By Todd Northrop
The multi-state Mega Millions lottery game once again enters the spotlight, as lottery players across the United States will vie for a Mega-jackpot Tuesday that promises to radically change one lucky winner's life.
After nobody won Friday night's Mega Millions drawing, the $201 million jackpot 'rolled over', and the new estimate for Tuesday's drawing is a massive $241 million.
The cash value — the most important factor for many jackpot-watchers — stands at a staggering $170.9 million.
Tuesday's Mega Millions jackpot is the accumulation of 15 consecutive drawings without a top prize winner. The current jackpot run-up started on Jan. 27 as a $12 million grand prize.
Players should note that jackpot amounts are conservative estimates provided by the lotteries, and are often somewhat higher by the time the drawing occurs.
In the latest Mega Millions drawing that took place this past Friday night, there was no jackpot winner, but 7 lucky players matched the first 5 numbers for a $250,000 prize: 3 from California, 2 from New York, and 2 from Texas.
The 3 California winners will each be awarded prizes of $326,163, because California awards all prizes in a pari-mutuel formula, which calculates the prize amount based on the number of tickets sold and the number of winners in each prize category.
The Friday Mega Millions winning numbers were 28, 29, 43, 51, and 53, with a Mega Ball number of 7. The Megaplier was 3.
Players who purchase the Megaplier for an extra $1 per ticket can have their non-jackpot prizes multiplied by the Megaplier number drawn that evening. For example, for Friday night's drawing, players who purchased the Megaplier and won a $10,000 prize would have their prize multiplied by 3, and would win $30,000.
After it was determined that there were no jackpot-winning tickets in Friday's drawing, the Mega Millions annuity jackpot estimate was raised $41 million from its previous amount of $200 million. The cash value was raised by $25.5 million, from its previous amount of $145.4 million.
The next Mega Millions drawing will take place Tuesday evening at 11:00 pm EDT.
Mega Millions is currently offered for sale in 42 states, plus Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
For a complete set of game descriptions, results, history, and all questions regarding Mega Millions, lottery players are encouraged to visit USA Mega (www.usamega.com), a Web site that caters to the Unites States's two multi-state lottery games, Powerball and Mega Millions.
The Mega Millions winning numbers will be published at USA Mega minutes after the 11:00 pm EDT drawing.
Sounds good!!
Tuesday is such a long time away, I believe I will simply be the sole winner of tonight's powerball drawing instead... either that or someone from Rhode Island will win. :)
It will have been worth the wait. I know have another 41 million reasons to celebrate on Tuesday evening. Thanks everybody for your
generous contributions. You shouldn't have.....really.
$241 Million sounds good to me....
I can live with it.
241 sounds good for today mebbe 412 hmmm... well if i can't win the jackpot i guess i'll settle for a pick 3, str8!
Alrighty then. Let's do it! $241/$171 looks like a lucky number for someone. Good luck everyone!
Looking forward to Tuesday. I'm leaving Florida on Monday morning to head home to Chicago. I have a friend who buys me tickets every ten drawings for Mega Millions and mails them to me since they don't play it here. I play the same numbers. Since I'm driving back I'm going to buy two quick picks in every state I pass through on the drive back so I'll hit it up in GA, TN, KY, IN and then I'll grab two quick picks in IL to go along with my regular numbers so I'll be an $11.00 donator this drawing. It would make for a great story if I won on one of my road quick picks.....well, at least for me.
Gonna cash in my $3 winner and hope to be the big winner on Tuesday
and I'd like to thank you all for you kindly given donations .....
special thanks to those spending $5 + dollars a play
Well, here we go!
At least $111,000,000 after taxes here in Pennsylvania!
Good luck to all. May your dreams come true. As for me, only 2 tickets....
Good luck to everyone.
Way to go! $3 is better than $0!
I hope that you have 5 numbers on Tuesday!
I am going to go "Green" the conservative way ............ with money!
I don't plan on spending any more money than usual for Tuesday's big win .....................
may the blessed saints preserve us all if rdg or psykomo wins
Yes $241 million dollars is alot of money, however we all know because the lottery is rigged they will have 1 winning ticket in either california or ny.
Wasn't the last winner from Georgia ????....let me check...YEEEUP, sure was.... gotta remain positive and believe
Please, Please, ........Please.....let it be RI just one more time!!! That "little" state deserves a "big" break.
Nothin will be rigged if that happens, just good old fashioned Rhodie Karma.
I'm already there!
(Rhode Island 95 South into oncoming traffic)
Mac, have you been playing out on 93 0r 95 AGAIN ????..... stop, go to the nearest store, pick the right numbers, then share with meee
SH*T!! Just checking my pockets CD, NO CASH on me.
Let me see if I can bum some money from some of these nice motorists, I'll get back
to you with those lucky numbers.
Gatta run now. 
Have you ever considered the idea that you may be "rigged"?
I won $3 so I will take that and add it to my other money and buy 3 ex tra tickets for next draw..I am claiming it NOW!!
Good Luck everyone!!
I hope your right about that winning ticket.
Good luck RedStang!, hope NY produces a "rigged" winner.
LOL true
Wait a minute, isn't that where Dorothy was from? The Wizard of Oz couldn't pull it off back in "36", but I think your time is due now Kansas!!!
Kansas has ruined their karma by not making Toto their official state dog. What were they thinking.
Well,jump in your car and drive to Georgia.They have more than their share of winners.
C'mon TRP..... Go visit a relative in another state and get an advance play ticket like I do...or have them buy one with advanced draws for ya....I am sure you have trustworthy relations someplace that sells the MM, well, maybe not from NJ in construction.
That's a lot of money! I'll take some but all of it is just too much. Imagine....wow.
Maybe too much for you,but I haven't seen a jackpot that was too much for me.The more the better!
I would like to win this one for Oregon and thank all the little people who bought tickets along the way. For making this jackpot the best it could be for me to win. Yes! I think that it is Oregon's time to have another jackpot and mega millions is it. Thank you oh yes thank you no no thank you!-weshar75
Too bad with Florida not having any state taxes owed. You could drive to georgia, but not sure if you would owe them state taxes on the winnings.
Thanks All, but not driving to Georgia from Orlando with these gas prices. Did I mention that I hate this $2.00 Powerball? MM is a better buy with a better cash option.
I agree that MegaMillions is the best bang for your buck.I look for Powerball to rethink their decision to double the price of a ticket.
