I've managed to damage the interior of one of my artificial knee joints. As a result I will have surgery this week on the knee. We won't know the seriousness until the surgeon takes a look. I won't be posting for a while as a result. In the meantime, here is Emily Dickinson's poem (1830-1886) entitled Surgeons Must Be Very Careful: "Surgeons must be very careful When they take the knife! Underneath their fine incisions Stirs the Culprit—Life!"
This is a compelling story by Daniel James Brown not only because of the excellent story telling but because it involves the University of Washington crew that went to Berlin and won the eight oar crew Olympics race of 1936. For me, it also had a personal connection in the stroke on the boat was Don Hume who graduated from my high school in Anacortes. All of the members of this crew were from Washington. Places like Anacortes, Squim, Lynden and other places…
My father in law, Hollis Barnett died on March 22nd 1990. He was a unique and wonderful man. You can read about his extraordinary wife Betty Barnett and more about this couple whoI grew to love. https://paulluverajournalonline.com/weblog/2010/03/i-write-this-in-memory-of-my-wifes-father-hollis-hall-barnett-whodied-in-puyallup-washington-on-march-22-1990-at-the-a.html Hollis Hall Barnett died in Puyallup, Washington at the age of 83. Hollis was born in Buckley, Washington on May 3, 1907 and spent his younger years at Mt. Rainier National Park where his father, Herman "Herm" Burke Barnett, was a National Park Ranger….
Unless you are as old as I am I'll bet you've never heard of "Wrong Way, Corrigan." About 76 years ago, on July 17, 1938 at 5:15 AM a 31 year old pilot, Douglas Corrigan, climbed into the cockpit of his airplane and flew from Brooklyn New York for Los Angeles. At least he had reported before leaving that Los Angeles was his destination that morning. Instead a little after takeoff the plane turned sharply over the Atlantic ocean and disappeared into…
The tragic loss of the Malaysian airplane brings us face to face with death. We are all familar with death in some form whether it is a friend, spouse, family member or even a loved pet. Unfortunately, the kind of support the survivor gets from family and well intentioned people isn't helpful. Sometimes people think they are doing a favor by encouraging the survivor to get over the death and move on, but they have no idea what that person…
My maternal grandfather Peter (Petar) Babarovich was born April 12, 1861 in the village of Splitska on the island of Brac in the Adriatic Sea. He died in Anacortes, Washington March 5, 1935 see: https://paulluverajournalonline.com/weblog/2012/03/peter-babarovich-1861-1935.htm I was born on February 21, 1935 and he died on March 5th of that year. I had no opportunity to know this unique man. He and my grandmother had seven children all of whom, except my mother Mary, were born in on a small island Brac off the…
I am in the process of going through old files in an effort to become organized. What follows are some of the thoughts found in the materials. Maybe something here will entertain or even educate you. I found then worth saving. In June 1994 Parade magazine carried an interview of the late actor Robert Mitchum. When asked about his past reputation he didn't apologize. Instead he said: "Hey, I live way I wish. There are always people who will object….
In November of 2002 the New York Times published a story about two women in rural Alabama who were killed in a head on collision on a clear dry afternoon on highway 25. Traveling at 60 mph they died instantly, but their passengers survived. One of the drivers was Sheila Wentworth who had left her home at 4 pm on Sunday with her nephew heading North on highway 25. By coincidence, the other driver, Dorris Hall, left her home at 4:00 PM as well…
Dr. Dexter Johnson was an internationally recognized radiologist born December 6, 1931 and died February 4, 2003. He graduated from the University of Washington medical school. He began as a general practice physician in Lynden plus residency time on the medical staff at the old State mental hospital in Sedro Woolley. He did a residency in radiology at Mayo's and practiced in Montana for several years until moving back to Seattle. We were close friends who both worked on purse seine fishing…
i'm writing this on Super Bowl Sunday so here are some facts you could easily live without ever knowing about them, but I'll share them anyway. Did you know that in the 1960s Congress granted the NFL a tax exempt status? Section 501 (C) (6) of the Internal Revenue Code provided a tax exemption. It applied to "business leagues, chambers of commerce, real estate boards, and professional football leagues." According to the Arizona Republic newspaper Pro football is the most popular…
