Last night, the kids arrived at 11 PM for a fun Memorial Day weekend.  Today, we headed to Sparks, NV.  First stop was Scheels for gun and fishing pole 'petting'.  This incredible store, at 295,000 square feet is both the largest Scheels store and largest all sports store in the world.

Afterward, we ate Awful, Awfuls, fueling up for an afternoon of shooting targets and clay pigeons in the beauty of Hope Valley.  It was a very testostrone-filled day... just what a mom of sons loves!

Knowing how much fun the Business After Hours Mixers can be, we planned a 'date night' for our first visit to the Lakeside Inn and first attempt at winning in a Poker Run.

What a great way to discover a new place.  During a poker run, you meander to different stations and gather your 'hand'.  Besides meeting different people. we were able to get a great glimpse of the Inn's accommodations.

The food quality and diversity was incredible.

While my pair of sixes, and Steve's pair of jacks, did not have us win any big prize, we thoroughly enjoyed our evening.  I wrote this to the two gals who made it happen: Okay, each BAHM tops the prior one.  We had a great night.  Scrumptious food, exceptional service, wonderful environment, interesting guests and an activity that had us exploring in the most delightful way.  Kudos to all. Thank you for adding to the magic that is Tahoe.

Our local Community College offers amazing cultural events throughout the year and today's 2013 Annual Student Art Exhibition was no exception.  The event, which started about three decades ago, displayed more than 400 pieces of artwork that fell into 17 categories.  In addition to the visual stimuli, there were delights for most of the senses.  As we viewed the exhibit, we were serenaded by the Sierra Strings of Tahoe.  We dined from an eclectic, yet delicious, smorgasbord of treats.  There was something for everyone.

The piece on the left, by Ashley Pfister, was my favorite (I had to pick one which was difficult).  Steve liked the trio on the right.  There was a lot of talent in the room.

I had to award this painting, by Thatcher Unsworth, with the best title...  Man is Haunted by Every Butterfly He Ever Shot With a BB Gun as a Child.

Needing to bond with nature and go somewhere we hadn't been before, we headed to Cascade Falls... The Cascade Falls hike is perhaps the best short hike on the South and West Shores of Lake Tahoe. It combines a short hike with little elevation gain with a real feeling of remoteness once at the falls. When not crowded, it can feel like you are miles into the wilderness with distant Tahoe views as well as grand mountain views to the west.

Note the all-important baguette protruding from my backpack.

This area is a photographers delight as the dark rock contrasts with the water as it slithers in the summer or roars in the spring towards the falls. It is also a good spot to see the effects of the glaciation that played such an important part in the formation of Lake Tahoe. Polished granite worn smooth from thousands of years of ice sliding slowly over it towards the valley that is now Lake Tahoe is prevalent in the area.

With our final destination being a luncheon in Tahoe City, Lynne, Jeanne and I, left early for some stops along the way.

Mc Bride's Nursery (aka Tahoe Tree Company) was a wonderful place to pause and meander.  The colors were vibrant.  Its park-like setting is idyllic.

Jake's on the Lake was the location of the AAUW Inter-branch luncheon, a once a year event where all the Tahoe groups come together.  It couldn't have been a better location!

My panko crusted white fish was the most delicious dish I've eaten, as of late.  It helped that we were dining in the glorious sunshine, gazing upon the spectacular Lake.

Our evening found us, along with our friends, Dick and Joan, in the darling town of Markleeville.  The town’s history is remarkably similar to that of many Nevada mining towns. In the mid-1860s, silver was discovered in the area and a number of small mining camps appeared almost overnight, including Markleeville.

We started at the Cutthroat Saloon in the historic Old Fiske House (1883).

We came to learn about of one of the most famous families in the Tahoe Basin, the Celios, presented by the Historical Society of Alpine County.

Carlos Guiseppi Celio arrived in Tahoe in 1857,and stayed, because it looked like his home in Switzerland. In the late 1880s, C.G. Celio & Sons was formed, covering many aspects of the family agricultural and commercial operations. A sawmill, cattle ranches and a motel at Myers near Lake Tahoe were the cornerstones of the operation.

Clint Celio, great-great-grandson of C.G., shared his family history through family photos.  His great grandmother, Camilla Josephine Giamboni Celio, was an avid photographer.  Looking at all her albums was the highlight of the evening for me.  From 1898, Millie documented this amazing family and to turn the pages, she so lovingly affixed the pictures to, was incredible.

This is Millie (on the right) in Zephyr Cove, with a tunnel-free Cave Rock in the background.

Three generations of Celios were there to share their amazing family history with an audience who was so eager to hear it!  This is the 150th anniversary of the Celio Ranch being established in Lake Valley.  Let the celebrations begin!

...and the community of South Lake Tahoe listened.

Since last November, Mrs. Houston and I have been planning her trip to South Lake Tahoe.  It was hard to believe the day had finally come and incredible to see how wonderfully she was received.  The Tahoe Daily Tribune wrote a great article that can be read here.

We had no idea how many people would come.  I guessed the closest, with the actual count being about 200 attendees from age 5 to 95.  It was standing room only!

Having read the book Farewell to Manzanar and having toured the grounds and museum of Manzanar, hearing Mrs. Houston tell her story, to many who had not heard it, was very emotional.

The message that touched me the most was,  "I wrote the book not to inspire guilt, but to bring understanding to others of the experience of being interned."

After speaking and fielding questions for 1 1/2 hours, Jeanne signed autographs, poised for photos and shared her story with others, in a more intimate way.

Our friend, Beej (Bonnie who we met in Italy), read an e-mail I sent out the day before, and decided she had to make the drive from Sacramento.  In her words, "When I found out that Denise was hosting Jeanne, I told her some of my own story, about living in Penryn among many Japanese who had been interned, and participating in the events at the Placer Buddhist Church, which abutted the property of my parents' ranch, and was the center of culture in Penryn. Many of my schoolmates were Japanese, but I knew nothing about internment until I was an adult--nothing had been said in my history classes, even as I sat surrounded by children of former internees. For the most part, they knew little or nothing about the experiences of their parents and grandparents at Tule Lake and Manzanar."

Many of the people who attended this presentation had a family connection to Executive Order 9066, and shared their emotional internment histories.  The Friends of the Library's desire to have Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston tell the story of how her family’s life, in an internment camp, became a cautionary tale about civil rights violations, is an important step in making certain something like this doesn't happen again.