A Veterans Day Musical Salute by the Lake Tahoe Unified School District Performing Arts Department will be Nov. 10 at 7pm at South Tahoe Middle School multipurpose room.
It is free.
STHS Symphonic Band members practice. Photo/JJ Clause
It is a musical tribute to all veterans. Nearly 350 students in the sixth-12th grade bands, orchestras and choirs will perform an hourlong concert of patriotic music.
By Elizabeth Norton Lasley, Dana Foundation
Some stress-related disorders, such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, are twice as common in women as in men. A new study suggests that the difference may not be merely a matter of personality.
In certain cells in the female brain, the receptors for a key stress hormone, corticotropin releasing factor (CRF), respond differently to increases in the hormone’s levels–making this part of the brain more sensitive to stress and less able to adapt. The finding provides a biochemical basis for the prevalence of stress-related illness in women.
Rita Valentino, Debra Bangasser, and colleagues at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, knew from previous research in female rats that neurons in a region called the locus ceruleus respond to lower levels of CRF than are needed for activation in male brains. The locus ceruleus is a storehouse of norepinephrine, one of the chief chemical messengers in the fight-or-flight response.
By Kathryn Reed
It’s hard to know if the dog park in South Lake Tahoe is for the four-legged members of the family to socialize or if it’s really for the adults to get out and meet new people.
A lot of both often take place every day at the 2-year-old dog park.
Abbey and AJ play at the Bijou Dog Park in South Tahoe. Photos/Kathryn Reed
Some stay close to mom or dad, others play a game of chase, some want to be petted by unfamiliar hands, others tromp off on their own to check out the new scenery.
Although the area is divided into little and big dog sections, it’s up to the owners to decide which area to go into.
In the case of Phiona, she prefers the big dog area despite being a small brown Boston terrier.
“She thinks she is a big dog,” her dad Ted Rann said. “She lives with big dogs.”
The unique spelling of the 3-year-old’s name is because her parents are Phillies fans. Hopefully, Phiona won’t be teased at the dog park.
For John Andrews and Jessica Pederson they like the socialization aspect of the dog park for their terrier mix, Abbey, who is less than a year old.
“It teaches her manners,” Andrews said.
Devin Morales knows the effort that went into building the dog park because he was employed by the Parks and Recreation Department at the time. Now he brings 10-month-old Jax, a coonhound, to the park at least once a week.
Morales hasn’t witnessed one bad incident at the park.
What he likes is the dogs can run off leash without running off. The entire area is fenced. Coming in from the parking lot is a small holding area of sorts so no dogs on either side of the park can get out.
Benches are on both sides of the park. People who lost a furry friend donated most. People are sitting, chatting about their dogs – who prefers the cold, who likes to catch some rays, and so on.
Fire hydrants add a comical, though well used attraction. Water is available, though the faucets are shutdown this time of year. People have left bottled water for the animals.
Many of the dogs dashing around on the woodchips (the small dog area has some grass) are a mix of breeds. A Whippet is by himself in the small dog area. Running up and down the fence line, the bigger dogs next door try to keep up with this slick creature.
Alex Steel, who brings his black golden retriever to the park three or four times a week said he may be the only one there at first, but within 10 minutes the park is howling. It’s as though people drive by on Al Tahoe Boulevard see someone else at the park and decide to venture in.
Everyone on this particular Friday using the dog park is friendly – as are the dogs. People are quick to clean up after their dog. A lesson people walking along Al Tahoe Boulevard should learn.
The canine facility at Bijou Community Park opened Aug. 18, 2008. The nearly 1-acre site cost $35,000 to build. It’s one thing the three outgoing members of the City Council started and finished.
Details:
Open year-round, dawn to dusk
Closed Mondays from 8-11am for cleaning
No cost
No treats inside the park
Dogs must be 6 months old
(530) 542.6056
Directions:
From Stateline, go about 3 miles into California
Turn left on Al Tahoe Boulevard at Denny’s
Bijou Park is on the left, about a mile up
Circle around the parking area to reach the dog park.
ngg_shortcode_0_placeholder (Click on photos to enlarge.)
By Matt Weiser, Sacramento Bee
The historic Amador Central Railroad, recently threatened with bulldozing, will remain open to recreational train travel following a sale to preservation groups.
Sierra Pacific Industries, a privately held logging company, agreed to sell the railroad to the Amador County Historical Society and the nonprofit Recreational Railroad Coalition, said Larry Bowler, the coalition’s president.