Mega is the better game payout wise to boot. I'm happy to be heading home to Chicago as that's the game I prefer. I don't like paying two dollars for a ticket, it's nonsense.
Not saying this or the PB jackpot is mine but when an LP blogger wins let's make the agreement that he/she will pay homage to HRH Todd and the LP Royal Family. We don't have to know who you are on here but just want to know that one of us finally HIT BIG!!!!
Deal?
Could be that since MUSL took charge of both games, they are no longer competitors but seeking different markets. If the MM sales increased and sales amounts of PB stayed the same with the higher price and PB eventually have larger jackpots which will attract both markets then it's a win-win situation for MUSL.
time for a little road trip to delaware to buy that winning ticket
I think I'm gonna play about 20 qp's have my family each fill out a couple tickets then I'm gonna play my favs and try to play some high % numbers as well. I want this one bad. If I win, Everyone at LP gets a scratchie book on me
When did MUSL take charge of mega?
We are dreamers inluding me too.
We need good luck to be the winner.
Wishing Good Luck to all of us
Connecticut guys hit for the big one late last year, then the old lady from Rhode Island hit it last month.
Next stop; Massachusetts.
I'm waiting to see what happens.
If I take the annuity option can I avoid state tax if I move out of the country for the rest of the payments?
That would be a resounding ,"NO"......gotta pay state taxes where you bought the ticket from unless that state has no state taxes
I think it's when they came to the agreement to let states sell both games.
So if I win 200 million but take the annuity option and move to Switzerland I have to pay the state I purchased the ticket in for 25/26 years???? Some states on the East Coast are making out like a bandit on all these lottery wins
That is correct...If the state you bought the ticket in has state income tax on lottery winnings, then you have to pay state AND federal income tax over the life of the annuity AND file a state income tax return & federal income tax return each and every year of the annuity...That's why the cash option means you only pay the feds one time and the state one time for the tax year
I wonder if you can save on taxes this way.
You take the annuity option.
Part of that payment is interest.
Interest is accrued when you are in Switzerland not your state.
The perfect storm would be the ticket to be SOLD in MA and PURCHSED by a RI'er!
Just take the cash and run. Forget the annuity.
Annuity = bad choice #1 for a jackpot winner.
AGREED!!!!
Would it be a bad thing if an LP member won and everyone knew who they were?
You think that person would be hounded with inbox messages?
Searching4luck.....tell ya what, since you are still bent on the annuity issue ..take a look at all the Powerball winners and ALL the Mega Millions winners and see how many of them took the annuity versus taking the cash......wonder how many of them talked to financial advisers before accepting the jackpot ?? 2/3rds, 1/2 ??? I think those folks probably took their accountants advice and TOOK THE CASH !!!!!!...but like any winner, its yours to do with what you please....Best of luck in tonight's and future drawings...
I seen that my daughter was so sad because all the kids in her school colored pictures and sent them to Rep. Timmer.
There are actually some very good articles looking at Yield Curves that suggest that the annuity is better - not taking into account the interest question that I posted.
I presume you don't know the answer to my question and thus decided to snark at me. I can snark back and say take a look at their broke asses years later to see how well their financial advisers advised them.
It is a simple tax question and you don't know the answer.
So , instead of ridiculing me ponder whether you can get out of paying taxes to the state if you take the annuity. 30 million interest at 9% tax savings is more than some jackpots.
Absolutely! but you know what , it wouldn't bother me a bit !
This is gonna stall PB sales till it hits. Just under $118 million cash in Ga. I'll be playing MM tuesday. If you win, when you quit Would you be a $%& to your boss cause whats he gonna do fire you?, or just leave quietly cause you don't want any attention?
Guess that would depend on the boss.....being civil and leaving quietly would be the smart thing to do
....you can always sit back on a beach or in the mountains someplace and smile. 
You know the coworkers would be saying,"he never said a word, I am suprised he never told me" ....send em a post card from Hawaii
ooOOoo I can try to sound intelligent! ready? ok! Taxes now vs. taxes then. It's not really a question of that, as much as a question of whether you believe that you will make better long term investment choices than the return you would receive via: the annuity. Example: you are an impulsive person and believe sincerely that glass slippers are about to make a HUGE comeback... and invest ALL your money in this SURE THING. recommendation? take the annuity.
However, should be on a more earth-bound investment strategy, and believe from either track record, or the brilliance in your 'crew' that you assembled after your win, that they can beat the 4%-ish interest rate that the annuity will make long term? then take the lump sum and you will probably, should your after-tax interest rate be 4% - definitely do better than the annuity would.
As far as tax rates go? the tax policies of the US get modified every year at the end of October (why October? is it cooincidence that it is the same time as Halloween? dunno) and those policies can **insert gasp of horror here** be retroactive to the January 1st date of that current year!!! so... annuity wise you are betting on a lower tax rate over time, while lump-sum you are betting that taxes will go up or remain constant.
Are there other factors to take into account? Of course! how about present value of the dollar? (ooOOoo i best wrap this up as I have used up all my 'smart-sounding words')
Good luck and go win win win!
When you take cash, you pay the maximum federal and state income tax rates on nearly all of the dollars (because the U.S. has a graduated tax system). When you take the annuity, more of the money is taxed at zero and lower rates that the maximum rate.
But the BIG reason to consider annuity is that if you take the annuity, then the lottery can invest the money BEFORE taxes. If you take cash, then you end up with about half the money left over to invest. It is tough to invest $100 million and catch up to someone who has invested $200 million. Then you pay taxes on whatever you earn. Of course, you also risk losing it all. The lottery annuity stream is guaranteed. The state takes the risk of loss of the investment.
But, there are good reasons for taking the CASH too. It you are a careful person or have a good place to put the money - usually someplace where you live with it, like your own business - then it can be a good investment. it is also true that taxes are at historic lows and are likely to go up. Interest rates are at historic lows and are also likely to go up. So, one view is that it is best to pay the taxes at the lower rates and decide not to lock in investments at the low rates. But if you are not very good invesetments and tend spend all of your money, then the annuity option may be the best choice.
The other answer is correct. So far, all U.S. district tax courts have held that the state has sufficient nexus to assess an income tax. Moving to a tax-free state or nation makes no difference.
