$340 Million

and now, I ask you, what would YOU do if you won the megamillion jackpot tonight? $340 million is a load of money... obviously... u figure, cut it in half to account for taxes - that's $170 million. even if it were cut more for other taxes - u'll definitely be left w/ a good $125+ million. question is, what would you do with it?

i don't like to dream, but heck, who doesn't dream about winning? here's my story:

family first. Everything's gotta be taken care of domestically - distributions will be made to individuals, tuitions will be paid off, bills will be paid, mortgages taken care of... be generous and put that at around $20 million, leaving me with $105 million.

now what? do I quit working? no. now I take a job doing what I ultimately wanted to do. the salary isn't the issue n e more. I do something I am passionate about. something I want to wake up in the morning to. I take the job because I need to stay grounded, because money has a way of getting to people's heads. The money is a luxury, something that can be taken away at anytime. Appreciate it, but don't flaunt it - do not take it for granted. Do not think yourself higher than others because money isn't always power. The ability to influence and contribute to the development of this world is power.

By having a job, I'll remain status quo, assuming I don't change my lifestyle. Thus, I still have $105 million. What now? Well, for one, I go out and buy myself a Wii. yea, that's right. I want a Wii. I haven't gotten into a system since N64, so now's the time to change that. Not just that, but I'll hafta get a new tv to play it on. What other material goods do I buy? Do I start wearing expensive clothing? NO. Instead, I go out and buy every item of clothing I have, in multiples. Shoes, pants, shirts. Everything, and a shed or something to store it in. Again, being generous, that's about a million there... so I now have $104 million.

Real estate. I buy properties around the world and domestically. I buy an apartment here and there. especially in NYC, in London, and in Asia. Taking everything into consideration, including maintenance and repairs, transportation (as in cars), set aside $25 million.

$79 million. What do I do w/ $79 million? Take a chunk of it and invest it. Invest in the stock market, put some in the bank, in bonds. Assume half is taken out and invested, rounding down, I'm left with $39 million.

$39 million, $4 million aside for spending money. $35 million now, still a load of money. Take that money, and do whatever the heck I want to do. Take a trip, take two trips. Take the people you care about out for the time of their lives. Treat people, who deserve things, to the luxurious life they've always wanted. But never, never lose sight of reality. Don't get absorbed in that wad of cash you now sleep in. Use it wisely...

but wth am i wasting time dreaming about things like this? it's called a dream for a reason... who am i trying to fool? like my wise manager said: we're on the titanic, and it's sinking... rapidly...

"i'm sinking to the bottom of my

everything that freaks me out

the lighthouse beam has just run out

i'm cold as cold as cold can be

i want to swim away but don't know how

sometimes it feels just like i'm falling in the ocean

let the waves up take me down

let the hurricane set in motion

let the rain of what i feel right now...come down

let the rain come down "