Bona Fide Books is hosting an art reception, poetry slam and reading for Reno-based poet and artist Benjamin Arnold on April 7, 7-10pm at Bona Fide HQ.

This event is free and open to the public. Singer-songwriter Athena McIntyre of Rockin’ Minerva will provide music starting at 9pm.

This interactive National Poetry Month kick-off will feature an “imPROMPTu” poetry slam. Participants are given paper and a pen — no existing poems are allowed — then given 10 minutes to create a poem to slam. There will be three rounds of competition, and the judge-selected winner gets to choose one of Arnold’s prints as a prize.

Benjamin Arnold

The art reception will feature Arnold’s latest work, including digital art printed on aluminum, broadsides, “smallsides” and acrylic and oil paintings.

Benjamin Arnold is a teacher, poet, writer, and artist living in Reno. He is the author of “Synaptic Traffic: Intersections of Prose & Poetry”.

Bona Fide HQ is located at 1069 Magua St., No.4, behind the Getaway Café in Meyers.

For more information on this or other Bona Fide events, contact Kim Wyatt at editor@bonafidebooks.com.

Day of the Young Child is June 9 from 10am-2pm at Lake Tahoe Community College. Click on the flyer for more information.

Special Olympics Nevada is taking fundraising to new heights with the annual Over the Edge fund-raising event.

Anyone who raises at least $1,000 for the charity may rappel down the Grand Sierra in Reno in late June.

Participants may create an online fundraising page so friends, family and co-workers can make a secure credit card donation to them.

Space is limited. To register or for more information, go online.

Publisher’s note: This editorial is from the March 23, 2012, Reno Gazette-Journal.

It’s as predictable as the spring winds over the Sierra: Every couple of years, gas prices climb inexorably in the days before the summer driving season and the hand-wringing begins.

Just as predictably, the blame for the pain felt by drivers is laid at the doorstep of the White House.

Regardless of party, every president is blamed for the higher gas prices, though none is praised when those prices go down again, as they always do (though never quite as far down as the last time around).

It’s been that way since the first gas shortages hit the East Coast during the administration of President Richard Nixon nearly 40 years ago, and it was said that full tankers were waiting off the coast for prices to rise before they would offload their cargoes.

So, it’s no surprise that President Barack Obama is the latest to feel the political pressure.

Facing a difficult re-election campaign, the president came to Nevada to tout his “all of the above” energy policy, which is boosting the state’s economy by supporting its growing “green” energy industry. And, predictably, he was criticized for it.

It should go without saying that the president’s premise is the right one.

Read the whole story

By Diana Lambert, Sacramento Bee

Tani Cantil-Sakauye’s first home was in an alley at Third and O streets near a house of prostitution and a flophouse.

“We thought everyone lived that way,” said Cantil-Sakauye, who went on to graduate from UC Davis School of Law and become the chief justice of the California Supreme Court.

On Thursday, she spoke to about 40 women leaders in business, education and government as the inaugural speaker for the She Shares Conversation Series.

Two young women from each of Cantil-Sakauye’s alma maters – C.K. McClatchy High School, Sacramento City College and UC Davis School of Law – also were invited to the lunch.

“Behind every amazing woman is an amazing story,” said Karen Breslau, of the Dewey Square Group, the Sacramento public relations firm that launched the speakers series. “We don’t take the time to hear from other women.”

Cantil-Sakauye – the first Filipina American and second female chief justice in California – said it was her experience working as a blackjack dealer at Harrah’s Lake Tahoe in her early 20s that helped her to learn to read people, making her better at jury selection when she was an attorney.

Read the whole story

The largest eco-event in the North Lake Tahoe-Truckee area — the Tahoe Truckee Earth Day Festival — is April 21 from 11am to 5pm at the Village at Squaw Valley.

This all-ages, community sponsored event gives participants an opportunity to learn about recycling and composting, alternative energy, sustainability, watershed and forest health, and reducing ecological footprints via a diverse array of agency representatives and earth-friendly vendors.

