Boy dies after climbing accident near Emerald Bay
EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. – A boy is dead after a climbing accident on Thursday near Emerald Bay.
First responders were reportedly called to the Eagle Falls Trailhead near Emerald Bay around 2:30 p.m. for a climbing accident.
According to authorities, the boy was found about 400 yards from the trailhead. The boy appeared to be rock climbing and fell, sustaining traumatic injuries.
Despite life-saving measures, the boy died.
A GoFundMe was created on Friday for the family of 15-year-old Noah Ortega-Pourol Wiley, who the campaign says gained his wings after a rock climbing accident in South Lake Tahoe.
“To know Noah was to feel true happiness, his infectious smile and ability to keep us laughing will be deeply missed by all,” the donation site says.
According to the website, Wiley was known for his energy and desire for adventure.
Community meeting for Meyers Aquatic Invasive Species Boat Inspection Station to be held May 4
MEYERS, Calif. – The community is invited to attend an open house to learn about and provide input on the proposed watercraft inspection station in Meyers, Calif. Partner agencies committed to protecting Lake Tahoe from aquatic invasive species (AIS) are proposing to relocate the watercraft inspection station near South Lake Tahoe to a permanent location. A public draft environmental analysis for the project is expected to be available for review and comment on April 15, 2026 at TahoeBoatInspections.com/Meyers.
Approximately 2,000 boats are inspected every year at the existing boat inspection area in Meyers to check if vessels are Clean, Drained, and Dry. The mandatory inspection and decontamination process stops harmful invasive species such as quagga, zebra, and golden mussels from damaging Lake Tahoe’s water quality, native habitat, and recreation experience.
Since 2008, when the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency and Tahoe Resource Conservation District launched the first mandatory boat inspection program in the nation, highly trained staff have inspected more than 120,000 boats at a few, largely temporary inspection stations located around the region. Building stations at permanent locations around the lake is a key goal of the Lake Tahoe AIS Program.
Community participation is an important part of the planning process for the proposed project in Meyers. Interested community members and stakeholders are encouraged to attend and share their feedback.
Public Meeting Details:
When: Monday, May 4, 2026, 5:30 – 7 p.m. (open house format)
Where: Lake Valley Fire Protection District Station, 2211 Keetak Street, South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
What: At the meeting, attendees will have the opportunity to:
- Learn about the purpose, scope, and design of the proposed project
- Review findings from the public draft environmental document
- Ask questions and engage with the partner agencies
- Provide public comments that will help inform the final draft environmental document
Who: Staff from El Dorado County Tahoe Planning and Building Division, Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, Tahoe Resource Conservation District, and California Tahoe Conservancy will be available.
The public draft environmental document evaluates potential environmental impacts associated with the project and identifies measures to avoid or reduce those impacts. The document will be accessible on Wednesday, April 15, 2026, online and at the El Dorado County Planning and Building Department, Tahoe Planning and Building Division, 924 B Emerald Bay Road, South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150.
Public comments on the draft environmental document will be accepted through May 15.
Best time to sell a home in Incline Village & Crystal Bay: Why April 12th – 18th could maximize your sale
One week could make a meaningful difference in your sale.
If you’ve been following national real estate headlines, you’ve likely seen a mix of uncertainty, shifting demand, and talk of a market in transition. While those trends may be playing out in some parts of the country, they don’t fully reflect what’s happening here in Incline Village and Crystal Bay.
Lake Tahoe operates differently. This is a lifestyle-driven market, shaped as much by seasonality and second-home demand as it is by broader economic cycles.
If you’re thinking about selling your home this year, timing matters. And this year, the window is approaching quickly.
A new report from Realtor.com identifies April 12–18, 2026 as the best week to list a home nationally, based on pricing trends, buyer demand, inventory levels, and time on market. Each spring, there is a point when these conditions align in favor of sellers. [LINK]
In Tahoe, that moment often arrives earlier and plays out more clearly.
What We’re Seeing Right Now in Incline Village and Crystal Bay
As we move into spring, buyer activity is picking up while inventory remains limited, particularly for single-family homes. This imbalance gives sellers an advantage, as fewer available homes draw more focused attention from active buyers.
That shift is already visible. Many buyers are preparing for summer and are ready to act when the right home becomes available. Properties that are thoughtfully prepared, especially those with strong design, views, and move-in-ready condition, are drawing early interest.
This reflects a consistent Tahoe pattern. Buyers tend to re-enter the market before inventory builds, creating a window where sellers can stand out.
National trends support this timing. Homes listed in mid-April typically see stronger pricing, increased visibility, faster sales, and fewer price reductions. In Tahoe, these conditions are reinforced by seasonal transitions. As access improves and properties show better, demand rises ahead of peak inventory, creating a short period where sellers face less competition.
Many sellers assume waiting until late spring or early summer will yield the best result. While prices can rise later in the season, competition increases as more listings enter the market.
With more options available, buyers become more selective, and homes often require sharper pricing and stronger positioning to stand out. Listing earlier allows sellers to capture attention before that shift occurs.
Tahoe’s market is also shaped by lifestyle decisions. Buyers are not only reacting to market conditions—they are planning how they want to spend their time. That often leads to more decisive action in early spring, particularly when a home is well aligned with their goals.
Even with broader economic uncertainty, the Incline Village and Crystal Bay market has remained steady. Demand continues for well-positioned homes, and limited inventory still plays a central role in shaping outcomes.
For many homeowners, the week of April 12th – 18th presents a strong opportunity. However, timing alone is not enough. Success depends on preparation. Homes that perform best are priced strategically, presented well, and marketed with intention.
From my perspective, this is a window worth paying attention to. The combination of active buyers and limited inventory creates conditions where sellers can benefit from strong attention and a more favorable position.
If you are considering selling this year, this is the moment to start paying attention. The spring market builds quickly, and the sellers who benefit most are those who are prepared early.
If you want to understand how this timing applies to your home, I’m happy to walk you through it. No pressure, just a clear strategy built around your goals. Because in Tahoe, the difference between a good result and a great one often comes down to timing, preparation, and knowing when to act.
______
Kristie Wells is a real estate agent specializing in Incline Village and Crystal Bay on Lake Tahoe’s North Shore. She offers buyers and sellers expert guidance, market insight, and a thoughtful approach to Tahoe real estate, along with a curated perspective on local homes, hidden gems, and life in the mountains.
TCPUD project sparks tension over environment and infrastructure in Tahoma
TAHOMA, Calif. — The Tahoe City Public Utility District is moving forward with its largest-ever infrastructure effort, the Tahoe Cedars Water System Reconstruction Project. Now, some Tahoma residents are raising concerns about potential environmental impacts tied to construction staging.
The project aims to fully rebuild the aging Tahoe Cedars water system, originally constructed in the 1940s and now considered actively failing. In 2021, TCPUD’s board adopted a comprehensive master plan recommending full replacement of the system following years of financial planning and evaluation.
At an estimated $72 million, the project is significantly larger, more complex and more costly than any previous water system reconstruction undertaken by the district. Funding is expected to come from a mix of water rates, property tax revenue, infrastructure charges and potential grants.
According to TCPUD, the overhaul will bring major improvements to the area’s water infrastructure, including replacing more than 15 miles of undersized and deteriorating water mains, installing 144 fire hydrants — many in areas that currently lack coverage — and adding more than 1,200 residential water meters. The district says the upgrades are critical to ensuring reliable drinking water and improving fire protection in the Tahoe Cedars service area.
However, the project has sparked concern among some residents, particularly over where construction staging will occur.
A group of Tahoma residents, have launched the ‘Save Tahoma Wilderness’ initiative, arguing that elements of the project could cause long-term ecological damage.
“Although this project is necessary for our community, a proposed staging site for heavy equipment would negatively affect a delicate area that serves as an access point to several hiking trails within Tahoe National Forest and Sugar Pine Point State Park,” the group states on its website.
Opponents have raised specific concerns about a potential staging location in a forested area at the top of Antelope Way near TCPUD’s water tanks. They argue that construction activity in the area could lead to soil compaction, increased wildfire risk and long-term ecological damage. Residents have also pointed to possible impacts on wildlife, including the protected Northern goshawk, which has allegedly nested in the area in recent years.
“The forest will take decades to recover,” the group states. “We are trading a permanent forest asset for a temporary logistical convenience.”
The group is urging TCPUD to instead use alternative staging sites, noting that already-developed areas identified by the district could support construction without disturbing forest land.
TCPUD officials say they are listening.
In a letter to the community, General Manager Sean Barclay said the district takes concerns about wildlife, recreation access and environmental conditions seriously.
“We have heard and take seriously the concerns about protecting critical habitat, recreation access, and environmental conditions,” Barclay said. “TCPUD has a strong track record of environmental excellence on all our projects, and the Tahoe Cedars Project will be no different.”
Barclay emphasized that all staging areas and construction activities will comply with environmental regulations and permit conditions, and that any disturbed areas will be restored to required standards.
He also noted that recent changes to Phase 1 of the project will remove the need for one of the most controversial staging areas — the site near Placer Street and Antelope Way above Elm Street — during the initial phase.
“With the removal of this line from the current phase, a potential staging area above Tahoma Heights near the upper water tank is no longer needed for Phase 1 construction,” said Barclay. “However, this is still a critical pipe segment that provides significant water flow benefits to the entire neighborhood, and the line will be included in a later phase of the Project.”
The deferment will allow more time to study biological and cultural resources in the area.
Barclay additionally pushed back on what he described as misinformation about the scale of the staging site, which some residents have referred to as an “industrial yard.”
According to TCPUD, the location is just one of more than 30 staging areas under consideration and would not function as a single centralized hub.
“By no means will the site above Tahoma Heights near the water tank be the only staging area, as doing so would be incredibly inefficient,” Barclay said.
He added that staging areas are a necessary, temporary component of large infrastructure projects, helping reduce truck traffic and improve construction efficiency. Removing one site, he said, could shift impacts elsewhere and increase disruption for other residents.
TCPUD maintains the project is essential. The district purchased the Tahoe Cedars system in 2018 and says it has since required disproportionate maintenance due to frequent leaks and outdated infrastructure.
“Tahoe Cedars represents 20 percent of our water customers, yet accounts for half of our utility crew’s time spent repairing leaks,” said Berkley. “The brittle nature of the old pipes means fire hydrant testing has been on a moratorium since 2022.”
The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) Hearings Officer will hold a public hearing on Thursday, April 16, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. to review TCPUD’s proposed Phase 1 of the Tahoe Cedars Water System Reconstruction Project.
The community has spoken: Tahoe Fund’s Tahoe Project Madness has a champion
LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. – Tahoe Fund, a beloved organization who provides major funding for countless environmental projects, just completed their Tahoe Project Madness competition. The community-voted champion is an ALERTWildfire camera.
Tahoe Project Madness is a play on their annual community-voted March Madness, essentially taking 16 projects and using a bracket system to narrow down the projects based on what the community wants. Whichever project wins by community vote gets a $10,000 boost from Tahoe Fund.
“For the last few years we’ve done March Madness, and we’ve done ‘your favorite trails,’ ‘your favorite beaches,’ or ‘your favorite peaks,’ and Jaclyn on our team this year said, ‘I think we should do it about projects, and put money up and get people to vote on a project that’s going to get additional funding from us,'” said Amy Berry, CEO of Tahoe Fund.
