Italy

The action-thriller film "Act of Valor," now playing at now the Galaxy Fandango cineplex in Carson City, merges real-life SEALs (we all know who the SEALs are, thanks to the Osama bin Laden assassination) with Hollywood actors in action photography taken during maneuvers at the SEAL training grounds.
No SEALs are identified by name, although there is a surprisingly length listing of SEALs who have died in action at the end of the film.

February 09, marks a special day in the life of yours truly.

It is my one-year anniversary writing about the Great Outdoors at Internet website Carson Now.

Time certainly flies when you are having fun, and it has been both a totally enjoyable and a totally memorable year of writing about all kinds of activities in the Great Outdoors, both near and far away.

RENO – From a cheering crowd of several hundred at a brief but energetic Mitt Romney rally to a more subdued event for Rick Santorum hosted by the Republican Jewish Coalition to another well-attended rally for Ron Paul, it was a trifecta of presidential candidates in Reno ahead of the Saturday GOP caucus.

Romney got the balling rolling at the Grove, with an estimated 800 supporters packed inside and standing outside the event center in South Reno. Romney spoke briefly to those standing outside before giving a short but enthusiastic speech to those crowded inside.

Adele's is a Carson City landmark. This long-time restaurant — located in one of the oldest homes in town — attracts discriminating diners with its classical ambiance and reputation of its renown chef Charlie Abowd.

But now the restaurant is doing something new that will likely shake things up in Carson City early in the morning. They are serving breakfast.

It’s the very first part of January and this is a good time for all of us to make some personal resolutions for the year 2012. Most importantly, remember that if you do make any resolutions, be sure to follow through with what you resolve to do in this new year. I have a number of things I would like to accomplish this year, so without any further ado, here are my resolutions:

This is the seventh and last in a series of photos of oddities that were seen on a six week vacation trip to Italy in September and October, 2011.
That trip was taken by Bob and Lorraine Scholes of Dayton and Don and Elaine Quilici of Carson City, as they traveled the length and width of Italy, plus being on the Island of Sicily and in Switzerland.
These photos are of some of the vehicle traffic encountered on that trip.

Each year, as my last article for that year, I present my Annual Don Q Awards for a number of different reasons: Outstanding, good, not so good, bad, serious, funny, dumb, head-scratching, are-you-kidding, etc.
Those annual awards are presented to all kinds of people or places or things for what has occurred throughout the year. It’s an interesting way to end the year, so here are my 2011 winners:

This is the fourth in a series of photos of oddities that were seen on a six week vacation trip to Italy in September and October, 2011.
That trip was taken by Bob and Lorraine Scholes of Dayton and Don and Elaine Quilici of Carson City, as they traveled the length and width of Italy, plus being on the Island of Sicily and in Switzerland.

As I look forward to the year of 2012 with high expectations, hopes and dreams, this is a good time to reflect back on some selected personal memories from the rapidly ending year of 2011. Here are my top memories:

This is the third in a series of photos of oddities that were seen on a six week vacation trip to Italy in September and October, 2011.
That trip was taken by Bob and Lorraine Scholes of Dayton and Don and Elaine Quilici of Carson City, as they traveled the length and width of Italy, plus being on the Island of Sicily and in Switzerland.

With Wednesday being Nov. 30, and with all of the crazy “Black Friday” shopping madness now safely behind us, we can begin, once again, to think rationally about ideas for Christmas gifts for that special person(s) in our lives.
So, if you were not part of that frenzied mob scene on the day after Thanksgiving, or if you are still scratching your head about what to get for that person, here are some “Don Q” suggestions for Christmas gifts:
Any one or more of these could create a very enjoyable Christmas.

This is the second in a series of photos of oddities that were seen on a six week vacation trip to Italy in September and October, 2011.
That trip was taken by Bob and Lorraine Scholes of Dayton and Don and Elaine Quilici of Carson City, as they traveled the length and width of Italy, plus being on the Island of Sicily and in Switzerland.

