Have you ever won anything in a lottery?

amother

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 2:00 pm

Okay so I have $30 that's mine. It's not out of family earnings, it's mine. So I want to buy a $30 lottery ticket which has a max prize of $10 million. I know the odds aren't great, but I just want to try and see what happens. It'll be just a fun secret and a moment of dreaming.

Did you ever play the lottery? Did you regret it?

If you had $30 what would you consider the responsible thing to do with it? (But I'm not going to be responsible this time.)

(And yes I know that if I gave it to tzedakah that would be the smartest thing - the best investment. I just want to dream though. I want to dream about paying off our debt and not having to worry.)

amother

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 2:09 pm

Yes we have debt. No we're not on benefits. We both work hard but life is expensive. There's no way we could pay full tuition. But if I win we will! Not even saying bli neder because it's not even a question, I would love to be able to! My kids' school has gone above and beyond for our kids.

amother

Lemon

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 2:10 pm

I have on a few occasions matched the Powerball and won about $2.

I've won prizes in Chinese auctions. I won a set of folding chairs, a rug, a Target gift card, and a set of Uncle Moishy and Avraham Fried CDs. That's different though bc the money goes to tzedakah.

I don't think it's reasonable to play large sums in the lottery but I don't see the harm in buying an occasional ticket, maybe 1-2 times a month. Total about $50 a year.

amother

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 2:14 pm

We won tefillin in a Chinese auction - that was amazing we made a bar mitzvah just a few months later. It does feel different to know the money is going to tzedakah. But no Chinese auction has the kind of huge prizes that I want to dream about winning!

Elfrida

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 2:19 pm

I know someone who buys a ticket every year the week before Rosh HaShana. His theory is that if there is still any money that he was meant to receive during the course of that year, he wants to provide HKB'H with an easy method of making sure that he gets it.

He says that so far, HKB'H has kept very good accounts!

thunderstorm

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 2:23 pm

One Chanuka when I was about 15 my father bought $2 scratch off lotto tickets for each of us to have fun with. He said if we win , that would be our Chanuka Gelt. Sure enough one of them won us $100. My father took us to cash it in and divided it amongst us. That was so fun .

amother

Lemon

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 2:25 pm

thunderstorm wrote:

We had an uncle who used to bring a bag of change on chanukah and we would stick our hands in and grab a big handful. We felt like billionaires, LOL.

amother

Firebrick

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 2:27 pm

Elfrida wrote:

I love this way of thinking
LOl

amother

Black

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 2:27 pm

As a teen I put some money into a Chinese auction (my own money) from a party I helped set up.
It was a bunch of toys.
Growing up abused and neglected, never having toys, even as a teen I dreamed of having toys so bad that I put it into the lottery of toys. Kids toys for up to age 6 or so.... and some games for a bit older kids. I was a teen!
And I won!

Then my mother made me wrap it and she gave it to the grandkids. Oh well.....

I've won $10 or so.
Dh will play for a $1 or $2 every couple of months. Just for kicks.

He works hard long hours. We are in debt (we bought a starter home) but iyh we'll be able to pay it all off withing the next 3 years or so.

We pay full tuition.

What I would do with those $30 is get myself a treat for $5 or so, give $1 or 2 for tzedaka as a zchus fir hatzlacha, andbuy a some lottery tickets!
and if you didn't win, put away the rest $15 to do the same again in a few weeks. (And hopefully win that time:)

soap suds

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 2:27 pm

Elfrida wrote:

He wants to provide Hashem with a way to give him money[/I]? Very Happy

Tell him to save his money. /Hashem will manage to swing it without his help. Hid lottery ticket doesn't make it easier for Him. Now, if he's doing it because he believes he has to do hishtadlus, that's a different story.

amother

Copper

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 4:05 pm

top mom wrote:

My theory with these type of things, is that if it's bashert for me to win, then a 1$ loto will do the job, and if it ain't bashert, then spending 30$ won't help you! Not that I'm a lottery buyer or anything Wink

A friend of mine had the same philosophy. At Chinese auctions, where some would put multiple tix to improve statistical odds on items they wanted, she figured if the KBH wants her to win, she’ll win with one ticket. She often did win some nice stuff.

I’ve won a prize in a raffle or Chinese auction four times in my life that I can recall. Nothing big, and I could easily have afforded to buy the things I won. One was third prize in a raffle when what I wanted was first prize. It was something I didn’t care for at all and donated back to the organization for its raffle the following year. One was something I didn’t like that much and wouldn’t ever wear but it had few tickets on it so I figured the odds were good of winning it. I gave it away to someone who I believed would wear it. It was all for the fun of winning something, not for the monetary value of the prize.

OP, you’d be better off investing your $30 in a no-load mutual fund. Chances of winning real big in the lottery are very slim. You might win a few bucks or you might lose your entire $30.

amother

Hotpink

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 4:12 pm

In England they have a thing called premium bonds, where you 'buy' a number, and that same number goes into a draw every month, with prizes ranging from £25 to a million. I've never won anything big, but I've won small prizes a few times, and twice I've won £500.

The small prizes are often the most fun, since you can spend them on some luxury without feeling guilty. Once you are talking bigger money you have to be sensible about how to use it

amother

Pink

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 6:35 pm

amother [ Copper ] wrote:

Lol. Perhaps you're talking about me.
I only put one ticket into a prize. To do my hishtadlus so if I am to win, my ticket should be there.
I've won some things here and there.
Nothing serious but sometimes the fun is in winning.

amother

Sun, Oct 27 2019, 7:29 pm

Well, I agree about only needing 1 ticket for histadlus. But, in this case, the $1 tickets are for lottery games where the max prize is around $500. So it's not the same as the $30 ticket, where the top prize is way more.