My brother goes to AC or Mohegan Sun up in Connecticut once in a while to gamble at casinos. Maybe 3-4 time per year. He nearly always comes back in the red ~$1K. His buddies too. One of them blew like $3K at blackjack last time. They go, hit the bar, eat at a nice steakhouse, flush their hard-earned money down the toilet until maybe 2-3AM or so, pass out, then come home. He's never like "aw man, it was a blast, you should come next time!" He's pretty subdued and gloomy about losing money. "Hey man, how was it?" "Yeah, it was okay. I lost. A lot." I literally do not understand it. But I guess they can limit it to a few times per year, and I assume they think the trip overall is fun-- fancy steakhouses, nice hotels, getting drunk together etc. because they keep going.It's not about how much time to spend on vices but instead what is a healthy mindset to have if you are to enjoy them. Is there an issue with saying playing poker at the casino once per month so long as you can create a budget/time limit for yourself, say $100 and you plan on being there for a few hours. Or, does something like this create the possibility of becoming a gate way to other issues and is it better to just avoid it all together? Is it something to maybe not even do regularly and just go once in a while when you feel like it?
So, $100 per month on gambling. $1,200 per year. Think about it. That's not chump change. I won't even bother listing the better uses for that money I have than giving it to a casino or another gambler.