nature

Spring training has begun, reminding these two All-American boys how much we love baseball and especially baseball lore. Baseball, books and film make a cheesy concoction, never more so than in the 1984 movie The Natural based on the 1952 novel by Bernard Malamud.

I visited Arizona recently and the desert was blooming. The predominant color of flowers, no matter the type of plant was yellow. I wondered why nature has given us so many early blooming yellow flowers, particularly in the daisy or sunflower family.

Hello fellow anglers, the rain is falling in the valleys and snow in the mountains. The month of March so far is being good to us. We need all the water Mother Nature will give us. Hopefully a lot of that water will flow into Topaz Lake.

Got kids? The Boys and Girls Club is where you want to be today for the Second Annual Early Childhood Expo. Curious George and Clifford the big red dog can’t wait to say hello. Take a trip out to the Dayton State Park to search for animal tracks and more with a park ranger. If you’re kid free today, then the Downtown Business Association Wine Walk is for you. The young and the young-at-heart will find something fun to do this weekend: just check out the whole list for your options and hit the town.

SATURDAY:

Each year, the Nevada controller’s financial reports have included an “economic outlook” section, as have reports by many government agencies and business, academic and journalistic entities. Nearly all such assessments are based on business-cycle analyses focused on economic sectors and geographic regions in the short and intermediate terms.

At Lake Tahoe, we know our natural resources are one of our most valuable assets, and that’s why we have worked for decades to conserve and restore them. The natural wonders of the Jewel of the Sierra and the opportunities they afford are why we live here, and why millions of visitors travel here to enjoy the Tahoe Basin each year.

Okay all you procrastinators, if you planned on making it to the Arlington Square Ice Rink, then today is your last chance. With a temperature around 50, it should be a perfect day to skate one last time. Show some Senator Pride tonight at the Community Center as 24 seniors compete for ‘Mr. Carson High.’ There’s a lot going on this weekend, so take a look at the list and go have some fun.

SATURDAY:

The Nevada Day Store and Trading Post features many fine art Photographers and this Saturday we are showcasing some of “The Shadow and Light Photographers” beautiful work.

This group was started by Fine Art Photographer, Dennis Doyle on Facebook. It is giving photographers of every level a place where all can share their work and learn from one another. They post and share and when asked, constructive criticism is also given and appreciated.

Here is a little insight to these amazing talented Photographers.

The Juvenile Court which handles juvenile delinquency cases, cases involving the protection of children, and child support cases, agreed to be audited by the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges in July of 2015.

The purpose of the audit is to assist the court in creating a trauma-responsive environment, develop and implement best practices and policies. The final version of the audit report is anticipated to be released in early 2016.

This photo was submitted by Carson Now reader Azucena Monroy showing the approaching storm as it arrives in Carson City. The other photos show variations of the very wide rainbow that could be seen throughout Carson City this afternoon.
Thanks to Carson Now readers (in order of submissions) after the Monroy photo: Denise Clodjeaux, Delaura Welch, Ron Brotherton and Jill Rasner for their photo submissions of the rainbows.

Join park staff for a guided nature walk along the Carson River at Dayton State Park. We will discuss park wildlife and look for signs that these animals have been nearby. Please wear warm clothing and good shoes for this ½ mile walk along the river.

The U.S. Navy christened its newest fast-transport ship, the USNS Carson City EPF-7 at a ceremony Saturday in Mobile, Alabama. Susan Asbury Crowell, wife of Carson City Mayor Robert Crowell, and sponsor of the ship, officially introduced it with a bottle of champagne during the ceremony, which also featured Nevada Congressman Mark Amodei.

A series of wet winter storms will impact the Sierra and Carson City region this Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend through at least Tuesday with the potential of several feet of snow in the mountains and up to a half inch of rain in the valleys, according to the National Weather Service.

Reno artist Nate Clark’s paintings are featured at the Nevada Arts Council’s OXS Gallery through March 11, with a reception and artist talk set for 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 19. Clark’s discussion begins at 6:15. The reception is free and open to the public. In “Leeway,” a selection of Clark’s recent paintings, the artist examines order and structure through mark making.

The reconstruction of Carson Street in the downtown corridor will be proceeding as planned this year, said Carson City Transportation Manager Patrick Pittenger.

Construction is expected to begin in March and last until November, Pittenger said, but the project is not going to interfere with Nevada Day Parade festivities.

By then, he said, all of the messy work will be finished and what’s left will be mostly clean-up items.

