A woman in southern Italy experienced a stroke of luck – and a near disaster. She won a €1 million (approximately 11 million Swedish kronor) lottery prize. However, she mistakenly discarded the winning ticket with her household waste. Fortunately, a vigilant garbage collector noticed the ticket before the refuse was compacted. The collector retrieved the ticket, and the woman was able to claim her substantial winnings. This incident highlights the importance of carefully checking lottery tickets before disposal and the helpfulness of waste management workers. The woman is now considerably wealthier thanks to both her luck and the collector’s attentiveness.