They started with the ‘Sweet 16’ bracket, and all 16 projects in the bracket had already received funding at one point from Tahoe Fund. “We have funded, in a combined total, over $700,000 to all those projects, so no one is a loser going in,” Berry said.
From “Sweet 16”, it went down to “Elite Eight” and then “Final Four” before getting down to the final two – Caldor Fire Reforestation with the Sugar Pine Foundation and an ALERTWildfire camera.
As of April 6, thousands of voters have spoken, and they chose University of Nevada, Reno’s ALERTWildfire camera funded in partnership by the Tahoe Prosperity Center (TPC).
TPC has been helping the University of Nevada, Reno place ALERTWildfire cameras around the basin. Last summer, Tahoe Fund teamed up with them to put a camera on the west shore in an area that was missing coverage, although the need for more cameras is still there.
“When Jaclyn came up with the concept of doing this March Madness around projects, we all agreed that the wildfire camera had to be in the project” said Berry. “We had a sense that it might be in the lead, but we didn’t know if it would win or not. As we went bracket by bracket, and the community voted, it just kept rising to the top.”
The $10,000 from Tahoe Fund will go to TPC to help University of Nevada, Reno increase coverage of their ALERTWildfire network, and Berry notes how excited she was to see how the community’s goals lined up so perfectly with their leading priorities.
“We’re super psyched because for the Tahoe Fund, we do projects that improve the health of the lake, and make it easier to get around and enjoy Lake Tahoe, but our number one priority is preventing catastrophic wildfire, and the cameras are just the perfect tool to help us do that,” added Berry. “Because the earlier you can detect a fire, the sooner you can get to it and the smaller it stays.”
To see the full list of projects or to dive deeper into Tahoe Fund’s mission and efforts, visit https://www.tahoefund.org/.
To learn more about University of Nevada, Reno’s ALERTWildfire camera network, go to https://www.unr.edu/nevada-today/nevada-stories/alertwildfire.
You can check out Tahoe Prosperity Center and the work they do by visiting https://tahoeprosperity.org/.
Bread & Broth Community Meal Sponsored by Catalyst Community
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Catalyst Community has been impactfully supporting and providing resources for children, families, and childcare services in the Lake Tahoe South Shore community since 1976. Previously known as Choices for Children, Catalyst Community provides free services, including childcare referrals, diapers, hands-on training on parenting practices, school supplies, and other services that promote healthy and successful children and families.
On Monday, March 30, Catalyst Community continued their tradition of supporting the Lake Tahoe Community members by sponsoring a Bread & Broth Adopt A Day of Nourishment (AAD) to host a Bread & Broth Monday Meal. Joining the Bread & Broth volunteers at the Monday Meal were Catalyst Community team members Elia Cervantes, Armando Garcia, Heather Della Ripa, Nataly Rubio, and Mirelle Zamudio.
Arriving at 3 p.m. at St. Theresa Grace Hall, the Catalyst Community AAD team members were welcomed and given assignments to help with the meal’s setup, including setting up the food giveaway tables. The food offered at these tables helps supplement meals later in the week and includes meat, fresh fruit and vegetables, dairy products (milk, eggs, butter), canned foods, and a range of basic staples. Guests typically leave with two to three bags of nutritious food.
When St. Theresa’s Grace Hall doors were opened at 4 p.m., Catalyst Community volunteers staffed the serving line, providing Bread & Broth’s Easter meal of baked ham, candied pineapple yams, green beans, and a green salad to the grateful dinner guests. The special holiday meal was enjoyed by the 127 guests, with 19 returning for seconds.
The Catalyst Community Team shared, “We received a tremendous amount of gratitude from everyone. Being able to provide support for our patrons gave us a sense of joy and community. There is so much heart and soul provide by these dinners and we cannot thank Bread & Broth enough for letting us be a part of this community service.”
Bread & Broth is grateful for Catalyst Community’s ongoing support and looks forward to B&B 4 Kids’ Program participating in the Catalyst Community’s Kids Expo Tahoe 2026. The event will take place on May 30th from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the Lake Tahoe Community College. Everyone is invited to enjoy this free outdoor family experience of kid-friendly activities and information which supports families. Kudos to Catalyst Community for their commitment to provide innovative solutions to support children, families, and childcare providers.
To learn more about Bread & Broth or how to donate, please visit www.breadandbroth.org or follow Bread & Broth on Instagram or Facebook.
Winter weather advisory issued for Tahoe Basin
TRUCKEE, Calif. — The Tahoe region is bracing for a wintry stretch in the coming days, with significant snowfall expected across the Sierra Nevada.
A winter weather advisory issued by the National Weather Service will be in effect from Saturday morning into Sunday evening in the Tahoe Basin.
“We could see significant snowfall of up to 12 to 18 inches or more over Donner Pass by Sunday morning,” forecaster Bryan Allegretto wrote on OpenSnow. “That could make travel slow and difficult through the Sierra starting Friday night and worsening Saturday night.”
Rain and high-elevation snow showers are expected Friday and Saturday. Snow levels are forecast to drop to around 6,000 to 6,500 feet Friday night, rise to about 7,000 feet on Saturday, then fall as low as 4,000 feet Saturday night as a colder, wetter storm moves through, according to Allegretto.
Scattered snow showers and cold temperatures are expected to continue into Sunday.
While the National Weather Service anticipates a brief break in storms early next week, additional systems could return around April 17, with several more possible into the final week of April, Allegretto said.
Kitchen of Kindness: A local nonprofit in Northern Nevada aims to feed those in need
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. – Kitchen of Kindness is on a mission to give back to the community. The nonprofit is a volunteer-driven program through Chabad Cares Nevada and aims to assist those in need including seniors, hospitalized individuals and families by providing meals, support, and connection.
When asked how the idea for the program first came to fruition, Executive Director of Chabad Cares Nevada, Rabbi Moshe Cunin, said “The inspiration for the idea was from my wife and her family. Unfortunately, her dad died from cancer, but he had been helped for many years by members of their community bringing food to them.”
After receiving kindness and support from others, Cunin’s wife Doba, and Doba’s mother, decided it was time to give back. Thus, Kitchen of Kindness was created last June and has been picking up the pace ever since.
A major avenue to their funding is through selling homemade challah bread and pastries at the Incline Village Farmers Market which is scheduled to open this summer on Thursday, May 21.
“It’s been amazing,” said Cunin. “We just popped up at the Incline Village Farmers Market and we sold out every week. What’s really cool is that some of the bread is being sold, but the money from that bread sold is going to fund the rest of it getting delivered that week to family members of people in the hospital, people in need, or a new mom with a baby.”
Cunin delivers the food himself, along with other program volunteers, and their goal for distribution is to get the fresh food out as quickly as possible.
While serving a wide range of Northern Nevada, including Lake Tahoe, Cunin wants to continue to grow Kitchen of Kindness. Already, the community kitchen offers assistance in family events, team building, birthday parties, and ways to prevent food waste. They even provide hot meals and companionship as part of their senior engagement, and partner with larger nonprofits such as Eddy House Youth Homeless Shelter in Reno.
“Our dream would be to up the scale of the amount of events we do, the amount of volunteers, and the amount of people we can help,” said Cunin who notes that although they are borrowing a local kosher kitchen space through a jewish school and synagogue, his vision is to have a dedicated space to be used full-time.
As Kitchen of Kindness’s mission unfolds, Cunin says the Torah’s teachings of anonymous, selfless charity is a key factor in its importance, where the giver feels no arrogance and the receiver feels no embarrassment.
“There’s so many that want to give and be generous, and may not have a ton of money to give away, but they have time,” said Cunin. “Time itself is such a value and this is such a great opportunity for people that have time and can partner together with us and use their time and turn it into giving.”
Stop by their bake sale booth at Incline Village Farmers Market this summer for an oppertunity to support their cause.
To learn more about Kitchen of Kindness or Chabad Cares Nevada, as well as ways to get involved, visit https://www.chabadcaresnevada.com/kitchen.
Rare Sierra Nevada Red Fox recorded on wildlife cameras in Tahoe’s west shore for first time
LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – With fewer than 50 known individuals in California, spotting a Sierra Nevada Red Fox is a lot like finding a needle in a haystack.
That’s why the folks at Pathways for Wildlife (PFW) were so surprised to see one while reviewing November footage from their wildlife cameras—but certain features were hard to deny.
“They’re super fluffy because they exist at such high elevations,” Tanya Diamond, Wildlife Ecologist and GIS Analyst at PFW, explained, endearingly adding, “they are constantly in their puffers.”
These foxes also have telling tracks. Having fluffier feet than gray foxes, what Diamond calls “ski mode,” this distinction is reflected in their paw prints.
Diamond and her partner, Ahíga Sandoval, have teamed up with and are funded by the California Tahoe Conservancy to conduct surveys for potential wildlife road crossings in the Tahoe Basin. They also identify important habitat linkages in landscapes, using wildlife cameras, which is how they found the fox.
Diamond and Sandoval are working closely with the U.S. Forest Service, which is part of a statewide Sierra Nevada Red Fox working group focused on conservation efforts for the species.
PFW’s video capture near Blackwood Canyon makes it the first record of a Sierra Nevada Red Fox documented in the Tahoe West Basin.
The Sierra Nevada Red Fox is one of California’s rarest and most elusive native carnivores, found only in the Sierra Nevada. The species is listed as threatened under the California Endangered Species Act. At the federal level, they’re considered endangered.
“They’re hanging by a thread,” Diamond said.
It isn’t entirely known why their population has declined so much. California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) believes unregulated hunting and trapping in the early 20th century could have been factors. What is known is that the species continues to suffer from low genetic diversity, which can exacerbate its already struggling condition.
A study published in 2019 by Benjamin N Sacks and colleagues at UC Davis offered a glimmer of hope in finding that migrating red foxes from the Great Basin Desert had improved the genetics of one Sierra Nevada Red Fox population, at least for the short term.
PFW’s recording could be a promising indicator for the species. Diamond feels this sighting is a sign that land protection, conservation and connectivity work are paying off.
“I think these animals are actually being able to disperse and move and establish new home ranges,” she said.
Around the same time PFW made its discovery, CDFW captured a Sierra Nevada Red Fox near Mammoth Lakes. Biologists fitted the fox with a GPS-tracking collar and released it.
It’s a noteworthy event, considering the species’ cautious nature, low numbers, and remote locations.
The intel from this tracked fox, along with insights from PFW’s recording, will provide vital information to help conserve the sensitive species in the future.
Obituary: Don Borges
–
A Celebration of Life for Don Borges will be held on May 30th at Valhalla from 1-5 pm. We hope you can join us in sharing memories of this very special, kind and funny man who was loved by all. If you have a picture of Don you would like to share, please bring it for our picture board!
Sierra-at-Tahoe sends 36 athletes to USASA Nationals
COPPER MOUNTAIN, Colo. – Some of the best junior athletes in the nation just finished competing at the USASA National Championships in Copper Mountain, and 36 of them came from a single resort – Sierra-at-Tahoe.
