I don’t often buy lottery tickets. My family tends to purchase them on road trips from small convenience stores in little towns, just for fun. I usually buy a few scratch-off tickets as stocking stuffers for the kids. But we’ve never won much – a couple of bucks or a free ticket here and there. Yeah, we’re still working folks.

With the Power Ball frenzy gripping the nation, who hasn’t given a thought to winning the big pot?

It’d be fun, for sure. There are a lot of little things I’d like to do with several million dollars. First, some fixing up around the house, all new landscaping, some traveling, and I’d fulfill a long-standing promise to buy my daughter a horse! 🙂

After that, the money goes to education. I’m a big proponent of education, and I would dearly love to throw some cash that direction. This would probably take the form of scholarships for students and bonuses or sabbaticals for teachers. My kids have had the good fortune to have many excellent teachers in their school years. But they’ve had a few burn-outs as well. I would love to fund teachers to take a break. Take a year off and go rest, rejuvenate and refill the well.

The big question is always would you quit working. I don’t think I would. I have too many books I want to write, too many works in progress that I want to see finished some day. Sure, it’d be great to not have the pressure to make money, to not worry about paying for things like insurance. But what would I do with my time if I didn’t continue some kind of productive endeavor? I think I’d get bored just spending money after a while!

I really wish the Power Ball would change its system and find a way to share the wealth. Nine hundred million is an obscene amount of money for one person to win, or even a few to share. I’d love to see 900 people win a million. But I guess it’s not as dramatic that way. Oh, well. It’s fun to dream, but I think I’d better get back to the books! I’m not counting on those odds!

Good luck, everyone!

Have you bought a ticket? And what would you do with your jackpot?