If I won 10 million dollars...

This has nothing to do with sports, so click on the link below to read it. ;-)




Say that I win one of those scratch lotteries. The guy at 7-Eleven today tried to convince me that I could win $20 million with a ticket and that I should buy it. Clearly he doesn't know the odds. But say that I did win that sum. It can't hurt to fantasize. What would I do?

Right off the bat, take at least half off for taxes and stuff, so let's say that we're working with $10 million. They also don't give it to you in a lump sum, so say that I choose the option where they pay it off in monthly installments over 25 years. That makes roughly $33,000/month for the rest of my non-senile years (I'm 32).

I can live with that; really well, in fact. It equals about $400,000 a year, the stipend of US presidents and far less than that of college coaches. It's not enough for significant lifestyle changes, but enough to stop worrying about the future and to enjoy nice things. In theory, it is also enough to stop working forever, but who wants that? I realize that I only say that because I'm in love my job (I'm a college prof), but hey, this is about me!

So, once my wages are factored in, what would I do with $35,000/month? Here's a quick breakdown...


THE BASICS

• $15,000 a month to be invested in low-risk, low-return funds
• $5,000 a month for my mom
• $1,000 a month for travel
• rent a pretty house
• get good medical insurance
• buy a car
• build a home theater

These are the things that I could not possibly compromise on. Invested funds are a safety net (should I or my loved ones be in trouble) or to live on in the future (when the allowance runs out, and without major lifestyle changes). What my mom "deserves" is not quantifiable in money: she deserves love and respect, which she has, because I'm a momma's boy! And if you asked her, she'd say she needs no money at all, because she lives a very simple lifestyle and she sits on a $2 million home that she won't sell. Still, I would want a safety net for her too, so even if she would probably not spend much of that $5k, it would still be wise. The rest is self-explanatory, and much of it is detailed in the figures below.

THE BIG PURCHASES (to be divided in monthly installments)

• Furniture. ~$25,000 at $1000 a month for 24 months.
• Home theater. ~$50,000 at $2000 a month for 24 months.
• Car. ~$50,000 at $2000 a month for 24 months.
• Travel. ~$10,000 a year, so about $1000 a month.
• Moving. One-time expense, probably around $5,000 (I spent half as much last time).

Travel expenses seem exotic, but I'm Italian and my family is in Italy, though I live in the US. As I currently spend about one-third of that, I think I can keep doing pretty much the same things but afford a couple of nice first-class tickets. ;-)

THE MONTHLY EXPENSES

• Rent. ~$2000. Where I live, this gets you a big place. My dream home is a two-story single-family house with 3-4 bedrooms, just out of town. I want it spacious and sunny, but not a mansion, because I want everything within reach. 3000-4000 square feet would be ideal, and more importantly a lot of windows and a nice view to wake up to. Again, rent and not buy, because I expect to have to move: tenure is hard to come by in academia and young profs need to be mobile at first.

• Furniture. ~$1000 (for two years). I have the basics, but it's better to err on the side of safety. Plus, startup expenses add up quickly. Say, $4000 on couches and chairs, $3000 on bedroom furniture, $3000 on kitchen appliances, $3000 for a brand new study with desk and chairs, $2000 on washer and dryer, and the remaining $10,000 for miscellaneous, maintenance, delivery, etc.

• Utilities. ~$1500. This includes power ($750), water/trash/sewage ($150), internet ($200), phone ($200), and satellite TV ($200). Utilities are very cheap in the US, to a foreigner's eye anyway, and with those prices I can max out pretty much any service packages offered in my area. That means all the TV channels, unlimited phone data, fiber-optic internet, etc.

• Food. ~$1500. More or less evenly divided between groceries and dining out. I love cooking and I am decently good at it, but my town has so many excellent (and cheap) dining options that I know I would take full advantage of them. Right now I spend about $400 a month in groceries and $300 to dine out, so doubling both seems reasonable.

• Insurance. ~$500. Right now I pay five times less (medical and renter's) and I'm not happy with my coverage, so I would not skimp on this. Families with a bunch of kids that spend $5k will surely find this meager, but I do live alone for the time being, so...

• Car. ~$2000 car (for two years) + ~$500 maintenance. I assume that evidence of my winnings will all but ensure a good interest rate. Maintenance includes insurance. I don't even own a car now, because I live close to my workplace and public transportation is awesome, but if I lived out of town I'd have to change my habits. I don't know (or care) much about cars, but I do love the 2014 Chevy Camaro SS, which is way under my budget at $25k, and the Tesla Roadster, which is way over my budget at 75k. Not sure.

