So that winning ticket for the $319 million Mega Millions that was sold in Albany? As it turns out, the winners seem to be a group NY State employees—the Post reports, "The winning ticket was one of several bought by members of an office pool at a convenience store less than a block from their workplace... Other sources said the winners work for the state Division of Housing and Community Renewal." more ›

You pay through the nose for an apartment you can barely afford, with roommates you can't stand, in a neighborhood where you run home from the subway station screaming to yourself like a schizophrenic to ward off muggers, all the while dreaming of a better life in a roach-free apartment in a safer part of town. Meanwhile, 21-year-old University of Central Florida senior Adam Venckauskas clicked once to enter HGTV's "Urban Oasis giveaway" contest, and won a furnished condo at the W New York Hotel in the Financial District. And a new car. "It's perfect... Whenever I have a long weekend, I'll come up," the tall, good-looking young winner tells the Post. We sincerely hope he enjoys it, and has lots of mind-blowing sex while gazing out at the Statue of Liberty and savoring how fair and perfect life really is. more ›

Last summer the courtyard at P.S. 1 in Long Island City was transformed into a woolly village suggesting something out of Planet of the Apes (particularly when packed with ragged, glassy-eyed hipsters). The summer before that, it was urban farming. Today P.S.1 announced this year's winner of the Young Architects Program, which is regarded in the architecture world as a "kingmaker" of sorts; previous winners include SHoP, which was brought in to revamp the Barclays Center after Frank Gehry left the building. This time it's the Brooklyn firm SO-IL, and their winning entry is entitled "Pole Dance." Scenesters fond of P.S. 1's Warm Up parties will be quite stoked to learn that this Pole Dance is interactive. more ›

Pro tip for all you artists out there: make your work look exactly like a photograph and you will win cash prizes! The NY Times reports that 50-year-old Brooklyn painter Ran Ortner was awarded the grand prize of $250,000 last night at ArtPrize, a public competition in Grand Rapids, Michigan. more ›

The latest feel-good lotto story comes from the Midwood section of Brooklyn, where 19-year-old Waqas Mazhar picked up a $5 scratch-off ticket that made him a millionaire! While on his way to a cricket game with friends in May, he purchased the winning ticket in Garden City, Long Island, but didn't bother cashing it in until he was in the area again... in July! more ›

Guess you can't just win millions upon millions of dollars and expect to keep a secret. The mystery man or woman behind the winning Mega Millions ticket is unveiling him or herself today and picking up the winning July 7th pot. The ticket, purchased in Jamaica, Queens, was the only one to have all 6 matching numbers, giving the winner the entire $133 million payout. The NY Post reports that the winner "will get a lump-sum check for nearly $83 million, before taxes, from New York lottery officials at Grand Central Terminal." The employees at Shiv Convenience, where the winning ticket was printed out, are anxious to find out which of their customers has been keeping their fortune a secret. Store manager Bharat Patel said, "It's going to be a surprise. But I'll know the person as soon as I see them." The store also gets a $10,000 bonus for selling the ticket. If this story is giving you lottery fever, tonight's Mega Millions jackpot is $60 million—if you win that's a $2,307,692 annual, or $35,210,000 lump-sum payout. Decisions decisions. UPDATE: The Daily News reports the winner is 49-year-old MTA worker Aubrey Boyce, who works (worked?!) as a collections agent making around $50K a year. He'll take home the lump-sum of $56.7 million after taxes. more ›

If you're in Queens, start watching the sidewalk for stray lottery tickets! The Daily News reports that the person who purchased the winning Mega Millions ticket at the Shiz Convenience Store on Hillside Avenue, has yet to come forward and cash in the $133 million golden ticket. The paper notes that there was only one ticket that matched all six numbers in last night's drawing, and the winner had the computer pick the numbers. This Friday the jackpot is down to $12 million—have you been playing more during the recent economic downturn in an effort to bail yourself out? more ›

What have you done for your intimate New York living space lately? 32-year-old Kevin Patterson just took home Apartment Therapy's first place prize for the smallest, coolest apartment ("teeny tiny" division). His 210-square-foot space on the upper West Side costs him $1,550/month in rent, according to the Daily News. He told the paper, "I moved here from a place that was four or five times this big." more ›

People truly win the Publisher's Clearing House Prizes! Yesterday, Doris Gray, a math teacher at Paterson, NJ's PS 12, got the surprise of a life time. more ›

At 5:48 a.m. this morning, while you were no doubt sleeping your life away, 47-year-old research librarian Stan Friedman was seizing the garland of immortal glory by winning his second straight Ultimate Couch Potato competition. This year's contest/publicity stunt pitted four contenders against each other in a competition at the Times Square ESPN Zone to see who could watch sports longest without falling asleep. Going into the competition yesterday morning, cocky Queens contestant John Scheer sneered, "Stan is a librarian. I own lots of books—I own him." And after just five hours, Scheer was the first to drop out. Last year it took Friedman 29 hours to best his competitors; this year he coasted—er, idled—to victory in just 18 hours, 48 minutes and 17 seconds. Speaking to the Daily News, he explained the secret to his mastery of sitting and watching TV: "My mind wanders a lot. I can leave here mentally." more ›

There's nothing like a real-life heartwarming tale around the holidays. This feelgood story happened in Queens and involves a 92-year-old woman, a 24-year-old store supermarket clerk and a discarded scratch-off lottery ticket. NY1 and the Post report on Mary Alice Fallon, who is now a millionaire. more ›

New York, meet the bike rack of the future. Today the DOT announced that after a lengthy design competition, a jury of six—including sodden cyclist David Byrne—chose "Hoop" (pictured) out of the ten finalists. It's the work of two Copenhagen designers, Ian Mahaffy and Maarten De Greeve. "Constructed of cast metal, the design is elegant yet sturdy enough to withstand New York cyclists’ harsh treatment," the DOT said in a statement. more ›

You may recall that back in July our tap water placed 2nd in a tap water taste test, coming in behind Bethpage (wherever that is). Well, we've been vindicated, because at the NY State Fair in Syracuse--we placed 1st! The New York State Department of Health has announced that NYC "won the coveted title for best-tasting drinking water in New York over 150 other municipal water systems during the final competition." However, they note it's a "nonscientific competition," and the Health Commissioner downplayed the achievement by declaring:"Considering that NYC's water comes from reservoirs in Delaware, Greene, Ulster, Putnam, Westchester, Schoharie, Sullivan and Dutchess counties, these counties are also winners." Whatever, the blue ribbon is all ours...along with the A grade Riverkeeper gave us for tap water back in May. more ›

A 22-year old Manhattan deli clerk that took the late shift on New Year's Eve lucked out when he bought himself a winning scratch-off ticket. While everyone else was welcoming 2008 with friends and family, the Yemen native's wife and baby were still living a world away, so Waleed Alsaidi bought himself a little present at his family's deli in Harlem to pass time on the lonely shift. more ›