A Tax on Dreams

My dear friend Karmen - eccentric, wonderful, amazing, Karmen - once said that lottery tickets are a tax on dreams. Boy, I know that.

Here's how it plays out for the poor. We're broke. Desperation kicks in. Money is tight, sometimes, non-existent. You know that economic stimulus check everyone got? I never even saw it. It went directly towards bills, do not pass Go, do not collect $200.

The lottery jackpot goes up as more people feel the pinch in their own life. When it gets high enough, I feel the itch. "OK, I'll buy a ticket." But . . . I end up buying three. Three bucks I don't have. Three bucks flushed down the toilet; "Bye, bye!"

Twelve numbers, six duplicates and not a single match. What a waste.

Sigh.

Karmen also says that Silly Putty is like Rosary beads for agnostics. At least the Silly Putty is kind of useful. A loser lottery ticket is just another piece of paper.

Jet

Lemonade

In the wins and losses columns, the losses seem to be winning as of late. I try to be Zen. "Oooooommmmmm! It's OK that my laptop was stolen that contains my novel and pretty much everything I've ever written. The diamond necklace? Not a big deal I'll get over it. Oooooommmmmm!"

But the truth is, it hurts.

I feel like I just can't trust people lately. Recently, another scammer took advantage of my good nature. I lost money, but more than that, I lost my ability to see the best in people.

I used to be happy, silly and fun. I still am those things, but now I am also guarded and suspicious. Not a great combination.

There are a lot of people talking about hope. I could use a little. I've been unemployed since June and there are no jobs. The classified section has been cut in half since June. Ten or twelve web pages are now down to four and a half. And of those jobs I am qualified maybe one. It is rough out here.

I'm working on the lemonade. A little short on the sugar.

Jet