Mallow and Orchid are brother and sister, beautiful lynx point and cream shorthair cats who are about 1 year old.

They are friendly cats who are just a bit shy in the shelter, but they warm up nicely when treated gently. They must be adopted together.

Mallow and Orchid are spayed-neutered, microchipped, and vaccinated. They 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

To the community,

To drone or not to drone, that is the question. And should one man decide who will be droned and should we be assassins, and should we be torturers, and so on and on?

If we have to debate the above, we have already crossed the line on our way to creating a new dark age of barbarianism, worlds where anything goes. That’s especially so when deadly policy is shrouded in the secrecy of a national security state that commits acts of terrorism.

Bill Crawford

In post World War II Germany, all Germans were thought to be responsible for the Holocaust. No German had clean hands. The nation was guilty.

Reason of state is not a defense for acts of terror, so said the Nuremburg Court presided over by an American judge, Justice Jackson. In post Civil War America, the same standard was applied in the Andersonville trial when a Southern commander of a prisoner or war camp was found guilty of the horrible mistreatment of Union soldiers. He was executed.

If we travel down the road of barbarianism, then we kill the social contract between the people and the government. The Constitution will become a hollow hypocrisy. A dead letter, a scrap of paper.

Bill Crawford, South Lake Tahoe

Rock stars from all eras plan to appear April 27 at the KidZone Museum’s annual fundraiser at Dragonfly Restaurant in Old Town Truckee from 6-11pm.

Be certain to look twice though, as that rocker might just be your neighbor, your child’s teacher or your church’s minister just stepping out for Big Night Out – Rock Starz.

“Big Night Out – Rock Starz gives parents an opportunity to have a night of action-filled adult activity and to unleash their creativity. Come dressed as your favorite musical artist; get some friends and be a band, or just dress like a rock star,” says Carol Meagher, executive director, KidZone Museum. “Prizes will be awarded for the best costumes.”

Tickets cost $45 per person in advance and $50 at the door, which includes one drink (beer and wine), dinner, dance music, a silent and live auction and raffle.

All proceeds go to the KidZone Museum. Tickets are on sale online or call (530) 587.5437.

By USSA

LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland -– Julia Mancuso (Squaw Valley) skied into eighth place Sunday during the World Cup giant slalom final, finalizing her fourth place overall finish in the Audi FIS World Cup standings for the second year in a row.

Julia Mancuso

Sunday capped a historic season for the Best in the World U.S. Ski Team with 18-year-old teammate Mikaela Shiffrin (Eagle-Vail, Colo.) climbing to the fifth overall position and taking the globe for slalom. Lindsey Vonn (Vail) won a record 17th globe for downhill and finished eighth overall despite her season-ending injury in Schladming. Slovenian Tina Maze won the giant slalom race Sunday.

Next the team returns home for the Nature Valley U.S. Alpine Championships at Squaw Valley.

Shiffrin became the first U.S. slalom World Cup champion since Tamara McKinney in 1983-84.

She made history as the fourth youngest woman to win a globe and the sixth youngest woman to win any World Cup title. She was also the third non-European woman to ever win the slalom crystal globe after McKinney and then Betsy Clifford in 1970-71.

By CBS-San Francisco

Nevada has signed a cooperative agreement with wild horse protection advocates allowing longtime critics of mustang roundups to have the first chance at purchasing state-captured animals that otherwise might end up at the slaughterhouse.

The agreement between Nevada’s Department of Agriculture and California-based Return to Freedom Inc. doesn’t affect the roundup of federally protected horses on mostly U.S. Bureau of Land Management lands in Nevada and much of the West. But it means that in at least three Northern Nevada counties, the mustang’s allies won’t have to outbid slaughterhouse buyers at state-sponsored auctions, as they were forced to do this year when dozens of horses were offered for sale.

