Today I think I bought the first lottery ticket I’ve every purchased — and it was pretty obvious to the guy I bought it from.
Normally I pay no attention to lotteries. Ohio has had one for years, but I’ve never played it because it seems like a sucker’s bet. I didn’t play even when Ohio joined the “Powerball” lottery some years ago and the pots got bigger. When the jackpot gets north of half a billion dollars, however, I’ve got to dip my toe into the legalized gambling waters. Why not? Even though the odds are astronomical, the payoff is, too. What’s a few bucks when you could conceivably win enough money to set your family up for generations? I’m with UJ on this one.
I was in Cleveland today, and on my way back I stopped at a gas station along I-71 to buy a ticket. I figured that this helped my chances, because the winners of these big lotteries always seem to buy the winning tickets in a small town. Unfortunately, when I got up to the counter I didn’t have the slightest idea how to buy a ticket. I didn’t know the name of the lottery, I didn’t know how many numbers you had to pick, and I didn’t know what it meant when the guy asked me if I wanted the “megaplier.” So, I just asked him to pick the numbers randomly. For all I know, he pocketed the cash and gave me some tickets from last week. I wouldn’t know the difference.
For me, at least, so it is with 
