Tupperware Bingo?

Now that we're back in Binghamton-mode after the holiday visit to LA, I decided to open the newspaper this Saturday morning and find something interesting to do, out in the community. Turns out, that was a BAD idea.

January is apparently NOT the month for my favorites- garage sales and ethnic festivals. It is, however, the month for very lame things like, ready? TUPPERWARE BINGO.

The newspaper listing offered only these intriguing/mildly disturbing details:

Event:
Tupperware Bingo
featuring free admission and food, 50/50s and door prize raffles

The lack of information inspired me to do my own digging, and it's even worse than it sounds. Apparently Tupperware Bingo is a fusion of the following elements: food, people, a game of chance, and plastic containers used in households to keep food airtight via a patented "burping seal" - no wait, "burping seal."

Apparently Tupperware Bingo is in practice elsewhere in the Northeast, as evidenced by this very sad listing I found online:

"would you like to play bingo and win prizes while seeing all the newest tupperware products plus earn free tupperware? then be a hostess at our bingo in bangor on Jan.5th. for more info call 434-6568. January is a extra bonuses month. limited space, call to reserve your spot."

On a related note, I must have lived here too long, because it took me this long into the blog to realize that most of my readers won't know what a "50/50" is, as I did not when I arrived here, but soon was inundated with them at seemingly every community event I attended, even the auction.

A 50/50 is a sort of gambling-cloaked-as-fundraising in which you sell raffle tickets and give half the pot to the winner, half to the organization raising the money, as described in detail here. It tries to pretend it's all for charity, but, judging by those who tend to buy the tickets, it strikes me as more of a pathetic and boring way to gamble.

p.s. Please note that the Bangor tupperware bingo online listing, quoted above, also does not include an area code with the phone number. Apparently Binghamton is not the only region that does not expect phone calls from outside of its own area code!