Still shaking my head... Unbelievably dumb..

[1 Wild R/T]

I lived in Vegas for a year & go there regularly for business, in the past 20 years I doubt I've put $20 on the tables or in the machines combined.... I like the shows, I like people watching, Fremont Street is still my favorite area...

Thing is most of the 3200 acres was in Almonds, a productive almond orchard generates about $4-5000 income after expenses every year...  So if they had simply left it alone & paid someone to take care of it they would clear close to ten million a year.... 

[RUNCHARGER]

I don't identify with gambling either, it does nothing for me. Full throttle and whipping the wheel to catch up does it for me.
Another bad one is hoarding, I delivered 10 containers to a hoarder, while the husband was all over the province earning a living and purchasing 3 houses the wife was buying up good at garage sales. She filled up the 3 houses with junk and then they couldn't keep on the taxes.

[wldgtx]

It has been said, but if you work for your $ you appreciate it a lot more.  When you are given something (regardless to what it is) you cannot appreciate what it took to get that item.

I have a friend who won the lotto back in the 90's.  Mind you it was not 100's of millions, I think his after taxes amount was approximately $1.4MM... well anyway, he bought a new viper and invested the rest, kept his job and lived very modestly.  Since then, he has made some other investments and is still working but lives very well.

My point is that he did not quit his job and refused to allow this money to change his direction, he is a rare case.

[HP_Cuda]

Most fortunes are completely destroyed within 2 generations. Sad but true.

A great read of this is a book "The millionaire next door". It also offers up inspiring stories of folks making only 75k a year who become millionaires.