“We will be open for Nevada Day,” Pittenger said. “When we’re done, Carson Street will be one lane in each direction.”

Nevada’s New Year’s resolution is to ensure that travelers go home with more stories than souvenirs. With the lineup of events scheduled in early 2016, that is sure to ring true. As always, Nevada will offer fun, unique events for visitors of all interests and ages that will guarantee unforgettable experiences. Kick off the New Year at one of these Nevada-only events:

Driving during wet, snowy and icy conditions requires a reduction in speed and an increase in distance between vehicles to help prevent car crashes. Operating a four wheel drive vehicle is not a license to drive faster than other vehicles around you as you will always be subject to Mother Nature and the laws of physics.

Is beekeeping on your bucket list? If you share certain traits: a love for animals, curiosity about nature and living organisms, an interest in plants and gardening, and have thought of learning more about beekeeping, then plan to attend Mason Valley Beekeepers’ one day introduction to Beekeeping workshop on Saturday, Jan. 23, 2016 at the Jeanne Dini Cultural Center, 120 N. California St., Yerington, from 8:00 a.m. until 4 p.m.

Science author and journalist David Quammen will give a lecture at the University of Nevada, Reno’s Discover Science Lecture Series, Thursday, Feb. 4.

The lecture, titled “Ebola and Beyond: Scary Viruses in a Globalized World,” will focus on his most recent works about Ebola and AIDS – his books “The Chimp and the River” and “Ebola” – which stem from his acclaimed book about emerging diseases, “Spillover.”

Quammen is a journalist as well as a science, nature and travel writer. He has authored 15 books, five of them fiction.

Reno artist Nate Clark’s paintings will be featured at the Nevada Arts Council’s OXS Gallery in Carson City beginning Monday, Dec. 28 through March 11.

We love the Christmas season. As we've noted with most cultural traditions, though, Christmas holds different meanings for folks depending on their time, place and circumstances.

Celebrate New Year’s Day 2016 with Nevada State Parks. Guided hikes led by park rangers and local volunteers will be offered at State Parks throughout Nevada as part of the nationwide First Day Hikes Program. Nevada State Parks is waiving entrance fees for all first day hikers.

Thanks to Mother Nature and El-Nino, Winter is here in earnest this year!! For those of you cyclist enthusiasts that benefited from the passed 3 mild winters but are forced indoors this year, Well Being gym is offering a Winter Cyclist training and conditioning program. The program provides ample opportunity to cyclists of all levels to maintain or build strength as well as improve speed and stamina.

The 2015 Tahoe Adventure Film Festival debuts at its birthplace this month at Stateline on the south shore of Lake Tahoe and will expand to places far and wide into the new year.

Marking 13 years of adventure sports cinematography and culture, Tahoe Adventure Film Festival is the annual gathering of the who’s who of outdoor adventure set in a hypnotic theatrical show of go-go dancers, DJs, and dramatic action imagery.

Washoe County will host an opening ceremony Monday for Western Nevada College's acclaimed arts and humanities exhibition “Always Lost: A Meditation on War” in Building B of its Administration Complex, 1001 E. Ninth Street in Reno.

Holiday traditions abound in Nevada, including those in which nature often calls the shots. For example, sometimes it’s a white Christmas, sometimes it’s not. But man-made traditions don’t depend on t ...

Join Temple Bat Yam for a joyful Hannukah Shabbat, complete with latkes and dreidels, in the Sierra Room of Carson's Plaza Hotel, 801 S. Carson St. in Carson City. The event is Friday, Dec. 11 beginning at 6 p.m.
Temple Bat Yam is a welcoming community committed to educating our children with Jewish values through our Hebrew School. We also strive to incorporate nature through our programs in the backcountry of the Sierras and the shores of Lake Tahoe.

Glenn Miller is leading the effort in a project at the University of Nevada, Reno to convert roadside gumweed into biofuel, which could help contribute to fuel supplies for the military.

Western Nevada College’s acclaimed arts and humanities exhibition about the costs of war will visit Reno, November 30 to January 15. “Always Lost: A Meditation on War” will be on display at the Washoe County Administration Complex, 1001 E. 9th St., Building B.

Science is a process, not a doctrine. It asks questions and sets out to test them for answers. But our culture seems to regard science in an animate form, like a guru seated atop a mountain.

We put science on a pedestal and submit to it as the final authority on all of our problems and important questions. We rely on science to give us the answers.

We even permit science to be the driving force behind public policy, in spite of the fact that science is a search for questions that remain unanswered.

Take the issues of climate change and global warming.