Originally Published in The Tahoe Daily Tribune 01/09/2023, Written by Katelyn Welsh

INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. – Community members are throwing pasta strainers, kitty litter scoops, buckets, tarps, leaf blowers, and shop vacuums at cleaning up potentially hundreds of thousands of styrofoam beads that washed ashore Incline and Ski Beach on Sunday. To the unknowing onlooker, the beads look like snow that has settled into drifts around the beach.

The source of the nearly Dippin’ Dot sized beads—a floating dock— was discovered Sunday afternoon. The dock likely broke open during the storm, scattering an unknown amount of plastic styrofoam beads into the lake.

The Incline Village Improvement District removed the damaged dock Monday morning and volunteers have been working since to clean up its remnant pellets.

Colin West of Clean Up the Lake says the storm’s large waves threw the beads high onto the shore, keeping them 10 to 20 feet from the water level.

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What Would Mark Twain Say?

Whiskey, unless we put it on our bunions, is not good for us, yet great numbers of folks will be sipping it on Super Sunday in Las Vegas, as the word “book” morphs into a powerful verb. Super Bowls bring us together. I remember our son’s first words. We were watching the Super Bowl together at home when he witnessed his first field goal, stuck his little finger into the air, and shouted, “It’s GOOD!” 

Personally, I concoct my own Clemens Cointreau for Super Sunday, and I shall share my secret here with my good friend, the gentle reader. You suspend, and hermetically seal a naval orange in a bell jar, to hover above a couple liters of brandy and a cup of sugar for 30 days, during which time that orange drips flavor down into the brandy, and on Super Sunday, Voila! You’ve got Clemens Cointreau for the angels. But you don’t want to eat the orange, or you could find yourself conversing with your grandfather, who has been deceased for a decade. All you need now is a St. Bernard to deliver your Super Sunday Clemens Cointreau to the neighbors in a small barrel strapped to his neck, along with a nice note.

As a fan of the Chicago White Stockings, Mark Twain would never get to see a Super Bowl, but if he had, we know what he might have chosen to compliment the contest. He wrote to his wife, Livy, from London in 1874, that he would like to have waiting upon his arrival back home, “…a bottle of Scotch whiskey, a lemon, some crushed sugar, and a bottle of angostura bitters.  Ever since I have been in London I have taken a wine glass cocktail made with those ingredients before breakfast, before dinner, and just before going to bed.” 

Today we call that a “Mark Twain Cocktail” and we can find it at the Fox in Carson City on any delightful day. To cleanse the pallet, I highly recommend the “Langhorne Lager” on tap for our pleasure. (Langhorne being Sam Clemens’s middle name.) So that being said, what would Mark Twain have to say?

“As for drinking, I have no rules as for drinking, when others are drinking, I like to help. I have found that a tumbler full of whiskey in the early evening is a preventive of toothache. I’ve never had the toothache, and what is more, I don’t intend to have one.” 

Finally, as is our custom, we allow Mr. Twain the last word…

“How solemn and beautiful is the thought that the earliest pioneer of civilization is never the steamboat, never the railroad, never the newspaper, never the missionary, but always whiskey! All hands turn to and build a church and a jail, and behold, civilization is established forever in the land.”  

Please join us next week for “What Would Mark Twain Say?” It’s free, and worth it! 

I’m McAvoy Layne

Audio: https://anchor.fm/mcavoy-layne

Immersive Wellness Events Feature Cold Plunge in Lake Tahoe, Sound Healing, and More

Incline Village, Nevada (November 25, 2023) – Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino, a spacious resort nestled in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of North Lake Tahoe, debuts a winter wellness program for guests and local residents. The resort will host multiple Elemental Immersion events throughout the season providing a full-day of focused, intentional wellbeing experiences led by area professionals.

“We are thrilled to bring back our popular Elemental Immersion experience this winter at Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe,” said Julie Orblych, director of spa and wellness at Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino. “The events are curated to provide a customized wellness journey for each individual participant in a small and welcoming group setting. The itinerary has been carefully-curated to provide a full-day of thoughtful and intentional wellness sessions from some of the area’s best professionals and is designed to encourage relaxation, balance, and both physical and spiritual wellbeing.”

