But Myriam's joy proves short-lived. Winning thousands of dollars on the back of a $125 trifecta might have been the best bet of her horse betting career, just that something else is coming for her upon returning home.
"Because you made a fool of yourself at the racetrack by throwing a tantrum after race two, you're grounded until the math team season opener! And no horse betting for you for the next two months!" Camden scolds his daughter.
"It wouldn't have happened if you let me bet on later races!"
For some reason, Brittany understood how important the quarter horse season closer is to me, and, as such, she let me go. But while I might have been a bit hard on Myriam, I am embarrassed by her behavior at the season closer, Camden reflects on his own experience of the season closer. Yet, for the final race of the closer, I was able to make good money. But maybe I really should let her bet on a whole card going forward, and not stop her if she wins a certain amount early.
Myriam then returns to her room, crying. She feels like she has been wronged by her father at the racetrack. Her mother catches her crying and lamenting:
"It's not the first time dad does this to me!" Myriam sobs. "He's just jealous! I can play the horses better than he gives me credit for!"
"You seem to be implying that betting on horse races is a game of skill!" Brittany yells at her daughter.
"It's because it IS a game of skill! How can I become a better horse bettor if I can't play? I can only play the horses when I am with dad!"
"You need to look at historical data, the most recent being the most important, you need to pay attention to what horses do best, track and weather conditions, and then picking the best value bets based on that!" Camden intervenes, when an incredulous Brittany was about to question Myriam about the skills needed to bet on horse races.
"If it's a game of skill, why is it that I keep hearing about addicts losing everything by betting on horse races?" Brittany asks both.
"They might be, what we call in the horse betting world, poor handicappers. That is, they can't use information about track and horses properly, or worse still, ignore that outright, like the vast majority of casual players. Others lack bankroll discipline..."
There have been 2 occasions where I was on the verge of losing my entire bankroll. I guess, I was lucky in both occasions, but I know others haven't been so lucky, Camden reflects on these near-misses, and his discipline as a bettor.
Until I can come back to the track, I must focus on mathletics! Myriam ruminates while she storms off to the bathroom and get ready to go to sleep.
"Are your coworkers in Lacassine gamblers and/or drunk? You seem to have been on designated driver duty often these past few weeks!" Brittany keeps yelling at him.
"Most of them are still fairly new to me, but when I started working there, it seems like everyone is in a rush for the finals season, AP or regular, so they didn't ask for happy hours as much as they do now"
"Last year, you were stressed out by having to write recs for outgoing seniors; has that changed?"
"I have fewer of them this year, but those I do have would feel mostly like how it was among the VAs, just without the Williams and Imélies of this world"
--------------------
A few days later, Camden receives a letter from Delta Downs. I have a bad feeling about this... a nervous Camden fetches the mail without Brittany noticing. From what I heard about other bettors getting letters in the mail like this, it's often because something is seriously wrong with them to the racetrack's eyes. It's either about me or about Myriam, let's find out, he shakes so much that he feels an irresistible urge to go to the bathroom. And make sure that no one else is watching him open the letter.
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"This letter is notification that effective September tenth..." Camden whispers, while reading the racetrack's letter amid the noises of the kitchen.
Ouch, this is about Myriam! She's banned from Delta Downs for the next 6 years! This means that, for the next 6 years, I will have to play the horses without her! But why ban her if I held complete control over the bets themselves? She would be unable to place bets on her own! She doesn't have a credit card, nor a bank account! a puzzled Camden then puts aside the letter before vomiting.
Then he talks to Myriam in her room, with the door closed, so that Brittany wouldn't overhear them. Especially since Brittany is still busy in the kitchen cooking their breakfast. He then hands Myriam her ban letter from Delta Downs:
"Could you please read this letter, Myriam?" Camden urges her to read the ban letter.
"I'm... banned from Delta Downs? I didn't cheat, nor would I know anyone who could fix a race!" a Myriam in denial is taken aback. "The racetrack management is just jealous!"
"Be lucky that no criminal charge has been laid against you. To the eyes of the law, you didn't actually place any bet and, as such, you couldn't be charged with underage gambling"
No use trying to get mom to let me use her credit card to do off-track betting! Myriam ruminates about why she would be banned from the racetrack. However, I don't think daddy would want to do off-track betting; he tried to hide gambling from mom.
"Maybe we can do off-track betting online! That way, no one would notice that I am playing! Why did you insist so much on betting in person anyway?"
"My hands are forced by the racetrack and I can no longer take you there. However, this means I won't participate in happy hours as much and hence I won't be on designated driver duty as often"
At Delta Downs, every Saturday regular and their dogs knew about Myriam. In the off-track online betting community, I am a nobody, and Myriam as well. However, I won't spend nearly as much on fuel as I used to, Camden then reflects on the implications of switching to off-track betting.
"One day, I will become so good at betting on horse races that I can do so professionally" Myriam proclaims, realizing, however, that, realistically, she might have to do so on a semi-professional basis.
"Honey, professional horse bettors often have much larger bankrolls. How do you plan on getting a bankroll big enough to bet on horse races as a job?" Camden asks Myriam.
"I'll go to college, and ideally debt-free, then get a job that will allow me to build a bankroll for me to play the horses as a side hustle"
Speaking of college, these kids over in Lacassine had a hard time understanding that, for students with high GPAs, it can be worth betting on out-of-state private colleges. You get in, it can be cheaper than LSU or even McNeese, depending on the college and family circumstances. Only the top 2 kids were a little willing to make the bet. One did ED at Trinity, the other was willing to try some other colleges despite not being the most accomplished in extracurricular activities, Camden reflects on the counseling part of his job.
"As much as I'd love to say that where you go to college doesn't matter, just focus on math team; don't play the ponies too much" Camden warns his daughter. "As before, I will have complete control of the actual wager, and also of when you are allowed to play the horses"
"And then when will I be able to bet on horse races?" a confused Myriam asks her.
"You must set aside some time for your homework, and then your training for the math team. Get good at these two things and it will help you with college and then getting a job that will allow you to build your bankroll. So it goes without saying that I won't let you bet on horse races all day"
Myriam is showing some signs of gambling addiction. She threw tantrums when I prevented her from further betting. However, I have some leverage to prevent full-blown addiction from kicking in, Camden seems to realize something is fishy with his daughter. On-track betting, while having a much better social experience, had its own transportation costs, so maybe online betting would be cheaper so long as I don't increase the bankroll and bets too quickly. Don't be fooled by better odds, though.
"One last thing: I won't let you bet on off-track, online horse race betting until the math team season opener, but no matter what happens, I want you to know that I still love you even if you can't bet on horse races!" Camden harangues his daughter.
"Thank you for answering my question" a frustrated Myriam, unsatisfied by how her dad beat around the bush to answer.
The sooner, the better to have me resume playing the horses, In the world of horse race betting, a month is an eternity, Myriam thinks, while returning to her sleeping room. She then marks that date on her calendar in her room.
"This I vow: once I'll be able to play the ponies again, I WILL play the ponies again!" an overexcited Myriam shouts in her bedroom.
And then, after dinner ends, Camden realizes that poker isn't for him anymore. Poker is a much riskier game to play online especially since the best players are often playing online. So I may as well stick to online horse betting...