Chuck, I got looking at the total difference on this issue.....if you took the annuity, 241 mil divided by 26 payments.. it turns out to be roughly 9.2 mill a year before taxes....take the 35% federal(current rate now, unknown in the future) and whatever your state tax is..lets say 6% for a combined total of 41% on 9.2 mil, that gives you 5.33 mil a year for 26 payments = 138.73 million which includes the lotteries interest after the next 25 years.....not too shabby, if thats how its done......
Lets go lump sum...171 cash times 35% federal tax(current rate now) and (guessing)6% state tax ( 171 x .41) equals 70.1 in taxes..leaving you with 100 million and change..... I relocate to a state like Florida where there is no state income tax and invest 80 million. I think I could make up the 58 million in less than 25 years including the taxes on my interest.................But, with all that cash in hand at the end of the day...I dont think I would get too stressed if I didnt.
Give a two weeks notice. I don't want them to know I won millions either. The winner could be anybody, so giving a two weeks notice is not going to make them believe it was you who won. Maybe you found a better job? Maybe the doctor said you could no longer work? Maybe it's none of their freaking business? It seems like many winners just don't how to keep their mouths shut. I think I'm going to pass out when I see all six numbers are the same.
Sad, not! The Powerball is always in your corner.
Its true our hero the Powerball is always fighting for you!
Be glad, not sad. Powerball promises to come to your state soon! But you must believe TheRightPrice!
Always take the cash! If the Dems have their way, the tax rate for the "rich" will go up! And the resulting inflation will kill your annuity!
PB gets no consideration from me when I visit a convenience store. Why should I pay $2 for ONE chance to hit $41 million (I only consider cash value) when I could spend the same $2 for TWO chances to hit $171 million? Why I even threw a buck toward Little Lotto that had a jackpot prize of a mere .525 million (or 525K for those who are in denial you need glasses and can't see the decimal point in front of those numbers) last night. IF I win MM come Tuesday, it will indeed be a Super(b) Tuesday for me and certain businesses. Maserati, Bentley, get ready for another cash rich client. No need for any financial advisors to bother soliciting me for any business since I have that covered. Ditto for my legal team, but I will be interviewing accountants who can keep me from suffering same fate as Richard Hatch, Wesley Snipes, Willie Nelson, Jim Thorpe, and believe me when I say I will be keeping my eye on my prize like Oprah lest I end up like Nicholas Cage...but that won't happen since I keep track of where my money is and what is going on with every transaction.
Back to the subject. PBS won't get any additional play from me until MM is hit. Until then, I will just trust the single subscription play I have in for PB. And when the day, hopefully March 20, comes when the ticket in my hands have all matching numbers, I won't have to put in a two week notice since I won't stop working for myself. That is the beautiful thing about being either self-employed or a business owner in that hopefully you are doing something you really enjoy. And I would tell this forum I won....but since I would have to attribute my win to luck, don't expect me to come on here hawking my tried-and-tested system that can help you win "just like me". I think the only valid "system" is to just buy a ticket for every drawing to always give yourself a chance, and I would say that even to a person who may a won various online or scratch-off looters jackpots. Consider someone who has won, say 3 to 7 big lottery prizes...well, ask the person how many times he/she has won NOTHING, and I bet the answer will be, "Thousands of times". So those 3 to 7 wins look not so great and "assured". To clarify that, winning the prize is great, but the chances of winning are not improved by any system.
When I win I am taking the cash since taxes on the wealthy will skyrocket under Obama or any politician who cannot boldly cut govt spending and reform our out of control entitlement programs. I will win and move somewhere where taxes are low.
Future tax rates are the unknown. If US income tax rates go as high as European countries, which is the target 'ideal' to some, then your annuity could be taxed at 50% or more. Your $9.3m annual annuity becomes at best $4.6m before state taxes. And what if inflation goes nuts? Think about the crazy inflation we had back in the 70's, what cost $1 in 1970, cost $44 26 years later. Your $4.6m could be worth $1.1m in 26 years.
And no, you cannot get out of paying taxes to either the state or the feds in those 26 years. You are locked in to the state you bought your ticket for the length of the annuity.
Did someone say glass slippers weren't coming back?
I better go check my investments... 
LOL! America agrees with you, very few people playing PB for last night's draw.
It is SO WEIRD
to pay $2.00 for 1 ticket. It always causes confusion with the retailer where they have to tell you" so you want ONE $2.00 Powerball ticket, right?"
Hopefully, PB will see the light and return PB to how it was.
Better to spend your hard earned money on QP's then on an over hyped "system". Persistence is key. Most big lottery winners as OldSchoolPa
eluded to, have probably played and lost thousands of times before hitting the big one.
My question isn't really about whether annuity is better than cash option . My question is about whether a state can tax you on the INTEREST that is earned after you leave the state when you choose the annuity option. There are all kinds of things that go into picking an annuity over a cash option including factoring in the unknown future...my question pertains to just one aspect of making that choice.
Thus I didn't need that poster to pontificate to me about what other lottery winners have done. Their choices are not relevant.
I just wanted to know if anyone had the answer about the interest and one that is not just a guess.
I would have to pull up in a Porsche 911 turbo S Cabriolet before anyone believed me. If i told them i hit the lotto and was quitting, they would tell me to go back to work.
All pontificating aside......you are taking the annuity option,therefor your payments gradually increase,so the lottery commission includes the interest in that next payment, then the payment after and so on. When that check is sent to you it comes from the state your purchased it in (Indiana)and they get to take state tax(interest included)...because the annuity and lottery paid interest is treated as income earned for that year, you are required to pay state income tax, even if you lived out of the country or another state...... Indiana has a state tax rate of 3.4% and you do the annuity..its going to go like this on annuity.....1st payment check would be (estimating roughly) 7.8 mil minus fed(35%) and Indiana state taxes(3.4%)...the next year the payment increases from 7.8 to lets say 8.1 because of their interest is added to your first payment....You still pay fed and state taxes on the 8.1 mil( base annuity plus interest) because that check is from the state of Indiana lotto commission. The next year the payment goes up to 8.3 and next is 8,5 and so on....so the total plus interest adds up to 241 mil over the 26 years.....Sorry, but you are required to pay Indiana state tax on that interest each year.....
Next situation is you get your first scheduled payment of 7.8 million ..they take out 35% fed tax & 3.4 Indiana state tax..after taxes you clear 4.8 million....you take the 4.8 mill and invest it all.....as long as you claim residency in Indiana it is subject to that Indiana state income tax rate of 3.4 %....if you move to Wyoming or Florida or Alaska where there are no state income taxes, then no Indiana interest income can be assessed because you don't reside there.
