On occasion I will enter a contest or try to win something.  I have a favorite radio station that I will try to win copies of their sampler CD's, or passes to a studio performance of an artist or group I like.  I never win, but what the heck, I keep trying.  Yesterday it paid off..

I belong to the radio station's Frequent Listener club.  They send out monthly emails with upcoming concerts, etcc, etc.  I usually delete them without even reading them.  On Wednesday I received my email and I was browsing thru it and noticed a little piece about winning tickets to a U2 performance.  You had to register (only members of the Frequent Listener club could register), and on Thursday morning at 7:20, they would draw a name and announce the winner, who had to call in to claim the prize within 10 minutes.  For whatever reason, I clicked on the link and registered.  Then promptly forgot about it...... because, I never win.

Thursday morning, I get to work and have the radio on as usual - just background noise.  I working away (and have been for almost 2 hours), when something clicks in my head, that I hear my name on the radio.  I listen more closely and realize they are announcing my name as the winner of the U2 tickets!!!!  My heart starts pounding and I fumble with my headset and start to dial the radio station's number (thank goodness I know it by heart!).  Meanwhile my cell phone starts to ring, so I'm trying to turn down the radio, listen to my headset and pull out my cell phone.  The cell call is from my son who is currently at a conference in Mississippi (a long way away from Minnesota), and I inadvertently hang up on him without talking to him (thinking why in the heck would he be calling me at this time of the morning??).  So I end up on the radio having won tickets to some performance in Chicago that no one knows anything about.  Come to find out, this is a "private" performance sponsored by the record label for his new album.  The performance is being broadcast live across many radio stations nationwide.  

After many emails and phone calls with the radio station, I learn that I have won airfare and hotel for 2 and passes to the performance.  They are not announcing the location of the performance, the people attending all have won their passes from radio stations.  We will be bussed to the "secret" location and back to the hotel when it is over.

Later in the day, I remember the call from my son, so I check to see if he is online and instant message him, apollogize for hanging up on him and ask him why he called.  He was calling me (from Mississippi) to tell me to call the radio station because I had won something.  A friend of his heard my name on the radio and didn't know how to reach me, so they called him to call me!  My DIL also contacted me later in the day to congratulate me.  A co-worker of hers heard the name and wondered if she was any relation to the person on the radio who just won U2 tickets.  DIL was hoping it was for 4 tickets so she and my son could tag along. 

As a person that has not attended a live concert since about 1969 (Jefferson Airplane - yes Airplane, not Starship, that's how long its been)..... this is HUGE!  And apparently a lot of people would do anything to get these passes.  I have received several phone calls from people wanting to buy, trade, or barter for my passes.  I've been offered up to $3000 for them!!!    (Sorry gang - the passes are not transferrable, and I have no plan to give them up - hubby and I are going on an unexpected mini-vacation!).

So I guess I'll keep entering those contests and drawings.... you never know when you will be the winner!

Way to go!!!

I enter contests but never win.

Congrats!!!  How exciting!  Enjoy the concert!  I hear U2 puts on a great show!  Now who knows if it is in America or Ireland?  HMMMMM

Congrats!

I only enter if I know they're trying to market a new product and everyone who enters is likely to "win" the two new shades of Chanel nailpolish or whatever it was last time.