If we're talking tens or hundreds of millions here--a really big lottery jackpot--here's what I'd do:

1. Talk to my husband to get his opinion on what to do with such a windfall. Get a good lawyer, accountant and money adviser. Two of these folks already reside in my own extended family, which is convenient.
2. Set up a trust so that we'd live off the income and the principal would simply earn money. I'd also seed trusts for my son, my younger sister's future baby, assuming she is able to have one, and my cousins' and friends' children. These funds would be conditional upon these kids reaching the age of majority and obtaining a college degree.
2. Pay any bills that need paying. Like pay off my older sister's medical bills and credit cards, pay off my parents' and younger sister's houses and any other debt they have. I'd buy them anything they needed or wanted and would plan to provide any financial support needed as my parents and aunt enter old age. I'd pay what's left on our house and we'd keep that, as it's pretty much already our dream house.
3. Give money to causes I care deeply about. The crisis in Darfur, Sudan. New Orleans and Gulf Coast reconstruction. Habitat for Humanity. A fund that assists the wounded, along with widows and children left after the Iraq war. The energy-care programs in Texas that help low-income people and pay for air conditioning and heating of their homes. The Dallas Symphony and the Fort Worth Kimball Art Museum. NORML. Planned Parenthood and the NARAC. Public TV and radio. Probably I'd give some money to the national and state Democratic Party and any candidates who are intelligent and viable. I'd put a lot of influence behind a universal health care program in America.
4. I think I'd probably continue with my plan to attend medical school. I might get an apartment down closer to the area of Dallas where I'll be studying so I didn't have to drive as far during the week. My husband would be welcome to join me, and if he wanted to stop practicing cardiology and go back to school or perhaps teach on the med school faculty, all the better.
5. In my spare time, I'd travel all over the world and have homes in a few places that I love. NYC. English countryside. The Italian side of Lake Como. Santa Barbara. Maine coast. The decor of these places and of my main home in Texas would be fabulous. (It's already pretty fabulous in Texas now, but I'd get some better antiques and some really fine art.) How to decorate said homes after winning the lottery is already one of my favorite fantasies.

I've already given this a lot of thought. Like I said, it's a favorite fantasy.
birdgirl73 Reviewed by birdgirl73 on . What would you do if you won the lottery?? I Would... 1...go find a lawyer,Cpa,and the IRS. 2...show up at the lottery office,Ticket and paper sack in hand. 3...When the lottery office tried to put my face on T.V.,Put paper sack over my head!! Remember the Unknown Comic From the 70's?? I'd be "The Unknown Winner! 4...After careful investing,stashing,and spending,live a very quiet,long and unenventful life! What would you do?? Rating: 5