Surrounded by luck (or Who left my force field in the “up” position?)

I’ve always considered myself a lucky person.  A parking space opens up just when I need it, an unexpected check shows up in the mail just when the bank account started looking low, the only cool day in August ends up being the exact day we have to attend an outdoor party… you get the picture.

So yesterday, when I went to the casino with my son and his girlfriend, who are in town for the holiday, I entered with the highest expectation.  I sat down at the “Let it Ride” table and the man immediately to my right was dealt 3 queens.  If you are not familiar with the game, let’s just say, luck had touched him. At the end of the hand he was $600 richer.  Hand after hand the people at the table were racking in the chips, while I was handing mine over to the house.

I gave up on the cards deciding to forgo any game that required some type of skill and totally and completely opened myself up to the power of luck. If my skill wasn’t helping me win, then surely playing a game of pure luck would bring the cash rolling in and nothing says “no skills needed” better than a slot machine.  No matter how often I told myself to only play the minimum number of pennies on the pennies slot, I somehow ended up pressing the max bet button more often than not.  It didn’t take too long for me to realize that being vulnerable to lady luck wasn’t working and that playing the penny slots might just make me end up penniless, so I headed back to the “Let it Ride” table.

Several seats were available and I chose one in the middle, leaving the seat to the right of me open.  A man swooped in, sat in the chair to my right and dropped his chips on the table. The dealer dealt the hand and the man to my right made some sound of excitement before laying his three aces out on the table. It happened so quickly I thought he might have pulled them out of his jacket! At the end of the hand, the man was $500 richer.  It was time to stop really, but, well, just one more hand.

When I was down, but not defeated, I made the decision to leave the casino with money still in my pocket, my car still in the parking lot, and our house still in our name.  As I exited the casino, a woman on a slot machine to the left hit a $1000 jackpot.

Everyone around me seemed to be touched by luck that day. It made me wonder if luck only comes when you least expect it. Was I too eager to win? Was I being too self-righteous about my relationship with luck? Is luck limited?

I will never know why those around me were lucky that day, but I can only think (or hope) it was because my luck is saving itself up, percolating, growing, expanding, and will touch me the next time I purchase that Powerball or Megamillions ticket.

Do you consider yourself a lucky person?