?"
"No - 5 straight numbers"
Dad got all excited, saying he thought I'd won a major prize. I was cursing my lack of fitness, envisaging the heart attack I was about to have.

I decided to go straight to the source of all wisdom and knowledge - my baby website discussion forum. I created a post about the lotto and sure enough within minutes I had my dreams shattered. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, 5 numbers is 3rd division but on Tuesdays, where it's out of 7 numbers (instead of 6), it's only 5th division. I'd won $41.

And I had to share half of that with Mum.

I can really see why people go nuts with gambling. I had had my fun and told myself that that was the first and last time. What a crock. What a waste of time. What a waste of money. Just think, ther are morons out there who get sucked into this crap every week. Bah - what idiots!

Two hours later a news update confirmed that there was no winner and the prize was jackpotting. JACKPOTTING?! Count me in.

All the disinterested folk from last week were all of a sudden getting into the excitement too. Apparently $50 million just isn't enough money to warrant any interest these days. But offer $106 million and everybody and their dog is rushing down to buy a ticket.

So there I was, another Tuesday night glued to the TV, waiting for the numbers to be drawn, ticket in hand (didn't have to go halves this time as Mum bought her own). Oh yeah, $106 million ALL. FOR. ME. Yay.
Seeing as I'm not writing this note from my own Pacific island, I guess you can figure out I didn't win. Nope - didn't win a thing.

Mum got 6th division. I'm sure there's some moral to this story...