How would $100,000,000 change your life?

[Mr. Ected]

What would you do, where would you go, what would you buy, if suddenly, tomorrow, a generous donor placed a hundred million dollars in your account?

[KamaAina]

1. Note to generous donor: It'd change a lot of other people's lives, too.

I call it "guerrilla philanthropy": funding the causes and the activists the big foundations won't.

Of course, it serves no purpose to live like an ascetic: there is a certain noblesse oblige that goes with this, in terms of having a place to throw swanky fundraisers and the like. :-)

[JTG of the PRB]

2. Well, for starters I would never have to work another day in my life, and neither would my parents.

I'd buy a house wherever I anted, and travel the world. Them, I'd probably travel the world again. I'd donate a bunch to charity, as well as good sums to my high school and my alma mater. I'd try to figure out good uses for that much money, since I don;t know if I could ever spend that much in two lifetimes, let alone one.

[Chan790]

3. I'd do two chicks at the same time.

:hide: Kidding. Kidding!

I dunno. I'd quit my job...that's about it. I'd probably buy a condo and hire a personal trainer, chef and chauffeur. Buy an annuity paying out $50k a year. So that's about $3M right there, so I dunno. I might give the other $97M to HSUS.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. Quit my job, fix up my house, give a whole shitload of $$ to charity

and enjoy having some of my relatives fawn all over me instead of ignoring me like they usually do, then disinherit them anyhow. :evilgrin:

[Orrex]

5. In addition to solving every problem facing my entire extended family...

It would go a long way toward guaranteeing that the teachers in my local school district get a handsome bonus each year.


For starters...

[Chan790]

6. Regarding your sig-line.

I think that person was either a newb or doesn't pay attention much. All anybody does here is post witty sarcasm.

[Orrex]

8. Well...

What really won my heart was the accusation that I attempt to post witty replies.


I mean, I'm really grateful that my attempts are appreciated, successful or otherwise.

[tigereye]

7. we could actually fix up this ancient place!

:rofl:


whoops, you said a million. I was thinking it said $100,000!


In that case, I would buy a large yacht and sail around the world with various friends and family, then fund some cool projects to help kids and decrease poverty and hunger, and then maybe buy a club so that I could hang out with all my favorite musicians!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

9. My dear Mr. Ected...

I'd probably spring for some classy jewelry for me...

And then the rest would go to my family, and some very close friends.

A lot to my favorite charities...

[guitar man]

10. I'd quit my job

And I would buy one of these :D

[Ikonoklast]

40. A picture of a boat?

I think you could buy a lot of pictures of boats with a hundred mill, if that's what you're into.

I've heard of lottery winners and people that come into large sums of money buying some weird stuff, but I think you win.

[MicaelS]

11. I would retire, and so would some of my co-workers

And the local charities... food banks, battered women and homeless shelters, would get some very large donations.

[MiddleFingerMom]

12. Dollar menu...

.
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...eat my dust!!!!!
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Look
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I understand too little too late
.
I realize there are things you say and do
you can never take back
.
But what would you be if you didn't even try
.
You have to try
.
So after a lot of thought
I'd like to reconsider
.
Please
.
If it's not too late
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Make it a cheeseburger
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(Thanks to Lyle Lovett)
.

[madinmaryland]

13. The best toilet available...

Because I would need something to handle having to take a massive ****!

:shrug:

[demtenjeep]

14. I would pay off my bills

have a surgery that I need


pay for my daughter's wedding

[Lil Missy]

15. I'd splurge and get extra meat and cheese on my next Jimmy John's #10.

[Lindsey]

16. I'd quit my job and "do nothing" (Office Space) I'd buy a condo

and help out my siblings and son. I'd also take a lot of road trips. It would be such a relief.....

[Richardo]

23. You don't need $100 million to do nothing man - look at my cousin, he's broke and he don't do shit.

:D

That's one of the best quotes in that movie.

[Throd]

17. I could get my skull replaced with a solid gold one. Encrusted with diamonds, emeralds, and rubees.

[csziggy]

18. Not a lot, but it would make life easier and I'd worry less

I'm retired, pretty much disabled, on a fixed very limited income. Mr. csziggy works for extra money, but mostly to get health insurance, which I need far more than he does.

I'd probably set up a trust or foundation and pay myself and Mr. csziggy to administer it. Donate money to good causes and for good works. I'd help out my nieces and nephews when they need it.

I'd go ahead and get my knees replaced instead of waiting as long as possible. I'd also make my house and farm completely independent of the grid, so I'd never have to worry about power outages or price fluctuations. Those would be the biggest "splurges" I would buy.

[Iggo]

19. I'd become a generous donor.

[XemaSab]

20. Set out to see every bird on the planet

Phoebe Snetsinger can suck it.

[TommyO]

21. It wouldn't, except for the new house

and fixing up my mom's place, and a new car (Cadillac CTS, with a 2011 Mustang as it's stablemate), a nice long vacation, and then it's back to reality where I set up trust funds for local charities that work with people who are underserved by our increasingly draconian republican governor (Chris Christie, as if the first Christie (Todd Whitman) wasn't bad enough).