Instead, the group that serves as the parent organization for the national American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign will have two business days to pay $100 per horse for those the state gathers due to threats they pose on state roads and highways in the Virginia Range southeast of Reno, the municipality of Carson City and surrounding Washoe, Storey and Lyon counties.

Members of the national coalition who have been pressing for such an agreement say it’s a significant development — the only one of its kind in the country.

“We are extremely proud of this important step toward preventing Nevada’s iconic wild horses from falling into the clutches of kill-buyers at auction,” said Kevin O’Neill, a senior legislative director for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Neda DeMayo, president and founder of the nonprofit Return to Freedom that provides refuge to 400 wild horses at a refuge in Lompoc is hopeful the agreement will lead to long-term changes that include more emphasis on trying to keep the animals running wild on the range through alternative management.

“A host of solutions — including birth control, fencing and diversionary feeding and watering — are available to mitigate public safety concerns,” she said.

Deputy Nevada Attorney General Dennis Belcourt signed the agreement on behalf of the Agriculture Department on Tuesday.

The deal forbids purchasers of the horses from returning them to the Virginia Range. Department spokesman Ed Foster said the arrangement places responsibility for care of the animals in the hands of advocacy groups.

“They are going to be interacting with the local horse groups and start facilitating that for us. We think it is a very productive step to have horse people working with other horse people,” he said.

With financial backing from the national groups, local advocates spent about $10,000 to buy 41 state-owned horses at an auction in Fallon in January.

“This is a real opportunity to build on this first step and implement a win-win program that will benefit Nevada taxpayers, northern Nevada residents who enjoy the wild horses of the Virginia Range, and the horses themselves,” said Shannon Windle, a leader of the Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund in Reno who wrote a check for more than $7,000 for 29 of those horses earlier this year.

The stray horses in the foothills between Reno and Virginia City aren’t federally protected because the BLM determined long ago there were no wild herds on federal land in that area when Congress passed the Free-Roaming Wild Horse and Bureau Act in 1971. Instead, these “feral” or “estray” horses are considered property of the state.

Nevada officials believe about 2,500 of the animals are on private and state lands near Virginia City. More than three dozen have been hit since summer on three rural highways in Lyon and Storey counties around Silver Springs and Virginia City.

“We don’t do roundups,” Foster said. “The only time we pick up horses is when there is a public safety issue.”

Last year, the state removed about 60 horses from the range. This year, more than 100 have been collected, Foster said.

He said consecutive dry winters have forced them out of the upper elevations due to lack of water, and the state agency doesn’t have the resources for longer-term management plans.

“We don’t have staff, we don’t have time,” he said. “We’ve got 70 divisions and in our horse program, we’ve got one dude working it with a trailer and a truck, and we can barely put gas in the truck.”

By Susan Wood

BEAVER CREEK – One of the most traditional foods at a ski area may be the most memorable when it breaks tradition.

Much of the hamburger’s success is contingent on a number of factors ranging from the ingredients to the side dishes and even the value of the meal.

Take a recent Beaver Creek Food + Wine Festival après ski party, where celebrity chefs lined up their concoctions on the patio of the Park Hyatt. While the perfect complement — beer, was flowing from Stella and Leffe Belgium taps, Texas grill master Tim Love and BRAVO’s Top Chef Spike Mendelsohn wowed hundreds of hungry party attendees with their versions of the ultimate American staple that dates back thousands of years to the ancient Egyptians.

Burgers are anything but ordinary at the Beaver Creek Food + Wine event. Photos/Kathryn Reed

So what are their secrets?

“There are no secrets except good meat and good salt,” Love said. “And you can’t beat a good bacon cheeseburger.”

He made the simple ensemble on the grill, a place this immensely confident chef is very comfortable. Even his three adolescent children have become grill masters.

After sampling an assortment at the après ski party and other Tahoe ski resort burgers, I couldn’t have agreed more with Love’s assessment. I do like something I can’t get everywhere.

His special sauce, tomato and roasted red pepper didn’t overpower the meat.

