Bay Area residents line up to buy tickets as Mega Millions jackpot reaches $1B

Byby Carlos Saucedo KGO logo
Saturday, October 20, 2018
Bay Area residents line up to buy tickets as Mega Millions jackpot reaches $1B
A homemade sign at a liquor store in San Jose, Calif. shows the Mega Millions jackpot at $1 billion on Friday, Oct. 19, 2018.

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- The Mega Millions jackpot continues to set new records. Right now, it's at $1 billion.

Lotto players in the Bay Area can't seem to get enough of it, so we went out to ask people what they would do with all that money.

VIDEO: What would you splurge on if you won Mega Millions jackpot?

We asked hopefuls what they'd splurge on if they won the $1 billion Mega Millions jackpot.

The million dollar question is now a billion dollar one.

When asked what he'd splurge on, San Jose's Madhu Das said, "Whatever my wife wants. Car or vacation and then sharing."

Responses varied from helping family to helping strangers. "I could see it spent on a lot of people around us that could really use it," San Jose's Richard Keith said.

And there are a lot of deserving people out there.

RELATED: How to win the lottery - Mega Millions myths busted

Mike Baldwin has been down on his luck recently. "I was just laid off yesterday, so after 40 and a half years at a company. So it would be really nice to win," he said.

A win would surely turn thins around, if only the odds of winning were better.

"Love on a boat for a couple years, that ain't going to happen," another resident said.

"I'd get me a brand new 55 Thunderbird, the best one out on the market," said San Jose's Ray Rosche.

RELATED: 10 largest lottery jackpots in history

With the Mega Millions now being a $1 billion, there's no quick way of changing the signage but one liquor store owner got a bit creative, making their own paper sign.

Joe Mandracchia said he's won Fantasy Five before -- about $70,000. "No big deal," he said. "By the time they get everything else out, hey, it still helps."

And there were people who would spread the wealth. "I might even buy you a beer. One Bud Light, that's it."

For more stories, photos, and videos on Mega Millions, go here.