gambling tickets??
Time was running out. Dordor and Harmin might send word any minute and the most beautiful girl in the world would disappear in a matter of hours. I was waiting for father to leave the house but he just wouldn’t. It was like he was nailed down! So I decided to ignore him. This was a big decision. Very big! I’d take my only chance that day and place a bet to the possibility of my father not going down to the reservoir. I was a born gambler. A million to one odds was enough for me. That, and I was counting on the fact that father woke around noon, came around in the afternoon, started drinking before nightfall and made me do everything shed- or reservoir-related. So I might not have been that big a gambler. I’ve always felt more like a gambling ticket anyway. I was even willing to put in my will that my bones be made into gambling tickets. That wouldn’t be halfway bad. At least, it wouldn’t be against my nature!

I would like to know what does "gambling tickets" here mean. Thanks.

Question

gambling tickets??
Time was running out. Dordor and Harmin might send word any minute and the most beautiful girl in the world would disappear in a matter of hours. I was waiting for father to leave the house but he just wouldn’t. It was like he was nailed down! So I decided to ignore him. This was a big decision. Very big! I’d take my only chance that day and place a bet to the possibility of my father not going down to the reservoir.  I was a born gambler. A million to one odds was enough for me. That, and I was counting on the fact that father woke around noon, came around in the afternoon, started drinking before nightfall and made me do everything shed- or reservoir-related. So I might not have been that big a gambler. I’ve always felt more like a gambling ticket anyway. I was even willing to put in my will that my bones be made into gambling tickets. That wouldn’t be halfway bad. At least, it wouldn’t be against my nature!

I would like to know what does "gambling tickets" here mean. Thanks.

Answer

Hi KellyXu

Well, I think a 'gambling ticket' suggests a piece of paper that you are given when you go to a bookmaker and place a bet. Evidence that you have made the bet. Like a receipt. If you bet on a horse race you would need to provide the 'ticket' to collect your winnings. In the UK we normally call this a 'betting slip'. Not sure what the term is in the US or other English speaking countries.

What does the simile 'like a gambling ticket' mean in this context? To be honest, I am not sure, perhaps it means that the character feels as though someone else will one day give him/her to some other person in exchange for money. Maybe his/her parents have spent a lot of money on educating the character in the belief that when the character grows up he/she will provide for them financially (sorry if this sentence is a bit complicated, it's a complicated idea to express!).

On the other hand if you are reading a book that has been translated into English from another language, then perhaps, this phrase is an idiom in that language?

I hope this helps

Chris