gambling
noticing the dissapointment in her eyes as i nonchantly swept away all the chips on the roulette layout like they were worthless clumps of clay, i commented to the lady on how losing all your money may actually be a blessing in disguise although in hind sight that was probably not the best idea.
this lady who had just contributed to the casinos wealth was fairly new to roulette and gambling in general. she was in melbourne for a shoe convention and decided that since she was in town might as well try her luck and luck seemed to be on her side due to her alledged claims that she had never lost before in her previous visits (including this one, it was her third visit); not until tonight anyway unless you consider having me as her croupier while sowing my seeds of wisdom, winning.
usually i wouldnt make such unsympathetic comments (only unsympathetic to the less shrewd) but factoring that she was not from this part of town, fairly new to the game of roulette and someone that genuienly seemed like they were here for a good time rather then trying to amass a fortune, i explained how if she had kept winning certain undesirable ideologies about gambling would arise and would subsequently be ingrained into her subconscience. slowly but surely it would send her spirling into the perpetual twinkling of lights and the all consuming world of gambling and perhaps by losing it would hopefully have the adverse effect; there by producing such disgust in herself that she had so foolishly squandered her hard earned money and ideally would swear of gambling or at least conjure a feeling of apprehension in association with it.
as i was explaining all this, the gentlement sitting at the end of the table with a pencil in his hand, diligently keeping track of the numbers i had been spinning on his scorecard (if i put that much effort in my studies perhaps i could have soared to great heights!) literally laughed out loud and repeatedly mimicked my 'blessing in disgusie' phrase. i wasnt too sure if it was in amusement or in disgust but i think when he said he had never heard anythign so ridiculous that i suspected it was the latter.
with that he left my table probably assuming that i was an evil agent of the casino who was out to pinch every last cent from the average hard working citizen, which coudlnt be further from the truth. im all for the little guys, the underdogs, the david and golith like battle but unfortunately the casino has a very powerful advocate, much more sinister than the devil and a zillion times cooler than the mystical 'force'; its the laws of probability. yes it always seems to sureptitously rear its ugly mug and unfortunately a rock and sling is not enough to bring it down. if anything its more likely to do your head in with its complex equations.
but i digress. i could be totally wrong and my blessing in disguise theory could actually unleash the predispositions of a gambling addict which as been laying dorment from past generations and instead of walking away like i hoped, may instead continue opening up their fat wallets and by the end of the night entirerly emptying out its contents which could have been used to acquire lovely things. who knows perhaps they may even win a fortune but predictably would probably lose it all back and more.
of coures im only talking in extremes, there are the occasioanly punters and part timer gamblers that are genuinely out there just to have a bit of fun and kill some time but in my experience everyone loses and its not just material things but also the precious commodity of time (like osho says, its not you that is killing time but it is time that is killing you) and sanity...
this lady who had just contributed to the casinos wealth was fairly new to roulette and gambling in general. she was in melbourne for a shoe convention and decided that since she was in town might as well try her luck and luck seemed to be on her side due to her alledged claims that she had never lost before in her previous visits (including this one, it was her third visit); not until tonight anyway unless you consider having me as her croupier while sowing my seeds of wisdom, winning.
usually i wouldnt make such unsympathetic comments (only unsympathetic to the less shrewd) but factoring that she was not from this part of town, fairly new to the game of roulette and someone that genuienly seemed like they were here for a good time rather then trying to amass a fortune, i explained how if she had kept winning certain undesirable ideologies about gambling would arise and would subsequently be ingrained into her subconscience. slowly but surely it would send her spirling into the perpetual twinkling of lights and the all consuming world of gambling and perhaps by losing it would hopefully have the adverse effect; there by producing such disgust in herself that she had so foolishly squandered her hard earned money and ideally would swear of gambling or at least conjure a feeling of apprehension in association with it.
as i was explaining all this, the gentlement sitting at the end of the table with a pencil in his hand, diligently keeping track of the numbers i had been spinning on his scorecard (if i put that much effort in my studies perhaps i could have soared to great heights!) literally laughed out loud and repeatedly mimicked my 'blessing in disgusie' phrase. i wasnt too sure if it was in amusement or in disgust but i think when he said he had never heard anythign so ridiculous that i suspected it was the latter.
with that he left my table probably assuming that i was an evil agent of the casino who was out to pinch every last cent from the average hard working citizen, which coudlnt be further from the truth. im all for the little guys, the underdogs, the david and golith like battle but unfortunately the casino has a very powerful advocate, much more sinister than the devil and a zillion times cooler than the mystical 'force'; its the laws of probability. yes it always seems to sureptitously rear its ugly mug and unfortunately a rock and sling is not enough to bring it down. if anything its more likely to do your head in with its complex equations.
but i digress. i could be totally wrong and my blessing in disguise theory could actually unleash the predispositions of a gambling addict which as been laying dorment from past generations and instead of walking away like i hoped, may instead continue opening up their fat wallets and by the end of the night entirerly emptying out its contents which could have been used to acquire lovely things. who knows perhaps they may even win a fortune but predictably would probably lose it all back and more.
of coures im only talking in extremes, there are the occasioanly punters and part timer gamblers that are genuinely out there just to have a bit of fun and kill some time but in my experience everyone loses and its not just material things but also the precious commodity of time (like osho says, its not you that is killing time but it is time that is killing you) and sanity...