I just won the lottery

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

Actually, no I didn’t. But, it’s a nice thought, which got me thinking: what would you do if you ever won the lottery?

me:

yearly or lump sum? yearly

what (kind of) charities would you donate to and how much would you donate? I’’'d feel too bad if I kept it all to myself. SO I’d have to donate. If so, I’d donate to cancer orginaizations and scientific research organizations which specialize in DNA research. I’d probably donate a couple hundreds of thousands oif dollars a year, at least (depending on how much I won).

After I finish college, I’d buy an RV, and take my beautiful SO around the country, picking close destinations around the country, which we both wanted to go (i.e.: i heard that place was cool, let’s go). Return to a moderate new house, and proceed to make babies.

Every payment would be split 1/8 into a bank account. 1/2 into a savings account (which I couln’t touch until X date), 3/8 into investments (probably into up and coming computer hardware companies, and a major university for my children, most likely).

I’d never let my kids know, so they would actually do something with their lives (hopefully). I’d continue with my career, working as anyone else would, and my mother, above all else, would be well taken care of (I don’t have a father).

So what would you do?

2

Lump sum, here.

First, I would pay off my pesky little debt that I have been working on for years. Then I would tell my company to go soak their collective heads.

Then, I would by a Izuzu Rodeo w/ cd player and air conditioning.

Then I would tour the country, stopping to take in a game at each of the 30 major league parks.

After that, I don’t rightly know what I’d do…

3

I would donate an amount to tax-deductable charities each year that would cancel out my income tax debt - so send the ATO (the equiv. of the IRS) a letter asking for all my tax back, and make it snappy.

4

I’d split it 50/50 with my parents so that they could pay off any debts that they had and do whatever with the rest. With my half I’d buy a really nice house for when I move out. Then I’d put half of the remainder in my savings account, and with the rest, buy wooden hangers for all my clothes and go on a major shopping spree.

5

Some wild-eyed consumerism would definitely be called for. And large.

Fix up the house. Fix up the guest house. Buy the valley. The whole thing.

Start up a record label, a comic book store and a comic book.

Yep, that’s it.

Oh, and lump sum for sure.

6

Probably annual payout, depending upon the amount. For a measly coupla million, I’d likely take a lump sum. [sub]yeah, measly[/sub]

Hubby and I decided long ago that if we ever hit it really big, we’d establish scholarships - never decided on the details, but we both see high value in education.

And we’d take care of our families.

Then we’d go yacht shopping.

And I’d quit my job in a heartbeat - as long as it wasn’t one of the measly coupla million jackpots… :smiley:

7

I always thought I’d take the yearly installments but people who are wiser about economics than I have explained that lump sum is the most profitable route. So, lump sum for me.
First thing I’d do is higher a kick butt financial planner / accountant. I’d have that person work out how much money I needed to set aside / invest in order to never have to work again.

Without working, I’m sure I’d be bored out of my skull so I would either study for a job that I really wanted but haven’t been able to pursue do to time / financial constraints or (more likely) volunteer at a string of organizations. I think that volunteering would leave me satisfied, fulfilled, and would offer the flexibility I would need to take part in my next major post lotto endeavor: travel.

I would travel the world by air, sea and land. I’d take trains across as many continents as I could. I’d fly or take a boat to far off lands. I’d visit as many countries as I could for months at a time.

I’d keep the house I currently own but I’d make some improvements. Specifically, I’d have all of the wood floors redone. I’d redo the bathrooms so that they were shining tile wonderlands. I’d have a stylish yet incredibly functional kitchen. I’d hire a landscaper to make my yard gorgeous.

I’d open a small deli / grocery in my neighborhood. I wouldn’t have to worry about being profitable so I’d run it and stock it exactly the way I wanted to. I would serve good coffee and pastries in the morning and have a variety of newspapers and magazines available for those stopping in on their morning commute. I’d have a selection of fine wines, good beers and fresh cut flowers for those stopping by on their way home. The deli would be stocked with culinary delights and I’d have small boxed lunches prepared and ready to go. I’d invite local artists to display their artwork in my deli.

I’d buy my mom a house and provide for her to live in comfort for the rest of her life. I’d also pay for her to travel around the world as I know this has been a dream of hers. I’d pay for the tuition of any of my siblings who chose higher education. For those that chose another route, I’d do what I could to help them finance those dreams.

I’d fill my home with the artwork and music of my artist and musician friends.

On the vanity front, I’d get my teeth in tip top shape, have the most permanent hair removal treatments I could find performed on various annoyingly hairy bits of my body, and hire a personal trainer / dietician to get me (and keep me) in shape.

On the mental health front, I’d find a damn good psychiatrist to help me exorcise the demons of my past (and hopefully get rid of some excess baggage).
Ummmm…no…I’ve never put any thought into this before. Why do you ask?

8

Second thing I’d do is hire somebody to profread my damn posts before I hit submit.

9

Help out all the people who have helped me out over the years, start an education fund for kids who deserve higher education but not the lifestyle that will keep them from it, buy a house that doesn’t need constant maintenance (if such a thing exists) and buy the latest and greatest Macintosh equipment (even though I don’t really need it).