The United States of America Snowboard and Freeski Association (USASA) National Championships are the largest snowboarding and freeskiing competitions in the world, made up of thousands of competitors spanning over 30 regional series. United States Olympic freestyle snowboarders and skiers have typically all competed in USASA events before moving up the pipeline.
The 12-day competition consists of disciplines including slalom, giant slalom, ski cross, boardercross, slopestyle, rail jam and halfpipe. Sierra-at-Tahoe had competitors across most, if not all disciplines.
The event’s final day was April 8 and there were triumphant results for athletes coming from Sierra-at-Tahoe.
Notably, Elya Loge, a Sierra-at-Tahoe-sponsored athlete, got second place in FIS women’s ski cross after placing 14th in Switzerland at the Junior Worlds. “She’s continuing to crush it, she’s doing really well,” said Jake Stern, Content and Communications Manager at Sierra-at-Tahoe.
Remy Simkins secured multiple placements including first place in seven-eight boys snowboard rail jam, second place in seven-eight boys snowboard slopestyle, and third place in seven-eight boys freestyle snowboard overall.
Emma Stewart placed second in 15-16 women’s overall freestyle ski after coming in eighth place in a Future Tour FIS ski slopestyle event at Sugar Bowl Resort earlier in the season.
For 15-16 women’s ski cross, Piper Elliott came out in second place while Hailie Rosatti placed third.
In the 11-12 boys ski cross, Gavin Oliver landed third place.
As of the final day’s results, Sierra-at-Tahoe athletes had 27 top 10s, six podiums and two overall podiums.
“We feel really proud. Our team’s programs are integral to what we do here. We’ve produced Olympians in the past, and we are at the end of a rebuilding period,” said Stern. “This year we have sent the most athletes to USASA Nationals since the Caldor Fire, so it feels like our teams have been rebuilt, we’re strong again, and we’re producing really great athletes. We’re really proud of that.”
Stern also notes how great the energy is at the competitions, and the kids aren’t the only ones having a blast, their parents are having a great time too.
“Our South Tahoe series, our athletes and athletes from Heavenly and Kirkwood, have a really great community,” Stern added. “All the parents will go to each other’s events and support athletes who aren’t their own children and it’s a really awesome community experience.”
EAT This Week: Social House’s Crispy Chicken Sandwich
To try and decide each week where and what to eat around the basin can be a challenge – there are so many amazing choices. In this feature we’ll dive into dishes that will surely satisfy those hunger pangs and leave you wondering where to go next.
I’m certain many of you at one point or another have tried a version of a crispy chicken sandwich – or at the very least, crispy or fried chicken on its own. Writing a weekly column like this and just in my own personal food adventures, I’d say I’ve had enough to be a pretty good judge. So, you should believe me when I say that this week’s feature is near the top of any that I have had.
It all starts with a chicken breast getting marinated in a mixture that contains of all things, pickle juice, before getting doused in flour with a seasoning that is so special that I offered up my first born for the mixture and was still not able to get the goods. After being dredged and coated in cornflakes, it is fried and topped with melty Swiss cheese and a honey sriracha aioli, before joining up with sliced pickles in between two slices of toasted brioche bread.
I kid you not when I say I could easily live on the chicken alone for the rest of my life. The moisture is locked in tight, and the exterior is so crispy and flavorful that my keyboard is soaked in drool. Not really, but you get the idea.
And as if the chicken on its own wasn’t enough, it actually levels up with the nutty gooiness from the cheese, tangy pops and texture from the pickles and sweet heat from the sauce. Which, if anyone from the restaurant is reading this, I’ll take a gallon of that for my fridge.
If you can’t tell, I’m a big fan of this dish. But usually when I get big flavor, it’s somewhat of a given. So yeah, this is definitely a given.
The Social House is located at 1001 Heavenly Village Way #3 in South Lake Tahoe. For more information and menu items visit them online at socialhousetahoe.com or reach them via phone at 530-539-4746.
Action in Tahoe: Red Not Chili Peppers, VanWood, Jerry Seinfeld and more
Friday, April 10
Arty the Party at Harrah’s Lake Tahoe – 9 p.m.-12 a.m., Harrah’s Lake Tahoe, 15 Highway 50. 9:00 PM, Friday and Saturday Nights. You can Party with Arty the Party at Harrah’s. It’s the best disco, dance, R&B, and soul party in Lake Tahoe! For more information, visit https://visitlaketahoe.com/event/arty-the-party-at-harrahs-lake-tahoe/2026-04-10/ or call (800) 427-7247.
Dueling Pianos at Caesars Republic Lake Tahoe – 8:30-10:30 p.m., Harveys Lake Tahoe, 18 Highway 50. Join us at the Mountain Bar located on Caesars Republic casino floor for a free show you don’t want to miss. Put your favorite song request in, grab a drink at the Mountain Bar and enjoy the fun! Playing Friday and Saturday at 8:30 PM. Dueling Pianos. For more information, visit https://visitlaketahoe.com/event/dueling-pianos-at-caesars-republic-lake-tahoe/2026-04-10/ or call (775) 588-6611.
Edgewood Spirit Dinners – Minden Mill Distillery – 5:30-8 p.m., Brooks Bar & Deck at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course, 100 Lake Parkway. Indulge in an unforgettable evening featuring the core spirits of Minden Mill Distilling, complemented by a specially curated menu. We are thrilled to be featuring from their series, historic insights, and passion for these exceptional spirits, alongside the master ambassador himself, Lucus Huff, as our guest of honor. For more information, visit https://visitlaketahoe.com/event/spirit-dinners-brooks-bar-deck-edgewood-tahoe/2026-04-10/.
Jose “Manny Maze” DJ Meza – 11 p.m.-1:30 a.m., Noel’s Coffee and Apothecary. For more information, visit https://tahoemusic.live/?page=13.
Live Music at Emerald Bay Bar & Grill – 7-10 p.m., Emerald Bay Bar & Grill, 888 Emerald Bay Rd. Join us for an evening of live music every Friday with Silver Hollow. Enjoy great tunes, delicious food, and our late-night happy hour from 9 PM to 12 AM. Don’t miss out on a night of fun and entertainment! For more information, visit https://visitlaketahoe.com/event/live-music-at-emerald-bay-bar-grill/2026-04-10/.
Parents Night Out Every Friday – 4-11 p.m., An evening of play, movement, and night skiing for kids – and flexible time out for parents.Children enjoy dinner, guided evening activities, and have the opportunity for supervised night ski play on our private hill, or indoor games, followed by cozy indoor wind-down time with experienced caregivers in our licensed preschool environment.$40 per child | Any 4 hours between 4:00-11:00 PMThe evening includes:- Supervised care with experienced early childhood educators- Dinner and evening snack- Guided outdoor play and night skiing on our hill (weather & readiness permitting)- Warm indoor play, stories, and calm settling activities- Small group for safety, supervision, and funAdvance registration required.Register online in minutes to reserve your child’s spot.Space is intentionally limited to keep the evening safe, engaging, and high-quality. For more information, visit https://business.ivcba.org/event-calendar/Details/parents-night-out-every-friday-1635600?sourceTypeId=Hub.
Red NOT Chili Peppers – 8 p.m., 14 State Route 28. Devildog Productions is proud to present Red Not Chili Peppers on Fri. April 10th 2026. Doors: 7pm Show: 8pm I Tickets: $20 ADV / $25 DOS I Tix~> https://tixr.com/e/172214 RED NOT CHILI PEPPERS pay tribute to the ultimate funk rock quartet: a band who has developed one of the largest die-hard followings in the world by transcending four decades of chart-topping success. Combining nostalgic hits, full throttle energy, and virtuosic performances, the Red Nots channel the raging party that has given the Chili Peppers international acclaim and regal rock and roll status. For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/912318464469410/.
VanWood: Campout at Kirkwood – Location, Kirkwood Mountain Resort. Description VanWood Tahoe is hosted by Boys & Girls Club of Lake Tahoe, in partnership with Kirkwood Mountain Resort and EpicPromise. Picture van-life vibes meeting ski season energy, with authentic Tahoe character woven throughout.? This three-day alpine festival combines camping, music, mountain activities, and an incredible après-ski scene. All proceeds support local youth programs that provide Tahoe kids with safe spaces to learn, grow, and thrive.? VanWood isn’t just another camping event. It’s a celebration of outdoor adventure, creative expression, and community connection. You’ll have an unforgettable mountain weekend while directly supporting the young people who call Lake Tahoe home. For more information, visit https://business.tahoechamber.org/events/details/vanwood-campout-at-kirkwood-26083.
Saturday, April 11
Botanical Resin Jewelry Workshop (2 pieces) – Vivid Mae – 3-5 p.m., Description Join us at The Cut for a hands-on resin jewelry workshop led by Mae, owner and artist behind Vivid Mae. In this creative, beginner-friendly class, you’ll learn the art of working with resin and dried florals to design wearable pieces that feel both delicate and modern. Mae will guide you step-by-step through the process of arranging florals, pouring resin, and assembling your jewelry. You will leave with two finished pieces of your choice: a pair of earrings, a necklace, or one of each. Every design is unique and completely your own. No experience necessary. Just bring your creative spirit and a willingness to try something new. Sip wine, bubbly water, enjoy light snacks, and settle in for a relaxed, inspiring evening at elevation. For more information, visit https://business.ivcba.org/event-calendar/Details/botanical-resin-jewelry-workshop-2-pieces-vivid-mae-1666975?sourceTypeId=Hub.
Knit For Food Knitathon – 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m., Paddle House Brews, 3135 Harrison. Our local craft group will be participating in the nationwide 12 hr Knit for Food Knitathon which raises money for No Kid Hungry, Meals on Wheels, Feeding America, and World Central Kitchen. We will have handmade items for sale in exchange for donations. Come support our team as we knit for 12 hrs and enjoy a delicious beverage from our kind hosts, Paddle House Brews.
The Nomads Rock The Red Room – 8 p.m.-12 a.m., Crystal Bay Casino, 14 Highway 28. The Nomads – Red Room “Local Series” For more information, visit https://www.bandsintown.com/e/1038325656?app_id=pkvts0on0m&came_from=287&utm_medium=api&utm_source=partner_api&utm_campaign=event or call (775) 833-6333.
Tahoe Club Crawl Spring/Summer 2026 – 8-11 p.m., 31 US, 1243 Carson Avenue. Tahoe Club Crawl is an organized VIP nightlife tour of the Tahoe South. With the purchase of your ticket, you will receive a welcome shot at 3 out of 4 stops, appetizers, free indoor games at Tipsy Putt and VIP entrance into Peek Nightclub, Lake Tahoe’s hottest Club! You will meet amazing people and have the night of your lives. We meet every Saturday at 8:00 PM Aleworx Stateline, unless told otherwise. Be Sure To Check Out our Ice Cream Shop, Aloha Ice Cream Tahoe “Winner of Best Ice Cream in Tahoe 7 Years In A Row” (Opened Seasonally) For more information, visit https://tahoeclubcrawl.ticketsauce.com/e/tahoe-club-crawl-spring-summer-2052?aff=cityspark.
