Does the lucky winner of the $590 million Powerball even know they're rich? It's been two long weeks since the small city of Zephyrhills learned that the winning ticket was sold at a supermarket there, and there hasn't been a peep. No one expected the winner to come forward in the first days after the announcement—perhaps he needed to, say, consult financial advisers. But now folks are so anxious to know the winner's identity they could jump out of their skins.
"Anybody who did not show up for work on that Monday was considered to be the lottery winner," says one local reporter. "It's hard to keep a secret in this town, but this is one of the biggest mysteries we've had in a long, long time." The town has several mobile home parks that cater to the elderly, so one restaurant owner says he suspects "it's a senior citizen that purchased the ticket and they just have no idea that they won." If a winner doesn't emerge within 180 days, the jackpot money will go to fill state coffers—and the people of Zephyrhills will be left to wonder. (More Powerball stories.)