— Writer Don Quilici is the Outdoor editor for Carson Now. He can be reached at donquilici@hotmail.com

The attached eight photos are some of the oddities seen on a six week vacation trip to Italy in September and October, 2011.
That trip was taken by Bob and Lorraine Scholes of Dayton and Don and Elaine Quilici of Carson City.
They traveled the length and width of Italy, plus being in the Island of Sicily and into Switzerland.

On Wednesday morning Oct. 19 Elaine and I went fishing at Lake Tahoe for Mackinaw lake trout with our longtime good friend and sport fishing guide, Gene St. Denis of Blue Ribbon Charters outfitted South Lake Tahoe, Calif.
“Gino” has fished Tahoe for some thirty years (the last 13 years as a fishing guide) and is one of the top, if not the top, guides at that lake.

On Saturday, Oct. 1, four of us (Bob and Lorraine Scholes of Dayton, Nev. and Elaine and I had the opportunity to visit a small vineyard called Corte de Valle in the Tuscany Region of Northern Italy.
It is one of a number of Bed & Breakfast vineyards (large and small) that are located along the Chianti Road between Siena and Florence.
We saw their small sign as we drove past, and on the spur of the moment, decided to turn around and visit there. It was a great decision.

Bob and Lorraine (my cousin) Scholes of Dayton plus Elaine and I just returned from a six week vacation trip to Italy, Sicily and Switzerland. It was the Scholes’ second trip to Italy and our first-ever trip.
Lorraine’s father was born in Ponte Buggianese and my Dad was born in Lucca, and we both wanted to visit where our roots began.
We left on August 30, flew from Reno to Denver to Montreal to Rome and then returned from Rome to Zurich to San Francisco to Reno on October 12. Here are a bunch of our memories:

The American Dollar and the European Euro:

By Aimi Xistra-Rich
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE — The Heavenly Ski and Snowboard Foundation has opened registration for the 2011 – 2012 Alpine, Freestyle, Freeride and Snowboard Programs. With a variety of options from the One-Day Program to the Full-Time Competitive Program, the Lake Tahoe foundation has something for all ages and levels of skiers and riders. Registration packets are available online, at the HSSF building, or by calling the HSSF administration office. Those who register and pay in full now will receive the early registration pricing; prices increase $100 on November 1, 2011.

Nevada is the fastest growing state in export value as a share of its total economy, according to a new report by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
The value of the state’s manufactured exports has more than tripled since 2002. Its primary exports are mineral deposits, coin-operated games and electronics.
Other states rated highly for exporting are Louisiana, Utah, South Carolina, Mississippi, Delaware, and Texas.
High performing states were evaluated based upon:

Carl Kuhl, a state Parole and Probation employee of six years, has created a plan that he claims will eliminate Nevada's budget deficit within two years.

In a news release issued on Tuesday, Kuhl said his plan not only will reduce the budget deficit but also help repair Nevada's economy at the same time. It is a pretty big claim, he admits, coming from an Accounting Assistant I, an entry level position.

The Heavenly Ski and Snowboard Foundation at Lake Tahoe has opened registration for the 2010-2011 Alpine, Freestyle and Snowboard Programs. With a variety of options from the One-Day Program to the Full-Time Competitive Program, the Foundation has something for all ages and levels of skiers and riders. Registration packets are available online, at the HSSF building, or by calling the HSSF administration office.

Four representatives from The Winnemucca Community Garden (WCG) will be the only delegates from the state of Nevada to represent the United States when 5,000 representatives from the worldwide Terra Madre network meet in Turin, Italy this October. This event, in its fourth year, coincides with the international Slow Food Fair.

As we race headlong into a new and glorius future, pause a minute before you toss that copy of The Sun Also Rises onto the trash heap of technology along with buggy whips and johnson rods.

Though Northern Nevada is not out of the woods for large earthquakes, there is a potential for seismically-charged shakers for the region, says Cal Orey, a Lake Tahoe earthquake intuitive, who predict

Staff Report The Carson High School ski team will hold its annual fundraiser on Friday night at the Carson City Community Center.

Location

When an April 5 earthquake shook down buildings in L'Aquila, Italy, it also destroyed all but a few buildings on the campus of the University of L'Aquila. The 27,000-student school couldn't function and students would be left...