Well, we still haven’t won the lotto, but I still decided to go shopping…virtually anyway!
No lotto money to add to the pot though. I had to break into my Christmas bonus and it was just the right amount to buy a new sewing desk, which was just delivered – in pieces. (I haven’t heard any grumbling or bad words yet, so it must be going well.)
I’ve wanted one for years.
Usually, I try and save the bonus each year for as long as possible, and I end up using it for something like a bill or for something I can never remember afterwards. But not this year. The new desk/table will make my hobby – making quilts a whole lot easier. Since the late 1970s I’ve been using an old antique table that is not large enough and is finally getting a bit wobbly. I really hate to throw anything away — obviously.
So now that I have used up my stash, I will have to start saving my pennies (and a few dollars here and there) again.
And since the lottery is passing out their cash to someone else, I’ll just go back to hoping we hit that jackpot – just once please. Every week I hope this is the one, but I’m always disappointed, but it never lasts.
Because even if we don’t win, there’s always next week…
There is something to be said for being an optimist. You are always convinced that things will work out for the best. If not today, then tomorrow for sure.
If you are a genuine optimist, and things still don’t work out, you will find yourself looking for something good in a bad situation.
I can’t help it, Jack says I am incurable. My cup is always “half-full,” and every week I am just positive that, this time we might just be the “big winners.” After all, the sun is always going to shine eventually.
Needless to say, I get disappointed pretty often, but it never seems to get me down for very long.
Jack on the other hand, is mostly a pessimist. “Expect the worst,” he always says, “then at least some of the time you will be pleasantly surprised when things do go well, and if they don’t, at least you will know you were right after all.”
He is right, but only about half of the time.
Actually, I think we balance each other out pretty well, and despite what he is always telling me, I think he may be more of an optimist that he will admit. After all, he is the one who buys those lotto tickets every single week.
The lottery really is the stuff of modern-day dreams. When we were younger and broke most of the time and the kids were just wee little ones, we didn’t have very much. Something that was always fun for the two of us to do was talk about what we would do if we suddenly had a million dollars and had to spend it all in a week.
The catalog, correctly called a “wish book” even today, was our handbook for this little game and we always had a good time “spending” our imaginary fortune.
These days, a million dollars wouldn’t go nearly as far, but it would still be fun if you had a chance to spend it. Just in case, every weekend we buy a ticket or two, and, sometimes we find ourselves playing that old “what if” game with each other one more time.
Trouble is, nothing these days is free. We never spent much on those old dreams, but now you have to buy a ticket or two just to get in the game. I have to admit though, the possibility, however remote, that you really might be playing the game for real, is exciting.
I mean really, how would you like to have one of those jackpots just before Christmas one year?
We could have so much fun!
