r-2021-01-21

JANUARY

21-27, 2021

Last caLL Cheers to reno’s bars and Clubs See Nightlife Guide, inside

Local businesses are hard hit by the coronavirus, including the RN&R.

Take care

We’re suspending publication. s e rv i n g n o rt h e r n n e va d a , ta h o e a n d t r u c k e e

EMAil lEttERs to RENolEttERs@NEwsREviEw.coM.

Thank you Welcome to this week’s Reno News & Review.

In our Feb. 13 edition, I wrote, “This week’s edition is Issue 1 of Vol. 26. That means this newspaper is now 25 years old. That’s not quite old enough to be a storied institution, but it’s probably about 23 years longer than many skeptics in the valley expected when the paper launched.” A boast about longevity is a surefire harbinger of doom.

This might not be the last issue ever of the RN&R, but it’s going to be the last issue for the immediate future. See pages 3 and 6 for more.

But I’d like to express some gratitude. Huge thanks to our publishers, Jeff vonKaenel and Deborah Redmond, for all their support over the years. Thanks to the members of the editorial team, Jeri Davis, Matt Bieker and Kelley Lang, for all their hard work and dedication.

Thanks to our amazing design team.

And thanks to rest of the Reno team: Sales manager Gina Odegard, sales associates Owen Bryant and Caleb Furlong, distribution manager Bob Christensen and his team, and office manager/event planner/allaround-badass Lisa Ryan.

Big thanks to everyone who’s served in the newsroom over the years, like arts master Kris Vagner, editor emeritus D. Brian Burghart, and the late, great news editor Dennis Myers. Dennis would always end conversations by saying, “take care,” and that’s part of why that expression appears on this week’s cover.

And I’d also like to thank our regular contributors, like columnists Bruce Van Dyke and Sheila Leslie, reviewers Bob Grimm, Todd South and Jessica Santina, and photographers Eric Marks and Allison Young. And many more. We’ve had a lot of great writers, reporters, cartoonists and weirdos in these pages over the years. And I’m proud of what we’ve done.

But most of all, thanks to you, the readers. Thanks for putting up with us. Thanks for participating in Best of Northern Nevada and 95-Word Fiction and all those other silly things we’ve done over the years.

Thanks for coming up to us to argue about an editorial or to suggest a hot story tip. Thanks for reading.

It’s been an honor and a pleasure serving this community. I hope we’ve helped.

Take care.

—Brad Bynum bradb@newsreview.com

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JANUARY 21,

Interesting question

Registered complaint

Is anybody comparing the rate of spread between regions in the northern hemisphere relative to how things are spreading south of the equator? A huge question is whether warmer weather will slow things down. Since it’s still warm down under, is anyone comparing the rates of spread to see if warm weather actually has that effect?

Michel Rottman Virginia City Highlands

Re “The registry” (cover story, March 12): I am writing in regard to Jane Callahan’s story regarding AB 579. I found the article alarmist, poorly researched and off-mark. To not address people who have to register for life because they got drunk and pissed behind a building is omitting a huge issue with the system in general. Moving low-risk offenders like a 21-year-old who hooked up with a girl at a party to find out she lied about her age in the same tier as a man who kidnaps a 6-year-old child and then rapes and kills them is unjust and poor allocation of resources. The law lumped all offenders in one tier and overloaded the system to the point where it can no longer track the most dangerous pedophiles.

My father David Lee Dallo SHOULD be a Tier 3, not a kid who didn’t ask for the girl’s ID to make sure.

Brandy Magri Reno

Time to clean up?

Donald Trump the plump chump called the coronavirus a hoax? The Trump Depression is here! Joe Biden for President, folks. The stock markets crashed because the GOP choked. Building a wall won’t help. It’s Trump’s fault you’re broke. Trillion dollar tax cuts for Trump, but no insurance for the sick? A pandemic on the loose is now sinking our economic ship. Thousands will die, while Trump tweets and golfs all the while. Republicans, do as you’re told! Fox News says, “Sieg Heil.” Don’t wash your hands. Cough on everyone you can. It’s all a liberal media conspiracy to make Trump look bad again. Sneeze all you please! “A Democrat hoax” we ignore. We delusional right-wingers will buy from the Alex Jones store—nanosilver solutions and other various, worthless snake oils. A fool and his money are soon parted; idiocy takes its toll. Trump keeps shaking hands, even though he’s not at all young. If I were Trump, I’d borrow that gas mask from Matt Gaetz and run! Get to Air Force One and fly away off to Russia for his final days. Vladimir Putin can take care of his pathetic puppet dotard tool Trump. We’ll send Trump’s evil brood (Ivanka, Donald Junior and Eric) straight to the White Trash dump! While we Americans reclaim the White House from Russian control, those Republican traitors will cry, As they’re kicked out and sent home.

Jake Pickering Arcata, California

Leslie, Eric Marks, Kelsey Penrose, Jessica Santina, Todd South, Luka Starmer, Kris Vagner, Bruce Van Dyke, Allison Young Our Mission: To publish great newspapers that are successful and enduring. To create a quality work environment that encourages employees to grow professionally while respecting personal welfare.

To have a positive impact on our communities and make them better places to live.

Editor Brad Bynum News Editor Jeri Davis Special Projects Editor Matt Bieker Calendar Editor Kelley Lang Contributors Amy Alkon, Jane K. Callahan, Mark Earnest, Bob Grimm, Oliver Guinan, Andrea Heerdt, Holly Hutchings, Shelia

Creative Services Manager Elisabeth Bayard Arthur Art Directors Maria Ratinova, Sarah Hansel Art of Information Director Serene Lusano Publications Designer Katelynn Mitrano Publications & Advertising Designer Nikki Exerjian Ad Designers Naisi Thomas, Cathy Arnold Office Manager Lisa Ryan Sales Manager Gina Odegard Advertising Consultant Caleb Furlong, Owen Bryant Distribution Director Greg Erwin

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portraying young teenage girls confronted with supernatural forces and the special gifts they will receive. And how about the final confrontation with the witch when Gretel levitates the forked staff to choke the witch?

Right out of Carrie, n’est pas?

And, really, Mr. Grimm, do you really need to use four-letters words in your review?

It’s just a movie. The RN&R is available all over the area where young people can find it and read yours reviews (if they can put down their phones for a minute). Our young people do not need such influences. Print journalism is already in trouble, and you aren’t helping. Try reading Mick LaSalle in the S.F. Chronicle, and you’ll see it’s OK to use some finesse in your journalistic endeavors.

We have a President who uses that kind of language. Do you really want to be like him?

R. H. Ashley Reno

Contents Editor’s note: The story very specifically mentions people, formerly classified as Tier 1 offenders, who’ve been reclassified to Tier 3 “whose cases often involve acts like indecent public exposure or statutory rape.”

Yuck it up Re “Third spaces” (editor’s note, March 12): I laughed out loud.

Karen Eliot Reno

Movie target Re “Into the woods” (film, Feb. 13): Dear Mr. Grimm: I read your review of Gretel and Hansel, and for all the reasons you didn’t like it, I did. I thought the slow pacing and vague insinuations of horror were very well done, and it was refreshing to see the movie free from the worn-out cliches of staggering zombies, demons and moving rocking chairs, doors and creepy clown dolls. Both Sophia in this movie Anya TJ are Distribution Manager Bob Christensen Distribution Drivers Alex Barskyy, Corey Sigafoos, Gary White, Marty Troye, Vicki Jewell, Olga Barska, Ashley Martinez, Rosie Martinez, Adam Martinez, Duane Johnson, Andy Odegard , Terry Carlson President/CEO Jeff VonKaenel Director of Nuts & Bolts Deborah Redmond Director of People & Culture David Stogner Director of Dollars & Sense Debbie Mantoan Payroll/AP Wizard Miranda Hansen Account Jedi Jessica Kislanka Sales & Production Coordinator Laura Anthony Developer John Bisignano System Support Specialist Kalin Jenkins

N&R Publications Editor Debbie Arrington N&R Publications Associate Editors Derek McDow, Thea Rood N&R Publications Editorial Team Anne Stokes, Nisa Smith Marketing & Publications Lead Consultant Elizabeth Morabito Marketing & Publications Consultants Joseph Engle, Sherri Heller, Rod Maloy, Laura Golino, Chris Cohen Publications Support Specialist Chelsea Hall Cover design Sarah Hansel 760 Margrave Drive, Reno, NV 89502 Phone (775) 324-4440 Fax (775) 324-2515 Website www.newsreview.com

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oPiNioN/stREEtAlK sHEilA lEsliE NEws iN RotAtioN: tAHoE fEAtuRE ARts&cultuRE ARt of tHE stAtE filM MusicBEAt NigHtcluBs/cAsiNos tHis wEEK AdvicE goddEss fREE will AstRology 15 MiNutEs/BRucE vAN dyKE

Got a News Tip? Fax (775) 324-2515 or pressrelease@newsreview.com Calendar Events www.newsreview.com/calendar Want to Advertise?