Tuesday, April 14
IVCBA 2026 Annual Meeting – 4:30-6:30 p.m., UNR at Lake Tahoe Campus with Keynote Speaker: President Brian Sandoval Join IVCBA for our Annual Meeting as we celebrate the people, partnerships, and progress shaping Incline Village and Crystal Bay. This year’s theme, Creating a Thriving Community Through Community Connection, highlights the power of collaboration across business, nonprofit, and civic leaders. Featuring keynote speaker UNR President Brian Sandoval, the evening offers meaningful updates, connection, and community conversation. Appetizers and refreshments provided. For more information, visit https://business.ivcba.org/event-calendar/Details/ivcba-2026-annual-meeting-1668158?sourceTypeId=Hub.
Tuesday Night Blues at Harrah’s Lake Tahoe – 8-11:30 p.m., Harrah’s Lake Tahoe, 15 Highway 50. Harrah’s is heating up the night every Tuesday, with free Blues shows, live at Casino Center Stage. Longtime Northern Nevada musician Buddy Emmer will showcase local and regional headliner artists as they front Emmer’s smokin’ band with some of the best blues music around. Locals and visitors are flocking to this hot entertainment offering at Harrah’s Lake Tahoe, so head to Stateline on Tuesday nights and enjoy some red hot Blues music, free at Casino Center Stage. Special guests each week. For more information, visit https://visitlaketahoe.com/event/tuesday-night-blues-at-harrahs-lake-tahoe/2026-04-14/ or call (800) 427-7247.
Wednesday, April 15
Chamber Morning Mixer: Connect over Coffee – 8-9:30 a.m., Cold Water Brewery & Grill, 2544 Lake Tahoe Blvd. Connect Over Coffee| Meet New Members! Start your morning with meaningful connections at the Tahoe Chamber’s New Member Morning Mixer! Join us for a relaxed networking event where new and longtime Chamber members, as well as local professionals and community members, can come together to meet, connect, and grow relationships within the South Shore business community. Wednesday, April 15 ⏰ 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM Cold Water Brewery & Grill 2544 Lake Tahoe Blvd, South Lake Tahoe This morning mixer is a great opportunity to expand your network while enjoying coffee and conversation in a welcoming environment. New Chamber members will have the opportunity to briefly introduce themselves and their businesses, helping the community learn more about the people and ideas contributing to the vitality of our region. Whether you’re looking to build partnerships, meet new friends, or simply stay connected with the local business community, this is a great way to start your day. Chamber Members: Free Community Guests / Non-Members: $10 Registration is encouraged. We look forward to seeing you there! For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/1280308084038097/.
Thursday, April 16
Jerry Seinfeld – 8 p.m., Tahoe Blue Event Center, 75 U.S. 50. Jerry Seinfeld’s comedy career took off after his first appearance on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson in 1981. Eight years later, he teamed up with fellow comedian Larry David to create what was to become the most successful comedy series in the history of television: Seinfeld. The show ran on NBC for nine seasons, winning numerous Emmy, Golden Globe and People?s Choice awards, was named the greatest television show of all time in 2009 by TV Guide, and in 2012 was identified as the best sitcom ever in a 60 Minutes/Vanity Fair poll. His latest Emmy nominated Netflix projects include Jerry Before Seinfeld and 23 Hours to Kill along with the highly acclaimed web series, Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. Seinfeld has also starred in, written, and produced movies (Comedian, Bee Movie), directed and produced a Broadway hit (Colin Quinn: Long Story Short), and wrote three best-selling books (Is this Anything?, The Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee Book, and Seinlanguage) and a children?s
Tahoe Art League Community Mingle – 5:30-7 p.m., Tahoe Art League’s Gallery, 3062 Lake Tahoe Blvd. Please join us at Tahoe Art League Gallery, every third Thursday, for the Tahoe Art Community Mingle from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. The public is welcome to the Mingles, as well as to all of our events at the Gallery. Dave Justice Art Talk. “Rebellion is My Only Rule” Join us at the gallery for a talk and presentation by Artist Dave Justice on Thursday, March 19th at 5:30 PM. Dave Justice is most recently acclaimed for his vibrant South Lake Tahoe mural featuring Mark Twain, but many are unaware of his personal, creative journey through art. His art is dynamic and varied, incorporating everything from traditional 2-D techniques to experimental 3-D projects to words and wordplay. His artistic exploration continues to take twists and turns not unlike the expressive Manzanita branches we see all around us. Join us for a talk with Dave as he discusses his journey, “(Art) has been intertwined with my dedication to rebellion against ‘normality,’ self-discovery, and having a safe space to express where and who I happen to be through every stage of life.” For more information, visit https://visitlaketahoe.com/event/tahoe-art-league-gallery-member-mingle/2026-04-16/.
Sen. Schiff funds STPUD water project, housing at 3900 Lake Tahoe Boulevard
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Senator Adam Schiff recently announced that he delivered $2.2 million to funding projects in South Lake Tahoe, as part of $254 million that he secured in federal funding for California. These projects will fund specific infrastructure along Park Avenue and at 3900 Lake Tahoe Boulevard.
$1.2 million to water
A spokesperson for Schiff said the Congressionally Directed Spending was secured through the Senate Appropriations Committee’s Interior and Environment Subcommittee.
The funding went to a project along Park Avenue to replace waterlines that experience frequent leaks. It will upsize over 1,500 feet of linear feet of water mains, replacing the 2-inch and 6-inch pipes with 8 to 12-inch mains, which are also more resilient. The project also will install new fire hydrants on Park Avenue. According to Shelly Thomsen, director of public and legislative affairs at the South Tahoe Public Utility District (STPUD), it is a key component of the long-term strategy to build wildfire-resilient communities.
STPUD Board President Shane Romsos said, “These funds are critical for replacing outdated water mains, ensuring a safe and reliable drinking water supply and installing new fire hydrants to better protect our community.”
General manager Paul Hughes said, “By investing in upsized waterlines and new fire hydrants, this federal funding helps ensure we have the water capacity necessary to defend our community during a wildfire.”
Construction will begin in 2027.
$1 million to housing
The congressionally directed spending for housing was secured by Schiff through the Senate Appropriations Committee’s Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee, according to Schiff’s spokesperson.
The funding when to the Lake Tahoe Boulevard Apartments project at 3900 and 3908 Lake Tahoe Boulevard, which is part of the surplus land for affordable housing. The project was approved back in 2022, and the planning commission approved the project in April of last year.
The apartments will be deed restricted and are meant to provide housing for those at or below 80% of the area median income (AMI).
SMR Development’s CEO said last year that groundwork would not happen until the project was fully funded, and projected a best-case scenario of breaking ground this spring if they were given grant funding in December. These funds make it possible to begin construction work once they are distributed.
“The City of South Lake Tahoe is grateful to its federal and state partners, including Senator Adam Schiff and members of the U.S. House, for their collective efforts in securing $1 million in funding to support the development of much-needed workforce housing,” said Mayor Cody Bass. “This investment in housing will help strengthen our local economy, support local businesses, and expand access to a key employment center in the region.”
Teaching in the Age of AI
On essay days in Craig Rowe’s classroom at Truckee High School, the rules are simple: nothing written at home.
Students open their school-issued Chromebooks, log into Google Docs, and begin typing. Rowe can see who made changes, what they changed, and when. If the document has a timestamp of 11:42 p.m. on a Thursday night, he knows rules were broken.
“Here’s something you don’t hear from a teacher,” Rowe tells his students. “I do not want you to do this for homework.”
Just a few years ago, take-home essays were standard practice in English classes. Now, Rowe — who describes himself as an “old-school English teacher” — has moved much of his writing into the classroom, not because he suddenly believes homework is ineffective, but because of artificial intelligence.
Programs like ChatGPT and Google Gemini can now generate a competent five-paragraph essay in seconds. They can brainstorm topics, build outlines, write introductions, and edit rough drafts. And while school networks may block these tools, most students carry a smartphone or have a personal laptop that can access them without restriction.
In the Tahoe/Truckee schools, as in schools across the country, the question is no longer whether students will use artificial intelligence. The question is how schools can preserve learning in a world where the work students are asked to do can now be done by a machine.
Administration: Guardrails
At the helm of Tahoe Truckee Unified School District’s Technological Services is Ed Hilton. The department’s motto is Where Students Master Technology for Their Future.
“We’ve got to prepare our students for college, career, and life, and technology is one of those things in every career,” Hilton said. “So, ultimately we’re supporting our kids and using those tools that they’ll be expected to use when they move on from Tahoe Truckee.”
One of those specific tools is AI. “After ChatGPT came on the scene in 2023 we decided to test out some tools, especially in Google workspace. We use some productivity tools,” he said. “And I guess what we’re still concerned about is employees using tools that we haven’t vetted. Especially right as things came out, we did a lot of employee training, like to not upload student info so AI is not training on student info.”
Hilton estimates that in their Google and other curriculum tools, “about 1/3 use some sort of AI in the background.”
He was quick to make a distinction on AI: “If you’re talking about up-font AI-use like ChatGPT, it’s just the staff. Students can’t go to ChatGPT or Google Gemini. Only staff have access.”
Each student at TTUSD is given a Chromebook, which is a streamlined laptop running Google Chrome OS, for school use from kindergarten through the senior year of high school. Kids in younger grades leave the laptops at school, older students take them home for homework, the transition happening in middle school. While on their Chromebooks, or while utilizing a school’s Wi-Fi network, up-front AI tools and a variety of websites are blocked.
Yet many students, especially in high school, have their own laptops as well. When not on school Wi-Fi, these computers (not to mention the smart-phone in most middle school and high schoolers’ pockets) have no restrictions on any AI tool or website.
Hilton acknowledged this, and that students utilizing “front end AI” has been problematic.
“As far as academic honesty, teachers are having those conversations,” he said, noting that the district has just finished a draft of its AI policy, which has been in the works since October with input from three public meetings between administrators, staff, and parents, that Hilton believes will be ratified before the end of the school year. “But we are not going to put our head in the sand. AI is definitely part of the students’ future.”
Hilton repeatedly noted that any use of AI in the district has to be “secure” and “safe.” He pushed on the need for transparency and visibility of how students are using it, and averred that there must be guardrails in place that would, essentially, allow students to use some AI tools for schoolwork, but not all of them.
“Any tool should have some sort of scaffolding to students,” he said. “In that, you don’t get the race car right away, we teach you to drive first.”
TTUSD administrators and educators are watching how the test drive goes in another Placer County school. (Though TTUSD spans three counties, the district is under Placer jurisdiction.) Rocklin Unified has, in Hilton’s term, “deployed” more front-end school-wide AI tools, namely Google Gemini, into their curriculum — okayed and even encouraged for classroom and schoolwide use.
“Our students will use AI in their jobs. But it’s come so quickly — the use, the integration and all the different things,” Hilton said. “We want to make sure we are doing it correctly. The question isn’t are we using it or not, but is it beneficial or not? If we come up with educators who say it’s not beneficial, we won’t use it. But putting our head in sand and saying AI doesn’t exist is not valuable either.”
Teachers: Protect the Learning Process
While Rowe assiduously protects students’ writing process from AI, he is also working on ways to implement the newly evolving tech tools.
“What’s the role of AI in classrooms?” he asked rhetorically. “I think there is one. But the balance of where and when to use them is a work in progress with educators, myself included.”