The first Elemental Immersion of the winter season will take place on Saturday, December 9 with check-in at 9:30 a.m. The morning session will commence with a wellness session led by Brooke Haley, a RYT yoga teacher and reiki master. Haley will walk participants through a breath work class where they will practice Wim Hof breathing techniques. Guests will then take part in an intention-guided cold plunge in the naturally-chilled waters of Lake Tahoe, followed by a chef-prepared meal at Lone Eagle Grille curated to reflect wellbeing focus. 

The Elemental Immersion will continue in the afternoon with a sound healing session led by Gyongyver Rindour, who is certified by the International Academy of Sound Healing. Participants will be surrounded by the sounds of water, wind, flutes, gongs, and Tibetan Bowls to provide vibrational acoustics designed to help cleanse and clear out overactivity of the mind, and encourage a sense of presence and balance. 

The event will conclude with a “letting go” fire ceremony where attendees will write down things that may be holding them back in their wellness journey which they have the option to share with the group. They will the throw piece of paper into the resort’s pool-side fire pit as a symbolic gesture. 

Throughout the day, participants of the Elemental Immersion will have access to the resort’s spa facilities and amenities including a spacious heated outdoor pool, oversized whirlpools, and spa relaxation areas, and more. 

In addition to the winter kick-off event on December 9, the resort will host Elemental Immersion experiences on January 20, February 10, and March 9.  Registration for the events is required and can be made by calling (775) 886-6745.

For more information or to book a stay at Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe, please visit HyattRegencyLakeTahoe.com, or call (775) 832-1234.

About Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino

Ideally situated on the pristine shores of North Lake Tahoe, Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino, a AAA Four Diamond Award winning resort, offers majestic lake and mountain views from its 422 guestrooms, including 32 suites and 24 lakeside cottages. The resort’s design evokes modern alpine luxury with exposed wood beams, rich leathers, and granite features throughout the property. Premium amenities include 500 feet of private beach featuring a 275-foot floating pier, a year-round heated lagoon-style pool and two hot tubs, a 25,000 square foot Grand Lodge Casino, and 50,000 square feet of indoor/outdoor flexible meeting and event space including the picturesque Lakeside Ballroom, Tahoe’s premier lakeside ballroom just steps away from the beach. Additional amenities include a 20,000 square-foot Stillwater Spa with 16 treatment rooms, multiple restaurants and bars, pet-friendly accommodations, a fully-equipped Hyatt StayFit gym, and an on-site Adventure program which provides guided activities led by the resort’s team of adventure specialists. Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino has received numerous awards and recognitions including Travel + Leisure’s 500 Best Hotels in the World, Travel + Leisure’s World’s Best Awards, Smart Meetings Smart Stars Awards, U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hotel Awards, and more. 

Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino is located on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe, at 111 Country Club Drive, Incline Village, NV, 89451. For more information, visit HyattRegencyLakeTahoe.com or follow the resort on Facebook or Instagram. 

About Hyatt Regency 

The Hyatt Regency brand prides itself on connecting travelers to who and what matters most to them. More than 175 conveniently located Hyatt Regency urban and resort locations in over 30 countries around the world serve as the go-to gathering space for every occasion – from efficient business meetings to memorable family vacations. The brand offers a one-stop experience that puts everything guests need right at their fingertips. Hyatt Regency hotels and resorts offer a full range of services and amenities, including the space to work, engage or relax; notable culinary experiences; technology-enabled ways to collaborate; and expert event planners who can take care of every detail. For more information, please visit hyattregency.com. Follow @HyattRegency on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and tag photos with #AtHyattRegency.

Originally published in the Northern Nevada Business Weekly, Written by Rob Sabo

A long-delayed condominium project in Incline Village is scheduled to break ground this spring on two acres at the corners of Tahoe and Southwood boulevards.

Nine 47 Tahoe will be the first new condominium project constructed in Incline Village in more than two decades, said Randy Fleisher, principal with Palcap FFIF LLC. Fleisher told NNBW that the condo project also may include development of deed-restricted housing on a separate parcel and is a labor of love more than 15 years in the making.