The sale price, said Sierra Pacific spokesman Mark Pawlicki, was $1. This includes the tracks, the land they sit on, and all related railroad equipment. It does not include any railroad vehicles. The deal closed Oct. 16.
“We could have chosen to sell the right of way and scrap the metal from the rails,” said Pawlicki. “But we didn’t think that was an appropriate use for an historical entity like the rail line.”
The California Department of Water Resources presented its Climate Science Services and Remote Sensing Science Services Awards at this month’s Climate Change and Water Adaptation Symposium in Long Beach.
The award recipients are:
► Kelly Redmond, deputy director and regional climatologist, Western Regional Climate Center, Desert Research Institute, UNR.
In his role at the Western Regional Climate Center, Redmond has contributed advice, data, analysis, publications, and presentations to help support DWR climate change and variability efforts.
► Stephanie Granger, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
► Forrest Melton, NASA Ames Research Center & California State University Monterey Bay.
The purpose of the awards is to recognize ongoing assistance provided by researchers who have been working closely with DWR on planning for climate variability and change, and on potential remote sensing applications that could assist in monitoring impacts associated with climate change.
By Kathryn Reed
Toss out whatever impression you have of a Soroptimist because a group in South Lake Tahoe is redefining what a member looks like.
She’s a whole lot younger than the average member. She doesn’t have a college degree. She isn’t a manager of any firm or some executive in a business suit and heals.
This group is in eighth grade at South Tahoe Middle School. They have good grades. And by the looks of things, are the future leaders of whatever town they live in as adults.
For now, though, under the guidance of advisor Karin Holmes the girls are partnering with Soroptimist International Tahoe Sierra to form what is loosely being called a Junior S Club.
At a meeting this week, Jamie Kennedy, Trinity LaTella, Emily Aminian, Brandy Kent, Alexandria Bocholz, Teresa Tenocelott and Zaira Monette heard a bit about what their sponsor group is all about. One day this school year they’ll go to one the adult’s 7:30am Thursday meetings.
For now, they are concentrating on things more relevant and of interest to them. They helped with last week’s Pumpkin Run at the school, are partnering with sixth-graders to have a tree at the Barton Foundation’s Festival of Tree and Lights in December, and plan to have tutoring be a yearlong project.
A couple students voiced concern of drugs being used at lower grades and wanting to do something to show the dangers of that and ways to avoid it.
At the high school level is the S Club and colleges have Soroptimist Sigma Society. Though the STMS club is not officially chartered by the international organization, it is the youngest group in the country. This is being called an experiment.
The Douglas County Board of Commissioners formally approved a sister community partnership with the Waitaki District, New Zealand, this month.
The partnership was spurred by long-time relationships that already exist between gliding enthusiasts in Douglas County and the Waitaki District, as both communities are widely recognized as world destinations for soaring. Soaring NV, a glider operator at the Minden-Tahoe Airport has established a strong relationship with Glide Omarama, a glider operator at the Omarama Airfield in the Waitaki District. During initial discussions to create the partnership at a cross-country glider camp in Minden last summer, many other natural commonalities were discovered between Douglas County and the Waitaki District, including rural lifestyles, outdoor recreation, agriculture, soaring, fishing, climate, tourism and friendly people.
Sister community programs are recognized as a catalyst for economic vitality, fostering communication across borders, creating a mutual exchange of ideas, education, culture and sport, and promoting tourism and trade. Formalizing the relationship between Douglas County and the Waitaki District through a sister community partnership sends a message to both communities that we value the mutual exchange of ideas, people and materials, and we wish to promote the common links between our communities.
The partnership does not require any financial commitment from Douglas County.
Robert “Fro” Frohlich, a prolific skier and writer, died Oct. 26 after a long battle with cancer. He was 55.
Frohlich was born July 9, 1955, in Princeton, N.J.
He graduated from the of University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, with a degree in Film Communications.
He wrote for Ski, Skiing, Powder, San Francisco Chronicle, Tahoe Quarterly, Reno Gazette-Journal and other publications. He covered the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002 for the Sacramento Bee. For 10 years he covered professional boxing for Boxing Illustrated.
He moved to Squaw Valley in 1977 as an assistant to the producer for ABC Sports.
In 1994, Frohlich co-founded SnowTribe Productions, a charitable organization that produces multi-audio visual shows and other events benefitting Tahoe area charities.
