‘That SOB Won My Money’ And Other Illogical Thoughts

Have you ever had that thought? You check your lottery numbers and the pot is back to square one. Arghh! "Somebody won my money!" Well, somebody in Kalamazoo county did just that a couple of weeks ago. He won "my money"Well, of course, it doesn't make any sense. It's not "my money". Well, the dollar I spent on that drawing is, but no, the rest is not.

It's not that I spend a lot of money on the lottery. For me, it's two dollars a week. I play Lotto 47, and the game is a dollar and there are two draws a week. But I've been playing pretty consistently for about five to ten years now. And now, maybe a little, just a little, desperation has crept into it. My numbers should be due to come up now. Any day now. I'm waiting.

I know the routine. My numbers come up. I secure the ticket in a safety deposit box and see a financial planner. And then a trip to the lottery office in Grand Rapids, or should I head straight to Lansing? Yes, my fantasy is pretty elaborate. You, too?

I don't know if it's a deliberate move by the Michigan Lottery to try and promote the games better, but we've starting getting press releases regarding local winners. Since Michigan has an anonymity law, it's hard to do that, but now they're sending us quotes and reactions and pictures of the ticket itself; pretty much everything short of the winner's name and image.

We know where the ticket was sold  and how much it's for: Stillwater's Market, on West Q Ave in Kalamazoo. And the reaction is cool, too.

"I saw on the Michigan Lottery website where the winning Lotto 47 ticket was bought, and I thought: 'This could be significant,'" said the player.

(I think you're on to something, Sherlock)

"I went out to my car to grab my wallet and checked my ticket. When I saw I matched all six numbers, I woke my wife up to double check it for me. At first, she didn't believe anything I was saying, but after she read the ticket for herself she was just as stunned as I was. We spent the next hour or so sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee and staring at each other because we didn't know what to say." - 45 year old Kalamazoo lottery winner.

I don't know if I'd leave my wallet in the car at any time, but the rest, you bet. I'd probably have a grin on my face for a month, but I'm ready. But now that Kalamazoo county has had a winner, this is bad. I mean, what are the odds we get another winner in the next decade. I guess I should move to Calhoun or Van Buren counties.

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