I need to tell you a story before getting down to basics.
Early this morning I got an e-mail from one of my new members in Wyoming, he tells me that he has checked out tickets and we won $10.00.  I was excited, because now, I don’t have to check our numbers on line. I can just go to Kroger to get our cash.
I got up late, but was able to catch the 11 a.m. bus down to The Strip on Cedar Springs.  I first had a nice breakfast at Café Brazil, and then caught the bus back up to another member's apartment to pick up a check.  He paid me for the next game (Game 18).
From his apartment, I was able to walk over to Kroger, in this heat and check out tickets.  Most of you know that I run our tickets thru the Texas Lottery Kiosk that they have at most Grocery Stores.  I normally buy out tickets there, too.  These machines are pretty good, but like all machines they break.  It happens on my about every 50^th time I use the machine.  I guess it was my day.
Our second ticket gets caught in the machine.  It will not come out.  Of course this puts the machine in an out of order status.
I call a manager over and he looks at the machine and tells me he is not sure they can get it out for me.  I tell him, very politely, that they will get the ticket out, and I am prepared to wait here until they do get it out.
Another manager comes tells me that they key is in a time lock it could be another 15 to 20 minutes before they can unlock the Kiosk.  That is okay, I’m prepared to wait until I get my ticket.
The managers can not understand why I just don’t leave and come back later.  I explained to them that this is NOT just a $1.00 ticket.  It’s a $50.00 ticket that still has at least 7 more draws to it.  The ticket doesn’t belong to me, but rather to my Mega Million Lottery Pool, and I am not talking any chances in leaving the terminal until I get my ticket back.
The 20 minute wait was longer for them, that it was for me.
Now one of our tickets is crumbled, so I can’t use the machine for this ticket again.  I hope we win on it next, so I can get a new ticket.
Now here is the good news. I lost track of our tickets, so went to the Service Center to start the process all over.  I was please to discover that I had won $12.00 on my personal tickets.  I was very more please to discover that my Die Hard Multi-Lottery Pool had won $12.00.  Then, I was elated to find out that my Mega Million Pool had won $12.00, also.  This has never happened before.  (Now I had to go home and do two newsletters.)

Okay my morning and afternoon was not one of my best, and when I left the house, I forgot my Mega Million file.  I wasn’t sure how to spend the $12.00.  Remember I thought we had only won $10.00, so I was prepared to buy us one ticket for 10 draws.  (The lottery is still low, so I didn’t see a need to buy more tickets for less draws.)
But, now I had $12.00 to spend.  I didn’t know which bonus balls to buy, but I knew that I didn’t want to repeat any that I already had.  I had this gut feeling (and most of you know that I follow any gut feelings) that I should split the money in half and buy us 2 lines for six more draws. 
I have a problem with one draw tickets.  Sometimes the game they are in are already played by the time I get my members their newsletters.  I don’t even like 2 draw tickets.  But, I can handle six draws.
I just had to trust the system, and go with Quick Picks, praying that we would not duplicate any Bonus Balls.

We got the number 23, which we already had, and the number 13, which we did not have.  Both numbers were Odd Balls.  Okay, I’ll accept this, (like I had a choice in the matter).

One of my members pointed out to me yesterday that the Lotto Texas was bigger than the Mega Million.  Lotto Texas is at $32 Million.  Mega Million was playing for $23 Million. I told him that the Lotto Texas game creeps up about $2 Million between drawings.  The Mega Million game has more players and they can go up $10 million between drawings.
In tonight’s drawing both Jack Pots are at $32 Million. 
We still have plenty of time in this game.  We have only had two draws and won a total of $14.00.  A week has not gone by without us winning something.
I found out that we are losing a member, so I will not be able to extend this game.  I have been contacted by yet another person from another state who is interested in playing with us.  If he decides to join, I will need to start Game 18 on time.  This game is scheduled to end on Tuesday August 30^th, 2005.
Mega Million Lottery Pool #18 (will buy tickets on 08/31/2005)

And now for the jokes; here are some cute web sites.

http://trunks.secondfoundation.org/files/psychic.swf
http://www.michaelhodges.com/stuff/funny/2008cc1.swf
Birds & Bees Updated
SON: Daddy, how was I born?  

DAD: Ah, well, my son, one day you will need to find out anyway! Mom and Dad got together in a chat room on MSN. Dad set up a date via e-mail with your mom and we met at a cyber café. We sneaked into a secluded room, and then your mother downloaded from dad's memory stick. As soon as dad was ready for an upload, it was discovered that neither one of us had used a firewall. Since it was too late to hit the delete button, nine months later the blessed little virus appeared. And that's the story.

Michael E. Porter

meporter@myway.com