Rowe’s approach depends on his classes, from AP Language and AP Literature courses to his communications class. In the latter, for instance, student presentations are a large part of the curriculum. He not only okays AI-use for aspects of these, but encourages it. “AI tools are really great for research,” he said, noting an example of a student looking into the difference between engineering programs at various colleges, and how just a few years ago the research could “take days” but “now it’s one query.”
He finds a boon in using AI-generated graphics as well. “I feel like for project-based stuff and visuals, AI has some really cool tools. If someone is giving a mini Shark Tank style presentation in my communications class, I encourage them to use AI for their visuals. In the past, students may not have had much for visual aids, and now it’s almost professional level visuals and art.”
While striving to keep ideation and writing a human-powered endeavor, Rowe does see educational benefit from AI’s use on “the back end” of essay-writing. He talks of a student who had a near-final draft of her paper but wasn’t sure if her tone was coming through as intended. The student, Rowe said, “plugged it into AI, into Gemini, and asked if the tone she had intended to use was the tone that came through.” The feedback the student received, per Rowe, was useful.
But as for writing, Rowe is wary of AI taking over too much of the critical thinking and drafting that has always been vital to the creation of an essay.
“I’ve definitely had my days when I’m grading, and I’ll read something that is just so obvious AI, and it’s depressing quite frankly,” Rowe said. “My initial reaction is that, ‘yeah we have to lock ’em down and just handwrite everything.’ And then I calm down and ask myself, “What is our mission?’” He answers his own question with: “It’s not for students to get a good grade in my class but to prepare our young people to be contributors in society.”
Rowe returned to the need for balance, and the importance for discussion. “Everyone is navigating their way through it,” he said. “This is classic where the technology is way out in front of the policies and the teaching methods.”
“The kids,” he concluded, “are adapting to AI really quickly. Much quicker than the educators and the school policies.”
Laurie Cussen, who teaches history and social studies courses at Truckee High, believes in not shortcutting the learning process. “AI is a tool for productivity once you’re out of education [and into the workforce],” she said. “That makes sense, but the learning has to happen before.”
She makes an apt comparison: “My first grader is a perfect example. He is learning arithmetic, addition, and subtraction. We’ve had calculators forever that could do that for him. But it is so much better for his neuropathways for him to do it himself — to learn how to do it himself.”
“We are in neuropathway building,” she said of herself and her fellow teachers. “We need to protect the productive struggle.”
Cussen gave another analogy: As a wrestler becomes a better wrestler through the struggle of wrestling, learners become better learners through the struggle of learning. Though she acknowledges using AI in some of her own lesson planning, she “shies away” from using AI in her classroom “because it is such a convenient shortcut.”
However, she does see a benefit for students to use AI as “a clarifier of concepts,” going as far as instructing her students to use AI at home to make practice quizzes, referring to it as “as a study companion.”
As for class time, Cussen echoed Mr. Rowe’s sentiments. “[AI] can do any assignment we do in class,” she said, lamenting that the school “is seeing a lot of stuff turned in that is purely done by AI.”
“If you want to ensure that the work is purely student generated, all the work has to be done in the classroom. If you let it go home, you know it’s not all student work.”
“I see class time as preserving the productive struggle, not giving students the cognitive offramp,” Cussen continued. “Protect the space of learning in class, then when you go home, use AI.”
The soft skills of communication, collaboration, problem solving, teamwork, and critical thinking must remain at the core of curriculum, she said. AI proficiency, on the other hand, she observed, can be coached in shorter time spans, through short-courses or future employees, down the road. “Learning the soft skills in school is vital,” she emphasized.
Students: The Reality
Kate and Maria are juniors in AP courses at Truckee High. They have been in TTUSD schools since their elementary school days, and they say this year has been their most academically rigorous thus far. They both want to go to college, with some big names in education on their lists of desired schools. Both are taking an AP-heavy courseload. To protect their privacy, their names have been changed.
Both agreed that a difference regarding AI in this school year is “the teachers are more on edge about it in general.” The students spoke about the restrictions regarding AI-use on tests and certain assignments when on school Wi-Fi and Chromebooks.
“But for online homework, there are no restrictions like that,” Kate said. Both she and Maria have their own personal laptops. They said teachers sometimes do encourage or even instruct homework assignments to be completed with AI. Other times, students simply opt to use it.
“I do think sometimes it’s beneficial to use Chat GPT or Gemini because it can help answer questions you don’t know,” Maria said. “Let’s say there was a formula in math that I can’t remember, it can help me. It’s nice to have a website like Chat GPT you can trust to explain it to you step by step.”
The students echoed the idea of the AI study companion.
“Chat GPT for me is really useful for studying for tests because some teachers don’t give study guides,” Kate said, saying that she copies and pastes content from her Google Classroom page into one of the programs to have the AI generate, for instance, “flash cards for unit three of [class].”
When asked, in their view, if they had ever overstepped the ethical bounds of AI-use on an assignment, Maria answered, “Honestly, not really.” Both described how passing AP tests to receive the valuable college credits means that the student actually has to learn the material. (One cannot use AI tools on the test, for instance.) The two juniors also spoke to a genuine desire to learn for learning’s sake.
Maria stated that she did not use AI before she started taking AP classes. “I think learning has definitely changed a lot,” she said.
Still, similar to what their teachers and administrators have noticed, Kate and Maria also see some students finding workarounds and overly relying on AI, using it, in some cases, to complete the entirety, or the near-entirety, of an assignment.
“I definitely think kids are getting stupider from using it too much,” Kate said.
But both do not blame their peers for the overuse. “It’s just so accessible to just search up the answer if you don’t have time,” Kate said.
As for writing, the juniors find AI to be a key tool. “Honestly, writing is more like a first draft, not editing,” Kate said. ‘If I feel like I need editing, I’ll run it through Chat GPT.”
She usually writes out “one to two drafts” on her own before (and if) she seeks AI editing.
When a human-written draft is “run through” an AI program for editing, per the detection software turnitin.app, it is more difficult to catch than if the draft was initially generated by AI. Further hindrances to detection arise when an AI-generated first draft is edited by a human, when there is mixed AI-human authorship; or when content is too short to provide sufficient linguistic data, i.e., a paragraph-length piece rather than an essay-length.
Kate and Maria also noted using AI as a writing tutor on their essays for the “little things you can use ChatGPT for, like topic points or information … how do I format it …what facts do I put in … to see if I need a smoother transition on this” … “When I have no idea what to write about” and to “put it in and see how it’s going to grade me.”
When the students were asked if they work harder or less hard when they use an AI program like ChatGPT on their schoolwork, the students said: “Definitely less effort because it gives you the exact answer.”
How to not be tempted to use AI or other digital technology? Get rid of the screen.
“In my history class where there’s lectures, you can ask questions while you go over the information and take notes,” Maria said. “You don’t have any technology out, and you’re totally focused on the teacher and what they’re saying. I think that’s more impactful, the lecture and taking notes with pen and paper. Way more beneficial for sure. A lot of times when I take notes on my computer, I get sidetracked and open different tabs. When it’s pen and paper, I don’t have that excuse.”
Nevada: The Transplant and the Chatbot
In North Lake Tahoe, Incline Village schools fall under the Washoe County School District. I spoke with an early-grade elementary school teacher who wished to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal. She moved to the district from a state where, she said, schools were moving away from classroom technology. In Nevada, she found the opposite. “All curriculum is online,” she said of her classes. Even when she reads a book aloud, the students no longer gather around a physical copy with pages that she fans while teaching; the book is displayed on a screen.
She acknowledged that not all studies show classroom technology to improve learning outcomes, but in her new district, its use is expanding rather than shrinking. She broached how her school has “just implemented an app for kids to do their reading homework on instead of them reading books and completing a reading log.”
The app is called Paloma. Per its LinkedIn page, the company “is a venture-backed edtech startup that harnesses AI to unleash parents’ untapped teaching potential.” In short, Paloma’s AI generates personalized books aligned to what it knows about a student’s learning needs and personal/familial interests, and texts the student’s family a daily tutoring lesson plan.
“A few parents have actually complained since they do not want their child on technology,” the teacher said.
When I was unable to reach administrators at Incline High School, I turned to the district’s website, where I found something no other Tahoe/Truckee area school site had: an AI assistant. The chatbot introduces itself in writing: “Hi, I’m Ask your WCSD AI Assistant. How can I help you today?”
I asked it a simple question: Do Incline High students use AI?
The response began: “The Washoe County School District acknowledges that AI is rapidly reshaping education and can be a powerful tool for expanding learning.” The answer went on for several paragraphs, outlining both benefits and drawbacks, and included a statement that the district had established a framework “that ensures AI is used responsibly, ethically, and effectively.”
In my conversations with educators for this article, that was the first time I had heard the word “ensure” used in reference to students’ ethical AI use.
I asked the chatbot another question: How come AI is so good for first graders?
It responded that AI can “enhance learning,” “foster creativity,” and “personalize learning to meet individual needs, even at an early age.”
Then I asked a question more specific to writing: Is editing writing?
The AI responded that “editing is an integral part of the writing process,” and that “writing encompasses the entire process from ideation to the final product.” So, I asked a follow-up: Can AI help students with ideating and editing an essay?
“Yes,” the chatbot responded, stating that students are encouraged to use AI for brainstorming, for planning ideas and organizing thoughts, and in editing drafts.
Reading the responses, I wrote an if/then statement in my notebook. If ideation and editing are integral aspects of writing an essay and students are encouraged to use AI for them, then does that not innately represent cognitive offloading of integral aspects of writing an essay?
Yes, I believe it does.
When I returned a few days later and asked the chatbot the same questions again, its answers were similar, but not identical. The AI, it seemed, had learned — and altered its answers in subtle but noticeable ways.
Waldorf: Trees Before Tech
Public schools are by no means the only option for students and parents in Tahoe/Truckee. Truckee alone offers a number of private and charter schools. I reached out to many and heard back from some, learning that each is either allowing or encouraging AI in its curriculum to varying degrees.
One curriculum, however, stood out as unique — Tahoe Truckee Waldorf’s, which teaches students on three campuses from preschool through eighth grade.
“We are a tech-free school and community,” said Alexandra Ball, the school’s admissions manager. “You will not find tech in our classrooms. We ask our families to be cognizant of screentime at home as well.”
Waldorf schools have been around for over 100 years, and they are built on principles of a comprehensive and holistic education aimed to grow students’ intellectual, creative, artistic, and practical skills. Standardized testing is typically limited, and teachers are given a relatively wider range of curriculum autonomy. Nature, play, music, and imagination are widely emphasized as integral tools for learning. A motto of Tahoe Truckee Waldorf is “Trees before Tech.”
“We are tech free not because we are anti-technology but because we believe in developing children’s cognitive abilities and critical thinking abilities before they are introduced to it,” Ball continued, noting the value of human interactions and dealing with real-life situations as educational keys in Tahoe Truckee Waldorf’s curriculum. “We believe it gives children a better start in life.”
Ball grew up in Washington State and went to The Seattle Waldorf School through eighth grade. She has lived in the Tahoe/Truckee area for “about a decade” and all three of her children are in the Tahoe Truckee Waldorf schools.