Love seemed to relish the heated challenge. He and Mendelsohn are quite comfortable in the spotlight, even when they’re under fire.

For Love, it was the Food Network challenge in which he was criticized by the judges for “just making a salad” with kale as an ingredient, then turning around and using it again. He brushed off the criticism and told Lake Tahoe News he was “happy to be beating” other cooks in Iron Chef challenges.

For Mendelsohn, his brush with another panel of judges came when he plated his dishes with another chef, “his bro.” He was eliminated on that round, but he also told LTN he was proud of what he served and thought the maneuver was legal.

Television competitions aside, the two top chefs ran a no-holds-barred contest of their best burgers and the partygoers were more than happy to take part.

“When he cooks, he absolutely has it down. And it doesn’t hurt that he’s cute,” said Stephanie Eubanks of Orange, as her husband stood close by. Eubanks attended the Food + Wine magazine event the previous year as well.

They weren’t the only ones thoroughly enjoying themselves.

Even the après ski party Brendan McKinney band appreciated the crowd’s enthusiasm, and the foursome was more than happy to stay longer than scheduled.

Suzie Reid and Holly Douple of Centerville, Ohio, try to make it to the event every year.

As she roamed between the beer taps and the grills, Douple said she likes to follow Love because “he’s got attitude,” and it comes across in his dishes.

“We stalk the chefs at the ‘meet and greet’,” Reid said, giggling.

Celebrity chefs have become the new sex symbol. They may have found another way to a woman’s heart.

Dressed in blue jeans and a hoodie, Mendelsohn added a little flirtation to the diners sampling his wild boar burgers. The small burgers were topped with smoked cheddar, barbecue sauce, pickles and chipotle because the rebel chef “likes heat.”

As it turned out, these celeb chefs weren’t the only ones dishing up their competitive best.

Beaver Creek Chophouse Executive Chef Jay McCarthy put on his creative hat for a grilled ensemble worth returning for more. He combined pickled red onions, rosemary, pesto and roasted garlic for a magnificent explosion of flavor on his lamb sliders. Grab the French fries in the cones, and it’s burger heaven.

McCarthy appeared competitive and cooperative.

As a host chef to the visiting celebs, he noted how enjoyable it was to share the stage and limelight. He and Mendelsohn chatted at length at the festival’s “meet and greet” event and insisted “you’ll like the buns I brought out.”

He did let Lake Tahoe News in on a little secret of the perfect bun.

“There’s a little extra sugar in them, so they melt in your mouth,” he said.

Sometimes sharing is the name of the game.

“This whole event is fun. We’re a small town, and we all know each other,” Black Diamond Bistro head chef Andy Buechl said of his fellow restaurateur chefs at the “meet and greet.”

Park Hyatt sous chef Nathan Trap agreed on the opinion of the event involving six local restaurants. Normally, the competition is high in a tourist-rich environment.

“It’s fun to work with all the chefs. We’ve been sharing the kitchen and agreeing on what to serve,” Trapp said, as servers ran in and out of the busy kitchen.

Perhaps, Lake Tahoe ski resorts could follow the example – especially since three of the mountains are owned by the same company, Vail Resorts.

Tasting Tahoe burgers

In this season’s burger sampling, it was the independent Sierra-at-Tahoe smokehouse burger that tantalized my taste buds and wallet the most.

• Sierra’s 360 Smokehouse at the Grand View grill at the resort’s summit serves up a burger as superior as the view. The bacon burger, which was remarkably seared on the edges from the smoker, is scrumptious, spicy and tangy. And for $14.99, it comes with a choice of side dish. I chose the sweet potato fries because they’re always fantastic at Sierra. To think I couldn’t even finish the two dishes and really wanted to.