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Editorial Policies: Opinions expressed in rn&r are those of the authors and not of Chico Community Publishing, Inc. Contact the editor for permissions to reprint articles, cartoons, or other portions of the paper. rn&r is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or review materials. Email letters to renoletters@ newsreview.com. all letters received become the property of the publisher. We reserve the right to print letters in condensed form and to edit them for libel.

Advertising Policies: all advertising is subject to the newspaper’s Standards of acceptance. The advertiser and not the newspaper assumes the responsibility for the truthful content of their advertising message. rn&r is printed at PrintWorks, Ink on recycled newsprint.

Circulation of rn&r is verified by the Circulation Verification Council. rn&r is a member of CnPa, aan and aWn.

By matt bieker

COVID-19 precautions you’re taking? asKed at safeway, 5150 Mae anne ave.

K atrina Miller Graphic designer

Just the basics—common sense.

Washing hands. We’re not out too much in public. This is a scheduled [grocery] trip, but I couldn’t get everything. Milk, pancake mix, peanut butter— bread was nearly out. The basics for kids was out.

Carson Zoll ars Student

Trying to limit going out into public places as much as I can.

I’m from the Bay Area. I kind of got stuck here over spring break—more because of the snow on the pass than the virus. …

Now I’m stocking up because the Bay … just got put on a Shelter In Place order.

Carole Hess

By Jeff vonkaenel

j e ffv @ne w s re v i e w . c o m

It could be the end Over the last 25 years, we have financed RN&R with But without advertising revenue, we can’t advertising, mainly from local businesses promoting social meet our payroll. gatherings at concerts, theaters, galleries and in bars and The community cost of not having good information restaurants. The coronavirus-related shutdowns, postponeduring a crisis is staggering. People need to know what ments and cancellations are having a huge impact on these their local governments and public health organizations advertisers and our local economy. are doing. They need to know what is happening with Many of these businesses have been forced to cut their schools and daycare. They need to know how local busiadvertising back to the point that we will probably have nesses are adapting services, such as restaurants that to suspend publishing and lay off our amazing are pivoting to take-out and delivery. And they and talented staff, at least temporarily. need help dealing with the emotional side of Over the years, we have experienced such a crisis. numerous crises. We were able to use our At our sister paper in Chico, we financial reserves to pull us through those produced more than 300 stories after the To donate, go to times when advertising revenues were 2018 Camp Fire devastated Paradise. newsreview.com/ less than expenses. We were able to keep Our award-winning journalism helped reno/donate. the paper going and to continue to provide the community cope with the aftermath. local coverage.

The impact of this coronavirus crisis will But over the last 10 years, as more and also be long-lasting. more businesses have moved their advertising There is a misperception that content dollars to Facebook and Google, the foundation somehow just exists on the internet. That of the media business model has crumbled. These large content needs to be created first. And that is our internet companies collected revenues without having to business. We are appealing to anyone who wants to help generate expensive local coverage. This has caused a crisis keep our journalism alive. To donate, go to newsreview. for most media companies, including the News & Review. com/reno/donate.

Information and good journalism is needed now more Over the last 25 years we have worked to make Reno than ever. And our dedicated team is experienced at sorting a better place. We would like to continue to do this through and presenting complex information and then work. If you can help, please email me. Ω getting that vital information out to the community. Each month, nearly 100,000 people read RN&R, according to Jeff vonKaenel is the president, CEO and majority owner of the News & the independent Media Audit.

Retired teacher

I’m washing my hands a lot, and I’m trying to social distance myself, so the only place I’m going is to the grocery store.

I’m picking up a prescription. … I guess I didn’t want to put it off until tomorrow in case the store closed.

K ay Hol Z wortH Radiologic technologist

Hand washing—I always wipe down my cart before I use it.

Trying to stay away from people who are coughing and congested, but I work at the hospital, so. It’s actually safer there because we have the equipment to protect ourselves.

eduardo PoliZello Student

I wash my hands a lot more frequently. Every time, before I do anything, I wash my hands.

Review newspapers in Reno, Sacramento and Chico.

01.21.21 | RN&R | 3

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We are not corporate media.

We are 100% independent and need your help to continue reporting local stories and publishing your voices.

We are suspending publication (at least temporarily) In less than one week, we have lost more than 50% of our advertising revenue and we can’t publish without it.

Donate now at newsreview.com/reno/donate Any amount will help resume publishing.

please donaTe aT newsreview.com/reno/donaTe

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by SHEILA LESLIE

Tipping point Reno is at the tipping point. We can continue to promote growth by subsidizing corporate jobs and encouraging urban sprawl, or we can correct our course and acknowledge that uncontrolled growth is not sustainable and will lead to a steep decline in our quality of life.

We’ve already had a harsh preview of the first scenario courtesy of the tech-boom that ushered in thousands of new residents to take taxpayer-subsidized jobs that were sold as a way for us to keep our own kids employed. Instead, we’ve watched the newcomers scoop up our housing and clog our highways and then have the nerve to complain about homeless people camping in the park. Wait until the next drought comes and they learn what happens in the high desert when there’s not enough water to go around.

Our policymakers acknowledge these issues but explain them away by pointing fingers at each other. But they remain united in not wanting to change

their ways. They’d do well to read the New Yorker essay by Sam Knight called “Betting the Farm: The obsessions of Jake Fiennes could change how Britain uses its land.” Fiennes is the conservation manager of a private estate in England and a leader in environmental farming, which takes the long view of cultivating land by cutting back agricultural production courtesy of toxic pesticides and replacing it with more organic farming methods and designs that promote the reinstatement of healthy flora and fauna.

As Britain leaves the European Union, it’s having a “reset moment” transitioning to a system that doesn’t just subsidize agricultural products but also supports “public goods, such as water quality and biodiversity.” Fiennes is credited as “one of the motive forces behind this new way of looking at the land.”

We badly need a reset moment ourselves. One place to start is the latest reincarnation of the failed Washoe Lands Bill, opposed by residents for over a

decade, now rebranded as the Truckee Meadows Public Lands Management Act. If approved by Congress, the new version of the bill would free up more than 90,000 acres of public land to be sold to developers, creating sprawl all the way to Pyramid Lake.

Where will these new people live?

Where will they work? What roads will they use to get to work? Who will pay for the infrastructure of wastewater management, police and fire services?

Where will the water they need come from, especially in a drought year? What impact will all of this growth have on our wildlife?

Long-term residents know we’ve been here before. We had a chance at a reset back in 2008 when Washoe County voters approved a ballot measure, WC-3, mandating that local government land use plans be based on identified and sustainable water resources in Washoe County.

The measure passed by an unheard-of super-majority of 73 percent of the

voters, but local elected officials scoffed at the measure—claiming they already factored in sustainable water during their approval process despite plenty of evidence to the contrary.

At the request of conservationists and with the assistance of local water experts, I sponsored Assembly Bill 119 in the 2009 Legislature to codify the people’s voice into state law, requiring urban counties to include sustainability of water resources in their comprehensive regional plans. The bill passed the Assembly and Senate on party lines but was vetoed by Governor Jim Gibbons.

So here we are in 2020, preparing to embark on more reckless sprawl our natural resources cannot support and burdened by a tax structure with billions in uncollected taxes used to subsidize companies that continue to play us for fools.

It’s campaign season. Let’s demand a reset moment for our public lands before it’s too late. Ω

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by Brad Bynum

Business closures On Monday afternoon, the City of Sparks, Washoe County and the Washoe County Health District announced that they would not be joining the City of Reno in mandating that certain “non-essential” businesses close their doors in response to the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

During a virtual press conference on Monday, Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve first announced that all “non-essential” businesses would be forced to close by 10 a.m. on Tuesday, to include bars, gyms and restaurants among others.

“People will die if we don’t do this,” she said during the press conference.

In a written statement, the Health District took a different position. “At this time, the Washoe County Health District has no mandate to close any establishments in Washoe County. The Health District supports business closures and cancelation of large public events to reduce risk of transmission of COVID-19, but it is not mandatory at this time.”

Reno, however, does have the authority to mandate that businesses within city limits close their doors, though the deadline for this was then extended to Friday, March 20, and the definition for “non-essential” businesses was clarified to include only gyms, bars, night clubs and restaurants without take-out or delivery options, leaving confusion among residents and business owners.

Online, the responses from businesses and their patrons were mixed, with some calling the measure extreme even as others said they agreed with it.

It was also announced, after Schieve’s press conference that the City of Reno would not attempt to force casino closures. It was explaained that the decision fell under the purview of, and would be left to, the Nevada Gaming Control Board.

In addition to the announced forced closures, other businesses in the last week announced closures made of their own volition, to include most of Lake Tahoe’s ski resorts.

