BINGO ... OR MAYBE NOT!

 It's a cool, little bit breezy morning in Central Cal.  There's even a tiny sliver of moon in the sky.  It rather amazes me that just last week, the moon was clear over on the other side of the house, setting like it was the sun.  Now here it is way over THERE.  I would love to have one of those mechanical things to set on the table so I could actually see where the plants are and how they move.  It fascinates me ... not that I ever want to go out in space, it's just amazing that we are on this big rock floating around the universe.

That's WAY too deep of thought for the morning after Bingo ... so here we go.  Where am I you might ask?  I'm hiding.  When you have to deal with so much drama, you find places to hide in the dark.  This is our Memorial Room.  Covering the walls are metal plaques with the names of every member who has passed away since they built this building in the 1930's. 

Needless to say, we are running out of room and will soon have to move to the anteroom.  There is one thing about Elks, they remember their members who have passed.  It's the perfect spot to soak up a little peace before the chaos of Bingo!!

Let the GAMES BEGIN!!  I started out on the cash register, but Janice came in like she always does.  What a GREAT volunteer she is.  Always with a smile on her face and stories to tell.  I think she has something like 14 grandchildren, one of whom was just born on Mothers Day.  How appropriate!!

I immediately let her take over so I could run the gamet.  It helps a lot if there is a runner to the table out front selling pull tabs.  Drop off the latest game and grab all the cash.  At one point I even had to sit and count out little groups of ten cards each.  A box of 500 cards sells out in minutes.

It's amazing how much money people spend on these.  Each game is different, but three of them have THREE $500.00 winners each, and one game has one $1199 winner.  Hundreds of dollars are thrown at you trying to win that $1199.  Why $1199?  Because at $1200.00 you have to notify IRS.  It's absolutely a madhouse from 4:30 until 6:30 when the games begin!

I don't know if I've told you the exact reason the pitchforks and flaming torches come out.  Every week I turn on a total of SEVEN televisions around the room that show a picture like this.  The machine kicks out several balls into a syphon like thing.  You move the first one around until you can see the number on the TV.  This is the NEXT number to be called.  That's the impetus for SO many fights!

We have a lot of new folks who don't catch on to the rules.  They scream BINGO when they see that number.  BUT WAIT ... that is the NEXT number to be called.  If it has not been called yet, you do not win.  Oh the moans and groans that come from the mouths of the players!!

Runners then grab their card and call out the serial number.  The machine will tell you if it's a winner or not.  THIS IS A NOT!  Oh my gosh ... those poor new players get raked over the coals.  When it finally calms down, the caller calls the number 51 and BINGO rings out over the entire room.  Sometimes there is only one winner, sometimes there is four ... and one night there were TWELVE.  You can imagine the ruckus that caused.

If the number is correct, all of the numbers called with show up in yellow.  Only one shows up here, so that's a NO WIN!!

By now I'm tired of running all over, so I camped out at the cash register for a while.  I checked on the kitchen several times during the night to see they were slammed too.  We had 134 people, mostly because they all have a chance to win a total of FOUR $1199 jackpots every night.  That brings in the crowds!

FINALLY ... it was time to cash out and hit the road.  I was exhausted, but still had to check the kitchen.  I helped the cashier count her money, cleaned up the counters, turned off all the fans and locked the freezer and walk-in.  I ran out like I had a bear on my tail.

I'm a little beat up this morning, but alas, accounting calls.  I'm hoping to make it a very short one.  I've got a mountain of paperwork to get ready for tomorrow nights Trustee Meeting.  

By the way, I heard the Mothers Day breakfast was terrible.  The ham was mushy.  How can that be?  Didn't they roast it in the oven?  The hash browns were cold and barely cooked, the sausage looked like it was cooked the day before and the casseroles burned on the bottom.  Goodness gracious ... sorry, but NOT SORRY!!   It's time someone else pick up the slack!!  See?  I'm learning!!!