• For those really watching a budget, the family-friendly Aspen Lounge at Sierra’s base lodge provides a burger bar where the diner chooses the assortment to put on a $7 cheeseburger. French fries are a mere $3. Vegetarians may opt for a grilled cheese for $5. The bread is made locally. The burger fixings are vast, including: lettuce, grated cheese, peppers, tomatoes, onions and various sauces such as teriyaki, barbecue, mustard, ketchup and mayonnaise. One can also add grilled mushrooms, onions and even bacon for $1. The place is an ideal inexpensive option. And, I love the toasted bun around the half-pound burger.

• For a really big burger, Vail introduced the Epic burger at its fleet of resorts a few years ago. At Lake Tahoe, a hungry diner may order it at Kirkwood, Northstar and Heavenly. I chose the latter at the top of the tram restaurant. The double patty priced at $12.95 offers a diner a full meal, but at least mine was a little on the messy side. Of course, judging from Carl’s Junior burger joint commercials – some may prefer that. Along those lines, the Epic burger sounds like a Big Mac in terms of ingredients except for the bread — two all-beef patties, special (Thousand Island) sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a (special) bun.

• I actually enjoyed the Zephyr burger more at Northstar’s new mid-mountain Zephyr Lodge. It wasn’t wet, so the bun wasn’t soggy. The pepper jack cheese, along with the certified Angus beef that Vail uses, represents a great combo. The aioli adds to the flavor-filled burger, and the onion brings out a welcome crunch on every bite.

• In the category of “it’s all about the meat,” I thoroughly relished Sugar Bowl’s $11 cheeseburger made with Painted Hills beef at the Belt Room Bar. The meat’s name comes from ranching families in Wheeler County, Ore., who agreed to take the initiative to produce better quality beef. There are no added hormones, antibiotics, and the cows are pasture-raised on a vegetarian diet. This care reflects in the taste of the burger, which I completely finished. I received a generous portion of French fries with it and garnished the burger with Swiss cheese, tomato, lettuce and a dash of ketchup. The perfect complement was Sugar Bowl’s Pale Ale, which the waitress declared is “popular.” I could see why. (Note: she didn’t however know what the significance of the Painted Hills meat was.) Ignorance aside, the Belt Room Bar provides an ideal atmosphere for those wanting to sit inside or out of the village main lodge. Warm and satisfied, I almost fell asleep in the sun.

• Kirkwood provides a good version of its outside-grilled burger at the backside of the ski resort. The Out Mountain cheeseburger at the snack shop cabin near the Sunrise chairlift runs $10.25 and comes with accessories the diner may add on. I opted for my mainstay tomato and lettuce and threw on barbecue sauce for good measure. The toasted bun is definitely a nice touch but the burger was a tad overdone.

A burger’s past

• 1209: Mongolian Emperor Genghis Khan dined on ground meat when his cavalry traveled.

• 1600s: Ships from the German port of Hamburg began returning with Russian steak tartar.

• 1802: The Oxford English dictionary defined hamburg steak as salt beef.

• 1900: Louis Lassen of Louis Lunch in New Haven, Conn., laid claim to the invention of the hamburger when he ground up lean beef, broiled it and served it between toast.

• 1921: Real estate insurance agent Edgar Waldo “Billy” Ingram teams up with cook Walter Anderson to open the first White Castle hamburger stand in Wichita, Kan. The small burgers were served off the grill with a lot of onion and soft yeast buns. They sold for 5 cents each

• Today, millions of restaurants, burger joints and fast-food stands provide the hand-to-mouth dish.

ngg_shortcode_0_placeholder (Click on photos to enlarge.)

Why Weight Loss is Hard is the topic of an April 13 lecture by Paula Crenshaw.

This Barton Health sponsoreed talk is from 6-7pm at Lake Tahoe Community College board room, One College Drive, South Lake Tahoe.

The lecture includes motivational strategies to better understand your body.

· How our bodies use food for energy

· Why do energy-input imbalances occur

· What our bodies are telling us when we plateau

· Strategies for overcoming barriers to weight loss.

By Kathryn Reed

This is one of those dishes I have no idea why I don’t fix more often. It’s easier to make than it sounds.

