Melbourne Cup
The Melbourne Cup has come and gone for another year. It was a pointless excuse for a public holiday, but I will take any public holiday that comes my way. It was actually two days ago but its never too late to regret about how much money I should have won.
Like most other Melbournians, I went and put a bet on the Melbourne Cup. It's my one and only horse bet each year. I've had a few successes in past years where I have picked the winner or a place getter. This year, I went at the last minute again to the local TAB and crammed inside with everyone else. I then went about trying to put in my picks. While I was at the computer screen scrolling through the odds, an old man asked me if the machine gave the results. I just said to him that I have no clue whatsoever since I rarely bet on horses.
When I had made my own pick, my friend rang and asked me to help him put some money on as well. He had picked quite a few horses, one of which was the winning Delta Blues. He also asked me to put a quinella on, and one of the combinations was the first and second finishers Delta Blues and Pop Rock. I told him that I didn't have a clue how to mark a quinella on the card so he said he would get someone else to help him out. It turns out that he never found anyone else to help him place the bet so I had caused him to miss out on about $40 :-(. Well it was his own fault too for not going a previous day or something and placing the bet. I did what I could. At least I helped him get some money for the winning horse.
With my own bet, I was too greedy. Instead of putting an each way bet on Maybe Better, I plonked all my money on a win, hoping for a big payout. As it turns out, Maybe Better finished third and I finished with nothing but a lighter wallet.
Betting, like my previous post Life is a Highway, also has parallels to life. Its full of risk, with higher rewards linked to higher risk. The outcome is totally unpredictable and can change at any minute. However, unlike taking risks in life, I urge you not to get too involved in gambling. In the end, it will only suck you dry. The odds are stacked way against you and in the long run, the majority of people will only ever lose. I've seen how devasting gambling addictions can be from some relatives, so it's definitely something I will only do occasionally.
posted by thanh7580 @ 6:25 PM
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6 Comments:
Well said Thanh, gambling never works.
At least if you're gonna gamble, gamble with friends so the money will at least go to your friends, and they'll be caring enough to tell you to stop when ur losing too much (well, probably not hehe)
I got relatives who have lost lots gambling too, which is pretty sad. Maybe its a TC thing :P
Well I am going to go against this TC conspiracy. I actually feel really uncomfortable inside a casino. Not sure why...it's not like I have a gambling problem...I suppose it's just that whole atmosphere of people hungry to win money.
I wish this Melbourne Cup holiday was national. :(
I didn't know melbourne had a public holiday for it???? wth!!
Trev, I think that it's not just a TC thing but an Asian thing. I read somewhere that Asians make up a few percent of the population but about 50-60% of those in casinos. Yes Melbourne Cup is a public holiday but we miss out on some other one that you get that we don't. In the end, all states get 10 except Tas which has about 20 or something.
Mish, maybe you fear that you will not be able to control your TC blood and if you start to gamble, you cannot stop hahaha. Only kidding. It's probably the zombie like atmosphere where the real gamblers are so engrossed in the games that they show no emotion at all, even when they win.
As one of my asian friend explains it... asians generally work really hard to make money, so when they have a chance to make lots of money with little work (i.e. playing the games at the casino) they jump at the chance.
Don't know if anyone buys that explanation, i just think its a cultural weakness.
Well the explanation is true I think. Because it all comes down to greed. Gambling is what is perceived as an easy way to make lots of money quickly. It is also a cultural thing because a lot of Asians love to gamble. I don't mind a gamble myself, just not often thats all. Everything in moderation.
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