The Chips Are Never Down

My biggest venture into the gambling has been merely the occasional purchase of a lottery or scratch ticket. I am not all that interested in gambling. I have never been in a casino; nor have I the desire to set foot in one.

However, there was a story in this past Sunday's paper that caught my attention and piqued my curiosity.

At age 21, Isaac Haxton is a professional poker player. Not only that, this Brown University drop-out is a millionaire. The professional gaming world has its eyes trained on this young up-and-coming poker pro.

It's always amazing to read about somebody that young earning an amount of money that many people will not see in their lifetime.

However, what is more amazing is Isaac's attitude towards money and gambling in general.

The kid isn't playing poker for the money.

Money is nothing more than numbers ~ even though it may be hard for some people to grasp Isaac's cavalier attitude about instantly losing $27,000 in a single hand or his paying a $12,000 entrance fee to a competition on the West Coast.

Poker is nothing more than a game that allows Isaac to mentally calculate and beat the odds. Basically, he is a mathematics and statistics whiz kid who derives pleasure from exercising his mental faculties. The fact that this kid's earning a whopping $1.2 million is just a by-product of the pursuit of his intellectual entertainment.

Perhaps one of the fascinating things about this story is that Isaac has remained untouched and unscathed by the very game and behavior that has ruined countless of lives. Isaac is not a gambler. He's just a kid having fun ~ and making a killing while he's at it.

What an awesome and inspiring thing! This kid doing what countless people merely dream of doing.

Can you imagine swimming in all those Benjamins just by playing?

How many people spend countless years ~ perhaps most of their lives ~ at jobs where they are miserable and do not even have a chance to see that kind of money?

And how many of those people have had their lives destroyed by trying to get a taste of what Isaac does naturally and does for fun.

Am I going to rethink my position on gambling and take it up so that I could solve our financial woes.

I don't think so. After all, casinos and gambling hold no attraction for me.

In fact, I don't even think that I am even going to buy the new $20 lottery ticket with the $20 million prize and ten $1 million prizes.

Not unless I get a clear and unmistakable sign that I should.