This is one of three dishes I made last month when my sister and her boyfriend came to visit.

While this is a vegetarian recipe, it could easily be made with meat. It comes from the cookbook “Passionate Vegetarian” by Crescent Dragonwagon.

I use wonton wrappers for the crepes. The leftover wrappers freeze well.

For the hoisin, I think it’s better to start with a pretty full jar and let everyone use as much as they want.

All the notes below are from Dragonwagon.

Moo-Shu Vegetables (serves 4 as an entrée)

Traditionally, this Mandarin dish, an American Chinese restaurant standard, is made with shredded meat, chicken, or duck combined with stir-fried vegetables and scrambled eggs, wrapped in a rather dense, steamed hoisin-slathered pancake. I much prefer this lighter version, with its tofu-studded, full-flavored sprout-vegetable filling, and its delicious Neo-Classic Crepe wrapping. If – and I realize that this is a big if – you have crepes made or crepe batter on hand, as well as commercially made hoisin sauce and black bean-garlic sauce, it is but 10 to 15 minutes work to put together a dazzling, satisfying dinner.

2 tsp cornstarch

1/3 C water, preferably spring or filtered, or vegetable stock

2½ tsp sugar, honey, or Rapidura

2 tsp fermented black bean-garlic sauce

1½ tsp toasted sesame oil

Pinch of salt

2 good grinds of black pepper

2½ tsp mild vegetable oil, preferably peanut

3 clove garlic, lightly smashed

2 tsp peeled, finely diced ginger

2 large scallions, roots and wilted green parts removed, all the white and 3 inches of green thinly sliced

1 carrot, well scrubbed, julienned

5 or 6 shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, slivered

1 stalk bok choy, both stems and leaves, slivered

4 ounces conventional water-packed tofu, cut into ¼-inch dice

12 Neo-Classic Crepes

About 3 T any good, commercially prepared hoisin sauce

Combine the cornstarch with the water in a small bowl and smush with your fingers until dissolved. Add the sugar, black bean-garlic sauce, ½ teaspoon of the sesame oil, salt, and pepper. Place the bowl close to the stove, along with the remaining ingredients.

Heat a wok over high heat until very hot. Add the vegetable oil and tilt the wok to coat with oil. Heat for another 15 seconds. Add the garlic and ginger, stir one or twice, and count to 10. Add the scallions and carrot and stir-fry to the count of 10. Add the shiitakes and stir-fry for another 15 seconds. Add the bean sprouts and bok choy and count to 20. Give the cornstarch mixture a quick stir and add it along with the tofu and remaining sesame oil. Stir-fry until all of the mixture is coated with the thickened sauce, 10 to 25 seconds more. Taste and adjust with more soy, sweetener, pepper, or whatever you like.

Immediately rush the hot stir-fry to the table. Generously coat half of each crepe with hoisin sauce and scoop a portion of the vegetable mixture into the pancake. Fold and serve.

Wear green and celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on the slopes.

Here is the March 17 ski report.

— Curtis Fong

Local radio station KTHO-AM 590 began broadcasting 50 years ago today — St. Patrick’s Day in 1963.

The original studio, transmitter and announcers were in this two-room cabin in a meadow at the end of Karok Street in the remote Spring Creek summer home tract off Highway 89 between Fallen Leaf Lake and Emerald Bay. There were two 305-foot tall orange-and-white radio towers erected at the site, one of which is visible at the left in this photo.

After inaccessible winters there, KTHO relocated the studio and disc jockeys to the lobby of the Tahoe Marina Inn in 1965, and moved the transmitting towers to Pioneer Trail in 1967. KTHO now has its studios and offices in the Heavenly Village at Stateline.

The second photo, 40 years later (and showing the same overhead power lines), reveals how fully that meadow has been restored.The Spring Creek Tract now is closed to winter road access by a U.S. Forest Service gate.

— Bill Kingman