Frohlich is the author of the books “Mountain Dreamers: Visionaries of Sierra Nevada Skiing,” “Skiing With Style” and “Mountain Journal.”
Survivors include his mother, Billie Burke Rogers, and sister, Margaret Frohlich Pearcy, both of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and a ton of friends in Lake Tahoe.
A memorial service will be Nov. 11 at 4pm at the Olympic Valley Lodge in Squaw Valley. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Robert Frohlich Scholarship Fund, c/o Truckee-Tahoe Community Foundation, P.O. Box 366, Truckee, CA 96161.
By Reno Gazette-Journal
Registration now is open for the Social Media at Reno-Tahoe 2010 conference, or the Sm@rt conference, which is Dec. 8-10 at John Ascuaga’s Nugget in Sparks.
The conference will offer innovative, strategic marketing sessions for small businesses, nonprofits and those involved in tourism, gaming and more.
Successful companies and organizations use social media as key marketing tools to generate sales, brand products and services, tighten messages in a tight economy and stand out in a crowd.
More than two dozen regional and national speakers, including top authors, expert practitioners and strategists will present.
Mike Slone will present a best practices case on how Vail Resorts’ new product, EpicMix, provides a unique user experience. The product, which will be used at Lake Tahoe’s Heavenly, automatically captures and uploads customers’ days skied and vertical feet. It allows users to earn EpicMix pins for achievements and connect with their social networks like Facebook and Twitter and share stats, pins and points.
‘Hereafter’By Howie Nave
If Clint Eastwood never acted in a movie again I would be bummed for sure. But so long as he continues his incredible winning streak as a director, I think I’ll overlook the lack of acting.
Here is a filmmaker like a fine vintage out of Napa Valley that truly gets better with age. Eastwood is at that stage in his career/life where he can make movies that he is clearly passionate about. He also gets an incredible amount of freedom to not rush, so his movies are like reading novels with each scene on the screen a different page eagerly waiting to be read.
And all this from Dirty Harry, too?
Eastwood has crafted a piece of work that will leave you asking more questions than it delivers answers. I think in part because Eastwood is clearly in the twilight of his life, he’s probably wondering what lies beyond this existence. At 80 years of age, though, he shows no signs of resting on his laurels.
Matt Damon stars in "Hereafter."
“Hereafter” opens dramatically, mirroring some of the tragic climatic news we’ve been witnessing lately so you find yourself immediately captivated. With Eastwood’s magic touch and Peter Morgan’s (“The Queen,” “Frost/Nixon”) script, Matt Damon stars as George, a former psychic who communicated with dead people but has retired from the field. He seeks out something that can relieve his mind from such pressure and decides to put his body to work employed as a factory worker in San Francisco. Apparently, though, he still has the touch when he grasps another person’s hand and can “see” what that loved one who has passed on has to say. It’s actually more of a curse than a gift and reminded me a lot of 1983’s “The Dead Zone” (directed by David Cronenberg and based on Stephen King’s novel) starring Christopher Walken where when he grabbed someone’s hand he could see what was going to happen in their immediate future.
Anyway, back to George. He would rather leave his own future behind him, but his brother, Billy (played by Jay Mohr) has other ideas with wanting to market him utilizing his gift for profit.
Eastwood sectionalizes the movie, which is smart as to keep up the interest focusing on several stories centered on George’s talent. It’s creepy in one way, sad in another and you feel for the characters; longing to be in touch with a loved one so that they can find a small degree of (and I loathe this word) closure on moments left unfinished. One of the more moving stories is about a London boy, Marcus (George McLaren) who wants to reach out to his dead twin brother. The other story is the opener with Cecila De France as Marie LeLay, a journalist who survives the incredible opening scene (don’t want to reveal too much because the effects are amazing) and becomes so traumatized that she no longer sees her job as important but buries herself in an investigation able to perform her job. She plunges into an investigation on whether or not there is an afterlife. Man, I had this weird feeling after seeing this wondering (God forbid) if this was in fact Eastwood’s last movie would he have wanted this to conclude this way? He has a few other projects in the works, but I don’t know, this one just seemed to capsulate one’s journey here and you find yourself thinking what in fact does lie waiting in the “Hereafter?”
“Hereafter” is rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements including disturbing disaster and accident images, and for brief strong language with a running time of 130 minutes.
Howie Nave is host/emcee/manager of The Improv at Harveys. You can hear him Monday-Friday 6 to 10am on KRLT FM-93.9.