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If I had a million dollars...

Discussion in 'General Discussions' started by Katia, May 4, 2014.

  1. Katia

    Katia Very Tilted

    Location:
    Earth
    Ok. Dream time people! You just won big time. Not a million, but tens of millions of dollars.

    What would be the first thing you'd do? What are the rest of the things you'd do?

    May be you already live the life you wanted and money wouldn't change a thing. Do you live that life?


    For me, I'd try to take care of all the people I love, first. Immediate family. Then I'd take my mother out of the nursing home, move her in with us and hire a nurse. I'd also donate a good chunk to Alzheimer research. My Dad passed away last September from it and my mother suffers from it presently.

    Of course, I'd have to donate here too, since I'm terribly addicted! :D
     
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  2. redravin

    redravin Cynical Optimist Donor

    Location:
    North
    Taking care of my family is a given and after that there is a charity I'd like to set up.
    Jadzia and I talked about the idea if we ever won the lottery.

    She wanted to create a scholarship for kids in urban schools that would give them mentors and constant support, not just drop them into a college.
    A way for the kids to make it all the way to the finish line and have people who would fight for them.

    I was cool with that but thought it would be nice to have part of it do the same thing for kids who grew up in trailer courts.
    It would take people going out and finding the right kids in both places.
    Probably even catching them in middle school and helping them from there.
     
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  3. Street Pattern

    Street Pattern Very Tilted

    I actually wrote about this earlier in another item. If I suddenly received a billion dollars, it wouldn't make much difference in my life. It would be unlikely to make me any happier.

    I couldn't really quit my job without letting down a lot of people, at least, not until the end of the year after next.

    If, God forbid, I am on the same schedule as my father, who died of prostate cancer, I have barely ten years left. Even without the free billion, it is very unlikely I will be lacking for anything I need during that time.

    So presumably I would set up a very systematic and organized way to give money to things that would do the most good.
     
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  4. snowy

    snowy so kawaii Staff Member

    I have a pact with my besties that if one of us wins the lottery, we're renting a house in Hawaii and flying everyone over there.

    I would start a scholarship at the school I work at. There are a lot of reasons for that. The community has a long history of civic engagement, and I figure it's a good way to give back. I'd also like to donate enough money to my alma mater to guarantee club seats for the rest of my life!

    I would pay off all of my debts and build my dream home. My dream home is not large. I do not want a big house; I just want one that flows and has all the features I want. I want a three-bedroom house with a nice library, a large master bath with a tub so deep the water will come up to my chin, and a well-designed kitchen. We already know where we want to live, so it would just be a matter of finding the right property.

    Then we would travel. I have a long list of places to visit, and I'd like to do that.

    However, I'd probably keep subbing where I'm at. It's tons of fun, and I can't imagine not doing it.
     
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  5. rogue49

    rogue49 Tech Kung Fu Artist Staff Member

    Location:
    Baltimore/DC
    Easy
    • Mom gets setup perfect, no worries.
    • Clean up everything, no debts. (I don't have a house anymore, nor do I want one)
    • Restart my business, hire my cousin as second in command. (leverage my inventions)
    • Restart my education, get my PhD.
    • Invest in multiple stocks & funds (long-term mindset, no short-term gain)
    • Travel when free (Europe first, then it's up for grabs)
    • Study my martial arts, get in tip-top shape.
    • Do my artwork (painting & drawing)
    • Write & test my theories (most likely in book form)
    • Hopefully find some crazy lady to stick around my talkative ass and have kids.
    But these are my plans anyway, it will just take longer to do it.

    ---------------

    Now, if you're talking BILLIONS...then that's a horse of a different color...
    • Design & build my estate.
    • Make an international conglomerate firm. (Similar to Virgin, Google or Elon Musk's companies.)
    • Have an island in international waters, equip it to be fully self-sufficient and weather-safe...and secured.
    • Have a production company to make TV and Films. (produce those books I've read...and those ideas I've had)
    • Perhaps run for office, likely Senate...never President
    • Multiple homes throughout the world
    I'd have to be careful with family & friends...people can get weird around money. (as if you're supposed to save the world, including them)

    And there would be a limit as to allowing publicity and limelight into my life. Just enough to make things happen, but calm otherwise.
    You can't escape it...but you don't have to invite it either.
     
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  6. girldetective

    girldetective Getting Tilted

    What a fab thread!

    If I had a million $$$, I would invest in real estate that I wanted to use rather than rent, then I would pay off my daughter's graduate school loans, and establish a trust for her. But back to using that real estate. In addition to choosing where I live (and it would be sorta funky, even with a zillion $$$), I would like to have a couple of artist-in-residence hideaways, similar to Yaddo but more folky and quirky, more Smoky Mountainesque. I would invest more in art for my own pleasure and as income/encouragement to those that do it.

    This is what I would do if I had the $$$ for fun. Otherwise, I would probably invest it wisely and spend nothing for a while, and then only the annual interest.
     