“It has been proven that technology is not great for attention spans and things like that,” she said. “Plus, it is not really showing that it helps children in reading, comprehension, or aptitude. Countries typically rated high in education, like Sweden, are moving away from technology and back to paper and handwriting. We are not doing anything revolutionary, we are just doubling down on what’s [been] proven to work.
“I believe strongly in giving my kids and all children the best way to develop themselves. As a parent, before I send my children out to the world, I hope their whole brain is being used.”
Adoption: Playing Catch-Up
By the time I got to high school, auto shop had been removed from the curriculum. At the time, I didn’t think much of it. But as an adult who has spent thousands of hours driving, I truly wish my school had found a way to keep that class, and that I would have been taught about the inter-workings of such a crucial thing that my world would entail.
Perhaps it’s the same with today’s students and AI, the auto shop of yesteryear — a tool students will use constantly in their adult lives, whether schools fully embrace it or not.
By many criteria, AI is the most powerful tool the world has ever seen. In reaction, teachers talk about “protecting the productive struggle.” Administrators talk about guardrails. Students talk about accessibility and pressure and time. What they all agree on is that it’s not going away.
When human beings adopt a technology, we adapt to it. We built roads for our cars. We rearranged our living rooms for our televisions. We reorganized our attention spans for our smartphones. And now it’s AI.
Schools are trying to figure out how to adapt to this powerful newcomer — how to use artificial intelligence without letting it replace the very skills schools exist to teach. The technology is moving quickly. The policies, and the classrooms, are trying to catch up.
Cleaning Tahoe from the Bottom Up
On a clear and calm Thursday morning, a group of six meets on a pontoon boat at the Tahoe City Marina for a dive. Though everyone there is a return volunteer, Clean Up the Lake Operations Manager Klemen Robnik reviews the plans, everyone’s tasks, and boat and high-altitude-dive safety. After the safety debrief, volunteer Roman Versch, who serves as the group’s boat captain, navigates the boat to the last marked GPS location in Hurricane Bay where the previous divers left off.
Most of the lake’s litter and debris is never seen by people who recreate here, but it is quietly collected by Clean Up the Lake, a volunteer-based (1,300 strong) nonprofit organization. CUTL is on its second circumnavigation of Lake Tahoe’s 72-mile shoreline — this time at a greater depth.
The lake is still and glassy as volunteer Cole Wagner and Operations Assistant Nick Krozek suit up and plop into the water, followed by Rose Demoret, who serves as the kayaker and primary data collector, trailing after the divers’ bubbles.
“So, each time we go out on a dive, I’m actually running a Strava route, so I’m following as close as I can in the path that the divers take, so that they have that data to analyze and see exactly where they have been,” Demoret said. “The other component to that is sometimes they come across items that can’t be picked up.” In that case, divers mark the heavy or bulky items to return to.
In the sweet spot of about 45 feet below the surface, the divers float slowly through the cold water, scanning the lakebed. At such a depth, nitrox — a mixture of nitrogen and oxygen — allows them to stay under water for longer. Cradled in the silt is a trove of trash the divers gather and aquatic invasive species they document.
This particular day the divers cover 0.37 miles, collecting over 150 pounds of litter including a soggy orange shag rug that looks like it fell off an Austin Powers set. Bulky items like the rug are sent to the surface via an inflated, bright orange heavy lift bag, which Robnik then retrieves and inspects to see what’s attached.
“We usually pull out roughly 500 to 1,000 pounds a month,” Robnik said.
He recalled a full, five-step staircase the crew found in Carnelian Bay, several boat ladders, tarps, chains, and lost anchors.
“It never goes away unless it’s salvaged,” Versch said.
Going the Extra Mile
“Initially I was like, there’s not much at all to do here. Lake Tahoe is so clean and so beautiful,” said CUTL Founder and CEO Colin West. “Under the surface … the problem’s just been perpetuating out of sight and out of mind.”
There are piles upon piles of trash in the lake, according to him. Clean Up the Lake’s 72 Mile Cleanup2 began with a deep-clean pilot-project in 2025 at depths up to 25 feet. The first cleanup successfully collected 25,281 pounds of trash. This year’s haul is anticipated to surpass that amount.
The current project kicked off on the West Shore border of Placer County in December. Because Lake Tahoe is calm and free from recreation traffic in winter, cleanup days are booked through the chilly months, leading to divers in wetsuits coming up shivering.
Clean Up the Lake is now traveling clockwise around the lake, following the contours of the shore and scoping out the 35- to 55-foot-deep swath of lakebed. The dives will continue through summer. As of the Ink’s publication, this second cleanup has completed 23 dive days and three sorting days, removing more than 3,557 pounds of debris.
“Based on those numbers over our mileage,” Programs Manager Jenny Uvira said, “it projected for us to actually collect more trash in 35 to 55 depth range than we did in the original circumnavigation.”
Uvira guessed that the tipping point might happen near the project’s 62-mile mark. West emphasized it’s a projection; the reality has yet to be seen.
“The only way we know is once we swim across and clean it up ourselves,” West said.
So, what’s down there? Alpine lakes are barren in regards to plant life, but there is an abundance of litter.
“You can’t see it until it comes up,” Versch explained. “The divers see it underwater. You don’t realize how much trash is really in the lake. And so much more than I ever imagined.”
Clean Up the Lake’s mission is to conserve lakes across the Eastern Sierra.
“I’ve had the pleasure of visiting other areas around the world and I’ve seen what can become of our environment and our underwater environments if we disregard them, if we don’t take action now while we can, to protect them and protect the beautiful, wild, and natural look that it’s been for so long,” West said.
West came up with the idea to start a nonprofit when he traveled to Belize and saw trash-ridden beaches on stretches of unmaintained shoreline.
“And I think Tahoe is one of those few areas that still shows signs of how it’s always been. But unfortunately, you know, the litter, the New Zealand mud snail, the Asian clams, the Eurasian modern milfoil, curly leaf pond weed, goldfish, bass, the invasive [species], the garbage, the algae growth from runoff, and nutrient loading — all these problems are really starting to have a detrimental effect on Lake Tahoe.”
The Aftermath of Trash
“I think a lot of people just think we pull trash out of the lake and then throw it out and take it to the dump,” Uvira said, “but it’s so much more than that. We sort our trash into 83 different categories.”
The main categories are plastics, metal, glass, and wood, which contain subcategories such as plastic utensils, plastic fishing gear, and others — within plastics, there are 27 different subcategories. Uvira said sorting the trash helps identify problems in different parts of the lake. Near buoy fields, for instance, divers find items like boat covers and metal bird-deterrents. At the current depth they are focused on, heavier items and lots of beer cans and beverage bottles have settled.
Even though they find so much litter, volunteers and employees of Clean Up the Lake think the lake is becoming cleaner.
“In the past, there was a lot more littering. We do find lots more trash that’s a little bit older. And if we revisit an area after a while, chances are that there’s going to be less trash,” Robnik said about his personal observations in the field. “The environmental consciousness of people has gotten better, and we are noticing a lot more of modern litter is accidental littering.”
But that doesn’t mean the accumulated litter is without its detriments.
“If the litter’s not removed, the thousand-plus tires we’ve removed break down and turn into microplastics, make their way into drinking water,” West said. “I’ve seen tons of wildlife entanglement in our lakes of huge, beautiful trout being caught in fishing lines.”
Uvira commented that though the overall weight of plastic that they collect tends to be lower than that of other materials, the number of fragments and microplastics is high. The more plastic degrades, the smaller the particles become, and the harder they are to remove from the drinking water Tahoe provides.
Elizabeth Everest, the consulting environmental scientist and GIS expert for CUTL, noted that when debris like rubber begins to break down, it introduces toxins into the water.
“Once items have been removed from the lake, there’s less of an impact moving forward,” she explained. “But obviously, as things break down, those small pieces that can’t be physically removed are going to remain in the lake for a really long time.”
The effect of toxins in the water, changes in the ecosystem caused by aquatic invasive species, and rising temperatures accumulate and worsen without actions from organizations like Clean Up the Lake.
“These cleanups are fixing the mistakes of our past. We’ve got decades and decades of litter that’s stacked up underneath lakes here,” West said. “Fresh water is one of our most crucial resources and is only going to become more important as we have 73-degree stretches [all] month long in March [at] 7,000 feet. Climate change is happening. It’s here. It’s been in Tahoe all month long. So, we need to protect these freshwater resources that we have.”
Clean Up the Lake remains optimistic, dive by dive, pound of trash after pound of trash removed.
“I feel like we are making strides, and we’re going in the right direction,” West said. “And hopefully we can continue to spread this work.”
The team emphasized that the sooner debris is removed, the less it will degrade and impact water quality. You don’t need a scuba tank to pitch in.
“If you see a piece of trash, pick it up,” Demoret said. “It’s really pretty easy to keep a little plastic bag or an extra bag with you to collect a little bit of trash any time that you go out. If everybody does a small impact picking up a couple trash items on the shoreline, then one, they’re not going to end up in the water, and then two, it won’t be on the shoreline for people to see. You don’t have to make a huge effort.”
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Join Clean Up the Lake on Earth Day, April 22, for a cleanup at the Tahoe City Marina. Find more opportunities for volunteering at cleanupthelake.org/volunteer
Mountain-Style Ballroom
Everything’s Meeeeeelting
Healing After the Avalanche
In early March, Washoe Tribe members led a ceremony to support Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue volunteers who had been responders at the devastating Feb. 17 Castle Peak avalanche. While details are private, two statements were shared with Moonshine Ink.
Darrel Cruz, Washoe Tribe member, said, “I want to acknowledge the Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue and thank them for their dedication to the community and for their recent response to the Castle Peak avalanche tragedy.
“We all go back to our roots for the basic spirituality of healing and in times like this, this is what neighbors do for each other.”
~ Darrel Cruz
“Team members who responded to the emergency felt a degree of trauma and grief having to confront what they had to go through that left them with a need to heal. TNSAR reached out to people of the Washoe Tribe to ask for a ceremony to help them heal and replenish their soul through a Washoe sweat ceremony. The Washoe replied and held a special ceremony for the TNSAR team members.
“We all go back to our roots for the basic spirituality of healing and in times like this, this is what neighbors do for each other.”
Troy Corliss, TNSAR volunteer, answered, “Tahoe Nordic SAR thanks the Waší:šiw members for welcoming our request and hosting the sweat lodge ceremony for us. Meeting you and participating in the ceremony helped us to move through a difficult time. We are grateful to you for sharing your customs and guiding us through this ceremony of prayer and healing. May we continue the friendship that you have offered to us.”
Frank James LaMarque: Jan. 11, 1949 – Dec. 16, 2025
Frank LaMarque passed away peacefully on Dec. 16 after a prolonged struggle with respiratory disease.
Born in St. Louis, MO, to Frank and Lillian LaMarque, Frank attended Sumner High School and later the University of Missouri, where he made friendships that have lasted a lifetime.
During the Vietnam War, Frank enlisted in the military, serving as a medic in the US Army. While stationed in Germany, Frank met Suzanne and Clarisse Robert, and, at their invitation, came to Lake Tahoe. One look at the lake, and Frank decided he was never leaving.
