One

thing I do, maybe more than I do just about anything else, is watch HBO documentaries. I caught one on HBO family a couple weeks ago that was truly one of the most beautiful and moving things I've been exposed to. It was called "A Century of Living" and was simply interviews with people over a hundred years old who had been alive for the change to the year 1900 from 1899 and were looking at 2000. It was from before 2001, so I think that led to more optimism from them toward the end when the interviewers were asking them how they felt about the future of mankind and so on. If you can find it, watch it - I cried much and I wasn't hormonal. They found really beautiful souls who spoke with great honesty, and the subject was really the heart of the matter of living.

Last night I watched one called "Lucky" about Lottery winners. Do you have enough opportunities to yell 'IDIOT!" at your TV? If not, watch this.

Suffice it to say, if I won the lottery, I would know what to do. Sure sure sure - big change- I'm not in the same milieu anymore sure sure sure. (A couple that escaped Vietnam in a boat are touching and save this documentary... or rather, save you from breaking your television, ironically emulating the idiots who fuck up winning the lottery [or are just so boring it's tragic]. I'm exaggerating. There's also an innocent intelligent homeless man who stays the same but it's so much better how he isn't suffering. And a nice mathematician.)

Herewith, what I would do. With, let's say 22 million.

IMMEDIATELY, I would hire three assistants. These should all be roughly 26 year old females who I never met before interviewing but connect with and severely like.

Each is going to start at $75,000 a year with a review in one calendar year. Benefits hell yes, and 15 vacation days, 3 personal days, 10 sick days. I intend to hire really excellent girls and have their backs forever if indeed their excellence is real and they weren't fudging it early on.

Within the first week of winning, I'm going to find a furnished west village one bedroom to rent, or just move into a well appointed downtown hotel.

I want my 3 assistants to report to work at what was my apartment in Astoria. I will continue to rent this place for a long while. Why in the fucking hell not.

(Oh by the way I quit my job. This will have absolutely no effect at all on my self identity perception. Yay.)

So this is a really great work environment the girls are happy about. There's still a bedroom so the girls can pretty much crash there if they have to or want to at any time. I buy three new apple computers, a better broadband service, and a full service color printer copier scanner fax so the girls are hooked up. Two more desks I suppose as well. I guess I have to give away the couch. :-(

Basically for the first couple months, every day I take the train, or fuck it, maybe a car if I oversleep, to my place in Queens to meet my girls. Their workday starts at 9:30 or 10:00. I meet them out there at 10:30.

from 10:30/11:00 to 12:30/1:00 I work with, hear from:
Assistant A- her job is to do everything related to buying my house in Italy.

1:00 - 3:00
Assistant B- her job is organizing my creative writing and sending it out, networking within the writing and theater communities. She is also doing my MFA applications. This is a very special girl whose performance could mean a big bonus at year's end. Her first couple weeks are going to require some overtime. She's the one who it really matters works out of my old place becasue she and I are going to be going through boxes of writing and talking about writing. She's going to have to get familiar with my work, really know me, be a creative person herself. Assistant B has her work cut out for her.

3:00 - 5:00
Assistant C is basically for everything else- handling my new life as a rich person, dealing with requests for my money basically, and all my general scheduling including with my family. This person should have knowledge of finances - she worked for a hedge fund of something, she understands and keeps track of statements from investments and knows I expect briefings if not daily then close to it.

WINNING THE LOTTERY SHOULD NOT BE A PROBLEM. PEOPLE ARE IDIOTS.

Love
Alexis