“When I first saw the site years ago, I envisioned delivering condominiums to the Incline Village community,” Fleisher said. “My wife owns a Pilates studio here, we are ingrained in the community, and we understand the need for both ends of the housing spectrum. That’s why we also are targeting achievable and affordable housing on our other site.

“We are very fortunate that we got this two-acre site,” Fleisher added. “I had been bird-dogging this site for years, and I finally convinced the owner to turn it over to us.”

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Elizabeth Pitcairn performs Brahms Violin Concerto and Chuyoung Suter performs Grieg’s Piano Concerto – and you don’t have to drive to Reno!

Elizabeth Pitcairn joins TOCCATA-Tahoe Symphony Orchestra and Chorus for the 14th year, performing one of the finest and most popular gems in the concerto repertoire. And the orchestra and chorus celebrate their 19th anniversary, under the direction of founding Artistic Director and Conductor, James Rawie, with one of the greatest monuments in Western music.

Elizabeth Pitcairn has a well-deserved reputation as one of America’s most beloved soloists. Since her New York debut at Lincoln Center in 2000, she has performed at Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, all over Europe, and in China and Hong Kong. She plays the legendary “Red Mendelssohn” Stradivarius of 1720 (which inspired the Academy award-winning film, “The Red Violin”).

Read her full biography at www.elizabethpitcairn.com.

You will immediately fall in love with the main melodies of Brahms’s “Violin Concerto in D major”! Settle in and let yourself be swept away by the turbulent passion of the opening movement, the languid beauty of the slow movement, and the giddy, high-spirited energy of the finale. The piece is played so often because it is undeniably a masterpiece in the world of violin concertos.

Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A minor” is the monumental achievement of his life’s (prodigious!) compositions. The work is among Grieg’s earliest important works, written by the 24-year-old composer in 1868 in Søllerød, Denmark, during one of his visits there to benefit from the climate.

Tickets: $30 for adults, $40 preferred seating (youth $15), $50 premium seating (youth $25). Seniors enjoy $5 discount in all seating. FREE ADMISSION for youth under age 23 in general admission seating.

For additional information, please call 775-298-6989; e-mail ToccataTahoe@gmail.com; or visit us at www.ToccataTahoe.org or https://www.facebook.com/toccatatahoe/.

Contact: Nancy Rawie – 775.430-3878

Originally Published in KOLO 8 on 01/05/2023, Written by Jayde Ryan

RENO, Nev. (KOLO) – Prescribed burns are resuming in North Lake Tahoe and they are a beneficial way to keep the forests healthy and reduce fires. 

Lake Tahoe’s forests are extremely vulnerable to wildfires. So, the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District tries to reduce that risk through two types of prescribed fires.

The first is pile burning, like what is happening this week. The second is “under story burning”, that is the burning of the forest floor as it is. Fire officials say one of the main reasons why prescribed fire is so important, is because it reduces the risk for major fires, like the 2007 Angora Fire.

”Suppressing all fire has got us in the situation now where a fire can get so big because we suppressed them in the past and that allows that vegetation to grow, and then it’s unmanageable for a few days, and we don’t want that,” says Chief Ryan Sommers. “We want to reintroduce fire into the elements and the environment to keep those fuels down and it’s also very good for forest health.”

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Provided by NTBA – Originally published at www.placer.ca.gov//tahoeparking

Background

Placer County is developing a North Lake Tahoe Parking Management Program as recommended in the Resort Triangle Transportation Plan adopted by the Placer County Board of Supervisors in October 2020. 

Simply expanding transit and bicycle/pedestrian options without changing the low cost and convenience of the private automobile near attractive recreation areas does not cause a significant overall shift in mobility patterns. Pricing and managing auto use at the end of the trip, such as at beach and recreational parking locations, is an effective approach already in use around Lake Tahoe. The implementation of active parking management will improve utilization of existing infrastructure and enhance use of transit and other travel options.

Purpose

The purpose of this program is to better manage the existing parking supply in the North Lake Tahoe region. County officials are considering solutions, such as a paid parking system in town centers and recreational beach parking areas, as well as the establishment of specific residential permit parking zones. Goals include encouraging alternative modes of travel, ensuring sufficient turnover in convenient parking spaces for businesses, protecting neighborhoods from spillover parking, and efficiently using land to meet Tahoe area parking demands.

