The Lotto!

So I admit, every now and then I get the urge and go buy a Lotto ticket.  You can't win if you don't play!  Well, apparently I can't win anyways.  I promise, if I win, I'll let you know.

Is playing the Lotto still largely a Lower Class event?  The infamous "THEY" say that more and more of the Middle Class have started buying Lotto tickets since we've entered this recession.

We all have fantasies about what we would do if we won - come on, you can admit it!

What I don't understand is all the winners who end up broke in a few years.  I don't care what any financial planner tries to tell me - if (when) I win, I'm taking the annuity.  Know why?  Because in twenty years, I'll still be getting it!  I won't get the chance to be stupid with the whole thing!  I can do stupid in small chunks, but the rest will be safe.

In reality, the chances that you or I will win the lottery are very, very small.  So how do they get people to play week after week?  It must be the dream itself.  It's just a dollar after all.  We'd probably blow it on a candy bar, and who needs the extra calories?  (That's it!  I'm not wasting a dollar on a sure loss - I'm losing weight!)

So back to the Lotto habit creeping into the Middle Class.  Do you think this is harmful?  I know some very low income people who's dreams of winning the Lotto seem to color all of their spending habits.  Is it getting to be a problem for the Middle Class?  What would someone's spending level have to be before it would be considered a problem?

Personally, if I spend $2 a week on the Lotto, that's a lot.  Not a problem, though.  If I was spending $10 a week on Lotto tickets, I'd have to seriously rein myself in.  I've noticed that when the jackpot is up into the $100 million dollar range, I (and everyone else!), start going a little overboard.  Believe me, right now I'd be just as happy with $1 million as $100 million.  And for that matter, if my husband got a job that paid, oh say, $75,000 a year, instead of $16 an hour, I'd be even happier!!

You know why I'd be happier if he got a better job than if we won?  (Not that I'd turn it down, mind you.)  Because we would be earning it.  There is just something about that feeling!  Me, the wifey and mommy staying home raising our kids, and my husband going out slaying dragons and bringing home the bacon.  How iconic is that?