Bottom line is everyone of the 26 annuity checks(that includes lottery paid interest) that is coming from Indiana is always going to be subject to their 3.4% income tax rate no matter where you reside.
Thats why most folks take the lump sum, pay all the federal and state taxes for the current year. They eliminate any future tax increases by the FEDS or in this case the state of Indiana...hope that helps..Good luck in the next jackpot drawing.
Interest or investment income earned on investments you make off lottery winnings is only taxable in the state of your residence. If you take the annuity in Indiana, but then move to Wyoming establising residency, your annual annuity payment is still taxable in Indiana, but earnings off the annuity payments that YOU invest, are taxable in Wyoming. Except that Wyoming does not have income tax.
I'm no tax expert, i even pay someone to file mine,don't want to pay a penny more than i have to.
if you like the idea of an annuity why not take the cash and buy your own or several, why be locked in to one,
you could even get short term and long terms,if you take the lottery's annuity, the state still has a way to get to it,
even if you live in another state that has no income tax,
Suckers take the annuity, if you were to have problems with getting the money at once then you're going to probably have problems with the annuity as well and top it off, you could have more. How many winners have taken the annuity, got into trouble and sold off payments? How many of those people ended up having significant tax problems as well? Lump sum or annuity, a fool and their money will part. The "safety" of the annuity is nothing but an illusion.
The cash option is currently about 70.5% of the annuity, I'd rather take the cash and have all the taxes on the principal taken care of in the first year before rate hikes that ARE going to come and be subject to taxes in a state I would no longer live in over the next 26 years and be at the mercy of the state and federal government's ability to "invest" it and hope the state you won it won't be issuing you an IOU at some point.. Even in this economy it wouldn't take much to beat out the return you'd get from U.S. Government Treasury Securities. Not to mention the ability to move your money out of the dollar if you so choose to.
Besides that, who knows if any of us will even be here 26 years from now.
Maybe if you pulled up in this car, there would be no questions asked:
I think it's about time Wisconsin win their first Mega Millions jackpot. :) I already turned my $3 winner from Friday into my Tuesday ticket. Good luck everyone!! :)
I haven't yet decided how I will collect a MM or PB jackpot because I figure my chances of winning one are no better than those here sharing their plans to do so.
The answer is that you are not getting "interest". You are getting a cash payment from the lottery as a part of the annuity stream. It is not "interest" to you. The payments are taxed as ordinary income. The state making the payments can tax you. Your state of residence will tax you. But there tax reciprocity agreements in place between states so that you don't get double-taxed.
If nobody wins Tuesday how will the jackpot be Friday?
It will be astronomical if nobody wins Tuesday,but not to worry,because I intend to win!
It will be enjoyable & will put you into the class of people that libs demonize. But in reality you will be in the class of people that invest and grow the economy!
Good luck to all of my LP friends, may each one of you realize your dreams!
I'm guessing around 310 million...
You mean its rigged so that the winner is from either NY or Calif ?
Who riggs it and how do they do it so that its either from Calif or NY? Who do thet rig it for and how is the person picked that its rigged for? Also how do you figure that its rigged for 1 of those 2 states?
It will be in the range that PB was hoping to be in by now with its $2 tickets. I suspect PB players will abandon PB and start putting all their money on MM.
241 annuity or 171 cash. I dont care which one it is. Either way its more than ill be able to spend either way
I usually only spend $1 on a QP but for some reason i told the lady a $3 QP instead hmmmm maybe my mind was trying to tell me something and i bought the winning ticket lol
Good Luck everyone and I have always been an annuity kind of person but with the economy and the way the debt and tax talks are going i am becoming a "give me my cash" kinda person.
Good luck to everyone.
Don't worry, there would be plenty of people you don't even know beating on your door to help you spend it. They would probably be your biggest problem if you ever won that much.
Last 3 with similar jackpots that rolled . Aug 2009 252 went to 336. Mar 2011 244 went to 319. Dec 2010 went from 242 to 380. Idont know why the last one had such a big jump compared to the other 2 but it did
Christmas.People were buying lottery tickets to use as stocking stuffers.Just a guess,mind you.
I agree!
So it covered the hundreds of people who don't typically play the game.
Yea im sure your right about that. Id give a good potion to my immediate family and some to some charity. Id help out some friends that arent well up a little. As for strangers and and that sort id ask tham a couple questions like how did you help me whan i was down on my luck for a period of time and how much did you contribute to the the winning ticket i bought. Both answers would be none so thats what im giving tham in return. Id set up my winnings in some sort of fund so my name wouldnt be published if your able to do that in WV.
Yea that might be some of it but the 242 was for Dec 31 drawing than it jumped to 380 for Jan 4 drawing.
You know guys...I am a stagehand and live near the most vapid place on Earth. Do I have the chance to be the next Cash Warren if I hit the jackpot? I am not bad looking, anyway. :D
I'm not going to get into this too much, but I'm going to answer the question. Based on what I read, not what I think. They don't pick the person, they pick the state, town & store. They know the winning ticket is going to be sold before the players do. Again, that is what I read, not what I think. People say the lottery is rigged. People say the lottery cursed. I would gladly accept that rigged cursed ticket on tuesday. Curse me!
Maybe it would just be simpler to agree that "everything" in life is "rigged". I'm rigged, your rigged, were all rigged. Our Gods are rigged, my cat is
rigged, your dog is rigged, President Obama is rigged. Clerks are rigged, as are birds, bees, flowers and trees.
Here a rigg, there a rigg, everywhere a rigg. Our toothpaste is rigged, aliens are rigged. The entire universe is rigged.
I'm going to
now in my fully rigged bed. In the morning I will have my rigged coffee. Thank God our lotteries are also "rigged"! 
And you "read" this where??
Well,maybe people were just hoping to start the new year off with a big win.People are funny that way.
Coming to Michigan, a lottery winner not on food stamps.
So if any of you win this will you still post on these forums? or just vanish off the earth? :-)
I'll still be posting.
Money can't buy this kind of entertainment! 
I will be Harassing Mac as usual, waiving my WIC check at Sully, finding where Ridge lives and hiring B.H.O supporters to march by his residence/property carrying signs that declare the prez as the "savior".
