A family that has its reunion in Las Vegas obviously believes that a family that gambles together...prays together. On our flight home I realized I don't have the face for poker, the luck for roulette or any idea how to play craps.
Once when playing black jack, I got up the courage to double down on a pair of aces. Unfortunately, the pair belonged to the player to my right.
That particular player and many others seem to have no sense of humor when it comes to gambling. They're the ones that think a twelve-step program is the distance from the front door of the casino to the nearest betting opportunity.
Nevertheless, I learned one thing in Vegas - to be a good loser. I explained my loses to my husband as proof that I'm lucky at love.
I used to think that gambling was what we did to try to keep up with the Joneses. Now I realize it's in our DNA.
We all want to become instantly rich with the turn of a card, the spin of a wheel or the throw of the dice. It explains why wagon trains headed west and foreigners came to America seeking streets paved with gold.
Without this deep-seated need, there wouldn't be race tracks, poker parties, lotteries, office pools, water cooler bets or...political candidates. The desire to be a winner permeates every aspect of our lives.
Putting money in a soda machine provides the thrill of seeing if we get more change than expected when we press the return button. Cell phones provide a different challenge - the "Can you hear me now?" challenge.
When we have the car washed, we gamble it's not going to rain. Putting money in a parking meter is betting we'll be back before the time expires.
Going through a red light is risking that the policeman will have seen the light as being very dark orange. Fudging on our income taxes risks turning Uncle Sam into a croupier.
Then there are marriages. In spite of the fact that more than half of them end in divorce, couples continue to bet their lives by saying, "I do". Let's face it. Every day is a gamble.
You could be hit by a car, slip on a banana peel or fall in the bathtub. Even staying in bed is a gamble. A high percentage of deaths occur around 3am. Cut your loses. Get up!
KNIGHT PIERCE HIRST takes humorous looks at life.
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