英文短篇故事（纽约）469 Two Lotteries in Two Nights

（单词翻译）

 　　The Mega Millions lottery¹ was worth $190 million. The Powerball lottery was worth $550 million. Irene, 84, had never bought a lottery ticket in her life. Whenever she had a few extra dollars, she bought treats for her cat. But because both lotteries² were headline news, she bought one ticket for each lottery. On Sunday, she heard that there were two winning³ tickets. They'd been sold in New York. Could one possibly be mine, she wondered. She went online. She checked her Mega ticket. She almost fainted⁴. She had won the Mega! After calming down, she checked her Powerball ticket. She almost fainted again. She had won the Powerball too! Irene became headline news. People complained. They said it wasn't fair. The chances of her winning two huge lotteries were measly. A statistician said, "She had a better chance of being struck by lightning while turning cartwheels in Times Square."