The  Once-in-a-While

Daily News

1 Anybody lookin'?

2  Tahoe. Just sayin'.

3  With family.

4  Nothin' better.

5  Pretty daunting task, but to be honest, we're still having a ball. There are people on the beach as we speak.

6  Went to Angora with Ponch and the gang yesterday. 

7  Incredible.

8  The wonder of it all.

9  This trip became somewhat a Tsunami when we first arrived. We got up and then went about doing the usual thing of moving all our stuff into a cabin that has everything located differently, and then opening a million doors looking for Cheerios.

10  I almost wound up with my pants hanging from my ears.

11  Our anchor spot up here has been Pope Beach in South Lake Tahoe. But on Saturday, they had so many people up here that everyone had to park on the highway.

12  Our group alone began at around 60, and was topping out at almost 80 people.

13  Unprecedented. AND the Beach proper took on lots of water this winter, making the place a madhouse.

14  I still got to hit some major places: The iconic Beacon, Fallen Leaf Lake pontooning, Angora and wildflowers, and I'm not sure where I'm headed today. I think I'm headed to the Ponderosa and turning right, going through Nevada and on up to Virginia City!

15  I'm in a constant hurry to relax this summer.

16  It's been fun, but it's also been a tad stressful. We've had bear sightings almost every day. 

17  The other day some crazy guy came up to me while I loaded the car for the Beach. The guy was grizzly, skinny, and shifty, and he had about fifty bags of garbage on his truck.

18  "Hey, there's a mother and three bears at 13th and Gardner, man. Look at these!"  He proceeded to show me two pictures: one of a bear squatting, and another of some blurry guy getting mauled by a large bear. "That bear tore the door off my car just now and mauled me!" I looked up. He didn't look the least bit mauled. Still, I was frightened because of my family, and the Beebeez AND Rocky, The Flying Dog.

19  I rested my arms on the grizzly guy's window, and relaxed, like I was talking to a neighbor.

20  He pointed at the pic of the bear squatting. "Here he is taking a s#it, man!" I'm not sure how the mother became a "he" nor did I ask. 

21  I looked at the picture. "Looks like he's leaving one to me," I said.

22  He drove off, the Wild West dust flying behind whatever ancient contraption he was driving. Doom and gloom.

23  I looked down at 13th and Gardner. None of the other neighbors seemed the least bit worried. I heard two birds chirp. Somewhere a chipmunk made it fast up a tree.

24  Just at that moment, I looked up at our cross-street sign. We are at the corner of Gardner and Shady Lane. 

25  You can't make that stuff up. I swear to you.

26  I got inside and reported to everyone that there might be some bears down the street. Absolutely nobody took any of it seriously, even though I was a bit jarred by that geezer.

27  Everyone went through morning rituals of waffles, bacon, coffee, and all that good stuff. 

28  I'm pretty sure those bears were probably chilling at the Alpina enjoying a morning cup of Joe.

29  Ah, Tahoe. Crazies everywhere, but I guess that's the way it is.

30  I got up this morning to write this stuff, and I must say, I think the screen door was open. I hear movement as I write.

31  It is a concern. Word on the Tahoe streets has always been that the bears are not interested in human beings. The bears are interested in garbage.

32 If that's the case, they may finish up their cuppas at the Alpina and chase that geezer down to the Lake.

33  Tahoe Summer. I'm going home on Saturday. The huge amounts of people this year is more alarming than are the bears.

34  Ya gotta love it.

35  Well, It's something like 6:24 a.m. around these parts. I've been writing and gathering pictures for this nonsense for just about an hour now. The entire house is asleep. The morning is peeking at me through the blinds, demanding my presence. 

36  Ironically, I've yet to see a sunrise this year. Traditionally, my daughter Nicole and I would get up and head for Eagle Falls, which is a great sunrise area that overlooks the majestic Emerald Bay, almost the poster gal that defines Tahoe.

37  Coley has to keep after Li'l Jack, that sweet little guy in the blue hat, above. You have my permission to scroll up.

38  Keeping him asleep is important. So getting up early and heading out to Eagle Falls isn't as easy as it used to be. We would hit 7/11 for some bad coffee and tepid chocolate and spend over an hour enjoying the mornings. I'm sure we'll probably be able to do that when Jack gets a little older.

39  I have had times when I've gone up alone, but it's never quite the same. I enjoy taking pictures of my shadow when I do that.

