The Draw of a Game of Chance

I'm often drawn to games of chance in which Lady Luck is my only ally.  I hear advertisements for the lotto - and I think, hmm, wonder if this is my chance.  I rarely play, however, because those kinds of games involve walking into the 7-11 and selecting the numbers, tickets, and types of games. 

I prefer the ease of playing Monopoly when I shop at Safeway - where the cashiers hand me my games of chance ... and I may or may not spend an inordinate amount of time separating, licking and sticking those tickets to the Monopoly Game Board that reminds me that I too could..."Be the Next Big 1 Million Winner!" 

I always say yes when the cashier asks if I play.  But, the reality is that I often carry the tickets around in my pocket because, recently, I've felt guilty taking the time to separate, lick, and stick - and, really, who has the time to do all that? Especially if you aren't going to win?

Last night, after a trip to Safeway, during which the cashier asked if I played and handed me a handful of Monopoly tickets, I left the whole stack with the "board" on the kitchen table in anticipation of dropping the whole kit and kaboodle into the trash in the morning. 

This morning, after pouring my first cup of coffee and rubbing my eyes, I realized that the game had been played - the Monopoly pieces were distributed across the board - and there were a few colors we were close to having most in.  What lovely person did this?  My daughter, home for Spring Break, with time on her hands and a susceptibility, herself, to a game of chance - especially if it meant procrastinating studying for a Spanish exam. 

This evening she and I decided that we were so close in a couple of the colors that a trip to Safeway was in our future.  If we get the right cashier they might give us a few extra tickets... We are soooooo close to winning, something.