The lines are long, the hype is real, and the odds remain brutal. That still hasn't stopped people across the Pittsburgh area from chasing the billion-dollar dream.

Powerball is dangling $1.1 billion. Life-changing money that could drop on Monday night, and folks everywhere are already thinking of ways to spend the dough.

The cash option alone is more than $500 million in one shot.

But your odds? One in 292 million.

Statistically, you're more likely to get struck by lightning twice than to win Powerball's top prize.

"The odds are so slim already. It's more about buying the ticket and having the dream, and you use it as motivation to get through your day," Lawrenceville's Brian Mannas said.

Mannas isn't alone.

While the odds are stacked against players, that hasn't stopped the daydreaming.

From wiping out debt to buying a dream home to securing their future, people are already imagining what a billion dollars could mean.

"We just graduated from Pitt, so we would also give back to the school, to the alumni association," said graduate Sim Sharma.

On this Labor Day, the timing feels almost poetic.

Some say there'd be no better way to celebrate than hitting the jackpot, a ticket out of the grind.

A few even admitted the first thing they'd do is quit their job.

"I would find something to do, but I would not be going back to work," Mannas said.

No matter what your plan is, if you win the billion-dollar jackpot, at the end of the night, someone's life could change forever.

The drawing is scheduled for Monday night.

If someone wins, it will be one of the richest payouts ever. If not, the jackpot will keep climbing.