365 million

Two weeks ago the lotto mega millions was up to 365 million.

I bought 20 tickets and began spending plans. My biggest dilemma, how much would I have to give to family members. After thinking it through I concluded I would give my parents each a million, and my sister half a million, which still leaves me with about 200 million after taxes, give or take.

And then there is Gioconda's family, in all honesty I have no real close friends I would feel compelled to gift anything, but a ton of first cousins, aunts, nephews...and the list keep growing. It was then I decided I would always pick up the check when I ate out with these people, and this seemed adequate. Its a slippery slope, giving away money, so in the end I pretty much decided, I wouldn't.

With this resolved, I allowed myself to focus on what I really wanted to think about, all the stuff I would buy.

I asked my mother what she would do with all that money.

"Well, I would give you and your sister 10 million, and then a million to my sisters and brothers, and Tony ( the guys who does her nails) I would give him a million, of course my Grand children, I would give them all 5 million and then 100 thousand to my nieces and nephews, and I would like to give all the employees of the school district $2,000.00 as a bonus....," and she kept going.

The lady who cleans her house, the sorority sisters she still sees, the college she graduated from, a lady who lives in her truck at the park she walks...

According to my calculations my mother's plan for the 365 million (after everything was given away) was about 65 million.

"That's fine, really its more than I could possibly need," she said.

My mother had planed to give away 300 million of the 365, I had planned on giving away about 2.5 million of the 365. My mother planned on giving Tony the nail guy the same amount of money I planned on giving her and my father. She was going to give the dude that polishes her finger nails the same amount I was going to give to the person who gave me birth.

Really?

In the end, neither one of us had to make those difficult decisions. For her how much to give to the lady that cuts her hair, for me whether to buy my own Cessna jet, or just rent out on an as needed basis.

One thing for sure, we would have both always bought dinner.