I wasn't even there at the time

Gienna, a friend of mine from work, went to Las Vegas for a conference and then took a couple of vacation days to unwind at Caesar's Palace. She asked if I wanted her to play anything in my name while at the casino, so I gave her $20 to bet on black at a roulette table. She didn't know exactly how that was done, so I explained it to her. While she was there, she e-mailed me, and I mentioned that she should feel free to let the money ride if I hit on black. OK.

So she's in the casino and she finds a table that'll take small action like $20. But she's scared, so she decides to watch a hand and see how it's done. The spin comes red. Now, she's mentally preparing to place my bet, but she's still nervous. Some guy steps up next to her and lays down $20 on black. Gienna thinks, "OK, now's the time!" but hesitates and the dealer waves off any additional bets.

It hits black. I'm out $40.

The guy who came to play let's the money ride, which is exactly what I told Gienna to do when we last spoke. But now she keeps thinking she just screwed up, and since the last bet was black, does that mean it's less likely to come up, etc. She's not stupid; she knows that it's still 50-50, but she's like parylized with fear.

Black. My $20 would have been $80.

Now she's frozen, panicking at the table. A couple of ladies who Gienna swears were nuns come up, and one of them puts a sizable bet on black. Gienna doesn't move.

Black. The nuns are way up, and I'm out $160.

Black comes up three more times; that's six times in a row. That's $20 to $40 to $80 to $160 to $320 to $640 to $1,280.

I'm out $1,280 bucks at this point.

So that's the final straw. Gienna now realizes that she cannot--CANNOT!--put any money on this table, because it's cursed. So she walks over to the new Roulette wheel and smacks down the $20 on black like a pro.

Red.

But at least she got me some poker-chip-shaped chocolate. Thanks for playing.

Is that fair? Of course not. Anyone would have walked away after the original bet and maybe let it ride once. But still, it's more fun to hang a grand over her head. :)