If I Won the Lottery....

   A recent conversation with a coworker got me thinking.  I don't watch the news, and my coworker seems to think that it's his duty to inform me of all the horrible things that go on in our world (which is why I don't watch the news in the first place).  But to break up his usual routine of informing me about the crazy bombers, suicidal mothers, and bank robbers, Thursday morning he came up with a new topic of conversation: the lottery.  He was telling me how the lottery was up to the highest it has ever been, and that led us to talking about the "what if" that always accompanies the lottery, and I've been contemplating that ever since.  Even after someone won that huge pile of money, I'm still thinking about it.

   So here's what I'd do:  I'd split it in half, and give half to J.   Then I'd take 10% of it and donate it to some good cause, like St. Jude or the Red Cross or something.  Then I'd buy three homes: one for Moma Deana, one for my sister and her family, and one for my mom and step-daddy.  Next, I'd set up a trust fund for my little siblings, as well as my godson and daughter, so that they could go to whatever college they wanted.  Then I'd pay to go back to school, and get my degree in something fun, like history.  Then I'd get another degree in something practical, like nursing.  If you have a lot of money, you don't have to choose, right?  But first, I'd take Monkey on a Disney cruise.  Then we'd have a family vacation in Italy, followed by a romantic get-away to Ireland for just J and I.  I would get a  new wedding ring, one that wouldn't make my finger break out in a rash (J would pay for that of course), and we'd probably have another child.  Oh, and last but not least, I'd build a house.  Nothing too big or fancy, but it would have a giant, gourmet kitchen that would make Paula Deen green with envy  along with a wrap-around porch, and those big, white, Southern-style columns.  I'd probably also go to culinary school, after I write my first book.

    The more I think about it, though, the more I realized that I wouldn't really like being that rich.  When you're that rich, what do you have to work for?  My favorite part of the whole circle of life is the part where you set a goal, you work hard to reach it, you're satisfied for a bit, and then you set a new goal.  There's a sense of pride and accomplishment that goes along with having to work for what you want and need.  That's something that no amount of money could buy.  I think it would be fun at first, but then I'd have to work or volunteer or something so that I wouldn't feel pointless or meaningless.

    I think I'd be better off winning just enough to have fun for a couple of years, and then have it run out so that I could return to the "real" world.  The only thing that wouldn't change would be my cooking.  Granted, I'd probably be stuffing steak or Quail, instead of these Chicken Breasts, but no matter how rich I get, these will still be on the menu:

Feta-Stuffed Chicken Breasts

 (How was that for a segue?)


  Well, since that maid of mine is still just a dream, I guess I should get to cleaning those dishes.  But, I'm curious, what would you do if you won the lottery?  Leave me a comment, and let me know.



P.S.---Monkey would get a pony, and I would have a Camarillo again.  J would have to buy his own horse. Oh, and all of my friends who are military wives would get free spa days :-)