I won a lifetime pass for a minigolf and go-cart place that was popular in my area in the '80s. It wasn't a random drawing but a prize for a contest to raise funds for a specific charity. They made a big deal about it. My picture was in the local paper. I got the pass, which was a business card-sized laminated paper with their branding, my name, a bar code, and 'irrevocable lifetime pass' on it. The first time I went to use it, they refused to let me in. I called the next day to speak with the manager, and he told me the whole thing was a publicity stunt and that I should feel good for having raised money for charity. I tried again and was denied access to the park.
The third time I was denied entry, the card was confiscated, and I was 'lifetime banned.' Nobody cared - the paper that ran the article, the contest organizers, nobody. I couldn't help but smirk when that place went out of business, but they went out of business maybe 10 years ago, so I missed out on something like 30 years of using that pass. Of course, I respected their lifetime ban and was always open about my story and how I got banned for trying to use the lifetime pass they had given me. Nobody cared.
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