Les Jones

East Tennessee > Powerball Lottery Blogging

Tennessee joined the multi-state Powerball lottery yesterday.

I've mentioned this next bit before, and decided to dig it up and key it into the computer for this occasion:

Andrew Tobias's advice if you win a million dollars

1. Go out for a very nice dinner.
2. Put about one year of normal living expenses someplace liquid, like a bank of money-market fund.
3. Put roughly equal sums into U.S. Treasury securities maturing in one, two, three, and four years.
4. Put the bulk of the remaining money into stock-index funds, split between domestic and foreign investments.
5. Buy a country place or a bigger house, if you want one - but not so big that the cost of carrying it will in any way strain you.
5a. If you have the inclination and can find a good value, buy a small rental property, too. It will provide an inflation hedge and a little tax shelter.
5b. Do not buy a boat. [Emphasis in original]
6. Put, at most, 5% into silver - bags of silver dimes minted back in the days when they really were silver - keeping most of it in a bank vault and one bag in a very good hiding place at home. (Call Investment Rarities, 800-328-1860, for a quote.) This is your rich person's disaster hedge - a form of insurance. Don't expect it to be a good investment. But if inflation hits with a vengeance, silver could do even better than gold. Historically, silver has risen 11% for every 1% increase in inflation, versus 6% for gold. And in the event of a calamity, it may be easier to buy a loaf of bread with an old silver dime than with a by-then $6,000 gold coin.
7. Be sure your will is in order.
8. Now, relax and forget the whole thing. Review it once a year, mainly to roll over your Treasury securities as they come due. Don't spend any of the investment prinicipal, but enjoy the extra income it throws off.

That's from Tobias's The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need. Good book. Tobias has a blog-like Web site that's worth reading, though it's become very political since Bush got elected.

Finally, Hell in a Handbasket has a lottery joke.