It’s tradition here at 2oceansvibe to enter the overseas lotteries if they hit the R1 billion mark, which is why there was a frenzy for a number of weeks back in January and February this year. You see the Powerball lottery rolled over a record number of times, finally reaching a total of $336 million (around R2,5 billion). One lucky ticket claimed that prize and that person has now gone public. God only knows why.

This is how it went down:

Louise White (81) said in a statement that was handed out at the news conference that she was waiting that Saturday, Feb. 11, with a grocery list for someone to take her to the store. In her list was a Powerball ticket in time for the evening’s drawing. She said she the person who was supposed to take her that morning “was working all day at home and couldn’t get away.”

“Then around [7 p.m.] a family member wanted some rainbow sherbert to eat later, so they decided to go to the Stop N Shop,” White wrote in a statement.

“I had just finished making a sandwich and was asked if I wanted anything at the store and I said emphatically, ‘I can’t believe you asked me if I want you to get me something. NO, I don’t want you to get me something,'” she wrote in the statement, “I want to go with you!”

After buying the tickets, White said she was at home later that evening listening to the news “while the family enjoyed the rainbow sherbert.”

She listened to news and copied down the winning numbers, but didn’t check her tickets until later. When she realized she had the matching numbers, she yelled, “Is anybody awake? I want you to come look at something.”

She said she and her family were in disbelief, checking the lottery website, then re-starting the computer and checking it again.

[more here]

Nice one.

That’s why you gotta be init ’til you winnit, my friends 😉

By the way, I hope you’re aware that yesterday’s MegaMillions lottery has rolled over and is now sitting at $148 Million (R1,13 BILLION).

Buy tickets online here.