However, the matter of whose doors would have to close when was put to rest late Tuesday afternoon, just a day after Schieve’s announcement, when Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak addressed the state’s citizens to say that all “nonessential” businesses, to include not only bars and restaurants (without take-out or delivery) but also salons and even casinos, must close. Gambling establishments were ordered to close by midnight on Tuesday turning Wednesday. Bars were given until noon on Wednesday, March 18.

“Stay Home For Nevada” was the phrase used on signage at Sisolak’s announcement.

The business closures were ordered to last 30 days. They do not apply to essential services such as police, fire departments, grocery stores, hospitals or pharmacies.

—Jeri Davis

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The Reno News & Review has been covering news, arts and entertainment in the valley for a quarter of a century. photo/matt bieker

Fare thee well Amid declining advertising revenue spurred by the coronavirus outbreak, the RN&R is suspending publication After 25 years in northern nevada, the Reno News & Review is suspending publication indefinitely. The RN&R’s sister papers in Chico and Sacramento are likewise ceasing production. There’s a glimmer of hope that the small regional chain will be able to return, probably in a drastically different incarnation, after the current coronavirus-driven economic crisis, but it’s also quite possible that this edition will be the very last issue ever of Reno’s long-running alt-weekly newspaper.

This newspaper depends on advertising, and it mostly depends on advertising from local restaurants, coffee houses, nightclubs and bars. With many of those establishments currently shuttered or drastically cutting back hours, they don’t have much budget for advertising—or events or drink specials to promote.

While it’s true that a business like the RN&R is usually able to accommodate for local market fluctuations, at least for a time, the current crisis hit at an especially inconvenient time.

As RN&R publisher Jeff vonKaenel explains in a column on page 3, “Over the years, we have experienced numerous crises. We were able to use our financial reserves to pull us through those times when advertising revenues

were less than expenses. We were able to keep the paper going and to continue to provide local coverage. But over the last 10 years, as more and more businesses have moved their advertising dollars to Facebook and Google, the foundation of the media business model has crumbled. These large internet companies collected revenues without having to generate expensive local coverage. This has caused a crisis for most media companies, including the News & Review.”

The Nevada Weekly, the paper that eventually became the RN&R, first appeared around town on Nov. 17, 1993. In February of 1995, after it was purchased by the News & Review company, which already owned the weekly newspapers in Chico and Sacramento, it became the Reno News & Review.

In the early ’90s, when the paper began, Reno was a smaller, quieter place.

Culturally, there was the casinos and not much else. And the Reno Gazette Journal was essentially the only print journalism in town.

“There was only one voice,” according to D. Brian Burghart, the calender editor of The Nevada Weekly when it launched and eventually the

long-serving editor of the RN&R. According to Burghart, that homogeneity was reflected throughout the valley.

There was only one visual arts organization, the Sierra Arts Foundation. Only one theater, Reno Little Theater. The Nevada Museum of Art was housed in a much smaller building. “And Burning Man was years in the future.”

“In 1993, this concept of there being multiple print voices in Reno was radical almost,” Burghart said recently.

“And we were middle-of-the-road for an alt-weekly. That was sort of what allowed us to have so much success in a small community, is that we sort of let everyone into the tent. But those people who had never seen anything except the daily paper, they thought that we were Molotov-throwing communists. They thought we were going to blow up the capitol building or something. They literally did not know what to think. As the Reno News & Review grew out of the Nevada Weekly, the town sort of grew along with it. And, in some ways, I think we sort of helped cause it. Like, was there really a concept of Reno being an arts community before we had a paper that covered the arts?”

The RN&R had award-winning news coverage but became well known for its coverage of local food, music, theater and visual art.

“Burning Man was considered an enemy of the state in Washoe County, and the governments were trying to kill it, and the daily newspaper was posturing them as naked, drug-crazed hippies in the desert, which I guess is somewhat true,” Burghart said. “But there was more to it. And the Reno News & Review supported them. And we were the only ones who were supporting them in the community. If this was some science fiction novel, and you pulled the Reno News & Review out of Reno and looked at what Reno would be … it would be a different town.”

According to Burghart, the RN&R was also known for its lively, funny, often profane writers.

“Seeing the word ‘fuck’ in print? It was beyond thinking about! And now nobody even thinks twice.”

VillAge Voices Sheila Leslie served in the Nevada Assembly and then in the Nevada Senate before becoming a columnist for the RN&R. “The loss of the Reno News

& Review is a hard blow to take, both as a Times, and first came to understand what an reader and as a writer,” she wrote in a recent alt-weekly was, and what kind of role it could email after being informed of the paper’s play in a culture and in a city, I was dazzled indefinite hiatus. “The paper’s feature stories and amazed,” Said Kris Vagner recently. She have provided depth and texture to Reno’s became the arts editor of the RN&R in 2004 news for decades, offering consistent coverage and has written for the paper ever since as both of the news we wanted to read. As an opinion a freelancer and a staffer. She’s currently the writer, the paper gave me a regular outlet publisher and editor of the arts website Double to engage readers and discuss progressive Scoop. “It opened this new door for thought issues at a community level, with and communication for me. They’ve people who care deeply about always had such a dear place in our little corner of the planet. my heart, so, 10 or 12 years “Was there Readers would stop me all later, when I started working the time to talk about my for one, it seemed like the really a concept column or something most amazing opportunity of Reno being an arts else that was in the to have that kind of voice paper, telling me how in the community. And community before we had much they appreciated I appreciate so much a paper that covered the the RN&R’s insistence having had that for so arts?” on presenting viewpoints many years—and having not often found in the been part of this conversaD. Brian Burghart corporate media diet we’re tion on this particular RN&R editor emeritus offered by other sources. platform, which is such a The scrappy paper held on champion for free speech.” for a long time and even though Curmudgeon movie reviewer this day seemed inevitable, it’s hard to Bob Grimm, one of the longest-running imagine our world without it.” voices in the paper was saddened by the news.

Journalism organizations throughout “I feel like I saw my first movie for this paper the country are struggling. And the models yesterday, and I was ready for another 25 years of alternative journalism—adventurous easy. I had it in my mind that I would just do first-person stories, thoughtful arts coverage, this until I died. … This has been some of the groundbreaking investigative work—are slowly most fun and rewarding experiences I’ve ever disappearing. had, and to all of those who said I suck: fuck “When I was an undergrad in college in you. … And I say that in the most loving way.”

Phoenix, and first picked up a Phoenix New Ω

Blame game

We are suspending publication (at least temporarily) We are not corporate media.

We are 100% independent and need your help to continue reporting local stories and publishing your voices.

please donate at newsreview.com/reno/donate Any Amount will help resume publishing.

As coronavirus takes it toll on the country’s health care system and economy, at least some Northern Nevadans are making their political priorities known.

Photo/Matt Bieker

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tahoe

by Mark EarnEst

Gayle Brandeis has written an unusual novelmeets-poetry book for her latest work.

COURTESY/GaYlE BRandEiS, CamERa RaW PhOTOGRaPhY

Poetic justice Gayle Brandeis Intense feelings while writing are likely typical for authors who delve into macabre subject matter, whether it is fictional or reportage. For Incline Village author Gayle Brandeis, her latest work gives voice to the victims of the infamous Countess Elizabeth Bathory, who killed hundreds of women and young girls in 1700s Hungary.

“It was definitely hard to write about such grisly stuff, because I’m a very peaceful person,” Brandeis said. “I don’t seek out gruesome stories at all, and I tend to flinch away from them.”

Once Brandeis came up with the idea of telling the story of Bathory’s victims in their own voices—and to mix poetry with prose—it became a compelling reason to press on. And, it all stemmed from her daughter’s book collection.

“When my daughter was a teenager, she had a Notorious Women of History book that featured women who were considered outlaws,” Brandeis said. “I happened upon the chapter on Countess Bathory and the fact that she was one of the worst serial killers in history. I had heard her story, especially the fact that she’s a woman and that she killed up to 650 girls and women. I found myself haunted by these lost voices, so I started writing poems and then did a bunch of research.”

The result is Many Restless Concerns: The Victims of Countess Bathory Speak in Chorus (a testimony), one of the most ambitious books of Brandeis’ career, which doesn’t really follow your usual trajectory.

Writing since she was just 4, Brandeis has written books of poetry, inspirational

non-fiction works about writing, novels and books for younger readers. She also earned acclaim for her 2017 memoir, The Art of Misdiagnosis: Surviving My Mother’s Suicide.

“I think my mom’s suicide and writing about that helped me be able to face difficult things more,” Brandeis said. “It left my heart open to write about other pain in the world, and I felt it was important to be able to see suffering with clear eyes and not shy away from it.”

