Playing Mega Millions??? Read this article first!

[gavinmccallister]

https://www.businessinsider.com/mega-millions-lottery-jackpot-expected-value-2018-3

[Thrif-t]

Sometimes it's just fun to get in on the hype and dream.

I don't know if I'll get around to buying a ticket, but if I do it would only be 1. So for a buck I can get in on the action and for a little while dream what it would be like to win all that money

[bjl584]

I heard there was one ticket that won. I couldn't imagine having half a billion dollars dumped in my lap all at once.

[TexasHusker]

The first thing I’d buy is a small jet and a pilot to fly it.

[Smallsteps]

For many including myself, I sometimes buy just for a day or two of daydreaming or discussing about what if. Fairly cheap entertainment.

I am not really sure what I would do if I won a big amount but honestly although I read about the jackpot I had no need to stop somewhere that sells them.
I probably would have if I had stopped into a store before the drawing.

[JoeP]

It's hard for people to grasp large numbers.

Wikipedia says:

The odds of winning or sharing a Mega Millions jackpot (October 19, 2013-October 27, 2017): 1 in about 258.9 million.

And this site puts that volume (258.9M) slightly below the number of salt grains to fill a bathtub.

I believe each game costs $2 (I rarely play) so imagine paying $20 to walk up to this tub almost filled with salt, and picking the correct grain of salt. You get 10 tries!

Here is another site, look at the 100 million pennies on slide 9. This lottery would be 2.5 of these, and you have to pick the correct penny.

[Tabs]

Never played the lottery, never will.

However, I have gone and gambled at a casino once, just because I've never done it before, and my friends peer-pressured me into trying. I was like yeah you know what, why not? So I decided to put about $100 into it as mad money. Ended up making $160 while my friends lost money. Lunch was on me.

[Singuy]

You will find that with that much money, you'll have less and less things to buy. The terrible feeling of buying something lavish but having it lose massive amount of value outweighs the joy of the item because you are a saver all your life.

Best to do with the money is to start some kind of charity(not just giving the money away, but build a meaningful charity) and travel your ass off. You'll find that buying that Rolls will give you more headaches than enjoyment.