....you know, just relaxin' and enjoying life 
So last nite on HGTV, the big winner of the Dream Home was from our area. The winner was at the restaurant where we went to eat yesterday. They were there later watching on the big screen as they were announced as the winners ....................
I am thinking that the next big headline in our newspaper will be about the 1st Mega Millions Jackpot Winner from the 'Dale!
I will still be posting, as well as upgrading my membership here on LP ..............
Posting and Playing. Best show on earth. Especially when the conspiracy theorists jump on the band wagon - lol. Any one knows when HRH Todd is letting them out of detention?
Thanks CD! Good to know someones got my back.
same here........ I wouldn't upgrade my membership though
When God created the "Rigged Conspiracists", that was the day that LP became truly blessed.
I begin each day by thanking God for these uniquely entertaining oddities of life.
Thanks, I'll have to travel there someday.
What do you consider a "good portion"?
Here we go Mega Millions ...............
$100 should be plenty?
Spent little more than usual today. 5 QP with Megapliers.
Feeling good---and maybe karma-lucky---after buying the little girl in front of me in line a $1.50 ice cream after her mom claimed she didn't have the $$ for it---while buying herself a carton of cigs. Seriously p*ssed me off.
Nice gesture Arrowhead! Would have pissed me off royal.
Carton of even the cheapest smokes goin for what (As I don't smoke), maybe $45-50?
That little girl
will remember your kind deed for years to come.
Hope you get at least a second prize!
dpoly, if the number of posts eluding to your big win has anything to do with scoring a major jackpot, you are already the hands down winner!
I'll probably get nothin'. But the look ---and sincere thank you---on the girl's face will make the rest of my week. I could not believe it. It's like 80 degrees here in northern Ohio, the kid wants some ice cream, but mom has to support her nic habit. The clerk and I talked about it for 5 min. after they left.
I fail to see how the hell its any of YOUR business if the mother bought a carton or a case of cigarettes with HER money!Try minding your OWN <snip> business next time.The last time I looked,people still had the freedom in America to do what THEY wanted without asking for YOUR permission!
Maybe the kid was misbehaving and being punished, maybe she doesn't give her junk food, maybe she didn't want to spoil her dinner, maybe she was diabetic.
I think people ought to mind their own business, especially when it comes to other people's kids.
If that was me and my kid, you'da heard about it in no uncertain terms.
From the later posts, it looks like you might want to track down this little girl and her mother, and apologize for buying the kid some ice cream.
Better yet, offer to buy the mom another carton of Camels so that more second hand smoke can fill the girls lungs.
(can never start to early you know!)
wow a bit aggressive are we? I think someone should buy you an ice cream!
Naaah.... Just got a sweet tooth, I'll take you up on the ice cream though!!!
(I'm sure this is what Cletu$ would have said, in his defense).
It would do you good to mind your own business,too,busybody.
Roger that Cletu$! No more supporting people who give little girls on a hot unbearable day, a delicious ice cream cone. Shame on me!
(Shrugs) whatever floats your boat (you too Cletus), it's irrelevant to me.
Here's the deal, and then we can all move on to more important things. The girl wasn't being punished, the Mom had no problem saying a 'God Bless You' to me as they were leaving the store. Everybody left happy. The girl had her ice cream and the Mom had her precious cigs. If it was a problem with the Mom, she would have said 'no thanks, mister.' Nope, she had no problem with the guy behind them in line buying a little ice cream.
See how this works? You looking to pick a fight about nothin', that's your call. I'm workin' here all week, and don't forget to tip the wait staff.
iI'm not trying to start anything.I just don't like smoke nazi's and that is what you and Mcginnis 56 (or whatever his name is) are.You get off on telling other people how to live their lives because you think it's the right thing to do.Now that I've had my say,we can move on to lottery related things.
Yup...that's my name. (almost, it's mcginnin, not Mcginnis). No one is getting off on telling anybody how to live their lives Cletu$. This is an open
forum. If someone is simply disagreeing with you, try to get over it. This was merely a story of a happy go lucky LP'er, who was blessed to put a smile
on the face of a little girl, without the Mom's objection.
We are still on the topic of lottery things, this is how this story came to be. The gentlemen was describing how his elated feelings led him to
purchase 5 MM tickets with the Megaplier option, because of the good karma he percieved in this entire incident.
Whatever!
Were in agreement then!
mcginnin56 pm me whenever you come to NYC I have no problem whatsoever on buying some ice cream :) till then GL with the jackpots.
Most gracious of you ohfive! I will absolutely pm you when I'm in that area. Have been to NYC several times, love that city.
Love ice cream!
Thanks again for sharing your delightful story!
Good luck with tomorrows MM.
We love icecream over here to... come visit us up in ... Rhode Island ... :) and while you are here... buy a winning lottery ticket. I hear it's the thing to do (while eating peppermint icecream)
Depending on which side of the bay you decide to travel on... you should probably either buy your ticket in West Warwick or I know a really nice lil cumbies in Warren... either location should be roughly 1/2 way between the 2 existing winning ticket-purchase-place locations.
Well I ponied up for another $2 mega millions ticket so I hope that Oregon hits it big tomorrow. That sure would be sweet!-weshar75
oh my.I don't even know what I would do if I hit this jp. I would love to win don't get me wrong but I just wouldn't want anyone except who I tell that i won. I noticed that the lady that won in RI formed a trust but still gave a interview.I'm not sure if she wanted to so I'm not sure if you could claim this size jp without letting the cat out the bag. the media and lottery commission wouldn't let ya.good luck lp'Res.
RI is one of those unfortunate states that require you to come forward with your name and city, when you claim your prize. Interestingly enough we live spitting distance from MA where you can claim with a trust w/o revealing who you are. But you gotta understand little Rhodie mentality... folks from Newport, when they go up to Providence sometimes pack an overnight bag (not kidding - and its all of a 45 min trip.)
"Smoke nazis" my ass. The issue wasn't that mama's a smoker, the issue is that mama had no problem ponying up $50 for a carton of cigs for herself yet $1.50 for her kid to have an ice cream cone was suddenly a financial hardship. A statement like that gets this guy:
going for a lot of us.
If the kid was being punished or it was too close to dinner time or whatever, all mama had to say was "no". She didn't have to hide behind a lame excuse like "I don't have the money"; if she was really that cash-strapped, maybe she should have considered only getting a few packs rather than a whole carton.
