California

Occasionally, I play a grim game I call "Grab and Run" -- a mental exercise in which I plan which items I would take with me were I to flee an impending disaster. If a fire, flood, killer bee swarm or alien invasion happened right now, how prepared would you be?

Faced with the prospect of becoming the biggest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history, Stockton, Calif., decided on a novel gambit: They just stopped paying some of their bills.

On Friday night, a Mega Millions jackpot of more than $500 million is in the offing. Somebody may win big. Now, the only guaranteed winners of lotteries are state treasuries. But we're betting you're more interested in your own odds of winning a lottery, and where the payouts are best.

That seemingly homespun little brand that you love for its independence and small-company spirit? Think again: It's owned by a massive conglomerate. Check out these brands that are faking their indie cred.

Most Americans say that if the price of gas rises to between $4 to $6 a gallon, they're going to make "major" changes in lifestyle. Well, get ready to change, America: In some states prices have already touched the $4 mark. But it could be ever so much worse.

Here's a higher education shocker: Thanks to tuition hikes at California's state universities on one hand, and Ivy League financial aid policies on the other, attending Harvard is actually the better deal for the Golden State's middle-class students. And that's not just a West Coast phenomenon.

Far too many Americans haven't got enough liquid assets set aside to get them through a temporary job loss or other fiscal crisis. If you're among them, we'd like to hear from you: How has an underfunded emergency savings cushion affected you and your family.

It sometimes seems like every new idea Amazon has dreamed up lately has been designed to help it lose money more efficiently. But the truth is more subtle: If it doesn't take these short-term hits now, it's destined to get crushed in a few years when the tax men come a-calling.

You might not yet have heard of "B corporations" -- these companies with the dual missions of boosting social good and generating profits are a relatively new idea. But thanks to a recent California decision to make that social mission legally binding, the idea is poised to really take off.

Choosing where to raise your kids can be a deeply personal decision, but some things are universally desired, like good schools, health care and recreation. 24/7 Wall St. looked at these factors and more to identify the 10 best U.S. cities in which to raise a family.