Jack wrote this in June, 2005:
A friend and I down in Las Lunas were chewing the fat outside a car wash business he owns next to a convenience store a while back. A pregnant woman who works at the convenience store came outside and plopped down out of sight of the front door, smoking a cigarette, sitting on the concrete and leaning against the building.
We’d discussed this woman before…. a real nice young lady with a life a person wouldn’t wish on anyone…. last time I’d seen her she was sitting in the same spot crying, which is how I came to ask my bud about her story.
Anyway, seeing her brought her into the conversation again. Most recent weirdness in her life:
The lady is 20 years old. She went into Isleta Casino a while back with a friend, began feeding her paycheck into the slot machines. Now, it was illegal for this woman and her friend to be playing the slots, minimum age being 21.
So what happens? She hits a $5000 jackpot on the machine she’s playing. It lights up like Times Square on New Years Eve, making all kinds of commotion, people coming from all directions to see.
She knows she’s going to have to show an ID to get the money. So what does this poor lady do? She and her friend beat feet out of there, leaving the jackpot.
I suppose the first thing that comes to mind is this: What the hell was she doing putting her money into a gambling machine if she couldn’t accept a payoff, supposing she hit?
But, she ought to have been able to get someone legal to accept the payoff and split it with her, thinks I.
But she knew she was breaking the law, and what do you do when you get caught red handed?
Why hell, you run if your knees are still good enough to allow it.
That’s what’s called thinking on your feet.
Jack
So Far From Heaven 