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2008
NEWS
Articles
NEWS
Articles
NEWS
Articles
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April,
2008
The
travel season is here and here are 10 travel tips
(just in
case you forgot!)
1.
Prepare your travel documents in advance,
Meaning : is my passport still valid ?
2.
Review rental contracts carefully. Remember that
you can rent a car from LH at FRA Airport.
3.
If you travel with younger family members, make
sure you have a Child Healthcare Authorization Form
with all the insurance details of these young family
members. Also, in case of minors, have the parents
authorization that these children may travel
with you
4.
Make sure your will is current.
5.
Have the post office hold your mail.
6.
Make a copy of your financial information.
This helps you in case you lose documents and credit
cards. Make sure to include phone numbers for blacklisting.
7.
Verify Insurance Coverage. Did you subscribe this
year to the "Health insurance for Travel abroad"
offered to all ALRONA members? Is it current
?
8.
Money matters. Travelers checks are not as common
and popular as they used to be. Credit Cards are
OK but your best bet is a Debit Card at an ATM.
The Debit Card is convenient and often give you
a better exchange rate.
9.
"Do you really need four bottles of shampoo? " Only
pack for your immediate needs. You can buy more at
your destination.
This
list was originally distributed in a more expanded
version by www.ARAGgroup.com.
March,
2008
Florida
West Coast Spring Get-Together
will be held on April 25th, 2008 on the
StarLite
Princess Paddlewheel Riverboat
leaving from St. Pete Beach, at Corey Causeway 3400
Pasadena Ave. South St. Petersburg, Fl.
Boarding at: 11:30 AM - Luncheon and
Cruise 12 Noon to 2:00PM
Parking is Free
(Luncheon for Guests: $31.57)
Mr. Herbert
Kaufhold
and the ALRONA New York Chapter
would like to invite all members to its annual Spring
Luncheon
on
April 30th. 2008 at
12.30 PM
at the
Plattdeutscher Park Restaurant
1132 Hempstead Turnpike
Franklin Square, NY 11010
516 - 354 - 3131
(Guests are welcomed)
The Florida
East Coast Luncheon
will be held on
April 16, 2008, 12:00 Noon
at the
LA CIGALE
Restaurant in Delray Beach
February,
2008
The
year's scariest investing news
A federal agency rolls the dice
to fund busted pension plans, showing that the gambler's
thinking that got us into the housing and credit mess
is alive and well.
By
Jim Jubak
What's the scariest investing story of 2008 so far?
It's
not news that the median price of a new house is down
17% from its 2007 high --- and still falling.
Or
that Miami has a 37-month supply of unsold condos, with
19,000 more new units set to hit the market this year.
Or
even that losses at banks and investment banks in the
debt-market meltdown could hit $400 billion.
Here's
my nominee:
The
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., the government agency
that protects the pensions of 44 million workers in
case their employers can't (or won't) pay promised benefits,
has announced that to avoid going bust it will double
the percentage of its portfolio -- to 45% -- that it
puts into stocks. An additional 10% will go into alternative
investments, including hedge funds.
In
other words, facing a $14 billion deficit and even larger
projected shortfalls, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.,
or PBGC, decided not to save (by raising premiums) or
to live within its means (by cutting benefits) but to
gamble in the financial markets by taking on more risk.
The PBGC was so proud of its new strategy that it announced
it on Presidents Day, when the U.S. financial markets
were closed and almost no one was paying attention.
So
why is this so scary?
Read
the whole article in: MoneyCentral.msn.com
INTERESTING STUFF
-
Many
years ago in Scotland, a new game was invented. It
was ruled 'Gentlemen Only...Ladies Forbidden'...and
thus the word GOLF entered into the English
language.
-
Every
day more money is printed for Monopoly than the U.S.
Treasury.
-
Men
can read smaller print than women; women can hear
better.
-
Coca-Cola
was originally green.
-
It
is impossible to lick your elbow.
-
The State with the highest percentage of people who
walk to work: Alaska
-
The percentage of Africa that is wilderness: 28%
(now get this...)
-
The percentage of North America that is wilderness:
38%
-
The cost of raising a medium-size dog to the age of
eleven: $16,400
-
The average number of people airborne over the U.S.
in any given hour: 61,000
-
Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their
hair.
-
The first novel ever written on a typewriter: Tom
Sawyer.
-
The San Francisco Cable cars are the only mobile National
Monuments.
-
Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a
great king from history:
Spades
- King David
Hearts
- Charlemagne
Clubs
Alexander, the Great
Diamonds
- Julius Caesar
-
111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321
-
If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has
both front legs in the air, the person died in battle.
If the horse has one front leg in the air the person
died as a result of wounds received in battle. If
the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person
died of natural causes.
-
Only
two people signed the Declaration of Independence
on July 4th, John Hancock and Charles Thomson. Most
of the rest signed on August 2, but the last signature
wasn't added until 5 years later.
Q.
Half of all Americans live within 50 miles of what?
A. Their birthplace
Q. Most boat owners name their boats. What
is the most popular boat name requested?
A. Obsession
Q. If you were to spell out numbers, how far would
you have to go until you would find the letter 'A'?
A. One thousand
Q. What do bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield
wipers, and laser printers all have in common?
A. All were invented
by women.
Q. What is the only food that doesn't spoil?
A. Honey
Q. Which day are there more collect calls than
any other day of the year?
A. Father's Day
-
In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on
bed frames by ropes. When you pulled on the ropes
the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to sleep
on. Hence the phrase......... 'goodnight, sleep tight.'
-
It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years
ago that for a month after the wedding, the bride's
father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead
he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their
calendar was lunar based, this period was called the
honey month, which we know today as the honeymoon.
-
In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts...
So in old England , when customers got unruly, the
bartender would yell at them 'Mind your pints and
quarts, and settle down.' It's where we get the phrase
'mind your P's and Q's'
-
Many years ago in England , pub frequenters had a
whistle baked into the rim, or handle, of their ceramic
cups. When they needed a refill, they used the whistle
to get some service. 'Wet your whistle' is the phrase
inspired by this practice.
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