Ok, today kids, I'd like to address the pros and cons of playing the lotto with coworkers (and, I suppose, various other interoffice gambling options - such as football pools, etc.). I bring up this issue because, as you might imagine, I have been roped into said activity.
I guess the only real selling point is one could possibly, but VERY HIGHLY UNLIKELY, win a $#*%load of money. In which case those years and years of putting a couple dollars in here and there have REALLY paid off. But the odds are really really really, ahem, not good.
The first time I participated, it wasn't a big deal to hand over a couple bucks. However, in my workplace, and I imagine in many workplaces, this is a regularly recurring event. I do not want to think of how much these couple bucks here and there have added up to. One could say this is simply recreational, although I don't know how much 'fun' it is to simply hand money to the collector - because, really, that's all there is to this event. I suppose this is cheaper/better odds than playing alone - but I wouldn't up and purchase lotto tickets on my own.
Anyhow, I'm rambling. I have raised said concerns to my coworkers multiple times, but the only response I've gotten is that if I drop out and they lotto, they will have no sympathy for me, I will have missed out on my cut of the money, they will be sitting on a beach, thinking of me still going in to the office on a beautiful day and laughing at my poor self. So I suppose, that, alone, is motivation to stay in the pool.
I am curious - are my readers part of their workplaces' group lottery/football pools/etc? Is it worthwhile? How much does it add up to at the end of the year? Has anyone actually won? Should I continue to 'play'?
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