Two Dollars and Dream...

I've never watched "It Could Happen to You" from beginning to end. All I know is that a cop from New York splits a lottery ticket with a broke diner waitress as a tip. Of course, in true fairy tale fashion, they hit the jackpot, fall in love and live happily ever. The movie was based on a true story, which I vaguely recall reading about in the New York Daily News when I was younger.

The odds of winning the lottery are extremely long, but it's not impossible. One person in Nebraska won last night's $365 million dollar Powerball jackpot--so, there's proof that it does happen to someone.

Unfortunately, that someone isn't me.

Does that make me a sore loser? I doubt it, because if it does, then there are millions just like me around the country this morning. Misery loves company. That should help all of us feel a better.

Yeah, not exactly.

I don't consider myself greedy. I've told Jon that I didn't have to win the big one. I would be quite content with winning a few thousand dollars by matching only a couple of numbers. So far, the closest I've come is matching one and the Powerball. Not exactly a play that would make me a wealthy woman, but I did get $15 out of the deal.
$15 dollars compared to a couple of thousand or hundreds of millions. Sort of pales by comparison. At least I can say I've won the lottery, though.

I don't play the lottery often. Usually, common sense and reason tell me that dropping a couple of bucks on a slip of paper isn't a sound investment. Yet, every time the money gets big, I head down to the Irving station and pick up my two tickets (and yes, I know that two tickets make not even the slightest statistical difference when it comes to hitting the big one).

I understand that I am fortunate to have what I do: I'm not broke, I have a nice home, a great family and a job that I enjoy. Winning the lottery wouldn't change most of that. I wouldn't ditch Jon and the kids, I'd still write and as for my home...ok, I might change that. Everyone has a dream home. Mine wouldn't be one of these places that could fit two houses in--I'm not greedy. All I want is my washer and dryer out of the basement.

Is that a lot to ask? I don't think so.

But, for now, my dream home will remain that. Dreams are good. They give us something to strive for, a goal to reach. I'm sure this loss will be me a better, more productive member of society.

And, just to prove that I'm not a sore loser, I offer the following good wishes to the Nebraskan who now has more money than can be spent in a lifetime:

Congratulations! Enjoy your money!

Oh, and if you need someone to write your life story, I'm available...

For a small fee, of course.