Apart from that, I guess, depending on the jackpot amount, I would start destroying mien enemies one by one…:stuck_out_tongue:

10

Sure you did. I heard your song…

[singing] If I were a rich man…a yida deeda deeda deeda deeda deeda deeda dum… all day long I’d biddy biddy bum, if I were a wealthy man… :smiley:

[/singing]

Zev Steinhardt

11

Lump sum here too. Then it’s off to a financial planner because I don’t know enough about having that much money.

I think I would:

  1. Never tell any one that I won the lottery.
  2. Pay off my parents debt (and my own) first.
  3. Anonymously give an appropriate amount based on need to many family members, forcing them to sign a document that they’d never disclose to another family member they received anything. (It’s an attempt to avoid fights, but probably wouldn’t work).
  4. Travel the world with my family and newly hired nanny/tutor.

I’d have to think about the charity thing though, I would like to start a few scholarships for middle-income kids interested in going into the art field.

12

Oh I forgot I’d become a professional student. I’d be in art school and learn several instruments one by one.

13

Lump sum.

I would pay off all my bills/loans, etc. Then I would pay off my parents’ bills. Now, if this was some mega-jackpot, I would buy 2 houses here and one in France. The houses here would be downtown on the peninsula and on the beach. The house in France would be just a nice, relatively small place to go vacation in.

I would set up a foundation to help kids who have family, but are better off on their own. I would also donate a large portion of money to the local service that assists AIDS patients. I would also set up a drug rehabilitation center named after a friend of mine who passed away a couple of years ago.

The rest of the money would be invested, and give me just enough to live comfortably. (In other words, I can get all my bills paid on time and still be able to go out to dinner whenever I want.) I would make sure that by the time my as-yet-unborn kids go to college, it will all be paid for. If they opt not to go, it will go into a trust with a monthly allowance. (Just enough to pay the bills kind of thing.) I’ll probably also speculate in the trust that they have to have a full-time job, since they opted not to go to college and further their education.

I would also finally get the car that I want, and learn how to restore it myself (a 1964 1/2 Ford Mustang). I would also buy a new car to use to travel around, because I actually enjoy driving places. I would also finally update my home audio equipment, so that I can finally listen to all the records I have.

That’s it. I don’t ask for much, I guess.
:wink:

14

Hookers and blow.

:smiley:

15

Oh, I would make sure I didn’t give any of the money to someone writing misleading subjects.

16

Lump sum, party, party, party, and then if I am still alive, start thinking about smart stuff to do with it!

17

Hm. Well, the yearly one would be nice. I’d move into a better apartment (this one is fine, but it would be nice to have one with more space). I’d set up a trust fund for **Hamish[/]b so he could write and wouldn’t have to work at that g-d store anymore.

I’d save for that trip to Europe I keep having to put off, buy some nice clothes and furniture, and go out to eat a little more, but really I don’t need much in the way of stuff.

I say that I’d save for those things rather than splurging on them, even if I did get enough yearly to buy them right away, so that I could donate money to a number of charities, such as Dans la Rue, groups for gay & lesbian youth, the NDP :cool:, Greenpeace, Transport 2000, etc.

18

I would take yearly payments.

I would pay off my student loans, pay off some of my brother’s, buy my dad a big chunk of land somewhere he would want to hunt and give my mom as much money as that would cost, just to keep them even.

As other people have said, I would travel and stay in school. I would set up some kind of scholarship in my name. Just to make someone’s life a lot easier, it would be open only to stressed-out psych grad students.

Honestly, the very first thing I would do upon getting the first payment would be to go to a record store and a book store. Just the thought of walking into a record store and being able to say “I want that one and that one and that one and that one” makes me smile.

19

Hmmm.

Okay. Lump sum, straight away.

First, the following people get a million straight off:

Mom
Dad
Brother
Bro’s Fiance
Best Friend-Edwardsville
Best Friend-Chicago
Friend-Springfield/Musician
Friend-Springfield/Construction
Friend-Springfield/Game Store Owner
Grandparents-Mom’s Side 1
Grandparents-Mom’s Side 2
Grandmother/Aunt-Dad’s Side

Next, these people get $500,000 to open up businesses if they want, and they only have to cut me in for 25% of net:

Musician
Construction
Best Friends 1 & 2, although I don’t know what they’d want to do with it
Game Store Owner

Then I open up a bar for myself-another million

Brother’s wedding gets paid for-they get everything/anything they want for it. Steel drums, whatever.

Job goes the way of the dodo, but I’ll take everyone in the section out to lunch/dinner.

Build the house. EXACTLY where and how I want it bulit. Either that, or if I can find one I like in one of our old neighborhoods, I’ll buy it.

Buy various toys. Plasma screens, a Viper, new furniture, several PCs so I can have my own LAN, so on and so forth.

Another 5 million to charities.

At least 1.5 million to be invested.

And then we have The Dopefest. Central location, probably St. Louis. Rooms/board/airfare will be paid for all those who wish to attend. All you’d need to pay for is your way to and from your airport.

Can you tell I’ve thought this through? Latest jackpot is at $200 million. Man, you could make a lot of people happier with that much jing.

20

Caught in the act! :smiley: