In the News today: Bernie Maddoff off to Jail for life! Now, he is stealing from the taxpayers!

Bernie Madoff, who bilked thousands of victims of over 65 billion dollars in a Ponzi scheme, was sentenced to 150 years in prison today by U.S. District Judge Denny Chin. Federal sentencing the 71-year-old scumbag.

"Here, the message must be sent that Mr. Madoff's crimes were extraordinarily evil and that this kind of irresponsible manipulation of the system is not merely a bloodless financial crime that takes place just on paper, but it is instead ... one that takes a staggering human toll," Judge Chin said.

The dirt bag, Madoff must think this is just another "Win" "Win" situation.....he already enjoyed stealing the money while he was still young which gave him and his scumbag wife the beautiful homes, yachts, custom made clothes, five star restaurants, lavish vacations and now he is going to bilk the taxpayers to pay his room and board in jail and free Internet service and we have to pay for ours!

I don't understand why his wife and children are not joining him in the next cell over ????? Come on! You know they all knew what he was doing....they worked for him.

The Spirit of Dupont Circle, D.C., Hauptbahnhof in Washington, Chinatown D.C., Dupont Circle

If you look carefully at the right side of the photo, you will see the Spirit of Dupont Circle in Washington--similar to *Poor ol' Charlie on the MTA.*

Hi Rose, time to get away from the statues...how about some of Union Station and Chinatown D.C.

Ciao for now. Rich

Great Send by Richard Cummings -- Faces of War!

Hi Rose...now we have the memorial to General Grant..the Civil War theme is very big in DC, obviously. But these life-size bronze statues have a life, a haunting life of what men went through (and go through) in combat. Not pretty, I know but thought provoking. Flowers come next.

Ciao for now. Rich

Surreal Memorial - Great Send by Richard Cummings

While walking around DC, I stumbled across this "surreal" memorial to Civil War (War between the States) hero General Sherman just a few minutes from the White House. How it survived all those years of censorship, I have no idea. What the naked ladies had to do with the atrocities of the war, I also have no idea. Nurses? Angels? Or?

Ciao for now. Rich

Woo Hoo, The Lantern now has 13 "Followers" listed

Rose:

You should now have 13 "Followers" if I did it right.

Talk about rain-that's all we have had here this week. I'm sure your children have told you what a miserable rainy June we have had. It's so bad my last three tee times we have had to cancel because of rain.

Let's hope the weather improves for both of us.

Thanks, again. Arthur
P.S. It sure looks like the mini reunion went well judging by Sal's commentary.


Dear Arthur:

You are a Gem! Thank you for adding your name as a "Follower" of The Lantern on the sidebar.

Here are the directions for those of you that have not done so yet:

1. Maximize your screen and view the right hand side of the sidebar and click on the word "Follow".

2. Then another page will pop up......then click on the word Google

3. Then click on follow publicly.

Viola! You are done!

Let's see if we can bring that number 13 up to number 68! It would make me very happy.

In the News today: Farrah Fawcett lost her battle to cancer.

We all remember this famous Poster of Farrah in that red bathing suit, that awesome smile, tousled hair and her sensuality were Farrah Fawcett's trademarks, as a sex symbol and 1970s TV star in "Charlie's Angels." But as her life drew to a close at age 62, she captivated the public in a far different way: as a cancer patient who fought for and then surrendered her fight with the awful disease of anal cancer.

Farrah fought a terrible fight for nearly three years after being diagnosed with anal cancer. Ryan O'Neal, her longtime love who returned to her side when she became ill, was with her.

Farrah's son is in jail. So sad.

In the News today: The King of Pop is dead at age 50!

Michael Jackson, the moonwalking former child star who became known the world over as the “King of Pop” before his life and career deteriorated in a freakish series of scandals, died today at age 50.

Jackson’s death brought a tragic end to a long, bizarre, and sorrowful decline from his peak in the 1980s, when he was popular.

He was perhaps the most exciting performer of his generation, known for his crotch-grabbing dance moves, his high-pitched voice with squeals and titters. His single sequined glove and tight, military-style jacket were trademarks second only to his ever-changing, surgically altered appearance. Over the years, his skin became lighter and his nose narrower.

CLICK ON THE ARROW IN THE MIDDLE OF THE UTUBE TO VIEW

Alarm Clock and Study Desk

Incredible: While a student at the U. of Wisconsin, John Muir in about 1862 made a combination alarm clock and study desk. The mechanism controlled a collapsing desk that awoke Muir by sliding him to the floor while at the same time lighting a lamp. After a few minutes alloted for dressing, the desk began extracting and retracting the books following a pre-set schedule of time allowed for each book.

Rich

In the News today: A tribute to Ed McMahon, Johnny Carson's sidekick

I was a big fan of The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and now we are in mourning after learning about the death of Carson's legendary sidekick, Ed McMahon.

McMahon was known for his trademark "Heeeere's Johnny!" when introducing Carson.

I never missed one Johnny Carson Tonight Show!

Retirement

Well, we are all reaching retirement time or many of you already started the process of those Medicare forms at the beginning of the year and for a few of us we have to wait until the first few months of 2010 which includes me for one.

Time for decisions selecting Medicare supplements, a new primary care doctor and so many options and not all clear to understand.

In a complex health care system, having a primary care doctor is one way to keep things simple and mandatory with most health systems.

Word of mouth is the way to go in selecting doctors and healthcare programs offered in your state. Here in South Florida, most of my friends are with Humana HMO and they seem to be pleased with it. But, keep in mind a lot of doctors do not accept Medicare patients.

You can search for a doctor in your area at the American Medical Association’s website:

http://webapps.ama-assn.org/doctorfinder/home.jsp.

I found that Internal medicine focuses specifically on treating adults opposed to family medicine.
Ah, and there is that issue as to what to do when your own doctor is retiring too!

All this can be unsettling and confusing but there are several resources to help you select the best supplements to meet your needs. So far, all I know about Medicare is that Part A is FREE, Part B is $96.50 taken out of your social security check monthly, Part C & D is optional and an added expense. However, I was informed that Humana Gold HMO....all is inclusive....social security sends Humana that $96.50 which covers A,B,C & D. If this is incorrect, please advise.

My nurse friend advises that if you should be selecting a new physician, always tell him something unique and important about you and your life so he will remember you amongst all his patients. Get to know the staff and inquire what are the busiest days in the office so you can adjust your appointments accordingly and avoid long waits.

The staff always appreciates that you bring your list of important information with you…….saves time and can go directly into your file….

1. list of medications plus vitamins and supplements you take
medical history.
2. copy of your medical records from your former doctor and their names/telephone numbers
3. emergency telephone numbers of family members.

I also read somewhere that this January will be the first year that we will not be receiving a cost of living raise for the next two years due to the bad economy!...............Ugh!

Father's Day Quotes

Honor thy father and thy mother.

~Matthew 19:19~

It is a wise father that knows his own child.

~William Shakespeare~

When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant,

I could hardly stand to have the old man around.

But when I got to be 21,

I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.

~Mark Twain~

One father is more than a hundred schoolmasters.

~George Herbert~

Sometimes the poorest man leaves his children the richest inheritance.

~Ruth E. Renkel~

Any man can be a father but it takes someone special to be a dad.

~Anne Geddes~

When a father gives to his son, both laugh;

when a son gives to his father, both cry.

~A Jewish Proverb~

Are we not like two volumes of one book?

~Marceline Desbordes-Valmore~

One night a father overheard his son pray: Dear God, Make me the kind of man my daddy is. Later that night, the father prayed,

Dear God, Make me the kind of man my son wants me to be.

~Author Unknown~

I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong

as the need for a father's protection.

~Sigmund Freud~

The most important thing a father can do for his children

is to love their mother.

~Henry Ward Beecher~

By the time a man realizes that maybe his father was right,

he usually has a son who thinks he's wrong.

~Charles Wadsworth~

It doesn't matter who my father was;

it matters who I remember he was.

~Anne Sexton~

A Little Ice and Shadows of Chicago and next stop, Wisconsin!

For anyone suffering from the heat anywhere-..this was taken today on my way to Chicago...it is the East Coast of Greenland (not Iceland)...from 36,000 feet. You can guess at the size of the icebergs at the top of the photo. You can also see the crack in the ice field below the mountains. Not the best quality photo but you get the idea. Ciao for now. Rich

Icebergs

Postcards from Chicago

All will go
And one day
We will hold
Only the shadows

~Carl Sandburg~

Here is a postcard from Madison, Wisconsin. Ciao for now.