[jakefrep]

22. It would enable me to do work I enjoy doing, ...

...or try different jobs/careers, without having to worry about whether or not those endeavors put food on the table.

[dropkickpa]

24. I wouldn't have to borrow busfare from my mom

Yay!

[PVnRT]

25. Buy a humble estate in Bavaria, maybe set myself up as a minor baron

Weimar Constitution be damned. I want to vote for the Holy Roman Emperor and punish England's heresy.

[Inchworm]

26. $10,000 would change my life just as much

I think. Well, let me just say that anything over would just be extra :)

:hi:

[Lindsey]

27. You're right, Richardo - that was a great line. Although there were

so many, many incredible lines in this movie.

[av8rdave]

28. Actually, wouldn't change mine too much....

Wouldn't work at my job as hard as I do now, would be able to help out some causes and some family more...that's about it. OK, I'd probably buy tickets to work instead of this crappy standby commuting, and I would probably buy a smaller home (but in a better location).

[HopeHoops]

29. Well, for starters I would start drinking better beer.

:beer:

[Blue Diadem]

30. We'd become debt free and help out our family.

Of course, there would be donations to worthwhile charities. I don't think our possessions would change all that much, we would still be pretty frugal. I have often dreamed of owning a small farm and donating this 5 bedroom house to a needy family. My DH could retire and we'd be able to take some vacations and have decent cars and not have the worries of living paycheck to paycheck. OH and we could go to the Dr. anytime we needed or wanted.

[gmoney]

31. I think I'd take a year off and figure out what to do with it.

Maybe travel a bit...

Oh, and of course, invest it all in GOLDLINE!

[Dulcinea]

32. I wouldn't be a statistic anymore.

I'm one of the "long-term unemployed": 16 months without a job.

I'd max out my IRA & my kids' 529s, fix up my house, buy a beachfront house big enough for lots of visitors, & maybe set up a trust or nonprofit.

I'd travel. A LOT!

And, I'd tell my old boss to go Cheney himself. Hell, I'd do that first!

[txwhitedove]

33. Dreams! Pay all bills, get a make-over, give lots to charities, to

Democratic candidates, to my kids. Then move to a farm in France, alone.
Then be friends with Johnny Depp, paint, be grumpy "get off my lawn" old lady,
and family can only visit twice a year.

[edbermac]

34. Become a hermit.

Because everybody in the world would be knocking at my door with their hand out, or suing me for $10 million because I gave them a dirty look one time. I've heard horror stories about people who win multi-million lotteries and have wound up broke and/or dead in just a few years.

[pitohui]

35. well for $100 million i'd have to make a lot of changes

it's a reality of life that i live in a country (and esp. a state) which has too many law schools/lawyers so my first move would almost certainly have to be to get some of the money out of the country in a place where it wasn't easy for the lawsuit lottery types to chase, otherwise, everybody who trips in front of your house will be suing you

i'd take care of some of that, at least locking up some of the money secretly and in an out of the way place, before i would tell anybody i even had it, even family members, and even then i would never tell them it was that much, i might tell them i came into a couple million or something like that

i would help family members in useful ways (medical bills, education expenses) but not in ways that would harm them (allowing them to quit working and become full-time alcoholics, for example)

i would support unpopular causes that get little support from public funding and esp. some of the people i already know working in those causes, most of those folks are in the bird sciences, and since birds don't have a military application, they usu. have to hustle by selling art, selling tours, etc. which greatly cuts into the time they spend actually doing science (studying birds, habitat, etc)

i would (quietly) try to fund parks/refuges that are unlikely to get funded w.out my help

i would also (shame on me if it sounds selfish) prob. from time to time support people who make the world more beautiful by cooking good food (chefs in restaurants i like!), creating beautiful clothes and jewelry, etc. but i would try to keep my spending from silly nancy reagan-ish levels of spending on such things, i don't need imelda numbers of shoes, but i would occasionally buy a too expensive pair of shoes

i like sculpture and have no room to display it, but ironically, with "only" $100 million, i probably couldn't buy even one truly "great" piece and donate it to a museum, so i prob. couldn't do much to support art and would just focus mostly on supporting birds, environmental causes, etc.

i'm not a fancy car big house person, too much hassle, i might reserve first class or private jets more often tho, my coach flying days would be a thing of the past

with that amt of money, it spoils the pleasure and the skill of gambling, since anything i could win from blackjack/poker would be trivial, i meet folks who have many millions & still play poker but i don't know what they get out of it, it would be like playing w. matchsticks at that point...would have to find a new sport or forget about sport

[Arctic Dave]

36. How do you expect me to live on such a pittance?

POVERTY!

[GalleryGod]

37. Take Care of Pain & Suffering

And repay all the loyal friends of mine who have been so very *kind* to me over the tumultuous last year of my so called life!
:grouphug:

[femmocrat]

38. It wouldn't change my life significantly, but it would help a lot of animal shelters.

I think that would be the best use for a sudden windfall like that!