40  It's still really quiet. Every second I think of another place up here I want to see before I depart on Saturday.

41  I still want to hit the little beach next to the Corleone mansion just up the road a piece. 

The Corleone mansion on the western end

of the Lake.

42  A few years ago I went to the street just left of the mansion and I discovered that there was a free beach right there.

43  Looks like property people have turned it into a bunch of condos. Man. That used to be my personal little secret beach. You could row out on a raft and get the above view. 

44  Times change. I don't even want to post the official name of the place, even though most people know it, or can access it.

45  Well, that's Tahoe. Getting a bit too big for its britches, but it is STILL amazing. And I'm still loving it, and I hope my kids and grandkids will love it evermore.

46  Gottago.

47  No Li'l Beebies awake yet, and I just may be able to launch this today.

48  But I gottago. I just looked into the other room and everyone was awake. I don't think they knew I was awake, so starts the day!

49  See you again.

50  Live life.

51  Love life.

52  Peace.

fin.

The Once-in-a-While

Daily News

1  Well. Happy Windsday from Lake Tahoe!!!

2  Got up on Sunday and been confused ever since.

3  It's funny because you sort of plan all year for a vacay, but once you get to where your cabin is, you realize you have to completely reinvent your entire organizational artillery.

4  And the first night was a bit of a late arrival, and we had time to toss suitcases around the place, throw on a coat, and meet people at The Beacon. It's the Law.

5  We closed the joint. Had a GREAT waiter who was able to table a huge mob AND keep all the orders straight.

6  The advantage of The Beacon is that it is close by, and it tends to have killer sunsets. 

7  I almost couldn't sleep that first night I was so happy to be up here. 

8  Absolutely sensational

9  Even the bears have been sort of interesting. I saw one bear skitter over two front porches and disappear, all within a mile of where I am staying. 

10  Turns out we've all seen 'em. Helene saw one across the street this morning. 

11  It isn't unusual to see a few bears in the course of two weeks. And they are interested in one main thing: eating garbage. 

12  I must say, a LOT of people have BBQ's going, so those bears are enjoying the great outdoors with all the rest of us. 

13  Man, oh man. And it is only Windsday. I thought of Winnie the Pooh because I miss the Beebeez, all three. They're gonna get up here soon, along with Rocky, the flying dog. I baby-proofed our huge yard with pine cones and tree branches so Li'l Rocks could have the run of the place. He'll probably scare the daylights out of thems bears!

14  So. How have I spent today? Shopping and watching House of Cards. Go figure. But we have a movie-studio teevee here. Took about eight years to figure out how to program the thing.

15  Heck, it took me most of the morning to get the headphones working on my cell.

16  Ah, I love getting away from it all.

17  Moving On, Part One: The other night, I found out that my cousin Sue saw the Beatles in I think 1964 at the Cow Palace. I never met anyone who actually saw them. She got in for around six dollars and insists she didn't scream. I was all smiles hearing her tell of the concert. She and my cousin John got me into the Beatles. I never looked back. 

18  Here is a song list that they did that day:

"Twist and Shout"

"You Can't Do That"

"All My Loving"

"She Loves You"

"Things We Said Today"

"Roll Over Beethoven"

"Can't Buy Me Love"

"If I Fell"

"I Want to Hold Your Hand"

"Boys"

"A Hard Day's Night"

"Long Tall Sally"

19  I can't even imagine. She said she couldn't hear a thing except screaming. Makes sense. 

20  Brian Epstein, their producer (whatever THAT means) insisted they play small venues like the Cow Palace because he worried they might not draw at a huge stadium like Candlestick Park, where they had their final live show ever. 

21  Anyway, we really are overall a family of Beatles' people.

22  I realize not everyone likes the Beatles, and that some have sheer disdain for them and for all their pop nonsense.

23  To each. We're just getting warmed up. The other day I brought my Yamahahaha acoustic down to the Lake. I brought my guitar stand but really didn't take and play until a couple of my cousins requested some songs.

25  I began with I think Scarborough Fair, which I am able to handle if no one is listening carefully. I love the beach because I can screw up, but my sisters' and my cousins' voices can travel to the heavens when we are firing on all cylinders. 

26  After I warmed up, I played some fun stuff like I Want to Hold Your Hand and She Loves You, two of their biggest hits ever.

