A little over a week ago I was seated in one of the many overly comfy recliners in our family's living room along with my parents and best friends. Being the Powerball and scratch-off enthusiasts that we are, we sat around the television for hours, clutching our tiny tickets and talking emphatically about what we would do with the money if we happened to win the Powerball. Some of us were more realistic, pointing out the fact that if we played our cards straight, we could keep ourselves and close friends financially comfortable for the rest of our lives. Others of us over-fantasized a little bit, mentioning islands for sale and highly recommending a personal chef. Either way, we were engrossed in the endless possibilities that accompanied the Powerball jackpot. And this was just Saturday, January 9. At that point, the jackpot had not yet reached the $1.5 billion that was eventually granted to three winners on January 13, 2016. Despite the fact that the jackpot was split up and subject to taxes, it is still fun to ponder on what can be done with that amount of money. Below is a wide array of things can be done with a whopping $1.5 billion (not including sales or property taxes).
1. Buy approximately 20 islands.
This includes islands such as Rangyai Island, which is pictured above. This particular island, located near Thailand, covers 110 acres and is currently on the market for $160 million.
2. Fund four years of undergraduate college tuition at Vassar College for 7,310 students.
Undergraduate tuition at Vassar College, located in Poughkeepsie, New York, was set for $51,300 for the 2015-2016 school year, making it the most expensive college in the United States. Over four years, this would amount to approximately $205,200 per student.
3. Buy Michael Jackson's jacket from his "Thriller" music video, Babe Ruth's Yankees jersey and Marilyn Monroe's dress from "The Seven Year Itch."
The jacket, the jersey and the dress are known as some of the most expensive pop culture memorabilia ever sold. According to Ranker, Jackson's jacket went for $1.8 million, Ruth's jersey went for $4.4 million and Monroe's dress went for $5.6 million. After these three purchases, you would be left with $1.382 billion to do with as you please.
4. Purchase the famous paintings The Scream, Portrait of Dr. Gatchet, and Mona Lisa.
These paintings are known as some of the most expensive paintings in the world. The Scream by Edvard Munch is priced at $119,9 million, Portrait of Dr. Gatchet by Vincent van Gogh is priced at $82.5 million and Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci is priced at an astounding $774 million. After purchasing these three paintings, you would still have $523.6 million to your name.
5. Pay off the debt of approximately 11,538 households in the United States.
According to Nerd Wallet, the average debt for a United States household is $129,579, including $15,355 of credit card debt.
6. Buy Instagram and Snapchat.
According to Time, the app Snapchat is valued at $800 million. Also, in 2012, Facebook purchased Instagram for $715 million. Together, these two popular Internet companies add up to just a little over $1.5 billion.
7. Travel to space 6,000 times.
8. Rent Ross, Monica and Joey's apartments for 5,434 years.
9. Provide homes to 7,940 people in the United States.
According to The Huffington Post, the median price of a house is approximately $188,900 per household. Someone with $1.5 billion could purchase 7940 homes if each was priced at $188,900.
10. Fund 375 30-second commercials to air during the Super Bowl.
11. Purchase Antilla, a 27-story residential skyscraper in Mumbai, India.
This residence is known as one of the most expensive homes in the world, priced at over $1 billion. The skyscraper includes six underground levels for parking, three helicopter pads, and a 600-person staff.
12. Meet One Direction, Beyoncé, and Justin Bieber.
To purchase a One Direction VIP Meet and Greet pass, it would cost $350. For Beyoncé, it would cost $1630, and, for Justin, it would cost $2000. Added together, that would be $3980, leaving $1.499 billion.
13. Buy 2.5 million of the most expensive five-day passes to Disney World.
Priced at $600 a piece, these tickets would include 5-day access to any of Disney World's four theme parks, the Park Hopper Option (which allows you to visit more than one of the theme parks in a single day), the Water Fun & More Option (which includes five passes to extra Disney World destinations) and the Memory Maker (which provides an unlimited amount of photos taken by Disney PhotoPass photographers) that can be used immediately upon purchase.
14. Fund the making of "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," "Spiderman 3," "Tangled," "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" and "Avatar."
These movies are known as some of the most expensive movies ever made. According to My First Class Life, "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" cost $310 million, "Spiderman 3" $260 million, "Tangled" $258 million, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" $250 million and "Avatar" $240 million. Together, it would cost $1.318 billion to create all five films.
15. Feed 41,667 children for 17 years.
According to The Huffington Post, it costs approximately $36,000 to feed a child until age 17. With $1.5 billion, 41,667 children could be fed for the first 17 years of their lives.
