There is something sad about checked (losing) lottery tickets. All the possibilities are gone from them and they are just bits of paper, outlasting their usefulness. I put off checking my tickets so I can think of all the things I will do if I win. It’s great to have that little fantasy. But, once you check the tickets you have to let go of all of that.
Right now I have five tickets to check. I wanted to make sure to check them before I move. I’m not sure if it would be a problem to collect winnings if I’m not officially living in the US, or even the state of Illinois. So I am going to the Illinois State Lottery site to check them. They are not too old, from the past couple of months. It would be so nice to win…
I would first of all tell Todd we need to take a long weekend trip to collect the loot. Todd says it’s over in some town by the Missouri border, near St. Louis. So that could turn into a nice trip before the divorce is a done deal. Once I have the money I would put it into my Union Planters bank account, all but for $20,000 or so which I would use to buy a truck for moving and travel expenses including insurance for the truck. That way I could pack up the truck and just let Mom know I’m on my way up there without needing to wait and wonder any more. It would be so nice to have the drive up to Canada myself. I could take my time too, dawdle a bit, have a look at the Raggedy Ann museum in Arcola and wander up north to see Wisconsin before I cross the border. Wisconsin looked nice when I was chatting to a guy from there last month. It didn’t work out with him but I still wouldn’t mind the drive up there at all.
The rest of the money would go into travel, a house of my own (maybe the first place that I could really feel was my home) and of course savings so I could keep payments for electricity, taking some college courses, my eventual old age and etc. I would give money to family if I won a really big amount. Other wise I would be more careful about that and make sure I was ok first. I’d love to never have to worry about that whole bag lady thing. I could just freelance write without listening to family telling me I’m wasting my time.
Well, now I should check those tickets. It’s nice thinking of what if but you have to come back down to reality. Walking around with your head in the clouds is a sure way to stub your toes.