Anyway, bottom line is, to deny your child a small treat because you're spending all your money on something big for yourself rubs people the wrong way.
Ah, geez, here we go getting off the dang topic again. I got my tickets for tomorrow, good luck all!
Wow! Another New England neighbor friend, thanks maximumfun! I have yet to have the pleasure of motoring through your state. You guy's
are on a roll....I'm rooting for you to have a third major jackpot in just the last few weeks!!!
I'm going to check out West Warwick, and Warren area's to cover my bases for both locations. Have to check out that peppermint ice cream.
Best of luck to you to you on all future drawings!
HST:
several year's>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
when psyko had D>>>HUMMER>>>&>>>>GPS on board!!!!!!
psyko would go 2 >>>all lottery vender's in my area who HAD
a big crowd>>>>@>>>>>>>>location due 2D>>>>>>
"JACKPOT MADNESS">>>>$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
psyko bought alotto QP'$$$$$$$$$$$>>>>>>>>>>>
TODAY>>>>>>>>>>>>"EVERYONE" buy's>>>QP'$$$
"NEVER">>>>>>>>>>"NEVER">>>>>>$$GIVE^UP$$
Excellent advice psykomo! Never Ever-Give Up! As far as playing on the freeway......
"...the issue is that mama had no problem ponying up $50 for a carton of cigs for herself..."
That's none of your concern so mind your own business.
" all mama had to say was "no". She didn't have to hide behind a lame excuse like "I don't have the money"
A lot of parents say "I don't have the money" just to avoid a big commotion with a toddler in public but it's none of your business anyway, is it? Why do all you girly-man libs think you should be able to tell other people what to do? Just mind your own business.
"...maybe she should have considered only getting a few packs rather than a whole carton."
That's none of your concern. Maybe you should consider minding your own business.
"...spending all your money on something big for yourself rubs people the wrong way."
Well ain't that just too frigging bad? Get over it and mind your own business!
"... here we go getting off the dang topic again."
The thread was back on topic for more than a couple hours til you took it off again, numbnuts, so stop with the phony rhetoric.
rdgrnr - I belive I fell in love with you after reading your post.
Nobody's lookin' to pick a fight dude. But you knew that.
And it's funny how the story changed now.
In the first telling, you were "seriously p*ssed off" and stayed to gossip about her with the clerk after she left.
Now you say "everybody left happy" and she was "God Blessing you" all over the place.
Whatever.
All I wanted to convey was that if I told my kid "no" about something in a store and some lib busybody do-gooder wannabe stuck his nose in my business and gave my kid what I said he or she couldn't have - there'da been a big problem for the lib.
People need to mind their own business.
Simple as that.
Now, good luck on the Mega!
Well, I do have that effect on wimmins, max, but I'm kinda bashful and shy.
You're makin' this ol' country boy blush now...
There is absolutely no 'difference' in the story.
See if you can comprehend something extremely simple as this---I saw a parent buying a carton of cigarettes for herself. I saw a kid with her who wanted ice cream. I saw a parent tell a kid she didn't have the money for the ice cream. I thought it was ridiculous the parent can spend $$ on cigarettes---but it coulda been beer, magazines, hell, LOTTO TICKETS, anything that would not be considered a neccessity--and not buy a kid ice cream. So, I said I'd buy the ice cream. The kid was grateful, the mom wasn't pissed, they left, and the clerk and I talked about it after they left. Yes, I was "seriously pissed" (to myself) a parent would be that selfish. and, that's what is is...selfishness. She had no problem taking care of her own needs but the hell with the kid.
People need to mind their own business? Are you kidding me? A kid got some ice cream. As you would say...."simple as that".
MCGN:
I think what rdgrnr is saying is that it's a lot different just seeing a sweet kid in a store and offering to buy him/her an ice cream than it is to think a parent "wronged" their kid by denying ice cream, and you were going to try and override the parent in public -- where the parent probably was steaming, but had the grace not to show it.
There are many reasons why a parent might say no, and while saying they don't have the money is probably not the best way to say no (because it is not really saying "no", it's really saying "I would if I could"), it's a parent's right to parent as they wish, without interference.
I know you think you made a kind-hearted gesture, and I'm sure from the way you're discussing this that it was entirely big-hearted of you. But it's also good for people to know that sometimes a nice gesture might be taken completely the opposite on the receiving end -- especially when it comes to raising a child.
Never mind dude.
There's just some part of "Mind your own business" that you can't grasp.
Why were you eavesdropping on them in the first place? You had no business listening in on their conversation. Don't you have your own concerns to worry about to keep you from butting in where you don't belong?
You interjected yourself into that lady's personal business. And that's wrong.
But I accept that as a lib, you think we should be like a big commune and everybody should be raising everybody else's kids and all that so whatever.
Just better watch where you're sticking your nose, cuz you might run into somebody who doesn't play along with that lib busybody routine so nice.
Exactly, Todd.
The only people who ever got away with contradicting me with my kids was their grandparents and even that drove me nuts. But there just ain't too much you can do about that situation. And the mother in law did it just to taunt me, lol. Oooooh, Bang! Zoom!
Arrowhead, let me give you another perpective, had a stranger offered to buy my son ice cream, my first thought would have been, he/she is a predator.
Now I am not saying you are, but I would never have allowed a stranger to invade my childs world like that.
You may have done more harm than good, believe it or not children need to stay wary of strangers, most have built in alarms, we are born with it, that little butterfly in your belly that tells you something is wrong, That parent should have denied the gift. That child may not be afraid of the next stranger, who has attentions other than, showing up a parent.
Great point from a mother's perspective.
The old axiom - "Never take candy from a stranger."
It's never been more important advice than it is today.
Not to try to step into the line of fire or anything... but can someone tell me... sometimes the lottery increases the amount of the jackpot prior to the drawing. What type of jackpot does it need to be at before they start doing so?
They have done this before on a Mega Millions jackpot they usually do it when the sales go over what they estimate before the jackpot has been drawn, plus when people see it increase before the drawing they tend to go buy more tickets.
I think they increase it if the sales warrant it just before the drawing, max.
"But I accept that as a lib, you think we should be like a big commune and everybody should be raising everybody else's kids and all that so whatever."
At some point for him, because of some past comments on this site, this became a POLITICAL conversation, which people of the same POLITICAL persuasion are piling on on agreeing with. I should think the odds of a story about a trip to a convernience store to buy some lotto tickets---that ended up including buying a kid ice cream---should seque into 'libs' and "minding my own business' would be about the same as winning the lotto itself, but for this site, maybe not.