For Restless Concerns, the writing process was intuitive, as it was with all of Brandeis’ works. “I started out with three to five poems, but then these voices, they wanted more, and I thought they deserved more than just a few poems,” she said. “It really became this act of reclamation, an act of justice for these lost girls and women and it felt urgent to me to write about them and to give it as much space as it needed.”

Once it is rescheduled, keep an eye out for Brandeis’ reading from Restless Concerns, which will be as unusual as the book itself. Since the book features multiple characters, Brandeis is planning to have audience members read from it along with her.

“I feel like there needs to be more than just my voice in the room,” Brandeis said.

Brandeis shares her knowledge about writing as a professor at Sierra Nevada University in Incline Village. She was first a visiting writer-in-residence there in 2014 for what was supposed to be a oneyear appointment, but she and her family liked the area so much that she moved from Southern California. She teaches at least one class a semester, from fiction to creative writing to poetry or literature.

“It’s really exciting for me to watch students step into their own voices and develop,” Brandeis said about her teaching work. “It’s really gratifying to be there when they realize that their voices matter.

I had writing professors or different writers who gave me permission to step into my own bravery, and I just wanted to provide that positivity.” Ω

We are suspending publication (at least temporarily)

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e s u o H divide D

by Jeri Davis

j e rid@ ne wsreview.c om

till bear s s e m o h l a n Loc inatio m i r c is s of d k r a the m

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any people have some notion of Nevada’s racially discriminatory past—of it being referred to as “the Mississippi of the West.”

Many are familiar with the stories of people like Jack Johnson, the first black world heavyweight boxing champion whose July 4, 1910 bout in Reno and success in the years to follow led to his arrest on charges of violating the Mann Act, which forbade a person from transporting a woman across state lines for “immoral purposes”—a racially motivated charge that left Johnson embroiled in controversy for his relationships, including marriages, with white women. Others know stories from decades later when famous black musicians were allowed to perform in local casinos but not stay in them. But Nevada’s—and Reno’s—history of discrimination goes far beyond this, having touched the local population deeply. And the legacy left by it can still be felt and seen today, including in the city’s older houses in neighborhoods like Newlands Manor and the documents tied to them.

Today, people may find in the documents they sign when purchasing homes in Reno’s older neighborhoods some disturbing policies.

They’re most often contained in documents called Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions, CC&Rs for short. The language differs by neighborhood and by the age of homes, but it’s always similar—a prohibition on the sale or occupancy of homes by anyone other than those of the Caucasian race. Of course, these kinds of discriminatory housing policies were made null and void by passage of the Civil Rights Act, and specifically by the Federal Fair Housing Act that was adopted as Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act in 1968.

Technically, discriminatory CC&Rs should have been unenforceable as of 1948, when th e United States Supreme Court ruled in the case of Shelley v. Kraemer that while private parties could abide by the terms of such restrictive covenants, they could not seek judicial enforcement of them because it would require state action that would violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Regardless, these discriminatory terms persisted in home sales documents and are still found in them today. And although a new Nevada law—which will be discussed in greater detail later in this article—allows homeowners to file a document with their county recorder disavowing such language, the impact can still be witnessed throughout

the community—and represents only a facet of a system that worked to discriminate against black people and other minorities for decades on end.

Discrimination beyond the documents Discriminatory CC&Rs have existed in Nevada since the state’s inception. But in 1933, when faced with a housing shortage, the federal government began a program designed to increase America’s housing stock—and segregate it.

The National Housing Act of 1934, a New Deal program, created the Federal Housing Administration—the FHA—as well as the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation. The FHA was designed to provide housing assistance to lower-middleclass families without the money for a large down payment, but only white ones.

“FHA financing was only for Caucasians,” explained Reno realtor and historian Barrie Lynn. “So that was a major disparity right there. Suddenly now you have lower-middleclass Caucasians who are able to buy a home with almost nothing down. But lower-middleclass African Americans and other darkskinned people couldn’t do the same thing.”

It’s something Lynn says she thinks needs to be made up for even today, but more on that later, also—because FHA financing wasn’t as

simple as providing assistance to white people seeking home ownership. It came hand in hand with a policy known as “redlining,” through which the FHA refused to insure mortgages in or even near predominantly minority neighborhoods.

“We did have FHA-approved neighborhoods,” Lynn said. “Westfield Village [near Reno High School] is the most notable. And that would have been hand in hand with redlining, for sure.”

So, with exclusionary CC&Rs in neighborhoods throughout Reno and redlined FHA developments that began springing up in the ’30s and decades to follow, where did minority communities go? In part, this depended on how long they planned to stay.

Seeking a place during Reno’s divorce heyday Reno is known for having been the “Divorce capital of the world” during a period ranging from the early 1900s through the 1960s. According to Mella Harmon, a local historian and contributor to the Online Nevada Encyclopedia, that’s because prior to the “modern age of no-fault divorce, legal dissolution of marriage could take years, or it was simply not allowed,” and—while a “number of states competed for the nation’s migratory divorce trade and the economic opportunities found in offering relatively quick divorces,” it was in 1931, when the Great Depression was raging, that Nevada “cornered the migratory divorce market by lowering its residency period to six weeks.”

A ONE article by Harmon explains that boardinghouses, hotels and even “divorce ranches”—a dude ranch sort of experience usually reserved for the wealthy—provided housing for those looking to meet the sixweek residency requirement, but these places weren’t always open to just anyone, and black people in particular were barred from seeking accommodations in white hotels and were not served in white restaurants.

According to Harmon, a boardinghouse at 539 Sierra St. was known as a “black person’s place,” but few others were hospitable in town,

“House

DiviDeD”

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and black women were allowed “at black-run boarding houses where rates are low,” but they “were barred from the swank hotels, dude ranches, and auto courts.”

Black divorce seekers were limited in the places they could shop, the restaurants they could frequent and even where they could work. But their plight was temporary. For black residents intending to stay on, the situation was much more dire, as the history of one of Reno’s first black communities illustrates.

When Helen Townsell-Parker’s grandparents— Ollie and Helen Westbrook—arrived in Reno from Stockton, California, in 1952, they found there were not many options for places to live in the city. However, they met a man named J. E. Sweatt who owned property north of town in an area known as Black Springs. This old, white man agreed to parcel off land into one-third acre lots and sell it to black families. The Westbrooks jumped at the chance and bought their property from him.

In her book, A Cry for Help, TownsellParker relates the story of how her grandparents and other black families purchased in Black Springs—a place where they had no electricity, no water, sewer or paved roads—and began building their lives there. Using documents her grandfather fastidiously collected and kept over the course of decades, Townsell-Parker pieced together the story of this community’s struggle and perseverance in a decades-long fight to get for their community the basic things that any citizen expects and put it all into her book.

To understand the community’s struggle, its tenacity and resilience, one must read the book.

It would be impossible to sum it up in a single newspaper article.

Townsell-Parker details everything from the fight for paved roads and streetlights to the struggle to get adequate water. In the first several years, residents of Black Springs had to journey 16 miles roundtrip into Reno to fill huge barrels with water from the only gas station in town where the owner would allow them to. The community didn’t get running water until sometime in

“The scales have to tip in the opposite direction. Equal rights isn’t enough. We have to bolster that with something meaningful.”

Barrie Lynn Realtor

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The community center in the former community of Black Springs is named after Ollie and Helen Westbrook.

early 1958. And as the community grew, it took another decade of fighting to upgrade the water system. And then there were the roads, which Townsell-Parker describes in her book as often nearly impassable, full of large rocks and potholes the residents would fill themselves with dirt they dug up from around their properties. The roads, too, were a decades-long fight because, even after Sweatt—the property owner—agreed to give the roads over to Washoe County, the county refused to take responsibility for them until they were brought up to its code.

From the most basic needs like water, trash service, roads and acceptable sewer to the standard aspects of most any community—like a park for the children and a community center for gatherings—the residents of Black Springs had to do much of the work and seek the funding for themselves, as both local and federal government agencies put them off, ignored their pleas and threw up bureaucratic red tape at every turn.

Were it not for their work, the area wouldn’t be what it is today, what Townsell-Parker’s grandfather—Ollie Westbrook—envisioned: “A better place, a more beautiful place, in which you would be proud to look upon,” as he and his family and neighbors were to live within.

Recognizing wrongs yet to be righted Stories like that of the Black Springs community and archaic documents like discriminatory CC&Rs that still exist today remind us that the more than 50 years since the passage of the Federal Fair Housing Act has really been just a short time—and that much remains to be done about righting, or at least attempting to make up for, the wrongs of the past.

Senate Bill 117, passed during the last session of the Nevada Legislature, was designed in this spirit. The bill was sponsored by state Senators Julia Ratti and Dallas Harris. It deals directly with discriminatory CC&Rs and was spurred by homeowners’ requests to their elected officials, including Washoe County Recorder Kalie Work.

