Losing Sometimes Wins More

My wife and I purchased lottery tickets last night for the chance to win AUS$50,000,000. Or any portion of. We were happy to be one of 10 winners. Heck, I was happy to be one of fifty winners.

This morning’s television informed me that there were only 3 winners – out of Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia.

Nobody knows if they were individuals, family’s or syndicates. Yet it was no surprise that one of the winners was from Queensland. Apparently the statistics say they have the highest proportion of winners in any lottery.

So let’s talk statistics:

Of the 22 million residents of Australia, only 4 million bought tickets in last nights AusLotto. Yet these big-spenders (and bigger-losers) spent a staggering 70 million dollars (AUS$70,000,000). And the odds of winning: 1 in 45 million (45,000,000).

Personally, I see the odds as very good: In order to have as much as chance as anyone in Australia, I only had to buy 3 games. I purchased ten. Yet I still did not win anything in the division 1. I’ll find out later today if I won anything in the lower divisions.

On the drive home last night after buying the bits of paper with random numbers printed on them, our primary discussion was the matter of how the money would be invested, what order our house-hold renovations would occur.

By the time we’d parked in our less-than-adequate driveway, we had every cent of our share of the AUS$$50,000,000 determined on how it would be spent, saved and donated.

We have discovered we are NOT winners, all those plans go out the window.

My question today is:
1. If money were no object, what would you do to improve your current lifestyle?
2. Which charities would receive funds?
3. What would be the FIRST thing you would do after hearing you’d won millions of dollars?
And most importantly,
4. How much money do you spend each year on the remote chance of becoming an instant millionaire?