Buying A Daily 44 oz Diet Coke And Scratchers Is Almost As Hard As A Full-Time Job

Okay. Maybe not as hard as a TEACHING job. But not a walk in the park.

 

I have a plan when I start to town. I know where I want to buy my scratchers, and what tickets I want. Of course I always get my magical elixir from the Gas Station Chicken Store. But the order of my stops varies.

 

I went to the liquor store first on Friday. It's on the right side of the road. I planned to make a right turn out of their parking lot when I left, and a quick left turn into Casey's. Then to the Gas Station Chicken Store for the 44. I don't like to get tickets off the same roll. I've been buying the $3 tickets lately. So I go to at least two different stores, or more depending on if I had a winner the day before, and don't feel like another winner is likely from the same place.

 

Anyhoo... I pulled into the far left parking spot up by the liquor store. There were cars at the drive-thru window, but that doesn't affect me. They have a separate register. Only one other car was parked in front of the store. As I gathered my phone (always on the penny-watch) and money, more cars arrived. People started rushing in there like they were late for a FREE meat giveaway! Or buying their weekend liquor on a Friday afternoon...

 

I counted 7 people enter before I got T-Hoe's door open! And only 1 came out as I sat and watched. That place was like a roach motel! They check in but they don't check out! No way was I going to walk in that narrow-aisled store and find a place to stand in line. It's not like I can lean on one of the liquored shelves, like I can lean on the unchickened counter of the Gas Station Chicken Store. My wobbley knees would be locked up and Frankensteiny by the time I was able to leave. I waited so long for customers to come out that T-Hoe's radio shut off! That was at least 15 minutes!

 

Well. I gave up. I backed out of my tight space, since now cars filled the lot, and one was pulling in and had to wait on me to maneuver. I made my turn to Casey's, and THEIR parking lot was full! So I took the alley through Farmer H's pharmacy, and went directly to the Gas Station Chicken Store.

 

Man Owner was minding the shop by himself. So the line was slow. Luckily a drunk man motioned me to go ahead of him. I'm not ASSuming. You could have smelled his breath all the way over at the liquor store parking lot. He was a happy drunk, though. And if he'd needed a dollar for a bottle of whiskey, I would have donated to his cause. He seemed more like a beer dude, though.

Since I still needed another source for tickets, I went to Country Mart. What can delay me from getting my own tickets from a machine? You'd be surprised. There was a man standing out front with a small table of merchandise.

"Would you like to support our urban boys' club by buying a candy bar?"

"Not today. I hadn't planned on it."

He was nice enough. I don't begrudge an urban boys' club their funding. But I know how the prices of those candy bars have gone up during my teaching career. More money, less candy. It might cost me a five to get a sliver of chocolate the size of a toothpick these days!

My gambling addiction outweighed my gluttony!

Anyhoo... I completed my mission. Tickets in hand, I strolled by the candy man and hoisted myself into T-Hoe. The Pony won $15 on his $3 bingo ticket that I got out of Country Mart's machine. I won $50 on my $3 crossword ticket that I got from the Gas Station Chicken Store.

My non-job may be hard, but some days it pays pretty well.