Private parking area participation in a County paid parking program will be voluntary, but the inclusion of underutilized private parking in the overall program is encouraged and also provides revenue return opportunities for the private property owner. This program has the potential to generate funding for local investment into alternative transportation enhancements, such as new bicycle/pedestrian facilities and expansion of transit services. Community engagement is planned for spring 2023 as part of the initial development of the program, as well as establishment of stakeholder working groups for collaborative discussions regarding program goals, elements, financing, technology, enforcement, and phasing.

Placer County will hold a pair of meetings to gather community input on existing parking related problems to be solved with the initial phase of implementation of the North Lake Tahoe Parking Management Program. Each will be facilitated by county staff and an experienced parking consultant, Dixon Resources Unlimited.

• In person community meeting – Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024, at 5 p.m. at the North Lake Tahoe Event Center.
• Virtual community meeting – Thursday, Jan. 11, starting at noon.
  Visit placer.ca.gov/tahoeparking to register.

Visit placer.ca.gov/tahoeparking

or scan the QR code to learn more.

Originally Published in The Sierra Sun on 12/28/23, Written by Robert Hudson Westover

80 years is a tremendous milestone—for anyone. To make it to 80 means you have overcome life’s greatest challenges and you truly become the elder, the sage, the one who knows a thing or two and should be listened to. Being the spokes-bear, if you will, of the longest running and most successful advertising campaign in American history, at 80 years old, I think Smokey Bear would agree.

And so does the USDA Forest Service.

Smokey’s actual birthday is August 9. However, starting in January, the Forest Service which has, in cooperation with the Ad Council and the National Association of State Foresters, managed the image of Smokey Bear since the 1940s will launch a yearlong celebration. The kickoff will start with Smokey sharing his iconic phrase of Only You Can Prevent Wildfires in the Tournament of Roses Parade on January 1.

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Perhaps not unlike you, I never took a hankering to algebra. In fact, I was told by an upperclassman that were I to live to be a hundred, I would never use it. But I did. When I wanted to know how many miles-per-hour I would have to run to finish the Boston Marathon in under three hours I used an algebraic equation to figure it out, 180 minutes/26 miles = X/1. By solving for X, I was able finish that race in under three hours, barely…

Today I would ask that we consider an alternative algebraic expression, McAvoy’s Maxim let’s call it, as a drawdown to World Peace. This is an algebraic blueprint for a lasting armistice in a troubled world. But allow me to mansplain…

 Algebra diplomacy is quite simple: Afghanistan a²/Zimbabwe b² = (a – b)(a + b). Extrapolating that formula, Bahrain a²/Yemen b² = (a – b)(a + b). Thus we create a comprehensive mathematical chart of coefficients for all nations, and the impossible becomes possible. 

Yes, by looking at the world through an algebraic lens we can see how easy it is for us to get along, and refrain from killing each other in futile attempts to solve our differences. The age-old hard power math used today for settling warfare and violence has never worked, and never will work. Everybody now recognizes it as a sum zero game of the very worst kind. As algebra becomes biologic, algebraic statecraft becomes our answer to world peace…

We are at an inflection point here in 2024, and what does that mean? It means if we don’t make some drastic adjustments this year, well, by 2025 we could find ourselves in deep doodoo. The act of drawing down our weapons of mass destruction, alongside our algebraic partners, is an equation for world peace. Once our algebraic diplomacy chart is complete, we can stand in awe, admire it, and abide by its perfect polynomial expression. Yes, I have come to appreciate the fact that algebra is in fact…beautiful.

So what would Mark Twain say? Of course, with all due respect, we leave the last word to Mr. Twain…

“Statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing falsities, and will diligently study them, and refuse to examine any refutations of them; and thus he will by and by convince himself that the war is just, and will thank God for the better sleep he enjoys after this process of grotesque self-deception. All war must be just the killing of strangers against whom you feel no personal animosity; strangers whom, in other circumstances, you would help if you found them in trouble, and who would help you if you needed it.”

There it is, wise words from the Moralist of the Main…

Audio: https://anchor.fm/mcavoy-layne