The following piece is from Terence Mayne (SH 47-52), who is a loyal supporter of the 200 Club with several numbers in the draw. Indeed, he recently won £124 in the July draw. We would encourage all OSBs to follow in his footsteps and take out a number or two, to help support the school and the St Beghian Society.

GAMBLING.

One morning I was sitting in the kitchen after breakfast, thinking of practically nothing whatsoever, when all of a sudden I felt a stabbing pain in my left foot. I began thinking I must call Dr Doolittle, who to be fair, in spite of his unfortunate name, has spent much time keeping me alive. When, just as I popped the last spoonful of porridge, brown sugar and cream into my mouth, the postman plonked the usual junk mail through the letterbox, but this time, joy of joys, there was a handwritten letter from an old friend, for friends who write letters in longhand, or any letter at all nowadays, are like hen's teeth. This was enough to make my foot less painful, but imagine my thrill and the curative power in opening another envelope to find a cheque for €IOO from my rugby club, of which my father, a natural athlete, made me a life member on my birth some time ago.
              
In 2002, for club funds, I invested in the bi-monthly prize draw. Now, I am not a gambling person, but this is something similar to putting money in the Marie Curie or Macmillan feel good games of chance; it is called ‘benefit gambling’ for fun and profit to the organisers, and with a faint chance of personal enrichment. Although life is a gamble from day one, I have been cautious or mean enough, with a natural native wit not to give money to ‘Bookie Bob’ or any establishment mathematically geared to never lose.

Well, apart from the goody, goody ways above described, there is a big world out there. Take my cousin Clive, he has been playing the horses for forty years, and playing the horses is something he himself says he's very good at. His ability to consume alcohol is not to be ignored either. Personally, I take it upon myself to avoid this and recommend you do the same for many reasons. Recently, I heard he had had bad spells with the beautiful animals, and had moved on to roulette, dogs, poker and much more, as alternative sources of income. But it seems I am a gambler too. Furthermore, I am gambling the €IOO I won, thirty pounds each to Marie Curie, Macmillan and the rugby club, and €IO for nicotine (that's another gamble). So, I now have the excitement of maybe winning another €IOO sometime in the future. So, sign up to the OSB 200 Club (even if it is gambling!).

 

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The St Beghian Society    
St Bees School,    St Bees,    Cumbria,    CA27 0DS.

         Tel: (01946) 828093      Email: osb@stbeesschool.co.uk      Web: www.st-beghian-society.co.uk