I never expect to win big money when I visit a casino but I always expect to get lucky. There's always more to play for than money.
As such establishments go the Rolling Boulder Casino was rather modest in size. Still, it fit it's rural community well and is now an important part of the local economy and tax base. After I checked into my hotel room I perused the action at the poker and blackjack tables first. That puts me in the casino mood though I don't usually find the kind of action I'm looking for at those games. Most of the players there are more serious gamblers, the kind who figure odds and play smart. They are not the kind who bet the rent money on sucker bets.
There's a bit of a buzz around one of the roulette tables. There's a young woman, thirtyish, petite but strikingly attractive, who has had a string of luck and has quite a cache of poker chips in front of her. I watch for a while. Her luck has cooled off a bit and as she plays until her cache dwindles. Before too long she gives up and cashes out while she still has chips.
Fully in the mood know I head to the slot machines. That's where the best action is. Slots are for fools, a way of throwing money at the casino. The odds are the worst and the house's take is the highest on the slots. That's why they have so many compared to gaming tables. There are always more dreamers than serious gamblers playing the slots. Some of the dreamers do win big. Those million dollar progressive slot jackpots are what draws them all in like lemmings. This is where women who lose the rent money become desperate.
I walk around the room sizing up the different players. There some couples, perhaps locals out for an evening of fun. Most of the players are by themselves. Some play furiously riding the same bet game after game. Others are more casual, playing a bit more slowly, pondering and adjusting their bets between each game. That's the difference between losing their money quickly or slowly. I found two possibilities on my sweep through the slot machine area. Both are sitting at a gaming terminal staring blankly. One is wearing slacks the other a skirt. The machine next to the woman in the skirt is not being used so I make myself comfortable there.
She's young, probably in her late twenties or early thirties. She's not particularly well dressed. She's wearing knee length blue skirt and a white blouse with frills and ruffles in the front, unbuttoned on top to show generous cleavage. Her face is a bit plain but cute. There's a wedding band on her finger. She has reddish brown hair. She's not playing. She seems to be in a trance. Her slot chits are all crumpled up on the floor. My guess is she's lost all her money, probably the rent or grocery money, too. And now she's afraid to go home and have to tell hubby why they are broke and out of food. Again. But I'm going to save her from that.
I play a few games on the terminal in front of me. I lose far more than I win, as expected, but it pays out something often enough to encourage me to keep playing. I'm only making small bets so I don't lose too much. Mostly I'm watching her. After a few minutes I turn to her. She's still staring blankly at the terminal.
"Excuse me, I hope you don't mind, but I see you are not playing. Is there something wrong with that machine? I could call one of the attendants over to look at it if you'd like." I know she doesn't want anyone from the casino to notice that she's not playing. They'd ask her to leave but she probably doesn't want to go home and face the music.
She is startled by my question. "Oh. Oh, no, it's not that." She looks at me with a bit of panic in her eyes. "Please don't call anyone over. If they find out I've lost all my money they'll make me leave again."
This is music to my ears. "Oh, well, we don't want to do that then, do we? I'll keep your secret."
"Thank you," she says softly.
This works every time. Now we have a shared secret. We've bonded a little and she knows I'm on her side. "You are welcome. I don't want to get you in any trouble. Hi, I'm Don. And you are?"
"I'm Mary."
"Hi, Mary. Are you really out of money?
"Yes," she says dejectedly. "I was up almost a hundred bucks. Oh, why didn't I quit then? This always happens to me." She seemed on the verge of tears.
"It happens because there is always more money to win and why can't it be you're turn to be the lucky one this time. You deserve to win just as much as everyone else, right."
"But I never am the winner."
"It's OK Mary. It's not your fault. You do deserve to be a winner and you will be. Maybe not today but you will be a winner."
"Thanks. It's nice of you to say. But I'm just a loser. My husband is going to be so mad at me again."
"Don't think that about yourself. That's just what the casino wants you to think so you let them take your money. Beside, you could still be a winner today."
"I've already lost all my money how can I be a winner? Thanks for trying to make me feel better but I am a loser."
"You know, money isn't the only thing you can win a bet with."
"What do you mean?"
"Those are pretty earrings you are wearing, they must be worth something."
"The casino won't let me bet my earrings".
"No, but I would be willing to make a side bet with you."
"Huh?"
"How about if you bet me whether I win or lose on my next spin of the wheels here. I'll bet this slip with five dollars on it against your ear rings."
"Oh no, I couldn't do that. But. Ah... Really? You would?"
"Make your bet. Do I win or lose on the next game? Mind you, I've lost on the last three spins here."
"I think since you lost three in a row you'll win this time." They are so predictable.
I set my bet and push the button to start the animated wheels spinning. I've intentionally set a bet in the game that has almost no chance of winning. Her eyes light up and she has a look of anticipation on her face as she watches the wheels spin. The gambler's high. When the wheels stop spinning I'm a loser so I win the bet.
Mary is almost in tears again as she takes off the earrings and hands them to me. "My grandmother gave me those. Oh, why did I bet them. I'm such a fool."
I set them on the terminal in front of her and I put my hand on her hand and say softly, "I'm not going to take your ear rings. They really wouldn't look good on me."