Can't help noticing all kinds of threads seem to get hijacked with something political in nature here. And often hijacked by the same individual.
I helped raise two kids (have you?). I know a little about this stuff. I'm glad the kid got a treat, I was there, nobody else here was.
As always, it's been fun.
*Google*
Why do people get offended when someone says he/she believe it is rigged? I just say, well that's what they believe. I don't take those kind of things personally.
You can't possibly be this dense.
I did not 'contradict' the mother. If she had said...."No! you cannot have ice cream! You've been a naughty girl, or....you need to take a nap and don't need the sugar, or....you've already had ice cream today" and I offered to get the kid ice cream, that's 'contradicting' her. She said she did NOT HAVE THE MONEY. And after I offered to pay, she thanked me. No glares, no nasty looks, no bad words, no running out of the store afraid of the stalker.
Sorry Ridgy-boy, back to calling me names, I guess...
Um... actually you did. She said no (for whatever reason) and you said yes. You, a stranger, contradicted the parent-type-person. In essence you undermined her authority.
So, rdgrnr, to get back on topic-ish, what level of sales would we have to be at before they raised the listed j/p amount during this period of 'frenzy'? 241M seems pretty high to these eyes over here...
Sully, your imagination is working overtime.
I wasn't alone with the kid in the back of the store. I was in line at the register, with the mother right there, with the cashier right there. Get the picture?
I am curious about the next jackpot if this lil monster rolls over......Of course the sales will go haywire...I am thinking it's going for $285-292 Million.
I'm gonna guess 300-315. I was half expecting it to increase before the next drawing. Maybe cause its $1 not $2 per play.
Just a thought, anyone going to play the number from Lost?
Last year someone won hundred and fifty dollars playing numbers from "Lost." But you never tell anyone what numbers you're going to play!
I didn't say you were alone, I didn't make this up, go to the center for missing and exploited children and check out guidelines on how to keep your child safe.
I didn't say you were a predator, I am saying the mother should have had more common sense,
Number one rule, you never let your children get friendly with strangers for any reason, in that childs mind, everyone who buys her something or smiles at her will be her buddy,
Good rule, stay out of strangers business and stay the hell away from their children.
The next person may not react the same way.
Had that been me , .....let your imagination run wild.
I hadn't looked at it from that prospective sully, not that I've ever offered to buy a stranger's kid anything. I would certainly never consider doing
anything remotely resembling that scenario in the future. My wife wasn't able to have kids, so I do not have the same experience and common sense
that experienced parents with kids develop over the years. Point taken.
go Sully16! you are my hero.
As a mom of two young kids i completly agree with you. As a parent in todays times you can never be too careful with your kids.
One of the biggest fears for a parent , is that child getting, hurt, sick or taken.
Woo Hoo $170,900,000 in cash for me tonite ............... IDC about the cigarette lady ................ just show me the way to be "Green"
the conservative way, with da money!
The creator of this site, at who's largess you babble, responds to your post in a polite and friendly manner and you reply with a condescending LMAO and complaints about what you don't like about the site? You're just a typical, liberal ingrate - rude and obnoxious.
You should apologize.
yes, I agree.
LOL, unbelievable... You still don't get it! How many people here including mothers raising kids have to explain it to you?
You could be Exhibit A in the case for "Liberalism is a Brain Defect." You're totally aloof and obnoxious.
"If she had said...."No! you cannot have ice cream! You've been a naughty girl, or....you need to take a nap and don't need the sugar, or....you've already had ice cream today..."
It doesn't matter what she said, you insufferable moron! What a mother says to her child is her business! Why can't you understand that? Stop eavesdropping on other people's conversations and thinking it's your place to stick your big nose into their business! Why do you think you have a right to do that?
Mind your own business and leave other people's kids alone!
Poor DP...... guess you forgot about the FL resident that has already purchased the winning ticket....BTW.....I am takin the cash option and not having any worries over whether I chose annuity.....after getting 100 million free and clear...I am not too concerned over investing...although, phillip morris has a nice lil 3% dividend
..good luck
Good Luck tonight everyone !
I will be taking the cash option when i win tonight for the first MM jackpot to be won in Kansas and for an LP member!
I thank you all for your contributions and Todd for such a wonderful site for us all to get on and have such interesting conversations.
Good luck to you as well, by the way, my initials are KS,So extra good luck to us.
Aw thanks, WELCOME TO LOTTERY POST Maximumfun. Hope you win.
Nodding and pointing at rdgrnr... I will stand behind him... no no no not because you will HIT him first (although I am quite sure that rdgrnr would be a terrific battle-shield), but rather because he says plainly what I danced around.
Well, thank you kindly max, and good luck on the Mega tonight!
Ha ........ and double Ha .........
Was the HGTV Dream House winner down the street from you ........ NO ......... the luck is in Pennsylvania now!
Going "green" with the cash option and diversifying the investments with caution .......
and just to cover things ......... an extra ticket from the 2nd machine at The Roadrunner! They sell lotsa' tickets there!
Thank you to the Guru of Good Luck ...... Todd Vader !
LP is GREAT!
It's okay, you're new, you have yet to see how much of a bully Ridge is... you may think he's being picked on here, but he's not... and once you see how badly he treats anyone who dares to disagree with him, you'll change your tune... then again, maybe not, because he's already fooled you with his fake "southern gentleman" charms, but I don't blame you for falling for it...
Oh dear, I was down with the flu and the pollen here in South-West Texas.
Okay, back to topic. This jackpot might rollover 2 more times, I just feel it, I just can.
dpoly - I sense that the Northeastern part of the country, might hit this one. Who knows, Pennsylvania might get this one.
Nonetheless, good luck to everyone........
friday jackpot will be over $320 then they add 140 or more to $320. Friday is going to break the record.
good to hear you're OK, i sense that the northeastern part of the country includes south jersey.
Thank you, haymaker.
Yes, pardon me, Northeast might get this one. I wish the South-Central region, gets this.
But hey, it is all but luck.
So, once again, GOOD LUCK.....
EVERYONE!
As nice as that would be, I am afraid that wont work. I am planning on winning tonight. I'll be happy to buy you some theraflu though. :)
The pollen's crazy in southeast Texas, too. Good to see you up and about again. Good luck on MM draw tonight. And I hope you are wrong about the NE. They've won enough lately.