For the next 56 years, Frank made Tahoe City his home, starting by managing Joe Marillac’s Squaw Valley ski shop. Frank later opened Frank’s Tunes, which later became Jobey’s Records, which he co-owned for many years. He later moved to become a supervisor for Sierra Rainbow Painting for over 25 years, and lastly, as he was approaching retirement, he worked at A Santes Lakeside Fitness.
Frank married Andrea Streepy and fathered a daughter, Aisha Carmel, who tragically died in early adulthood, leaving four grandchildren, for whom Frank acted as guardian until his death.
Before his health betrayed him, Frank’s love for the game of golf would have him on the course in Tahoe City regularly, keeping the greens keepers busy repairing divots. When he finally got a hole-in-one, he became an incurable golfaholic.
But what he did cure was his struggle with alcohol. A recovered alcoholic, Frank threw himself into the AA program with passion and became a model for others on their path to sobriety. In his 35 years sober, he sponsored many people and literally saved many lives.
His huge grin, infectious laugh, and heart of gold will be sorely missed by all the many friends he had in this community and by all that he touched along the way.
A celebration of life is planned for Saturday, May 9, at 2 p.m. at the Tahoe City Golf Course.
When Markets Get Rocky, Discipline Matters Most
When the news turns grim and market volatility increases, it can feel like uncertainty is everywhere. Scroll through the headlines and it makes sense why investors feel uneasy.
A war in Iran and an ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine have led to a surge in global energy prices, sparking fears of higher inflation. Evidence suggesting tariffs put on imported goods have been passed through to us, the consumer and small business, putting further upward pressure on inflation.
Recently reported weak job growth may be signaling a slowing economy. Combine all these concerns and we have the makings of 1970’s stagflation: slow growth and high inflation. Truckee, and our region more broadly, are not immune to these global influences.
The recently released Business Listening Tour conducted by the Truckee Chamber of Commerce reflects these concerns. According to Chamber President and CEO Jessica Penman, chamber members report thinning margins while revenues remain steady. These anecdotal reports likely reflect cost pressures due to tariffs, among other influences.
With stories like these, it is a normal reaction to wonder, “Should I be doing something with my investments right now?”
This reaction stems from the same fight-or-flight instinct that helped our ancestors survive physical danger. When we feel threatened, our natural response is to react quickly. While a market decline is not a physical threat, our brains can respond as if it were. When portfolios fall and uncertainty rises, the urge to act can be strong.
Feeling uneasy during volatile markets is completely normal, but reacting too quickly is where many investors get into trouble. Looking back at the last 100 years, some terrible things have happened: among other events, a depression, a world war, an assassinated president, an oil embargo, a global financial crisis, a pandemic, and yet the market keeps moving upward, although not in a straight line. While every downturn feels unique in the moment, history tells a consistent story — disciplined investors with a thoughtful plan are rewarded for staying the course.
A sound investment strategy does not rely on predicting the terrible thing. Instead, it is built on accepting that terrible things do happen, and that markets will process the information, look forward, and adjust accordingly.
Our reaction to market fluctuations is one of the biggest challenges in investing. The biggest influence on our portfolios is not investment performance; it is investor behavior. We are emotional beings, especially when it comes to our money, and human behavior often works against us during volatile periods. Recognizing how emotions and psychological biases can influence financial decisions is a valuable skill.
One of the most common biases we carry is loss aversion, the tendency to feel the pain of loss more strongly than the satisfaction of gains. Discomfort like this can trigger a strong urge to act, to sell, or to wait until things look better. Unfortunately, these decisions are often made after markets have already declined rather than before. And because markets are forward-looking, by the time “things look better,” a recovery is well underway. This is a sure way to go broke by selling low and buying high.
Two other behavioral traps that frequently appear during volatile markets are herd mentality and recency bias.
Herd mentality occurs when investors act based on the actions of others. If everyone around us seems worried, that anxiety can spread quickly. If others are reacting to the headlines we are also seeing, it makes sense to feel that we should be doing something too. Following the crowd has historically led to poor investment decisions.
Recency bias is the tendency to place weight on recent experiences and assume they will continue indefinitely. The most recent experience influences our perception of risk, and, during downturns, investors may feel things will only get worse. Conversely, during strong rallies, confidence grows and risk-taking increases. Neither is a healthy long-term investment approach.
Two time-tested ideas should guide your investment philosophy. First, markets tend to be remarkably efficient at incorporating available information into prices. Second, diversification matters. Since none of us has a crystal ball and we cannot predict which sectors or countries will outperform next, it makes sense to hold highly diversified investments. If not at least one of your investments is making you mad all the time, you are not diversified.
Investing, in many ways, is about preparation. Living in the mountains, we do not wait until the first snow to think about firewood or snow tires. We prepare ahead of time because we know that winter storms are inevitable.
Markets work the same way. Portfolios should be built not just for sunny days, but for the storms that inevitably appear. And when the storms arrive, as they always do, the investors who prepared ahead of time are usually the ones best positioned to stay calm, stay disciplined, and stay invested.
~ Jessica Abrams and John Manocchio are CFP® professionals with Pacific Crest Wealth Planning serving the Truckee/Tahoe region. Both Jessica and John are passionate about their community and volunteer service. Jessica is an active member of the Rotary Club of Truckee and John is an active member of the Truckee Optimist Club.
Market Watch | April 2026
Brought to you by TLUXP.com
The market, like our weather, is showing signs of early spring. Sales activity was up with the sun across all micro markets in the Tahoe Sierra and Incline Village MLS. With listing inventory generally down and buyer activity high, we are seeing some multiple offer situations and properties selling above asking. The warm sunny weather has brought buyers out in force, and everyone’s eyes tilt toward summer. This bodes well for sellers who are looking for an early season deal. We’ll see if the activity stays strong or the market fades with the snow.
Success is Succeeding
In the December/January issue of Moonshine Ink I wrote about struggle — suggesting that without it, one cannot contact victory, i.e., success. Now we will explore what success look like, and how we can get better at attaining it.
My life’s experience has shown that success is fleeting. Complete a challenging project, and a new project comes right on its heels to present a new set of challenges. Work through a relationship conflict only to have another difficult issue give us something else to suffer through.
And even in those occasions when I’ve found myself in a “successful place,” it’s not long before my idea of success changes and turns toward something new. Success, in this way, is never a final destination but an ongoing work in progress. A thing that takes practice.
Someone who is good at succeeding, most often is simply someone who has put in the practice time, learned what is important to them, and gotten good at getting there. They are sensitive to, and appreciate, the signs that show them they are going in the right direction. Equally, this person observes when a choice they make leads them away from their definition of success.
Thus, either experience is succeeding — because it leads them toward their true path.
I often say that developing a practice of succeeding begins with introspection. For many of us, this may be the hardest step. Why? Because introspection is where we must contact the struggle we are living with so we may expose the avoidance behavior that is masking our values.
Maybe we avoid opportunities to act upon our desire to move up from our current position at work. We fear the risk involved because the move up will expose us to greater scrutiny, and to our inner voice that says, “I’m not qualified.”
But this type of inner voice is not a path to success. No, this type of inner voice represents the unfortunate human tendency toward self-sabotage. This is not a practice of succeeding. However, in this situation, the simple act of noticing your reluctance to expose yourself toward a better future is a step toward success — because it can and will motivate you to take a different approach than the one that leaves you in the same spot as before.
And small, reasonable steps are a good place for your success practice to start.
Still, cultivating a practice of succeeding may take some guidance. There are many facets that contribute to a productive success practice. And we must notice the signs of success in order to succeed.
First, we must come to understand our relationship between willpower, activity, and magnetism/attraction. These are the foundations of succeeding. We must know where we want to go before we can go there.
And we must take action in that direction to go there.
But this doesn’t mean it’s time to try to conquer the world. It means putting your energy into an activity, in the right direction for you, that is comfortably doable. Identify opportunities to volunteer, or ask your superior for more responsibility. Also, practice daily, reinforcing affirmations of the perspective you wish to possess: “I leave behind both my failures and accomplishments. What I do today will create a new and better future for me and those I love.”
Once you’ve begun a regular practice of purposeful action toward what’s import to you, be on the lookout for what you attract. These are the “wins,” however small, that we must notice and embrace — like the new, exciting idea that pops into your head or when a promising, unexpected opportunity is offered out of the blue.
Some of these wins may seem completely unrelated to our will, but if we are intentional and conscious we can often see their interrelatedness.
It’s fascinating — with how precious skiing, climbing, or mountain biking are to so many of us — and the practice we give those sports to become good at them — that we don’t typically consider practicing success.
But to make a better powder turn takes incremental steps toward improvement. It’s the same with success. To succeed, we practice succeeding.
~ Rich Breuner is a behavior analyst and therapist who practices in Truckee. He may be contacted through his website, newtrendaba.com
Intimate Incline Village event aims to raise money for global fresh water solutions
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. – Something unexpected will be happening this May at Bowl Incline: music is becoming a vehicle for compassion, and stories are turning into something far more tangible – clean water.
The event, called “Words to Water,” is not a typical concert. Now in its second year, it is an intimate gathering rooted in love, storytelling and a shared belief that small acts can ripple outward in life-changing ways.
At the heart of it are friendships formed years ago in unlikely places. One began at a charity event in Texas, where musician Josh Jenkins and WaterHope co-founder Steve Tomkovicz (who also owns Bowl Incline with his wife Tracy) met by chance when seated at the same table. What started as small talk grew into a lasting brotherhood – one grounded in faith, mentorship and a shared desire to serve others.
That relationship would eventually evolve into a collaboration that blends music and mission.
WaterHope, the nonprofit behind the event, has spent more than two decades working to provide clean drinking water to communities around the world. The need for clean water is urgent: according to the website, every year, over 800,000 children under the age of five die from diseases linked to contaminated water.
“Words to Water” approaches that crisis in a deeply human way. Instead of a large, impersonal concert, the event creates a space where about 350 people gather close to the stage, where no seat is far from the performers. Songwriters share not just their music, but the stories behind it like the birth of a child, the memory of a grandfather, or the quiet moments that inspired lyrics now heard around the world.
“It’s more than a concert,” said Jenkins. “We’re storytellers. We want to let you behind the curtain.”
That intimacy is what transforms the night.
At last year’s event, one woman, attending as a guest, was so moved by a song that she wrote a $5,000 check on the spot. This year, she’s returning to purchase an entire table, recalling how the lyrics seemed to mirror her family’s own struggles.
Moments like that are the point and the event’s name reflects its philosophy: words have power. They can divide, or they can heal. Here, they are meant to create connection and, ultimately, to help bring clean water to children who need it most.
This year, the event expands to two nights. Night one (May 9) features Nashville songwriters (Josh, his brother Matt Jenkins and J.T. Harding) sharing their craft in an unplugged format. Night two (May 23) brings John Ondrasik from the band Five for Fighting to the same intimate stage. The goal of the two nights is the same: to create a space where people leave not just entertained, but transformed.
According to Tomkovicz, attendees often describe walking out differently than they arrived – hugging loved ones a little tighter and thinking more deeply about their lives and their impact.
“It’s based on love,” he said. “If you live it, people feel it.”
In a world crowded with noise, “Words to Water” offers something quieter, and perhaps, more powerful: a reminder that stories matter, connection matters, and even a single evening can help change lives across the globe.