“When I was running for office, I had a resident contact me,” Work explained. “He was a new homeowner. And he was buying into an older subdivision. And he said, ‘Kalie, I’m just so—I’m just mortified. I’m really offended by these CC&Rs that I just had to sign to buy my house. He even had that conversation with his realtor, ‘Do I really have sign this?’ And they said, ‘Yes, you do.’ So he called me and said, ‘Hey, I’d like to really see if we can move this into legislation. That way other people don’t have to feel offended when they’re buying their brand new home.’ So I said, ‘Absolutely, I’ll support you on that.’ And SB117 was just a really great bipartisan bill to help solve that.”

The bill resulted in the implementation of a law that allows homeowners to file a single document with their county recorder. It’s called a Declaration of Removal of Discriminatory Restriction. According to Work, the document doesn’t physically strike anything from the historical records, but “just, basically, attaches to and references that original instrument.”

It’s meant to help resolve concern’s like those raised by the man who came to her with his dismay over the racist language in his home documents, an experience shared by many home buyers. By just asking around among friends and acquaintances, it’s easy to find people who’ve had the same. Both Rachel Gattuso and Christine Chatigny, who’ve purchased homes in Reno in the last few years had it.

“The CC&Rs came up, and one of them was something about me owning a very, very small plot of airspace around my home—and then the other one was about persons of color being restricted from access if I ever wanted to resell my home, or something crazy like that,” Gattuso recalled. And I think what was the most jarring thing was how much of a juxtaposition this was. This [homebuying experience] was such a simple process up to this point, and then all of the sudden it threw me back 70 years.

It was like, ‘Whoa! Whoa, how has this never been amended, present day … so this isn’t a part of this language.’”

Photo /jeRi davis

Fighting to build a lasting community

For Chatigny, the experience was similar.

“I’ll tell you what, the CC&Rs were emailed to me by a woman from the title company, who I hadn’t done business with yet,” she said.

“And when I started reading through them, they were obviously old documents. And it had all of these old, historical Reno names. It talked about, I think, the Newlands annex. And I was thinking, ‘Well, this isn’t my house.’ My house wasn’t built until 1950, but I think it must have just been—upon rereading it—the land procurement or something. But once I got into the actual rules, which were, like, pages in, there weren’t very many of them and most of them pertained to just not building a second story or not building a shed. And then all of the sudden it said … non-Caucasian.”

Both women were shocked by the language, and, like the constituent who brought the issue to County Recorder Work, both asked their realtors what the discriminatory language was doing there in the first place. But prior to speaking with the RN&R, neither were aware of last year’s passage of SB117.

Lack of awareness about the law is something Work said is also common and something she’s hoping can be remedied.

“I think a big part for us is going to be educating the public on how to look this

information up, how to look for this in your CC&Rs, and, if in fact you’re subject to that language, then what you can do to put a new document on record,” she said.

Both Gattuso and Chatigny said they were glad to know the law existed but wished they’d had some heads-up on what they would find in their CC&Rs when signing. Realtor Lynn expressed a similar sentiment, saying she’s glad the law exists and that her clients can avail themselves of it but believes it’s only a small step and one that doesn’t make a material difference in what is still a very real problem that can be seen in today’s home ownership statistics. While 73.1 percent of white Americans owned homes as of the second quarter of 2019, a record low of 40.6 percent of black Americans had achieved home ownership.

“It’s not in your face enough,” Lynn said.

“These laws were passed, but it didn’t change business as usual. It didn’t change in the communities how people were treated. It’s like saying, ‘OK, you know what? You were forbidden from being a billionaire. You have the right to be a billionaire now.’ And it’s like, ‘OK, well how do I do that?’ The scales have to tip in the opposite direction. Equal rights isn’t enough. We have to bolster that with something meaningful.”

Lynn said she believes that “when you really think about all of the effects this has had … we can never make up for the damage—but there needs to be something done, and, obviously, the right people to ask as to what is the way to fix this are the people who were harmed. But certainly there are some ideas, some solutions—down payment grants, tax forgiveness upon a sale. We need to tip the scales in the other direction now and at least try to make up for this, at least make an effort, at least admit that this is a terrible thing that happened, and we’re going to make an effort to correct this.

“I think anyone who has a problem with that needs to understand that 51 years ago was in the lifetime of a lot of people who are still here,” she added. “It’s not too late. I think we need to do something about it before too much longer.”

And she believes we as society have the ability to do something.

“We have a system in place where there is a specific loan system just for veterans,” she pointed out. “We have the infrastructure to implement this, and it should be done through FHA. I think they have the responsibility to do this. It should be done, and it can be done.” Ω

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In view of equality

by Kris Vagner

Transgender Visibility Day is coming up. Here’s what trans people want you to know.

i

n 2009, after 10 years of observing Transgender Day of Remembrance each November—a day set aside to remember trans people who have been murdered—an additional holiday was added to the calendar, this time to celebrate trans people, not just memorialize them. March 31 is International Transgender Day of Visibility.

A big part of celebrating “visibility” is that it’s a step toward reducing discrimination and violence. On that note, here are a few things local trans people and their family members would like you to know.

being trans is not a choice

“It’s a biological fact,” said Valerie Lovett, the mother of a 22-year-old transgender woman. “I watched my daughter go through severe drug addiction. She was so out of her brain. Her brain was female, but her body was male. The torture that I watched her go through mentally was something that no one would choose.”

“For us, it was kind of a rough road,” Lovett said.

“I thought, ‘If I could get a group together for other parents who want to talk, for caregivers of gendervariant youth.’”

She now hosts two support groups at Our Center, 1745 S. Wells Ave. The TransParent group is for parents and allies of gender-variant youth, and the TransFusion group is for people aged 16-24 who are gender-variant.

(Lovett doesn’t check birthdates at the door. “A year or two on either side is fine,” she said.”)

Both groups meet monthly. For details, visit Our Center’s Facebook page.

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Changing corporate cultures is not easy

The website of Caesars Entertainment, the corporation that owns Harrah’s Casino, contains this wording: “We proudly support the LGBTQ community. At Caesars Entertainment, we create an environment where both employees and guests can have fun being themselves.” According to one employee, though, the attitude of acceptance hasn’t pervaded everyday work culture.

“I’m not out [at work] because I don’t feel safe,” said Matt, a trans man who works at Harrah’s and looks unambiguously male. (Matt is not his real name. He asked us to withhold it, for the reason he just explained.)

“My co-workers have said transphobic things to me,” he said. When a trans woman checked into the hotel, Matt advised his colleagues to call her “she.”

“They went with ‘he,’” Matt said. “I feel like a lot of people in the casino industry are kind of uneducated when it comes to anything queer

or trans related. There’s people who have quit because they’re transgender.”

With such a supportive-sounding corporate policy, why not just bring his complaints to management? Matt said that at his previous job, when transphobic hostility started to simmer, “It was very uncomfortable.” He looked into the incident reporting process, and it seemed likely that he’d end up being the public face of a long battle.

He’d rather just do his job.

Pronouns matter

“I would say their number-one issue by far is just pronouns in general and people respecting pronouns,” said Ashley Ross, whose husband is a trans man.

“People say, ‘Oh, pronouns are really hard for me,’” Ross said. She added that people tend to remember their friends’ dogs’ pronouns no problem.

“It’s so painful for people to be misgendered,” Ross said. “I think that people don’t understand how much it hurts when someone gets misgendered, just one time. It can really be a setback in somebody’s self-esteem.”

Abbreviation alleviation?

Even for those committed to using the most inclusive language possible, the ever-expanding abbreviation “LGBTQIA+” can be a mouthful. A few new terms have been proposed in the name of balancing wide acceptance with syllabic overwhelm. The one that appears to be gaining the most traction is SGM, “sexual and gender minority.” We haven’t seen it in any style guides or heard it in major media yet, but “SGM” has been used by outlets such as Reuters, the Harvard Gazette and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas News Center.

Access to health care can be fraught

“Lack of acceptance and affirmation from family, friends, work and school lead to depression, suicidal ideation,” said Brooke Maylath, a transgender woman who is a co-leader of the Transgender Allies Group.

These are conditions that require mental health care, and, in many cases, the lack of acceptance can be addressed—at least in part—by gender reassignment surgeries. But there are some barriers between trans people and quality healthcare.

“The problem is multifold,” said Maylath.

“There’s not enough physicians who are trained on how to treat our unique issues.

Doctors will say, ‘Sorry, you’re far too complex for me.’”

Because of this, many trans people end up Marcel Lucius Elija Herz, a 22-year-old not being treated for common conditions that transgender man who transitioned six years are unrelated to gender identity. ago, said that a lot of people—both inside and “Managing cross-gender therapy—which outside the LGBTQ community—seem to is what they freak out about—is far more expect trans identities to be set in stone. complicated than managing diabetes, which “There’s this stigma,” he said. “You have doctors do every day,” Maylath said. to stay constant. You have to know who you Insurance companies have historically are, how you dress. There’s a lot of people denied trans customers such procedures, who think you have to get away from your Maylath said. A non-discrimination provision old name.” A lot of people seem to in the 2010 Affordable Care Act specified think trans people should give that a medically necessary proceup their former identities dure could not be denied to entirely once they someone based on gender.

