I've done it. While on a date in college, I found I had only $1 in my wallet when I went to fill up. My date was in the car. We were just going for a drive in the mountains so I hadn't planned on needing cash. I had a major gas-guzzler and I wasn't going to get far on $1. Instead, I bought a scratch-off ticket. I won $25, filled up, and off we went.
Married 24 years this Spring.
I've done it too. Back when my brother and I were in college and didn't have any money, we scraped together some change and decided late one night to go to the nearby convenience store to buy a big beer to split. We were at the register counting out our change when we realized we had an extra dollar, and bought a scratch off ticket. Suddenly my brother said, "God, we're buying beer and a lottery ticket with spare change!". We both started laughing, and the clerk just looked at us, perplexed, and said, "What....?". Apparently she saw this sort of stuff all the time, and didn't get the joke.
Great story - thanks for sharing.