Firstly, I want to apologize for the delay in the sending my article on gambling. For the past few months, I have been devoting my time to form an Asian Athletic Association here- it’s the first of its kind in this city. Our current activity is Asian Basketball League. Each day after work, I’ve been coordinating the teams recruitment, facility rentals, meetings with various Asian business for sponsorship, selection of the members of the board, etc... There are lots of works involved, but this is my baby for the moment. Oh, there are two Lao basketball teams here and we are two of the top ranked teams in the league. Anyway, back to the subject - Gambling Yes I believe everyone has been affected by this - in one way or the other. It can range from simply buying raffle tickets at work to illegally betting on sporting events. I must admit that I do buy the lottery sometimes (I was hoping to win big so that I can finance all the SatJaDham’s projects - i.e. book publication and conferences :)). I also bet legally on some sport games. I would win several hundreds dollars couple times. Each time I win, I would go back to buy more - putting more dollars on each wager. This seems to be the trend until I have used half of my winnings and have no more luck. I have some friends who were addicted to gambling. Many times I see their ups and downs. When they win big, there are many free drinks in the bar and free meals at the restaurant. Three or four months later, they would try to borrow money from each others or someone else. There is a little devil in all of us. Once we started winning or obtaining luxurious commodities easily, we tend to want more. Gambling can be like alcohol sometimes, but can cause a higher level of problem. It’s OK to gamble a little (i.e. buying lottery tickets for fundraising), but just don’t do it EXCESSIVELY. As Clint Eastwood once said : A man’s got to have his limitation. My below free verse is based on that and what I see and experience with gambling. I must warn you that it’s not up to par with Adisack’s, Ai Khamone’s and Pom’s articles. But I welcome any comments: SatJaDham Presents: 13 Rolls of Dice By Amphon Guy Phiaxay First Roll............... New clothes New watches, neckchains and other jewelry Second Roll.................. Eating out at expensive restaurants Sushi and Sake every weekend Big tips to the waitress Third Roll...................... More friends Beautiful blondes at your side Fourth Roll............................ New TV, stereos New sports car Fifth Roll...................................... King of the bar Free shooters for everyone Different girls in different nights Sixth Roll........................................ Buy a new house Buy a new Yacht Seventh Roll............................................. More confidence Higher budget on betting Eight Roll........................................................ When not winning, stay up late at the casinos Feel a little frustration Ninth Roll............................................................. Still searching for that old luck Fast food restaurant Cash out more money or take out loans Tenth Roll................................................................... Frequent visit to the pawn shop Sell owned jewelry, new TV, stereo Eleventh Roll.................................................................. Lying Loss of friendship and trust Sell the sports car Twelfth Roll....................................................................... Divorce Sell the yacht Sell the house Thirteenth Roll............................................................................... Loss of confidence Emotional Stress Emptiness