“Lack of decide to transition, “Most companies he explained. have adhered to that acceptance and To Herz, in Nevada,” Maylath affirmation from though, stigmatizsaid. But not all of ing these things is them. “Transgender family, friends, work and antithetical to the Allies Group is whole process of working on affecting school lead to depression, transitioning. legislation and policy “That’s suicidal ideation.” so that more trans the beauty of people have access Brooke Maylath it—there’s so much to quality heath care Co-leader, Transgender Allies growth going on,” he and insurance companies Group. said. While he’s a lot cover medically necessary more comfortable in his transition procedures.” own skin now that he’s a man, One trans-friendly health care resource is Northern Nevada HOPES, 580 W. there are some things it took him a while Fifth St. Learn more at nnhopes.org. Ω to decide on. He’s been through two name changes, for example. And there are some things that will never be set in stone. “I’ve always been more masculine, but I have my days where sometimes I’m feeling more femiOur Center’s first-ever Trans Day of Visibility Celebration nine,” he said. “It’s like there’s a hidden set was originally scheduled for Tuesday, March 31 at it’s of rules that everyone has to follow when you office at 1745 S. Wells Ave. However, the event has been postponed in light of the coronavirus outbreak. Learn transition. I think that’s bogus. Everyone’s more on Our Center’s Facebook page: journey is their own.”

A trans person’s identity isn’t subject to your expectations

facebook.com/OurCenterReno.

Litter Attracts Litter Our state is quite spectacular; with an average of 28.1 people per square mile, Nevada has one of the lowest population densities in the United States, so it’s easy to step into our hills and truly “get away.” In fact, more than 80% of Nevada’s land (56.97 million acres) is publicly owned, meaning we have a serious abundance of wide, open spaces. With all of these open spaces, there are numerous opportunities to use it, whether it be for recreation or means of living. As a matter of fact, according to the Journal of Sustainable Real Estate, proximity to clean, open spaces raises property values by 20% or more. When these open spaces are taken advantage of, however, it takes a toll on the environment, property values, and even quality of life.

Illegal Dumping Illegal dumping is a huge problem in our community as well as in our state. An illegal dumpsite is, essentially, litter on a larger scale.

Once one item is illegally dumped, other items will soon follow. Not only is illegal dumping detrimental to the environment, but it is also expensive: the U.S. spends $11.5 billion each year on litter cleanups alone, and 80% of that cost is paid by businesses. To put things in perspective, for an individual to properly dispose of a tire, it would cost $3, but to clean up that tire from an illegal dumpsite, it would cost $40 - taking into consideration the resources, the transportation, and the manpower to properly dispose of that item.

Illegal Dumping in the Truckee Meadows Illegal dumping has been on the rise within the last decade: growing from 13 cases sent to the District Attorney’s office in 2014, to 58 cases in 2019. However, the District Attorney’s Office has established a Zero Tolerance

Policy for offenses relating to illegal dumping - resulting in 48 of those 58 cases in 2019 leading to a conviction. Justice is being served, however, the rate of illegal disposal is at an all time high. One of the most popular items illegally disposed of in the Truckee Meadows is vehicles; between 2012 and 2016, 163 vehicles were found abandoned. In 2018 alone, 600 vehicles were found abandoned. When buying a used vehicle, it is not mandatory in Nevada for the new owner to transfer the vehicle’s title to their name; therefore, there is often not a traceable record of who the new owner is. This can make it extremely difficult if a vehicle is illegally dumped to track down the individual who may have dumped that vehicle and hold them accountable.

What can we do about it?

Luckily, there are ways in which community members can help combat illegal dumping.

Keep Truckee Meadows Beautiful coordinates the Illegal Dumping Task Force which is a collaborative of local agencies with a goal of addressing illegal dumping and finding solutions. The Illegal Dumping Task Force helped establish the Illegal Dumping Hotline Number: 329-DUMP - if you are out enjoying Nevada’s open spaces and you spot an illegal dumpsite, please call 329-DUMP! To report individuals who are actively illegally dumping waste, please call the Washoe County Sheriff ’s Office Dispatch number at (775) 785-WCSO. The dumpsites that are reported via the Illegal Dumping Hotline Number will be recorded and may even become potential cleanup sites for KTMB’s Great Community Cleanup (GCC).

This particular cleanup focuses on open spaces, illegal dumpsites, as well as trash and invasive weed and green waste removal in parks and public spaces in the Truckee Meadows. In 2019, GCC volunteers removed 94,200 lbs of trash and 214 tires from public spaces and parks.

KTMB’s Great Community

Cleanup 2020 is coming up on Saturday, May 2nd — If you are interested in volunteering and making a difference, please visit KTMB.org/volunteer to sign up!

SPONSORED CONTENT

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by BoB Grimm

b g ri m m @ne w s re v i e w . c o m

SHORT TAKES

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“i’m not gonna ask again ... where is the rest of my gun?”

Dangerous game The Hunt, the little B movie that can’t seem to catch a break, finally got released to theaters in the midst of a national emergency. The results: Not surprisingly, very few people risked the coronavirus in an effort to see it sitting next to people.

Originally set for release last year, the film was postponed until 2020 due to its violent nature and a cluster of mass shootings that were going down at the time. So, the studio picked the safe haven of March for a release, only to have those plans foiled by a pandemic.

Straight up, this is a fun B-movie, but certainly would’ve benefited from a limited release or Netflix opening. It’s got its virtues, but you probably made the right choice staying home and watching Disney +.

It’s good, but not great. Now, when Tenet comes out, I don’t care if this emergency is still going on. I have to watch that one on IMAX. The Hunt begins with a group of hardcore liberals on instant messaging, goofing around about the idea of hunting deplorables for sport, a la The Most Dangerous Game. Was it a joke? Will they actually hunt? What is the name of the movie?

As things turn out, the hunt is soon to be on, and those who voted for Trump will be in the crosshairs.

A gallery of non-Liberals wake up in a field, find a case of weapons and are immediately met with gunfire and arrows.

Oh my god, pretty controversial, right? Nah, not really. The point of this movie is that too many people are acting like total assholes when it comes to political ideology. (Hey, I count myself in there from time to time.) So just about every character in this film behaves badly, regardless of political affiliation.

The movie is a satirical take on our current political attitudes, and how things are getting a little out of hand on social media. It’s also funny at times, bloody,

suspenseful, and contains a great kitchen fight in its closing minutes.

There are moments in the script where the movie is almost saying, “Hey, we were just ragging on Republicans, but now we will rag on Democrats! So, don’t get too mad at us!” Those obvious “balancing act” moments drag the movie down a little bit.

The hunt is masterminded by Athena (Hilary Swank). You don’t see her for a large swath of the film, but she shows up eventually, and is one of the folks engaged in the above-mentioned kitchen fight.

The movie primarily belongs to Betty Gilpin (Glow) as Crystal, who winds up on the hunted side, and that’s not good for the hunters.

Gilpin has all the makings of the next great cinematic action hero. She’s got a great deadpan delivery to punctuate her smack downs, she comes up with some facial expressions that I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen before, and she’s a sympathetic hero with depth behind her eyes. I’d say at least 80 percent of the reason I like this movie is because of Gilpin.

Some familiar faces do show up in the movie, including Ike Barinholtz, Ethan Suplee (looking good, Ethan!), Emma Roberts and Amy Madigan. Granted, don’t get too attached to anybody in this movie because the cast thins out fast. Swank, a two-time Oscar winner, shows that she can bring the funk whether she’s working for Clint Eastwood or Craig Zobel (the director of this one). She creates a memorable, sinister villain in Athena, just as memorable as the protagonist.

Which is to say, this film, despite its shlock factor and obviousness, is a good time thanks to Gilpin and Swank. The Hunt probably deserved a debut on streaming rather than the big screen, and streaming, it will be, in the near future. When it hits the TV screen, watch it if you are in the mood for a good B movie, because lord knows you didn’t see it in a theater. Ω

The Hunt

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Bad Boys for Life

Twenty-five years have passed since detectives Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) and Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) first suited up for Captain Michael Bay in Bad Boys, and 17 years have passed since they joined him again for Bad Boys II. For this third helping, the directing team of Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah does a sufficient job of continuing the mayhem, easily topping Bay’s lame original and providing a chapter that is as good, and sometimes better, than chapter two. Burnett is eying retirement, while Lowrey is dealing with the psychological and physical ramifications of aging.

(He’s dyeing his goatee, so it’s all good.)

