Scratch This

I've become obsessed with scratch-off things. Well, to be more specific, scratch-off posters. But, to be real, I'll take any scratch-off item, like a lottery ticket.

It's just so satisfying to rub off that top layer to reveal another pattern or discovery...something...underneath. It's not quite like scratching a mosquito bite until it bleeds, when the intensity of the scratch relieves the itch of the bite. But similar.

I limited the number of scratch-off posters that I'm allowed to have at one time to three. At this point in time, listed in the order that they were purchased:

1. A scratch-off poster of the 50 states. When the state is scratched, the state flower is revealed beneath the gold foil. I originally bought it with the intention of using it to track the states that my husband and I visited together but, at his insistence, it only represents the states that I have visited. By far the most intricate of the scratch-off posters that I have, it was so hard to scratch the smaller states - like Massachusetts - without going into its neighboring state - like New Hampshire. I have only 12 more states to visit, meaning only 12 more states to reveal. I'm already sad thinking about the moment when I scratch off the final gold foil for that last state. 
   
   
2. A scratch-off poster of the 100 Top Books. I'm not exactly sure who determined the list, but it's a wide-ranging collection of children's books (like The Secret Garden and Pippi Longstocking) to classic literature (such as Dante's Divine Comedy and Sherlock Holmes) to modern literature (such as Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone and The Secret Life of Bees). I've only read 55 of the books at this point, and the thought of scratching the last box on this poster is daunting...do I really want to read Ulysses? My eyes just glazed over, and I imagined myself falling asleep with the print of the book's pages becoming embedded on my face. Each book is represented by a gold foil square, and it's heaven when I do scratch off the square to reveal pastel artwork depicting the book's protagonist or other representation of the plot.
   
   
3. IMDd.com's Top 100 Movies Watchlist. Oofta. This one I should have researched better before purchasing but, in true me form, I slung back a few glasses of wine and thought ordering it off Amazon was a brilliant move. It's a combination of classic and modern movies, black and white films, silent films, foreign films, children's and animated movies, and...Japanese anime. This one, my husband and I tackle together, the compromise to the scratch-off states poster. We watch a movie together, and then I scratch off the gold and black foil movie square. It doesn't matter whether he and I have both seen the movie individually, at a time before we met each other, it only counts if we watch the film together.The scratching is torture, as the gold foil comes off easily but the black does not. Most of the time, I scratch too deep on the black area and scratch into the actual colored print below. I try to hide my mistakes with a black sharpie where I can, but the poster looks beaten if you look at it too closely. We have 44 squares...or movies, rather...before this poster has received its final scratch. I cannot wait. 

I haven't given much thought to my scratch-off poster for once these three are complete. Maybe the Top 100 Albums to Listen to? the state parks? Top 100 Things to Do on a Date? I can't wait...and hopefully they scratch easier then that fucking IMDb movie poster.