I would spend a chunk on a place at the beach and help family members with some of it. The rest would go into my "Foundation".

Nice dream anyhow.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

39. After all the usual (pay off debts, help out family), I'd

buy a condo and set up a charitable foundation that looked at creative solutions to current problems.

For example, I'd give start-up money to unemployed people who wanted to start a cooperative or company with the only required "payback" being that once they start turning a profit, they become supporters of community charities.

I'd buy up old houses and apartment buildings and turn them into self-governing communes for the homeless or those about to become homeless--sort of like the student housing that everyone from boomers on down is familiar with.

I'd fund existing arts programs for children and youth so that they could expand and reach more kids.

Oh, and I'd spend part of each year living overseas.

[applegrove]

41. I'd pay my dad back. I'd give most of it to charity. Probably piggy back on

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

[seabeyond]

42. i would cd it for interest and wait to see if bank made a mistake. give lots and lots

away

then tuck it into some accounts, hubby retire and do what i am doing now, lol.

[Mopar151]

43. Find a suitable mountaintop (I know of a couple)

Camp there and do some good thinkin' for a couple months.

[azmouse]

44. Wouldn't change it much.

My house is almost paid for and my other debts are small.
I have plenty saved for retirement. I like a simple life.
The extra security might be nice but beyond that... :shrug:

[Chubb Rock]

45. I know this...no more smoking schwag!!!

nt

[Tuesday Afternoon]

46. I would build my house and improve my property. --

I would put some money in a trust for the kids.
I would see Europe.
I would buy the land surrounding my property.
I would donate to my favorite charities.
I would find a way to solve the oil gusher in the Gulf :)

[datasuspect]

47. i would head immediately to the airport and take the next available flight

to an undisclosed location.

I would hire an attorney/adviser and create a trust or corporation through which the funds could be administered and lessen my liability.

after that, i'd probably start feeling around for land deals, business development opportunities, and a mixture or low-, mid-, and high-volatility investments which can show decent ROI.

my expenses would be transportation, leasing a "home office," lodging, meals, and some new suits.

i would not under any condition let any friends or family know my exact whereabouts and i would stay in constant motion and have a fixed address for a home office probably wherever i would incorporate. and this would be in a small town in that state.

my mother would get a prepaid debit account where i could load enough periodic money (no lump sums) to make a difference in her life for the short term. once i started seeing returns on investment or sufficient interest income, THEN i'd get her a house or something extravagant.

but from year 0-5, i'd be a deal-making ghost.

you could turn a hundred mil into a lot more by not spending it like a drunken sailor.

[Dr Morbius]

48. Well, I ought to pay my taxes first.

The current top tax rate being 31%, I'd be paying $31 million. But since I've long advocated a top tax rate around 39%, where Mr. Clinton had it, I'd feel compelled to take that other $8 million and apply it to something I think government should do. So I'd put that money into interest-bearing CDs and establish a foundation for educational grants and off the interest I'd pay tuition for talented kids to get laptops, go to better schools, get some family nutritional help and clothing allowances and so forth. The idea is to create a situation where ordinary kids from families of modest income can make a real difference in their own lives and the lives of their own families directly by being excellent in school... and perhaps a bit lucky. It would be a scholarship fund, but not for college. For middle-grade and high schools. Get the talented kids who are still young and find them the tools to advance.

That leaves me with $61 million, and I assume the state I live in wants their cut, too. Down to $58 million. Hmm. I think $3 million distributed among family and friends and setting up my daughter's educational needs forever would be smart, and that leaves me with $55 million. I'll set aside five million for a rainy day.

Or roughly fifty million dollars to invest. And I think I would look into batteries. The energy need of the immediate future is the battery; build better batteries and a host of industries will come begging you for your product. If I could start a business, it would be in battery manufacturing... which I would do in America. As my product is not going to be sold in stores, I don't need to kneel down and please Wal-Mart. I can set my own price if my product is unique. If I could make batteries which can hold the kind of energies produced by wind generators, there's obviously potential earnings there as community after community decides to install a wind farm. There's aerospace potential. Think of every gadget that you hold in your hand, or every potential way you can read my writing; there's a battery involved in most ways. There are all kinds of reasons the best possible business venture I can imagine is in batteries. If I had that kind of money, that's where I'd take my risk.

[NewJeffCT]

49. Make sure any family debts are paid off

including mortgages. Any relatives that are college age or less would have tuition paid for. Give my parents a 5 star vacation to anywhere in the world.

I would make sure my home is powered as much as possible by solar/geo thermal - hopefully, it can be 100% or more (meaning, I'd sell back to the power company)

Probably donate regularly to charities, maybe set up something for some schools/teachers.

[Deep13]

50. Private schools for my niece,...

...dental implant for my sister, no mortgage for my nutcase mother. Buy my grandparents' lake side house and keep it in trust for the family. Buy my late father's tree farm and put it in trust for the U-Mass agricultural school. Big grant to Doctors w/o Borders.