Val Shouldn't Have Seen the One That Got Away

SSSIIIIIIIIIGGGHHH...

Perhaps you remember that Val Thevictorian enjoys plunking down her hard-direct-deposited cash for a scratch-off lottery ticket every now and then. She does okay, hovering near the break-even mark. No big winners this year for Uncle Sam to send her a Form W-2G next January. But she hasn't lost her shirt, either. Val ain't complainin'.

Until now.

You knew that wouldn't last, right? Val is not known for not-complainin'. I might have forgotten about it by now, except Hick made sure to tell me when he got home from work yesterday, and the owner of the gas station chicken store was discussing it with the customer ahead of me this morning, and Genius just sent me a text about an hour ago.

A LITTLE OLD LOCAL LADY WON $100,000 ON A SCRATCHER THAT I BUY,
FROM A STORE THAT I BUY FROM.

Yep. I first read about it on the Missouri Lottery website on Monday afternoon. Not only did my town criers remind me of it three times within the past 24 hours, but it was in the local online newspaper this morning. I guess the only person who hasn't checked in is my sister the ex-mayor's wife. She's not a scratcher, but I'm sure she reads the paper.

Seems this little old local lady bought her ticket at the establishment I frequent once a week for gas. I haven't bought many tickets there in the past year, because The Pony always ran in to pay for my gas. But before I got him trained to do that, I used to buy my tickets there often. I spent a whole year cashing in and playing on tickets that my best ol' ex-teaching buddy Mabel gave me one year for my birthday. Now that I don't drive by there every day going to work, it's kind of out-of-the-way, unless I'm going to Walmart.

Anyhoo...this little old local lady apparently bought her ticket there on September 14. That was on a Wednesday, the week Hick and HOS returned from their Oklahoma Sooners game weekend. I doubt I would have been in the store that day, unless I went to the credit union to transfer money for Genius's monthly college expenses that I send him on the 15th. Still. It was a ticket that I buy. From a place where I buy them, on occasion.

In fact, I was just in there on Monday, when I went to Walmart and got gas (heh, heh, NOT gas from Walmart food). I didn't even know about this little old local lady $100,000 winner then. I bought four tickets. Two were winners, for $10 and $40. That was a handy little profit, to use to play again another day.

I can't help thinking about the one that got away...