Today is your day Boomer! Are you a lucky person? We have witnessed two Boomers win lotteries in B.C. in the last few weeks, and it almost makes me think about buying some of those tickets. But then I did the research. The odds are 1 in 14 million of winning!! What does this mean? It means if you bought one ticket every week, you could expect to win once in 269,000 years.....and since the average North American spends about $300 per year on lottery tickets, it also means you are just throwing money away. You may as well light it on fire and bury the leftover ashes in a hole! According to Investopedia, here are the key takeaways for all of us:
your chances of winning the lottery are remote. The odds of winning the lottery do not increase by playing frequently, rather, you'd do better by purchasing more tickets for the same drawing. Although there is no guarantee in the stock market, the likelihood of getting a return on your investment is far better than your chances of winning the lottery. Lottery winners have the option to take their cash in one lump sum or by spreading it out over a number of years through annuities.
There are tax implications for both, although, in the end, an annuity tends to have a greater tax advantage. Boomers, lotteries are a "game" and we all love games, but the odds are really, really bad. Good luck and cheers!
Today is your day Boomer! Relaxing in my hot tub this morning, I had reflections of the 1970 CCR song "Lookin' out my Back Door". Yes, that kind of druggy, but catchy song, about the view of your backyard. Mine is spectacular: colourful sunrises, big ponderosa pines, cheer, apple, fir, and weeping willow trees, two mountains, sheep and chickens next door, two frolicking golden retrievers, beautiful green grass and what seems like a thousand birds...including quail, pheasant, chickadees, woodpeckers, and blue jays. And what else? Well....the quiet, the solitude, and the chance for reflection with no sirens, car noise, yelling people, or neighbours invading your privacy. It was...is...just beautiful, and I am so blessed to live in a rural area in BC's Okanagan Valley. Boomers, what's out your back door? John Fogerty's "tangerines and elephants" or something like my cheeries and coyotes? Check it out and appreciate the little things in life. Cheers...

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