27  Just fun stuff. We're probably heading out for Pope Beach in a while. My daughters, both of whom can sing beautifully, will be getting here this afternoon. I think. I've been away from communicating because I'm working on this nonsense.

28  Moving On, Part Two: Lisa Olsson Potts, a super-fun family member, just asked our group if they would like to river raft this weekend. A few years ago, we all dressed up like Pirates and cruised down the Truckee river, hiding behind trees and then ambushing unsuspecting rafters.

29  Before you judge, the FIRST time we all went river rafting, people hid out and ambushed us. River rafting on the Truckee has that element, so we simply took it to the next level. Needless to say, it was a blast, and we learned to bring huge umbrellas and open them so we could move to our targets. It was all in fun. When we got to the disembarking area, an outside restaurant, we were met with applause from everyone. 

30  I'm smiling just thinking about it. I'm older now, but I haven't matured one iota. 

31  If this all sounds a bit rushed, it is because I'm eager to get back to the beach.

32  Ah, nope! My sister Gayle just came by with Hannah, her Bernese Mountain puppy. Such a sweetie!!! Great visit!!!

33  Moving On, Part the Thoid: I think I'm going to throw a couple of jokes your way, from this collection called The Mammoth Book of Jokes, edited by one Geoff Tibballs. Get a helmet. I had a picture of the book, but it vanished. The fonts are changing, and this whole piece is suddenly haunted.

35  Ah, I ain't trippin'.

36  So here are a few and then I'm outta here. Hope you receive a chuckle or two.

37  A driver was speeding down the highway late in the afternoon when he saw a police car behind. For a while he tried to out-race his pursuer, but, after touching 120 and still not managing to shake him off, he realized it was a lost cause and pulled over.

  The cop stepped out of his car. "Listen, buddy," he said. "I had a really, lousy day and all I want to do is go home to my wife and kids. So if you can come up with a good excuse as to why you were doing 120 back there. I'll let you off."

  The driver thought for a while and said: "Three weeks ago, my wife ran off with a cop. When I saw you in my rear-view mirror, I thought you were that officer and that you were trying to give her back."

38  Hey. Why was the farmer hopping mad? Someone stepped on his corn.

39  

40  A guy walked into the doctor's with a lettuce leaf sticking out of one ear.

  "That's unusual," said the doctor.

  The man said: "That's just the tip of the iceberg."

41  Okay, okay.

42  I gottago. The Lake beckons. Glad I hit this deadline and all, but, ah, you know.

43  See you again.

44  Have a GREAT Windsday. 

45  Live life.

46  Love life.

47  Peace.

fin.

1

The Once-in-a-While

Daily News

1  Anybody remember this? Backstage at Matt and Nicoley's wedding. I'd like to send out a ginormous 

Happy Anniversary to them, and to their littles, Li'l Jack and Li'ller Rocky, the Flying Dog. This day was the start of something really special. Anyone who was there remembers.

2  Helene's mom, Dorothy (better known as Grammy!) made the Cheshire Cat, and Helene thought to attach the muslin to the boards and then to glue the letters using Liquid Nails. We still have all the pieces. It took all of them to get it up, but the result was fun. It was like working for Disney!!!  

3  Ah, Imagineeeeeeers with seven "eeeeeee's," one for each day of the week!

4  Disney, I swear to you.

5  It's fun sometimes living in a Disney cartoon.

6  I'll continue to bomb today's DN with pics. I somehow managed to take billions that day. Live and learn!

7  Live and learn.

8  Moving On, Part One: We have a huge vacay coming up really soon, and lots of the Disney wagons are circling. Tahoe is going to be featured, as always. 

9  I watched Bonanza, Season One, Episode Five the other morning. The title: "Enter Mark Twain," which debuted on October 10, 1959, was the one that featured a visit to the Ponderosa by an author known only as "Josh." Of course, "Josh" was merely a pseudonym for Samuel Langhorne Clemons. The episode took a few liberties, to say the least. In fact, it altered so many facts that the episode proper became a complete kick in the pants. It featured a young Samuel Clemons, played by the multi-talented actor Howard Duff, as Twain. It was a fictitious account of how he got his famous, or infamous pen name. 

10  What I particularly loved about the episode was that it appeared to be filmed in many of our Tahoe stomping grounds: Sand Harbor, the Truckee River, Virginia City (including the Bucket of Blood Saloon), and what seems to be Mt. Tallac, of snow-cross fame. 