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  7. FreeVerse

    FreeVerse Screw Tilted, I'm all the way upside down.

    Location:
    Suburban Chicago
    Pay off my parents bills/debts, and the same for my sister and her husband, set my daughter up in a condo, get her a car, and pay for her to go to whatever school she wants for 4 years. pay off all my bills, send a lawyer with a check for half of it post taxes to find my husband whereever he is and tell him he can sign divorce papers and in return, can have that check, taxes already paid on it for signing NOW, and the money is his the second the divorce is finalized. get my passport, close all my accounts, pay off all my outstanding debt, dump the rest of the money into travelers checks and hop a cab to the airport with my laptop and a bag and head for the first country i can find with socialized medicine that is the easiest to be come a citizen of, and never look back.
     
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  8. rogue49

    rogue49 Tech Kung Fu Artist Staff Member

    Location:
    Baltimore/DC
    Or...

    I'll just sit at home, enjoy wacking off.
    Watch the telly, play some games (on the best equipment, of course.)
    And get laid by hot women who just want me for my money.

    And sometimes, I'll travel somewhere...and try to get laid by hot women who like me for my money.

    Or, I'll do this...and all noted in the post above.
    What can I say...I'm wishy-washy. ;)
     
    Last edited: May 4, 2014
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  9. fflowley

    fflowley Don't just do something, stand there!

    I like the responses above, but it's interesting to me that not many people talk about leaving their work, because that's the first thing that comes to my mind.
    I actually enjoy what I do but it's incredibly stressful. I also can't take a vacation longer than 2 weeks which really limits international travel opportunities.
    So I would give notice at work the morning after winning the lottery but I would make it at least 3 months notice, and a little open ended so as not to screw my work partners and the patients when I left. I would want to give them time to find a replacement.
    Once that was out of the way then travel to Europe and the far East would ensue. There would also be a bicycle crossing of the US and probably beyond as well.
     
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  10. Chris Noyb

    Chris Noyb Get in, buckle up, hang on, & be quiet.

    Location:
    Large City, TX
    Off the top of my head, for now:

    I would take care of my immediate family--my wife & I, my mother, my sisters, and my F&MIL. How to help (more like not help) my nieces, nephews, great nieces & great nephews would require a lot of thought, as would dealing with my wife's family (other than her parents).

    One thought, be it realistic or folly, that's been on my mind is starting a business similar to Newman's Own, or whatever the correct name is. Something like a for-profit business that puts most of the profit back into the company and its employees. Since people with $$ love to spoil their pets, I'd start a business making items for pets. Some would be high-end, other would be practical, all would be made in the USA.

    The company would be staffed by people who need another chance is life, a wide variety people with a wide variety of problems. That could be former inmates, struggling single moms (and single dads), folks who muddled through school, etc.

    The jobs wouldn't be 'welfare work,' the employees would need to work hard & well in order to stay employed and hopefully advance. I'd offer competitive wages & salaries, daycare, training for advancement, education benefits, health insurance, etc.

    I'd make damn sure they knew that their success was directly tied to the success of the businees.
    Example--"OK, he's your brother, but he comes to work hungover and does a crappy job. He's blown every chance we've given him to straighten out. His 'I don't care' attitude is hurting the business, which is hurting you and everyone here. Are you ready to risk everything we're trying to accomplish in order to keep him around? What if the other employess did the same for their relatives & friends? What do you think would happen to your job, and to the other employees who work hard to keep this business going?".
     
    Last edited: May 5, 2014
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  11. Stan

    Stan Resident Dumbass

    Location:
    Colorado
    I'm not sure about retiring; but I'd certainly have the "3 days a week looks good to me" talk.

    I'd move, 100 yards to my nearest neighbor is fine, 1/2 a mile would be better. I'd help my daughters some; but not too much. Struggling a bit is good for them. Maybe a new car to make transportation less of a stress point.
     
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  12. Street Pattern

    Street Pattern Very Tilted

    If I quit my job in mid-term, I would probably be replaced by someone with very different values. People who depend on me would feel betrayed.
     
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  13. Fremen

    Fremen Allright, who stole my mustache?

    Location:
    E. Texas
    If I were to suddenly have a hundred million dollars, I'd buy 99, 999, 999 quick pick lottery tickets and a Tootsie Roll.
    'Cause, that's how I Roll.

    Or something like that...
     
    • Like Like x 1
  14. CinnamonGirl

    CinnamonGirl The Cheat is GROUNDED!

    I'd buy you a green dress. But not a real green dress, that's cruel. :)



    I made a list once, of things I would do if I won the lottery. I think it's posted on lj somewhere. Hmmm...


    First, I'd bank a couple million, to live on for the rest of my life. Then I'd either buy or build a house on a substantial amount of land, so I could live in the middle of nowhere and not worry about neighbors (I'd also shell out some money to make sure we had decent Internet.) I'd buy each of my parents (and Eden's parents) a new vehicle, and pay off their loans/mortgages. I'd make sure my brothers were set up for college, and start a scholarship in our brother's name. I'd finally take my Baseball Road Trip, seeing each team (even the Yankees :rolleyes:) play at least one game in their home stadium (with one souvenir from each, as well.)