A crazy witch lady gangster Isabel (Kate del Castillo) has escaped from prison and has put out a hit list for her son Armando (Jacob Scipio) to work his way through.

Isabel has some vengeance in mind. The targets are former associates, and they have connections to Lowrey. Lowrey himself is on that list, and he takes a couple of bullets early in the film. I’m not giving too much away here in telling you that Lowrey doesn’t die. There’s no movie if Lowrey dies. So, a brief healing time later, Lowrey and a very reluctant Burnett are back in action, wisecracking and shooting people in slow motion. Some familiar faces return, including Theresa Randle as Burnett’s long suffering wife. She’s good in a subplot that has Burnett becoming a grandad while getting more house time in attempted retirement. House retirement doesn’t go well.

Bad things happen with ceiling fan repair.

Joe Pantoliano makes a welcomed return as Pepto-Bismol-swigging Captain Howard, a still capable riff on all of those screaming captains from Beverly Hills Cop movies.

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Birds of Prey

After being the only thing worth your time in Suicide Squad, Harley Quinn gets her own show in Birds of Prey, a marked improvement over the film that housed Margot Robbie’s first go at the role. Sadly, in this case, improved doesn’t necessarily mean good. There’s something very askew plot-wise in this movie, in that it doesn’t really have one, and the shards of a plot it does have are presented in especially sloppy fashion. The movie hops around time like a tweaker on a pogo stick.

Also, while I love Robbie, her Harley Quinn shtick can get a little grating at times.

Harley Quinn is joined by the Birds of Prey this time out, and the likes of Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), the Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez) all get high marks for what they bring to the party. The basic plot involves bad guy Roman Sionis, a.k.a. Black Mask (Ewan McGregor), trying to get a big diamond from a young pickpocket (Ella Jay Basco). That’s about it for story. Much of the film is spent talking about the Joker, which is a bit strange because this movie is supposed to be proof that the Birds of Prey don’t need the stupid Joker in their movie.

OK, Harley broke up with the Joker so, mercifully, we don’t have to endure Jared Leto’s take on the character again. Get that plot element out of the way, and then move on. Instead, the film contains near constant references to the fact that Joker is not in this movie. Director Cathy Yan and screenwriter Christina Hodson seem afraid to let go of the Clown Prince of Crime as a plot presence. Newsflash … nobody cares about the Suicide Squad incarnation of Joker.

2

The Call of the Wild

A grumpy, growly Harrison Ford stars alongside a CGI dog in this latest cinematic take on Jack London’s classic—far too nasty to be faithfully adapted for kids—The Call of the Wild. Shooting for a safe PG, much of the story’s violence, against humans and dogs alike, has been removed in favor of a more family-friendly

take on the fable of a man and his dog. The dumbing down of the original text might’ve been forgivable if some of the CGI animal antics weren’t so jarringly unrealistic.

Buck, the cartoon dog, would’ve been far more suitable for a completely animated CGI affair. In a way, it’s the humans who sometimes throw things out of whack. The humans and the CGI beasts don’t look like they belong together. I can give the movie a mild recommendation if you’re looking to take the kids out for the night. This movie slips into that category of clumsy family fare that will please the kids and allow the parents to watch a movie comfortably knowing that nobody gets fully naked or rips somebody’s tongue out. But as straight-up adult viewing, with no kids, The Call of the Wild probably won’t do the trick.

3

Onward

2

Sonic the Hedgehog

Pixar releases one of its weirder ones with Onward, a goofy ode to fatherhood, brotherhood and the geek glory of Dungeons and Dragons-type role playing fantasy games. While it’s not an offering that can be counted among Pixar’s best (Up, Toy Story 3, The Incredibles, WALL-E), it’s still a good time for kids and adults alike, and it packs a nice little sentimental punch in its final minutes. Ian Lightfoot (Tom Holland) and older brother Barley (Chris Pratt) are living with their mom (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) in a suburban fantasy world inhabited by trolls, dragons and their own species—elves. Their world is very much like ours (strip malls, smart watches and crappy vans) but was once a place of magic full of wizardry and adventure. On his 16th birthday, Ian gets a note from his father, who is long dead and, in fact, never met his son. Ian’s dad has bequeathed to him and brother Barley a wizard’s staff, along with a spell incantation that can bring him back for 24 hours, giving Ian a chance to finally meet his pops. Onward is the second Pixar directorial effort from Dan Scanion, who also contributed to the screenplay. Even though the film clocks in at 102 minutes, it feels a little rushed. The city Ian and Barley live in is just a backdrop and is never sufficiently explored. It also feels like it’s missing a character or two. While Ian and Barley are fun characters, the movie could’ve benefited from another character for the ride. The focus seems a little narrow.

When Sonic the Hedgehog comes out of the gate, it has the makings of what could wind up being an early frontrunner for year’s worst. It’s irritating, it’s unoriginal, and it features multiple jokes about cops eating donuts, as if we haven’t heard those before. Then Jim Carrey shows up as the villain, and almost saves the whole damn thing. Almost. Sonic is voiced

by Ben Schwartz. While this incarnation definitely looks better than that first mess Paramount Pictures tried to get past the masses, he’s still a grating presence. Sorry, Mr. Schwartz, but your voice is nails on a chalkboard. A brief prelude shows Sonic being sent to Earth by a heroic owl, left alone in his cave with a bag of gold rings that provide gateways to other worlds.

After an encounter with Tom Wachowski, the small-town policeman (James Marsden), Sonic’s gold rings are accidentally transported to San Francisco. He must join with Tom, who he calls the Doughnut Lord because, as I stated before, this movie’s script is screamingly unoriginal, and they go on a road trip. In pursuit of the pair is Dr. Robotnik, played by a totally game Jim Carrey, who hasn’t been this manically fun in years. He gets legitimate laughs that are surprisingly offbeat considering his kiddie movie surroundings. Alas, Carrey’s role is a supporting one, and he doesn’t get nearly enough screen time to save this from being a relatively rote affair.

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Instruments offered include ukulele, bass, six-string guitar and drums. Every few months Kid Rocker puts together a concert, usually at a local all-ages venue like the Holland Project, showcasing songs the students have been practicing.

Interested Rockers have the opportunity to help with stage set-up and sound engineering at these shows, too—skills that Stephenson thinks are valuable if his students look to work in the music industry.

Starting Kid Rocker, though, Stephenson told me his ambition was not to reform music instruction. It was to increase the accessibility of one-on-one music lessons for low-income young people. He has a background in social work and wants to replicate through music the positive impact that consistent mentor-like relationships can have in at-risk young people’s lives. Kid Rocker is a non-profit and recently launched a scholarship initiative dubbed “My Will to Win” to generate donations for the program. Only two students receive benefits right now, but Stephenson hopes to offer more than 50 young people yeararound lessons by working with local outreach groups like The Eddy House—a resource center for homeless and at-risk youth—and Big Brothers Big Sisters, which partners young people with adult mentors in the community to help them succeed and grow.

“I believe in a huge way that we can protect and take care of our community by getting young people playing music,” Stephenson said. “I think that when we give young people a platform to make something happen, they’ll take advantage of it. We’re just trying to do the most good we can.” Ω

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Learning how to play an instrument is hard. In school, music classes are inadequately prioritized, and overworked teachers often fail to foster positive relationships between their students and music. One time, for instance, my middle school band director was so frustrated with our 6th grade performance of the G scale that he punched the white board, leaving permanent dents and scaring the bejesus out of my classmates and me.

Only a handful of students returned the following semester.

Price tag aside, kids don’t usually fair much better in private lessons. If you took one, you might remember doing everything except practicing.

Sometimes, abstract and inaccessible—or involving a wall punch—music lessons can discourage a young person from playing an instrument. They also frequently deprive students of what is arguably the most exciting part: having the opportunity to play music you love in front of people. It’s hard to motivate a hyperactive 5th grader to practice at all, nearly impossible if they aren’t shown where playing music can take them.

Reno’s Kid Rocker program doesn’t think it has to be this way. They hope to support and expand Reno’s community of young musicians by translating a love of music into tangible playing experience, regardless of income or circumstance.

“I found that if a kid can’t play after a bit, they’re going to quit,” said Lucas Stephenson, the director of Kid Rocker and a teacher at EnCompass Academy High School. “It’s no fun to learn how to play an instrument. It’s fun to play it. So we combine the music and the stage. We show kids the full circle.”

So far, the program has enrolled 20 students ranging in age from 7 to 18.

Children in Reno’s Kid Rocker program actually get the chance to perform the music they’re learning to play.

*After you read it!

Information about upcoming showcase concerts and lessons can be found on Kid Rocker’s Facebook page at facebook.com/groups/1082814505189923.