Tahoe: The extraordinary Sand Harbor, which borders

the Ponderosa.

The majestic Truckee River, crossed by many

cowhands and horses. 

A very real shot of Virginia City, with my sisters

Gayle and Linda reading news of a missing

kid named O. Henry, affectionately know as

"The O."

The Bucket of Blood Saloon, Virginia City, Nevada,
home of many barroom brawls, so many that it is
said the floor has a red tint due to blood from these
exchanges. 

And of course, Mt. Tallac, seen in several episodes.

11  These are clearly not shots from Bonanza. They are, however, shots of locations that were mentioned or filmed in the series.

12   "Enter Mark Twain" had references and shots of all these places. 

13  That particular episode was all about Tahoe, and these all-too-familiar areas that are mentioned in the episode. Here's the link:

Bonanza Season 1 Episode 6 "Enter Mark Twain"

14  I'm thinking of having a night in Tahoe where we watch that episode on someone's cabin porch. Probably won't happen, because once we hit Tahoe at mid-week, everybody is up there, maybe forty of us, and each headed every which way. It'd be fun to show it on Pope Beach (which I assume at one time or another was visited by most people associated with the television series), sort of like enjoying a Hollywood hills in Tahoe, but Lake Tahoe does have its own identity, and its majesty hangs over us like a steepened version of the pines that smell so clean.

15  I will repeat an oft stated universal truth by Helene: "Americans love to sit around water and eat."

16  Ain't it the Truth.

17  We hope to be surrounded by water and eating in the very near future. I'm going to enjoy the Bonanza angle this year, and will be re-watching many more episodes.

18  Moving On, Part Two: I hate to sound like a grumpy old man, but I have had battles for years over the best razors to get for a perfect shave. I tend to stick with those love-budget bags of Gillette Latest-Trend razors that get changed every week or two. Every time there is a semi-formal event, I crack a new razor and hastily run it over my face. This usually results in my face looking like I got smart with a drunk hombre in the Bucket-of-Blood. 

19  Running a razor over my face was an expression my Mom used to use when I would look like a bedraggled Walter Brennan. She would say, "Buddy, why don't you run a razor over your face. You look like a bedraggled Walter Brennan!"

20

The inimitable and perpetually

 bedraggled Walter Brennan.

21  Yup.

22  My role model. 

23  I might mention here that the other day, I Googled best razors around. 'Bout time. Anyone else walking around already DID that years ago, but I'm a slow roll. 

24  I got 30,000 results, most with glittering reviews. I figured I would do a crap shoot on a five-star. I found one at Big Lots that was four-and-a-quarter stars or something but got it because the box had an "H" on it. 

25  I saw it as smooth-face destiny. The "H" on the box looked like this:  H'.

26  I woke up yesterday morning and glanced down. I had fallen asleep in Le Luge, my used, beat-up Laz-Y-Boy chair of yore with the box still in my hand. 

27  There were no instructions on how to unbox. I tried peeling this little circular tab on the box, but, well, let's just say it was complicated. 

28  I discreetly slipped into the bathroom and decided I could turn on the water faucet to conceal my unboxing noise, and get to the bottom of this contraption. 

29  It was one of those boxes that if you turned it rightside-up everything would open upside-down, and all six mini-containers would spill out. I figured out how to un-plastic all the plastic surrounding the thing, and quietly applied shaving cream to my face. 

30  I have one of those 10X mirrors that says "Caution: Things Are Closer Than They Appear" on them. So I dinged myself at first touch but soon mastered the bloody thing. 

31  I got the cleanest shave of my life. My face was smooth as a baby's butt. 

32  I wanted to shave my legs, arms, and chrome dome, but held back for fear of slippage. 

33  But what a shave! 

34  Some shave!

35  I dried my face, legs, arms, and dome, looked in the 10X mirror and frightened myself. 

36  One thing I tell my barber, this chick at our local Great Clips: "I don't wanna look good, I just want to avoid looking bad."

37  Yes, I said "chick." If you are offended, get looked at, willya? 

38  

39  So, there I was. Spiffy as a white dove. 

40  Now all I had to do was put the stuff back into the box, and all would be well. 

41  As of this writing...

42  I gottago. 

43  See you again.

44  Happy Anniversary, Matt and Coley!!!

45  Live life.

46  Love life.

47  Peace. 

fin.