Paul Luvera Journal

In 1998 Gary Kinder published Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea. It was a compelling story about the sinking of an actual ship. (http://www.shipofgoldinfo.com/) The story really began in California, in 1848, when Captain John Sutter was managing thousands of acres of land known as Sutter’s Fort. He was looking for a place for a lumber mill. A location was found and construction began The damming of the stream resulted in the discovery of gold and the California gold rush…

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We are in Scottsdale, Arizona. A place noted for year around sunshine and warm weather. This Thanksgiving it is dark, overcast and raining. It rained off and on all night. Lita and I have brought children. spouses and grandchildren here for Thanksgiving. We put over thirty people in the Westin Kierland Hotel and Resort here. They brought swimsuits and sun tan lotion when they should have brought umbrellas. Last night we had a family gathering and dinner inside. It was noisy,…

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I’ve finished Michael Streissguth’s book Eddy Arnold on this trip and enjoyed reading about the great country western singer. He started out on the Grande Ole Opry and evolved into a more contemporary singer. He remained a very decent human being and a devoted husband his whole life. He sang and performed with all the great country western entertainers of that time. I was reminded in this book of the Oprey’s Minne Pearl screeching: “How-Dee! I’m just glad to be…

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In 1960 the black and white film Never on Sunday was issued staring Melina Mercouri as a Greek prostitute who refused to work on Sunday. She later married the director who was blacklisted during the McCarthy era. The daughter of the mayor of Athens, she was expelled from Greece during the period of the Greek military junta. Later she was elected to Parliament and became cultural minister of Greece during the 1980’s. She died in 1994. So, why am I…

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Yesterday, we did nothing. We didn’t leave except for lunch. We used the hot tub and dip pool, read and did little else. Great weather. Not hot and not humid. The ocean sounds are wonderful. The waves pound in less then 50 yards away, hitting the rocks and sending spray flying into the air.  Pelicans swoop low to the water looking for a meal and drop like a stone when they see one. They appear to be successful.  I  think of that rhyme…

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The Shrine of Remembrance is located in Melbourne, Australia. It is one of the largest war memorials in Australia and was originally built as a memorial to the men and women of Victoria who served in World War I (1914 – 1918). Erected between 1928 and 1934 it was constructed during a time of great unemployment and financial crisis in Australia. 300,000 people were present during the opening of the memorial. This huge granite structure is on top of a…

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Last Saturday night my wife Lita and I attended the Tacoma Symphony fund raising auction at the convention center in Tacoma. One of the items available was a musical visit to the Wurlitzer Manor and Gardens in Gig Harbor (http://www.wurlitzermanor.com/) We live in Gig Harbor and some how I had never heard of this place or a Wurlitzer organ in our area, so I looked it up on the Internet. I found an article in the Puget Sound Online Pipeline…

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