I love to read. I think I always have. My memory doesn’t stretch back far enough to recall a time when good books weren’t a part of my life. Our home was filled with them. My parents were readers, so maybe I learned the art of reading by osmosis? If not, then certainly by example. As a toddler, I became a precocious reader. By the time I was four, I was reading a fair amount on my own.
Boulder City has a great vision statement. It’s located on the front page of our website: “The City of Boulder City is committed to preserving its status as a small town, with a small-town charm, historical heritage and unique identity, while proactively addressing our needs and enhancing our quality of life.”
OK. So I had originally intended to write about a totally different subject this month. But a glance at the calendar and the death of one of my teen heroes means I am gonna write about Halloween. Kinda. Sorta.
When I sat down to use the word processing program Word, I was accosted by my computer which wanted me to use “Copilot.” I don’t need copilot to compose what many humans have, until recently, been capable of creating, a column in the newspaper. I enjoy crafting my words from my soul, which is consciousness. I’m sure you have a soul too! Hopefully, that doesn’t spook you!
Nov. 7 will mark a year since the ribbon cutting of the St. Jude’s Ranch for Children Healing Center and shortly after, the opening of the since renamed school, Amy Ayoub Academy of Hope.
We need our better selves now as we deal with the COVID-19 virus. The response from our community has been overwhelmingly supportive of the efforts to fight this disease and protect our families, friends, co-workers and neighbors. I am not surprised that we are rising to this challenge as this community has always shown our strength when challenges arose. I am deeply appreciative of these efforts in this situation.
“There is more than one way to skin a cat.” It’s an unusual phrase that dates back to the early 1600s. It is a saying often used to explain that there is more than one way to reach a goal or solve a problem.
Nobody is perfect. I get it. What I don’t get is why so many people of all ages refuse to accept facts or ignore them when presented. What do we gain by doing this? What do we lose?
As winter gives way to spring’s sunny and warmer days, the fruit trees in my backyard have begun to bloom.
My boxing gloves were laced perfectly, my headgear correctly adjusted and my mouthpiece properly inserted, but nothing helped me anticipate the quick jab to my face. I was a 47-year-old police recruit; my opponent was 21 and pure muscle. Needless to say, I saw stars for a moment and reeled a bit, but I quickly punched back, much to the surprise of a training officer, and finished the round. (No outward signs of a concussion or other injury. I am certain I would have won a best-of-three round bout.)
“What happens here, only happens here.” You may have heard that is the new slogan of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. The slogan was developed by the advertising agency R&R Partners. That firm is the same one that created the very successful slogan “What happens here, stays here.” I believe the new slogan has a very good chance of being at least as successful while highlighting the unique services and qualities that Las Vegas has to offer.
In April of last year, I wrote a column in which I announced that my wife, Amy Garcia, and I would be moving to Austin, Texas, to live near our two daughters. We also announced this life-changing news to Romeo, Bold Boulder, Beta Sigma Phi Preceptor Chapter, the Boulder City Stamp Club, Meals on Wheels, my weekly poker game, my numerous doctors and 45-50 of Amy’s closest friends, not to mention our families in Texas, Iowa and California.
The most important part of what happens in a city council meeting is not always the vote. Sometimes it is something that seems minor at the time. This week, as the council finally voted unanimously to tighten up Boulder City’s notoriously lax leash law, the important part came long before any discussion about the actual law.
There are a couple of things that unite most Nevadans: how people often mispronounce that state’s name and for those who have been around a while, their dislike of the Duke men’s basketball team.
Parents of student athletes playing on Boulder City High School’s football team received a note last Thursday morning from BCHS Principal Amy Wagner informing them that the team’s head coach would be “unavailable” for that night’s playoff game.
It’s a case of making something positive come out of a tragedy.