    I'd donate to various charities, specifically ones dealing with wildlife conservation, MS, and epilepsy. I'd eat at a hole-in-the-wall diner and tip the server a hundred bucks. I'd fly out to Oregon to hang out with ZS, including a full spa day. I'd buy BabySquirrel a bunch of ridiculous toys and things. I'd buy myself a Jeep Wrangler, and maybe a boat.

    If I had some leftover (not counting what's in the bank), I'd do something ridiculous, like rent out a theme park or something.
     
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  15. Plan9

    Plan9 Rock 'n Roll

    Location:
    Earth
    Off the top of my head?

    I'd buy and hoard *all* the Tab cola in the continental US and create a shortage that would allow me to sell it to the highest bidder. Gotta spend money to make money, folks.

    Example:

    [​IMG]
     
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  16. ralphie250

    ralphie250 Fully Erect Donor

    Location:
    At work..
    id have to pay off all of my debt first, then take care of my mom, id buy me a house out in the country, open up my own shop (transmission) work when i wanted to, buy my daughter a horse, and......... gotta think some more
     
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  17. DamnitAll

    DamnitAll Wait... what?

    Location:
    Central MD
    Some initial thoughts...
    1. Pay my parents back for my college and musical education.
    2. Set up a trust fund for my nieces' college education.
    3. Buy my house outright.
    4. Make all the improvements to it that I'd want in order for it to be my (small) dream home, all of which would significantly increase the value of the house so that in the event that I move elsewhere and want to rent it out, I could do so with minimal complications.
    5. Buy some bikes: my next road bike, either this guy or this guy; a bike for @GeneticShift; and maybe a mountain bike, too. Also a new helmet, since mine is all busted up.
    6. Donate a crap ton of money to the hospital where I work and specifically designate it for the Marketing and Communications budget to allow our tiny department of three to hire a staff comparable to our competitor's departments around the region (10 employees and up).
    7. Once that staff is hired and initiated, change my schedule to 3 days a week and take some much needed time off.
    8. Use my time off to learn, via classes and lots of practice, to become capable of holding my own in the kitchen.
    9. Travel.
    10. Donate a bunch to some good environmental conservation causes and organizations.
    11. Invest in renewable energy.
    12. Figure out what I want to be when I grow up.
     
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  18. Levite

    Levite Levitical Yet Funky

    Location:
    The Windy City
    1. Pay off student loans
    2. Put away a large sum in high-interest account for Little Levite's future education.
    3. Buy two house lots in Santa Monica or Venice, really near the ocean, and near my favorite synagogue, demolish the houses, and build one large house with pool and enclosed yard.
    4. Take care of my parents' needs and wants for the rest of their lives.
    5. Several million into diversified investments, bonds, etc.
    6. Large sums of money to my closest friends.
    7. Found a community bet midrash (free study hall of Jewish texts and ideas), at which I would teach.
    8. Make a major donation to my rabbinical school.
    9. Donate to a bunch of our favorite charities.
    10. Travel up to three months out of every year, first class all the way.
    11.Get a PhD or DD, let Mrs. Levite get an MFT, which she'd like to do.
    12. Spend time writing without worrying about paying bills.
    13. Hire a personal assistant for me and Mrs. Levite, have our cleaning lady come 2-3 times a week, and hire a really excellent part-time nanny.
     
    • Like Like x 4
  19. Fremen

    Fremen Allright, who stole my mustache?

    Location:
    E. Texas
    I tell you something that would be fun(nish), if I had a few million dollars, I'd think of something to buy on Amazon, then start a chain-buying spree from the "Customers who bought this item, also bought..." section.
    See how far I'd get until I got bored, tired, or ran out of money.

    Fuckin' Amazon sells anything! I looked up steaks on there. Yup! Even have that over-priced Wagyu Japanese beef.

    Hmm, I wonder if they have my stolen band trombone from years ago...
     
    • Like Like x 1
  20. rogue49

    rogue49 Tech Kung Fu Artist Staff Member

    Location:
    Baltimore/DC

    You know, I understand this completely...I used to work at a place called Consumers Distributing. (a catalog store, with no books, closed in 1996)
    I was 18...and I used to just go through their catalog...just picking & choosing what I wanted in my dreams.
    I want this, I want that...and this, and this, and this...

    Not thinking about storage space...and upkeep...or even usage. (there's only so many hours in the day...)
    The Ultimate in Consumerism.

    Until you start reading the "Robb Report"...then that kicks its ass.
    And kicks it up a BIG notch.

    And as you get wiser...you realize there are people out there that will take $1,000 a day to pick your nose for you on a daily basis.
    And now you know why famous people go broke.
    If you allow it...you can go broke overnight. No matter how much you have.
    Like a friggin' black hole.
     
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