Even as billionaires, they wouldn't buy these

Sam Bernier of Milton plunks down $2 for a chance at Wednesday $1.5 billion Powerball jackpot at the Milton Road Shell on Tuesday. (Lebanon Voice photo)

If Joyce Lister of Rochester won tonight's Powerball jackpot of $1.5 billion there's one thing she knows she wouldn't buy.

"I wouldn't buy a yacht," she said on Tuesday while shopping at the Lilac Mall. "I'm just not interested."

In the face of seemingly 1.5 billion stories on TV and in newspapers asking what they'd do if they won, The Lebanon Voice asked readers what they wouldn't do or buy.

"I know I wouldn't buy a million dollar car or house," said Sam Bernier of Milton as he bought his lucky ticket at the Milton Road Shell in Rochester. "I'd give a lot to charities like Soldiers Helpers."

Jacki of Wakefield, who was also shopping at Lilac Mall, added her vote to the "no mansion" list.

"I know I wouldn't buy a second home. I just don't need it," she said.

Meanwhile, Dianna Douglas of Wolfeboro said she would definitely not get caught up in the shoes department.

"No $1,000 shoes for me," she said. "I love the shoes I already have."

Lastly, Erick Baker of Lebanon, found buying a ticket at the new Cumberland Farms convenience store on Milton Road, definitely had his eyes on the prize.

"I know what I'm not doing," he said. "I'm not taking the 1.5 in a lump sum. You get like 30 or 40 percent more with the annuity."

Before you spend too much ruminating whether to take the lump sum or the annuity, however, remember the odds of snagging that top prize are about 1 in 292 million.

A few other facts. Draws for the $2 game are Wednesdays and Saturdays. Powerball starts at $40 million and climbs every time there is no winner. The game is played in 44 states, Washington, D.C., the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. The record jackpot of $590 was sold in May 2013. Maine began selling Powerball tickets in 2004, New Hampshire in 1995.