What the hell did you expect? He is well loved by the members for what he believes in. Well, I do agree that he can be very abusive to anyone who disagree with him. Most of internet forums don't approve such acts but for some reason... I will just stay out of the trouble in here.
New York got this one. Bought my ticket already.
12-22-35-37-42 MB 25
All set to cash a winning ticket....ICE CREAM FOR ALL IF IT HAPPENS....
opinionated yes, abusive no. if appalachia were a kingdom he would be elected king in a landslide. he is content with the oracle tag and his distrust of libs and dems is legendary. he is the all-time leading poster here and will never be dethroned. maybe 2 or 3% of the time he is off the mark, but his insight is second to none on here.
There you go again!
mediacrap --------->
Ridge ---------------->
Hey! What the hell ya mean off the mark 2 or 3% of the time?
Thanks for the kind words, faber. I appreciate it.
Oh, I won't call him a bully. He's just another loud mouthed "family values" type "conservative" who can't keep a wife even as long as Newt Gingrich or even Rush fatboy. Let's face it, even with all their money, no one can last with them very long, and clearly this one doesn't even have their money.
I can't actually remember how many wives kicked him out, whether he's been as polygamous as Newt, or as polygamous as Rush fatboy.
As is the case with his heros, he knows nothing about family, nothing about value, and in fact spends all of his time thinking about ways to avoid taxes on his fantasy money that he doesn't in fact have. I don't know the guy from a hill of beans - thank goodness - but I would suspect that the reason he talks about these sorts of things is because he has, earns, and knows nothing.
He's not, however, a "bully." A bully afterall needs to have some kind of power, and face it, the guy is pretty powerless.
You know, there's a part of me that actually wants to see this guy win the lottery, not that he will, just to see how many people burn it up with lawsuits and other crap. He'd make Jack Whitaker look rather like a paragon of financial stability, like Warren Buffett maybe. If this guy won the lottery, even tonight's 241 mill, it wouldn't be more than a year before he's back in the trailer park.
And you figured out all this based on posts in a public forum? Do you always believe what you read? What flavor of koolaid do you drink?
Ridge got you all twisted and spittin'.
Id be willing to bet someone if not multiple people hit that jackpot.
all the low numbers. People play birthdays all the time and every number could have
been a winner for multiple people. Well see. I only had 2 numbers lol.
Look at those birthday numbers! 1-4-6-11-14, and the Mega Ball is 30 Someone won tonight. I'll check my tickets in the morning. I got the megaball for sure on one ticket. Woot! $2!
Have so hope!!!!!
I've won!!!!!!!!!!
just kidding xD
I got the megaball. Eh
If my database is correct, two of those numbers haven't hit in over 50 drawings, and both hit tonight? Wow!!
Wow - In all the time I've run my pool (100 Players - Minimum $100 Million Jackpot10 years now...) - I've never seen such low numbers all clustered together. I realize all combinations have an equal chance of coming out - but this combination (1, 4, 6, 11, 14 & M30) looks more like a Birthday Calendar than anything else. Anyway - We'll know in about 30 minutes if anyone had this combo.
I had one of my programmer geek friends write me a program 15 years ago. It did Ok. Proble is when you have over 175,000,000 combinations of numbers - ANY numbers can come out. And those pesky little repetitions that shoould NOT come out? Please....
I'm very excited to see if this jackpot rolls and if NOT how many winners there may be. Birthdays would certainly work nicely for this draw... mayhap Rhode Island will have her 3rd winner!
And if it rolls... it rolls to what? 316-ish Million?
$325
Here I was guessing that there would be at least two winning tickets tonight, seems like it has been a while since there were multiple winners on one of the big two lotteries.
Could be wrong but I think this one is going to roll...
just in case, congrats to the winners. :)
He's just another lib whiner, Piaceri.
The only thing different with this one is that he's obsessed with me. Kinda like a stalker. A whiny stalker.
He usually comes around and starts whining at me about the usual lib nonsense and I give him a sound thrashing and he disappears for a few months.
I'm starting to think he likes the abuse now though and that creeps me out a little bit.
I checked his profile and brought up his posts for the past year (since April 5th, 2011) and over 50% of them were simply whining attacks on me.
This guy's really creepy.
Told you guys have some HOPE!!!!!!!!!!! $290
$290 Mil / 205.5 cash ????....Well now....that sure is a pretty penny !!!!!
Hoping it would go to 300, close enough. Actually with all the frenzied new players coming out of the woodwork,
that number should
definitely be climbing higher by Friday evening. Will get my winning tics tomorrow morning.
hit 3 out of 5 regular numbers and missed megaball. come on friday
Smooth move smooth. You probably are one of the very few who got even that, with all those low numbers. Congrats on your $7!
That would be almost enough for me to quit working. (I have a VERY expensive family to support)
This roll means that PB is pretty much dead in the water till MM has won... and will only be rolling minimum rolls... yes?
Grats smooth!
Max I think whoever wins this Friday will have their family set for a couple of generations.
Let's hope they play a smart game with it beginning Saturday morning, the world could use more lottery success stories.
Friday has got to be my lucky day! I'm not going to touch the PB until MM has been won. Well, when I win it friday, I'm done with the lottery. My dreams came true. Leave it for others.
Can someone tell me how Todd gets the new jackpot/cash amount before it is even listed on the main mega webpage?
I believe that he has a friend working at a lottery office.
Thanks Simba, your leaving it to the rest of us after your monumental win is truly comforting.
thanks
That is why Todd is Todd. He is able to see a few minutes into the future, and blesses us with this uncanny gift. Do not question this gift,
just accept with gratitude and appreciation.
thanks numbers i got right were 4 11 and 14 i had 6 marked out of the numbers i was choosing from and didn't play 1 because i rarely play the first or last playable number
Yea I was playing a couple of cold numbers - hit 3 of 5 but missed the mega!
68 matched the first 5 numbers, but not the money ball. That has to be a record. Does anyone know for sure? There had to be a lot of folks playing birthdays to have that many win 250K.
Indubitably.
May have to get some extra purchases from out of state on this one
you run a pool with 100 players so you can all win 1 million apiece before taxes. seems like a lot of work to just get a bunch of extra losing tickets and worry about who didn't pay and collecting the money etc. pools are for fools especially when you have over 10 participants. problems will arise if somehow you hit it.