For ticket pricing, VIP options and more information about the event you can visit waterhope.org or bowlincline.com.
From coast to crest; Tahoe’s seafood scene will surprise you
Though it may be roughly 200 miles from the Pacific Ocean, Lake Tahoe is home to seafood establishments — and waterfront views — that rival coastal cities. From seafood markets with fresh Hawaiian poke to high-end surf-and-turf, there’s something for every price point around Big Blue.
Chart House / Stateline
Perched atop Kingsbury Grade with sweeping views of the lake below, Chart House serves up unique seafood dishes that attract South Shore locals and visitors alike. Kick off the meal with an order of kimchi calamari and spicy tuna atop crispy rice before tucking into seabass and lobster risotto or a miso-sake glazed black cod. Taking culinary inspiration from all corners of the globe, you’ll find a variety of flavors across the expansive menu, but no matter the cuisine, you can be sure the fish is fresh.
Overland Meat and Seafood / South Lake Tahoe
Fresh fish is delivered twice a week to Overland Meat and Seafood, a longstanding (and beloved) butcher and market tucked in a strip mall in South Lake Tahoe. On Fridays, grab a batch of spicy ahi tuna poke or octopus poke fresh off the plane from Hawaii. Locally owned and operated since 1987, Overland is the place to go to grab mahi mahi steaks — plus seasonings and wine pairings — to throw on the grill for the whole family.
Buoy and Trap Seafood Market / Truckee
Fifth generation Rhode Islander Zack Duksta brings East Coast flavors with a twist to Truckee at his fish market and eatery, Buoy and Trap. After stocking up on halibut, mussels and perhaps one of four varieties of caviar for later, order a glass of zippy white wine from the carefully curated wine menu before deciding between raw oysters with tarragon mignonette or the baked variety with chipotle bourbon butter. Lobster rolls — hot with butter or chilled with citrus mayo — are served on locally baked brioche from Sierra Bakehouse. The Rhode Island clam chowder — clear broth studded with quahog clams, bacon and herbs — is a perfect winter meal.
Big Water Grille / Incline Village
Tucked among the trees with views of the lake in the distance, Big Water Grille is a lively spot in Incline Village to enjoy high-end seafood dishes with creative flair. After perusing the robust wine list, kick off the meal with the ahi tuna poke with wasabi crème fraîche and crispy wonton chips. For the mains, the popular pan seared wild Alaskan halibut is topped with macadamia nut dressing and served with coconut rice, papaya rum sauce and seasonal veg. Other seafood fare includes scallops — drizzled with parsnip soubise and paired with turnip chips, paprika squash sticks and pancetta tomato jam — and the elevated mahi mahi fish and chips with housecut fries and homemade tartar sauce.
JWB Prime Steak and Seafood / South Lake Tahoe
Located inside the Margaritaville Resort in South Lake Tahoe, JWB Prime Steak and Seafood — named for James “Jimmy” William Buffett himself — boasts fresh seafood and a raw bar in its “laid-back luxe” digs. Go big from the start with a seafood tower heaped with oysters, clams, red king crab, shrimp and lobster. Add surf to your turf with a lobster tail alongside a bone-in ribeye or opt for the salmon served in miso ginger broth, bok choy and garlic confit. And if you’re looking for a unique local drink experience, cap the meal with a bourbon tasting from nearby Minden Mill Distillery.
Firefighters extinguish fire at Incline Village residence Tuesday night
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. – Authorities are currently investigating the cause of a fire that took place Tuesday night on Wheel Road in Incline Village.
At around 8:30 p.m., the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District, with assistance from the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office and North Tahoe Fire Protection District, responded to reports of a structure fire.
Firefighters found the fire contained to a single room and acted quickly, successfully preventing it from spreading to the rest of the home. Other parts of the home sustained smoke damage.
No civilians or firefighters were injured in the event.
The fire district wants to remind the public to ensure that working smoke detectors are installed on every level of a home and in sleeping areas to provide early warning in the event of a fire.
‘This is so broken’: local advocacy group calls for investigation of Liberty Utilities
LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. – After Liberty Utilities announced that they would be entering the market, it renewed TAHOE SPARK’s call for investigations into the company and their practices—especially how it affects ratepayers in the area.
Danielle Hughes, who serves as a supervisor of the California Energy Commission (CEC) and on the board of the North Tahoe Public Utility Board, said she expressed concerns around rates increasing for Tahoe customers with the 2021 general rate case for Liberty Utilities. Hughes said she formed TAHOE SPARK to represent residents, because during the rate increase, the major representation was for large commercial interests.
Now, though she says, “I keep uncovering more and more. There is clear cost-shifting happening and no one is overseeing it.” Hughes says that in her position, she noticed that Tahoe is not factored into energy modelling or in plans for the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). “This is so broken.”
The lack of oversight is a major concern for TAHOE SPARK, especially because she says it’s easy to take advantage of the more rural Northern California areas. Rates have been increasing at a faster pace than the rest of the state, and while Tahoe pays into climate programs and wildfire mitigation, Hughes says the region doesn’t receive the benefits of climate credits, which can be shifted around by companies.
A lack of transparency is a major reason why TAHOE SPARK has been advocating for a shift on the local governance level, including the city of South Lake Tahoe and reaching out to supervisors in the counties.
TAHOE SPARK is also sounding the alarm on the high profit margins of Liberty Utilities—higher than any other utility in California. Hughes also said she has pointed out they have non-disclosed lump sum payments and compared what was happening with Liberty Utilities and NV Energy (owned by Berkshire Hathaway) to the restructuring of ENRON.
“These issues are complex and hard to acknowledge when they’re this bad,” said Hughes, pointing out that both in politics and everyday life, utilities and their companies are hard to wrap your head around. “But that’s why I want to educate people about what’s happening. Otherwise, how are we going to participate in rate setting and advocating for ourselves?”
One of TAHOE SPARK’s main pushes is to get Tahoe connected with California’s energy, where there would be more required oversight and transparency. The CPUC is currently deciding on whether to open proceedings regarding Liberty Utilities’ rate increases.
According to a Liberty spokesperson, “Liberty supports public participation in CPUC proceedings, which are transparent and open to public input. Liberty’s mission is to deliver safe, affordable, reliable, and sustainable energy for our customers and communities that we serve. Liberty works collaboratively with the CPUC and other interested parties to achieve these goals.”
TAHOE SPARK is interested in looking at transparency on the generation side, and one major move that could be happening is considering Pioneer Community Energy as an option, which already services Placerville and El Dorado County. “That would allow us oversight from the local government,” said Hughes.
Hughes also urged people to reach out to their representatives about the issue, especially given the deadline in a year. State Senator Marie Alvarado-Gil is one of the representatives who is seeking input about reliable power for Tahoe. The CPUC will likely be deciding on opening proceedings within the next few weeks.
Truckee-Tahoe – Pet of the Week: Jasmine
Meet Jasmine, a sweetheart with a gentle soul and impeccable manners. This four-year-old pup is a fabulously well-behaved girl who is ready to trade shelter life for a cozy forever home where she can truly relax and shine.
At about 60 pounds, Jasmine has a calm, loving nature and thrives in peaceful environments. While she may be a little shy when meeting new people (at first), it doesn’t take long for her warm personality to blossom, especially with a bit of encouragement (and maybe a snowy play session or two). She absolutely loves the snow and lights up when she gets the chance to romp around in it.
Daily walks are one of Jasmine’s favorite activities, and she’s a dream on leash, making her an easy and enjoyable companion. She also gets along well with other dogs, showing off her polite and friendly demeanor.
At heart, Jasmine is a total snuggler. She has the sweetest habit of gently nudging her head into your hands, asking for love and connection in the most endearing way. It’s hard not to fall for her quiet charm.
Because she’s still getting used to the big, wide world, Jasmine would do best in a patient and understanding home that can give her the time and space she needs to adjust. In return, she’ll offer unwavering loyalty, soft snuggles, and a peaceful presence that will make your house feel like home.
If you’re looking for a kind-hearted companion to share quiet moments and snowy adventures with, Jasmine just might be your perfect match.
If you are interested in meeting Jasmine or learning more about her, please get in touch with one of HSTT’s Adoption Specialists at 530-587-5948 or adoptions@hstt.org. She is spayed, vaccinated, and up to date on her vaccines. To view more adoptable pets or to learn more about the Humane Society of Truckee-Tahoe, visit, www.hstt.org.
What survivor accounts reveal in final avalanche report
TRUCKEE, Calif. – On March 31, the Sierra Avalanche Center posted a final in-depth report of the deadly Feb. 17 avalanche near Castle Peak.
The report provides a narrative of the day’s events, based on two survivors’ accounts from a New York Times article. These two survivors were reportedly located near the back of the group and not involved in route planning or decision-making.
The narrative reveals how a ski binding issue caused a client and a guide to fall behind the main group. These two individuals eventually caught up to find a berm of avalanche debris over their group’s skin tracks.
According to the account, another client, who was with the main group, heard a guide yell “avalanche.” The client then looked up to see a “wall of white with strange blurs of colors.” The report says he realized the colors were tumbling skis and clothing of other skiers. The client dove behind a dead tree at the alert and became buried by debris, but was able to force himself up.
The report goes through these three initial survivors’ next steps, which included transeiver searches and responding to a ski pole that was sticking up and moving. Their actions allowed them to find another three survivors and uncover two deceased members.
The report also breaks down the weather and snowpack around the time of the avalanche, pointing to significant snowfall and wind loading as factors on the sparsely treed slope where the slide occurred. The winds had redistributed the heavy snowfall, the report states, “piling it into drifts far deeper than the amount measured at nearby weather stations.”
As reflected in prior reports, this final report continued to state that many details about the avalanche itself remain unknown because it occurred during a heavy snowstorm. Search and rescue responders reported approximately two feet of new snow on top of avalanche debris when they arrived around 5:30 p.m. and could not obtain a visual of the avalanche crown due to the conditions.
Responders could only determine the edges and toes of the debris field by how far they sank into the snow. On the debris, rescuers could stand and move around in boots, while off the edge of the debris, rescuers reported sinking over waist-deep into the snow.
The end of the report offers comments based on the findings to help avoid incidents like this deadly avalanche in the future. The report says that two of four of the buried survivors required rescue from their companions due to the snow covering their airways.
“The rapid location and excavation of these two individuals was lifesaving,” the report states.
In addition to avalanche details, the report also states that many details regarding human factors, decision making, and travel plans are still unknown, but points out, “This group traveled below avalanche terrain and through the runout zone of an avalanche path during a period when a natural or human triggered avalanche was likely to very likely.”
The report’s comments section also informs that exposing only one person at a time to avalanche terrain is an accepted best practice for backcountry travel. It notes that this group consisted of 15 people and that analysis of past avalanche accidents indicates that larger groups (4 or more people) have a higher chance of being caught in avalanches.
The report provided new details about the ski group, revealing it comprised two separate guided groups that combined on the morning of the avalanche for the return journey to the trailhead. One group consisted of eight females and two guides, and the other consisted of three males and two guides. The guides were all from the same service, Blackbird Mountain Guides.
Read the full report at avalanche.org/avalanche-accidents/#/report/cc583756-68b3-4e06-9fa9-769af352fc18.
