On October 22, we had our first snowfall of the season here in the Tahoe Basin. I was reminded that even those of us who are local take some time to get used to driving in the snow again. We’ve not had the opportunity to get our chains out of storage or put on the all-season tires.

Interestingly, this snowfall happened not long before Halloween. Residents of Tahoe are aware that we usually get one good snowfall before Halloween. At least this year we had a chance to get used to driving before the actual celebration got here with kids in their costumes walking through the neighborhoods.

I had an interesting conversation with a visitor recently. This person was comparing the South Lake Tahoe area to ‘similar areas like Las Vegas.’ The visitor was saying that in the late 1960′s and early 1970′s, there were four major gambling destinations in the United States, Reno, Las Vegas, South Lake Tahoe and Atlantic City. He was saying that because of changed legalities regarding various kinds of gambling that the economy of those areas had changed. Well, I can agree with that, but I don’t agree that Lake Tahoe should continue to be considered a “gambling destination”.

It’s a great time to spend with family and loved ones.

It sounds to me like doctors are just trying to figure out why those darned Italians keep living longer than Americans

Instead of just recognizing the signs of escalation, we are now trained to look for the reason behind it. Crisis is always caused by something that goes beyond a person’s ability to cope.