Earth Day is a zero waste event. Typical trash receptacles will not be available in an effort to drastically minimize waste at the event. Booth participants are requested to minimize handouts and implement other forms of waste reduction. All food vendors will be using biodegradable take-out containers made of either paper or PLA, a high tech starch-based plastic provided by Tahoe Green Products. Food and biodegradable waste will be collected by volunteers and IVGID Waste Not and composted by Full Circle Compost in Minden.

This year’s theme is Do One Thing. All participants are asked to consider and implement their pledge to help the environment and cool the climate.

For more information, go online or contact info@tahoetruckeeearthday.org.

Chloe is a great all-around dog who will fit into just about any household.

She is a 4-year-old shepherd mix, about 50 pounds, and she’s house trained. Chloe is great with other dogs and doesn’t mind cats. She has lots of energy, but in a friendly and fun way. She is crate trained, and would love trips to the dog park and the beach.

Chloe is spayed, microchipped, and vaccinated. She is at the El Dorado County Animal Services shelter in Meyers, along with many other dogs and cats who are waiting for their new homes. Go online to see photos and descriptions of all pets at the shelter.

Call (530) 573.7925 for directions, hours, and other information on adopting a pet.

For spay-neuter assistance for South Tahoe residents, go online.

— Karen Kuentz

• Curtis Fong, who writes the daily ski report for Lake Tahoe News, was honored this month by the North American Snowsports Journalists with the Mitch Kaplan Memorial Award for Excellence in Snowsports Coverage.

• El Dorado County is looking for a rep to the oversight board that will review, approve and in some cases direct certain actions of the successor agency as it works to conclude the affairs of the South Tahoe Redevelopment Agency. For an application, call (530) 621.5390 or go online.

• Two shows have been added to the Harveys’ Outdoor Concert Series, bringing the total to date to eight. Journey, with Pat Benatar and Loverboy will be on stage July 22 at 6pm. Tickets range from $59.50 to $199.50. The other addition is Joe Cocker/Huey Lewis & The News on Aug. 17 at 7:30pm. Tickets go from $49.50 to $99.50.

• South Lake Tahoe Parks and Recreation Department wants input via this survey.

• Barton Memorial Hospital Auxiliary’s next blood drive is April 2 at Embassy Suites in South Lake Tahoe from nooon-6pm.

• Here is the weekly road work schedule from Caltrans for El Dorado-Tahoe.

Disabled Sports USA Far West, located at Alpine Meadows, hosts its weeklong Ability Celebration March 27-April 1.

This annual event invites veterans disabled in Iraq and Afghanistan to participate in adapted skiing and snowboarding and celebrates the abilities of people with disabilities.

As part of a week, 25 active-duty U.S. soldiers and marines disabled in Iraq and Afghanistan will ski Alpine Meadows for the Wounded Warrior Ability Ski & Snowboard Camp.

Soldiers who were disabled in Iraq and Afghanistan will receive specialized instruction in adapted skiing and snowboarding at the Disabled Sports Program Center at Alpine Meadows. They will also participate in other winter recreation such as cross country skiing at Tahoe City Cross Country Ski Area, sled hockey at South Lake Tahoe Ice Arena, snowmobiling with Lake Tahoe Snowmobile Tours – all designed as part of their therapy and reintegration into the community.

To learn more about Disabled Sports USA at Alpine Meadows Ski Resort, call (530) 581.4161.

Open letter to the LTVA,

Even though we have verbally contacted the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority before on this matter, we are getting quite disturbed about public dollars going to private companies and costing local businesses additional expenses in promoting their business. Years ago, LTVA made a huge blunder by expending hundreds of thousands of dollars in Internet advertising to promote the privately run ad agency website called virtualtahoe.com. This website was subsequently sold by said agency at a substantial profit to a private investor who has been milking the LTVA name and reputation for years. This company has been charging local lodging providers to appear on that website by stealing traffic from the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority.

If you Google LTVA or Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority, you will find sometimes in first position, the virtualtahoe.com link with verbiage indicating Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority LTVA information exploiting what should be a copyrighted trademark. Any CEO or board of directors worth their salt would have had this title infringement removed faster than a New York minute, but after all, LTVA is just another mini-government agency taking tax dollars collected by local lodging providers and delegating their promotional duties to high-priced and ineffective ad agencies.

Jim Morris, president Lake Tahoe Accommodations