What Would You Do If You Won The Lottery?

Yaddo 42 · February 01, 2007, 06:54:31 AM

After paying the taxes? Or is $54 million what I'd have to work with from the get go?

Hopefully my plan would be:

I'd probably ask out a few women I know before it becomes public knowledge. That's right, I'm ripping off ideas from Lost.

Quit my job, on good terms with most of the people because they ain't the ones I have problems with, but tell off a few who I've wanted to tell off anyway.

I'd invest enough to live comfortably for a normal life span, surely I can live decently on 10 million. Pay off the houses and debts of family who have helped me or need the help. Travel to the places I've wanted to go: Ireland, Japan, or Australia first. There'd be some splurging for toys early on. A nice new car for once, maybe two. Go to some concerts, finally see the Chieftains in NYC on St. Patrick's Day for one.

Buy a nice but reasonable house that I can afford the taxes and upkeep for life. Probably have to hire security unless I want to go for the whole gated community route, being a regular person who suddenly has way too much money will bring on new problems and dangers. Travel interests me more than owning homes around the world.

I would rather put most of it to work for charitable work or philanthropy, let it do some good and outlive me. I have no idea how to put it to work this way, would have to research it or ask for advice. I've admired the man I heard about who sold his interest in the Duty Free Shops, kept enough to live well on but not overdo it about $5 million at the time IIRC, left enough to his kids to cushion themselves but they still had to work and be responsible.

No wife, no kids right now, so my options are open there. The money would give me the ego boost and access to ask out Selma Hayek for one. Use it if you got it. Track down a couple of potential "the ones who got away".

Who am I kidding? I'd probably waste it on partying, sleazy women (or greedy goth chicks), pointless extravagances, and trying to be like Guy Grand in The Magic Christian until I burned through all of it and wound up a cautionary tale.

Deathfeast · February 01, 2007, 07:14:02 AM

Make sure my family is well off.

Then I would do what I have always wanted to do and make some of the greatest low budget horror movies anyone has ever seen.

Acidburn · February 01, 2007, 11:19:42 AM

Quote from: Mr. Briggs Inc. on January 31, 2007, 06:09:05 PM
Buy more DVDs than Andrew

I am not sure 54 million would cover it

Andrew · February 01, 2007, 11:34:49 AM

Quote from: Acidburn on February 01, 2007, 11:19:42 AM
Quote from: Mr. Briggs Inc. on January 31, 2007, 06:09:05 PM
Buy more DVDs than Andrew

I am not sure 54 million would cover it

Wouldn't cover what? Rhode Island? I cannot even imagine the DVD collection I would have if I won the lottery. Along with opening a hobby center that would focus on the things I enjoy: huge bad movie rental store, Warhammer and AD&D, paintball...so what if it operates at a loss? I think just having something like that would be great.

JaseSF · February 01, 2007, 12:36:46 PM

First thing would be to get out of debt. Pay off the student loans and such. I imagine I would have an enormous DVD collection too. And probably a collection of DVD players/recorders too.

Shadow · February 01, 2007, 07:53:07 PM

Quote from: Andrew on February 01, 2007, 11:34:49 AM
Wouldn't cover what? Rhode Island? I cannot even imagine the DVD collection I would have if I won the lottery. Along with opening a hobby center that would focus on the things I enjoy: huge bad movie rental store, Warhammer and AD&D, paintball...so what if it operates at a loss? I think just having something like that would be great.

Ha! You read my mind! I've told my wife several times that if I won a hug lottery pay-off I'd open "Shadowfyre's Scifi, Fantasy and Horror Emporium" which would be filled with movies, comics, books, RPGs, video games, action figures, models, etc, etc. Everything imaginable for the post modern geek.

Scott · February 01, 2007, 09:18:33 PM

I agree that you could start something you like and take a loss as long as it's not a big loss. If it's a hobby and it employs people. That's a charitable thing in my opinion.

Dennis · February 01, 2007, 09:40:24 PM

My needs are actually quite small, so I'd try to give most of it away after setting up a trust fund for the kids, this might cause some problems with the wife because we have different ideas of how much money we really need.
I know this because we talk about what to do with our lottery winnings, like that's ever going to happen.

RCMerchant · February 01, 2007, 09:42:31 PM

I would probally ,in this order...
s**t myself.
Change my drawers.
Quit my crappy job.
Pay off my house.
Buy my ma her dreamhouse in Maine.
Take my family on a trip to Easter Island.
And than on to Machu Picchu.
Next,Ankor Wot.
Go home and live off the fat of the bank.

LilCerberus · February 04, 2007, 01:12:58 AM

I'd probably hire myself some people, & then I'll have my people look into it.

Or maybe I'll just move to Montana & start a dental floss farm.

I always figured that if I won the lottery, that I'd go me to one of them big ol' fancy college places & buy me some learnings so that I could get me a "real" job.
As Mama used to say, some people live from payday to payday, & other people live "on" payday.

Yaddo 42 · February 04, 2007, 07:59:18 AM

Quote from: LilCerberus on February 04, 2007, 01:12:58 AM
Or maybe I'll just move to Montana & start a dental floss farm.

With all that lottery money you wouldn't even have to put it in a little white box that you could sell uptown.

And by yourself, you still wouldn't have no boss, but you might be lonely raising that den-tal floss.

Yippie-Ti-Yo-Ki-Yay!

LilCerberus · February 05, 2007, 07:07:12 PM

I got to thinking last night, that while a hedonistic lifestyle would have it's allure, what am I going to do in my spare time? After all, I don't drink anymore, & even at it's very best, lovemaking can only last about eight or nine hours. Then what?

Then I got to thinking about some of the unresolved personal issues in my life, & that's when it hit me; I should become an evil mad scientist!

I'll use those lotto winnings to buy me a creepy castle, then change my name to Baron Von LilCerberus- maybe even buy a few extra letters & become Little Cerberus- and I'll set into motion my diabolical scheme to sit around the house doing nothing all day!

But first, I'd have to buy 365 pizzas, so that I'd have an endless supply of leftover pizza with which to carry out my dastardly plot.

CheezeFlixz · February 05, 2007, 07:10:45 PM

I'd do the "Electric Slide" ... I could afford it.

BoyScoutKevin · February 08, 2007, 12:45:53 PM

$54 million.

$53,999,999 I spend on wine, women, and song.

The rest, I would spend foolishly.

Scott · February 10, 2007, 08:55:38 PM

Check out the WORLD LOTTERY that going to start at 250 Million and then go up. It's in the works even as we speak.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=SYOPXYVBEKUHNQFIQMGCFF4AVCBQUIV0?xml=/news/2007/02/10/nlotto10.xml