Gregoire directs the Lottery to return a van, churches and synagogues can now host tent cities indefinitely as long as they keep the populations low, and Amanda Knox is coming home, all in today's headlines. more ›

While people lined up across the country to buy tickets for the enormous Mega Millions lottery jackpot, lottery officials say two winning tickets--one purchased in Washington, another in Idaho--will share the $355 million prize. It's the fourth-largest in U.S. history and the second-largest for Mega Millions, according to lottery officials. more ›

On Friday, expect people flocking their lucky 7-Eleven convenience stores, gas stations, and anywhere they can take their chances on winning some big money--biiiiiiig monnnnnaaaay--in the $325 Mega Millions lottery drawing. Odds of picking the right numbers and winning one of the largest multi-state jackpots: 1 in 175,711,536. Now if "we" as in the entire 602,000 people living in Seattle go in on this, our odds are looking more like 1 in 292. And if we win the $325 million, well that breaks down--before taxes, of course--to $539.86 per person. A Seattle stimulus package--hey we'll take it! But if Friday's drawing provides no winner, the September 1 drawing will most likely become the largest U.S. lottery jackpot, ever. Ever.
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• Seattle's famed musician Dave Matthews is never too good for a ride around Green Lake. He's one with the locals, and we like that.
• Powerball no more. That means, no bouncing balls spinning in a bubble, no cheesy ball reader wearing sequins, and no additional $12 million for the state of Washington.

A Ballard woman died after injuries sustained in yesterday's head-on collision on the Fremont Bridge. West Seattle Blog has a photo of the White Center lotto-ticket bandit who may also be responsible for a Fauntleroy heist. If crime and death and taxes have you down, our hilarious college classmate Eugene Mirman is reading at the University Bookstore tonight from his faux self-help book, The Will to Whatevs. more ›

If you bought a lottery ticket at a 7-11 in Shoreline last month--and just haven't bothered to check the numbers yet—DO! Because you just might have a scrap of paper floating around with nearly $10 million. A single winner has yet to claim their $9.7 million in winnings from July 26th's state lotto. You have 180 days to claim a winning lotto ticket, but with current interest rates, every month you wait to claim your winnings could cost you $10,000 in interest. Of course, now that you're a big lotto winner, that's chump change to you. more ›

If this was politics, we'd be calling spin all over King 5 for their story "Beer and candy booming in struggling economy." more ›