• Home theater. ~$2000 (for two years). While some HTs can cost millions, I'm lucky to not be an audiophile or cinephile and to not desire a "man cave" isolated from the world. What matters to me a lot of video to watch sports with friends, because my living room is too small to entertain! So I would need about $10k for either a 100-inch flat screen or a projector plus 150-inch screen, depending on room geography and placement within the house. Also $10k for other TVs and recording devices for a multiscreen experience. $15k for a gaming computer, consoles, and games. $5k for audio and video sources, receivers, speakers, and cabling. Finally, the remaining $10k would be used for architectural adjustments, embellishments, maintenance, and future upgrades. With the right tools, my obsessive-compulsive love for DYI, and reasonable expectations, $50k goes a long way.

• Fun and miscellaneous. ~$4000 (to double after the first two years when car and theater have been paid off). This is the catch-all category. I expect to spend more on certain months than on others, but as it is I spend about $1500 now, so I have ample wiggle room. Also, most my fun-related expenses are video games and electronics, which are now included in the home theater expenses. To be honest, I don't know what else I could possibly want on a regular basis, especially as I don't drink or smoke, already have nice clothes, and am virtually asexual. But I'm sure that once you have the money to buy stuff you develop cravings that you did not use to have, so who knows.

To recap, here's a quick table of expenses, including the monthly installments for long-term big purchases. When all is said and done, I have reached the proposed cap of $35,000 a month. Here are a few observations:

• Two-thirds of the money is not spent, meaning that my ideal lifestyle is affordable with roughly $15,000 a month. All the rest is savings and what ifs. I think that living below one's means is responsible.

• I could easily quit my job as part of that $4000 worth of fun, as it only nets me about half that. But once again I would end up doing much of the same stuff for fun anyway, since I picked my very low-paying job out of pleasure and not finances, so I could use the structure and the motivation. Of course I could always forfeit my paycheck back to the university, but they need it even less than I do...

• On the other hand, fun money may include future necessities: gym membership, theater membership, online gaming fees, social events, etc. These things are not necessary in my life right now, but may become so. So when I say that I would be living below my means, what I really mean is "my means as they are now," not as they may (will?) become.

That's it. It's fun to dream! Pictures to follow.

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Dream house! Where I live, this one goes for $1700/mo. 5BR, 4BA, washer and dryer, and utilities included.

1080p 3D Projector! This is the Epson 5030, which goes for around $2800.
Maximum image size is 300 inches, but that would pretty much take a cinema,
and as I said I want a small enough house, so a more modest 150" is appropriate.

150-inch projection screen. The Elite Screens ER150 goes for about $500.

The Sharp Aquos Quattron is the best large-screen 1080p LED TV in its class: 3D, 1080p, 240Hz,
and of course massive with its 80 inches. A good alternative or companion to the projector.
While there are far bigger and more expensive TVs, the OLED and 4k markets are just
not worth the effort now. In five years, maybe, they will be, and the price point for the
best available TV will once again rise to around $10,000 (this Sharp is only $4000).

The Panasonic VIERA P60ZT60 is widely considered to have the best-ever picture quality.
At a "mere" $3300, I think I could snag two or three of these 3D 1080p 60-inch plasmas.

A gaming center with all the major gaming consoles: PS4, Xbox One, PS3, and Xbox 360 (~$1500 total,
plus as much for games), and a few collectible oldies. I love this setup, especially the neat lighted shelves.
The screen would be much larger, of course, more along the lines of what you see in this picture.

A simple, quality 6.1 surround speaker setup, like this
Bose Acustimass 10 Series IV, which retails for about $1000.

Home theater seating. Pictured here is the Palliser Pacifico II. It must be power-reclined, it must be
pleasing to the eye, it must be cool to sit on, and it must hold my generous weight. This retails for about
$700 per seat, so a nice 4-seat setup with a loveseat in the middle can run me under $3000 shipped.

The 2014 Chevy Camaro Coupe retails for a surprisingly low $23,500 (though probably up to $40,000
with optionals) and is oh so pretty. I like lean futuristic-looking cars, so this is perfect. While I do
enjoy looking at Ferraris and Lambos, I would never own one because I'm a horrible driver!