01.21.21 | RN&R | 19

THURSDAY 3/19

If you go out, take care during the coronavirus crisis

5 STAR SALOON

Karaoke, 9pm, no cover

ALTURAS BAR

Comedy Night, 9pm, $5

132 West St., (775) 499-5655

1044 E. Fourth St., (775) 324-5050

BAR OF AMERICA

10040 Donner Pass Rd., Truckee, (530) 587-2626

FRIDAY 3/20

SATURDAY 3/21

Arizona Jones, 9:30pm, no cover

Arizona Jones, 9:30pm, no cover

THE BLUEBIRD Please call venues in advance to make sure their events have not been canceled.

555 E. Fourth St., (775) 499-5549

CEOL IRISH PUB

538 S. Virginia St., (775) 329-5558

COTTONWOOD RESTAURANT

10142 Rue Hilltop Rd., Truckee, (530) 587-5711

Kelly Bentson & Jeff, 6:30pm, no cover

DAVIDSONS DISTILLERY

275 E. Fourth St., (775) 324-1917

DEAD RINGER ANALOG BAR 432 E. Fourth St., (775) 409-4431

FACES NV

235 W. Second St., (775) 470-8590

FAT CAT BAR & GRILL (MIDTOWN) 1401 S. Virginia St., (775) 453-2223

FAT CAT BAR & GRILL (TAHOE) 599 N. Lake Blvd., (530) 583-3355

JUB JUB’S THIRST PARLOR 140 Vesta St., (775) 448-6500 1) Showroom 2) Bar Room

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Rockaraoke with XanderRoxX, 9pm, no cover

Guitar Town, 6:30pm, no cover

SUNDAY 3/22

MON-WED 3/23-3/25

THURSDAY 3/19 MIDTOWN WINE BAR

Unplugged: Open Mic Thursdays, 7pm, no cover

PIGNIC PUB & PATIO 235 Flint St., (775) 376-1948

Pignic Unplugged: Chad Flores, 7pm, no cover

THE POLO LOUNGE

DJ Trivia, 7pm, no cover

RUE BOURBON

Adam Springob, 6pm, no cover

1527 S. Virginia St., (775) 800-1960

1559 S. Virginia St., (775) 322-8864

1401 S. Virginia St., (775) 384-6526

FRIDAY 3/20

SATURDAY 3/21

SUNDAY 3/22

MON-WED 3/23-3/25

THE SAINT

761 S. Virginia St., (775) 221-7451

SHEA’S TAVERN

215 S. Virginia St., (775) 786-4774

Black Plague Wolves, Rebel’s Ghost, Kelly Proud, 9:30pm, $6

ST. JAMES INFIRMARY

445 California Ave., (775) 657-8484

VIRGINIA STREET BREWHOUSE 211 N. Virginia St., (775) 433-1090

THE SAINT

761 S. Virginia St., (775) 221-7451

Santos de la Salsa, 8pm, no cover before 9;30pm

SHEA’S TAVERN

215 S. Virginia St., (775) 786-4774

ST. JAMES INFIRMARY

445 California Ave., (775) 657-8484

VIRGINIA STREET BREWHOUSE 211 N. Virginia St., (775) 433-1090

Silent Disco, 10pm, $TBA

Comedy Carson Comedy Club, Carson Nugget, 507 N. Carson St., Carson City, (775) 8821626: Rex Meredith, Fri, 8pm, $15 The Library, 134 W. Second St., (775) 6833308: Open Mic Comedy, Sun, 8pm, no cover Riff’s Comedy Club at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, 50 Highway 50, Stateline, (844) 588-7625: Rex Meredith, Sat, 8pm, $15

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Please call venues in advance to make sure their events have not been canceled.

ATLANTIS CASINO RESORT SPA

CARSON NUGGET

ELDORADO RESORT CASINO

3800 S. VIRgINIA ST., (775) 825-4700

507 N. CARSON ST., CARSON CITy, (775) 882-1626

345 N. VIRgINIA ST., (775) 786-5700

THE LOFT

STUDENT BODY THURSDAYS WITH VJ RIZZO: Thu,

CABARET ALL IN: Thu, 3/19, 8pm, Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21, 4pm, no cover

MARGRET’S FUNK BAND: Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21, 9pm,

COOK BOOK: Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21, 10pm, Sun, 3/22, 8pm, no cover

THE VEGAS ROAD SHOW: Mon, 3/23, Tue, 3/24, 10pm, Wed, 3/25, 8pm, no cover

BOOMTOWN CASINO HOTEL 2100 gARSON ROAD, VERDI, (775) 3456000

no cover

CARSON VALLEY INN 1627 HIgHWAy 395, MINDEN, (775) 782-9711

NEW WAVE UNPLUGGED TRIO: Thu, 3/19, 6pm, no cover

THE STARLITERS: Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21, 5pm, no cover

JASON KING BAND: Fri, 3/20, 9pm, no cover VELVET DUO: Sat, 3/21, 9pm, no cover GARY DOUGLAS: Sun, 3/22, 6pm, no cover TANDYMONIUM: Mon, 3/23, 6pm, no cover JASON KING: Tue, 3/24, 6pm, no cover JAMIE ROLLINS: Wed, 3/25, 6pm, no cover

3/19, 10pm, no cover

DJ BIRD & VJ RIZZO: Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21, 10pm, no cover

DJ MARK TWYMAN: Sun, 3/22, 10pm, no cover LIVE BAND KARAOKE WITH ROCK U ENT.: Mon, 3/23, Wed, 3/25, 10pm, no cover

BREW CLUB TUESDAYS: Tue, 3/24, 10pm, no cover

CABARET

NOVI

CHILI & THE BREAD BOWL: Thu, 3/19, 7pm, Fri,

DJ SCENICK & DJ RONI V: Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21,

3/20, Sat, 3/21, 8pm, no cover

gUITAR BAR

BREW BROTHERS

CIRCUS CIRCUS RENO 500 N. SIERRA ST., (775) 329-0711 CABARET ATOMIKA: Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21, 9pm, no cover

EL JEFE’S CANTINA SKYY HIGH FRIDAY WITH DJ MO FUNK: Fri, 3/20, 10pm, no cover

REVEL SATURDAYS WITH DJ CHRIS ENGLISH: Sat, 3/21, 10pm, no cover

9pm, no cover

ROXy’S LIVE PIANO BAR LIVE PIANO: Thu, 3/19, Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21, Sun, 3/22, Mon, 3/23, Tue, 3/24, Wed, 3/25, 4:30pm, no cover

DJ OSCAR PEREZ: Fri, 3/20, 10pm, no cover DJ MO FUNK: Sat, 3/21, 10pm, no cover

GRAND SIERRA RESORT 2500 E. SECOND ST., (775) 789-2000 LEX NIgHTCLUB THROWBACK THURSDAY WITH DJ EYE QUE: Thu, 3/19, 10pm, no cover

DR. BAILE: Fri, 3/20, 10pm, $20 DJ CAROLINE D’AMORE: Sat, 3/21, 10pm, $20

WILLIAM HILL RACE AND SPORTS BAR COUNTRY MUSIC NIGHTS & DANCE LESSONS: Fri, 3/203, Sat, 3/21, 10:30pm, no cover

HARD ROCK LAKE TAHOE 50 HIgHWAy 50, STATELINE, (844) 5887625 CENTER BAR DJ SET: Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21, 9pm, no cover

VINyL SHOWROOM SMOKE & MIRRORS PART DEUX: Fri, 3/20, 8pm, Sat, 3/21, 10:30pm, $25

RIFFS COMEDY CLUB WITH REX MEREDITH: Sat, 3/21, 8pm, $15

SANDS REGENCY 345 N. ARLINgTON AVE., (775) 348-2200 3RD STREET LOUNgE LINE DANCING WITH VAQUERA VIKKI: Thu, 3/19, Wed, 3/25, 6:30pm, no cover

SILVER LEGACY RESORT CASINO 407 N. VIRgINIA ST., (775) 325-7401 RUM BULLIONS AUDIOBOXX WITH DJ R3VOLVER: Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21, 9pm, no cover

SILVER BARON LOUNgE DJ MO FUNK: Thu, 3/19, Sun, 3/22, 9pm, no cover FASTLANE: Fri, 3/20, Sat, 3/21, 9pm, no cover

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If you go out, take care during the coronavirus crisis

TAHOE BILTMORE 5 HIgHWAy 28, CRySTAL BAy, (775) 831-0660 CASINO FLOOR CHRIS COSTA: Fri, 3/203, Sat, 3/21, 8pm, no cover

karaoke The Elbow Room Bar, 2002 Victorian Ave., Sparks, (775) 358-6700: Wednesday Night Karaoke, Wed, 8pm, no cover Pizza Baron, 1155 W. Fourth St., Ste. 113, (775) 329-4481: Wacky Wednesday Karaoke with Steve Starr & DJ Hustler, 9pm, no cover The Point, 1601 S. Virginia St., (775) 3223001: Karaoke, Thu-Sat, 8:30pm, no cover West 2nd Street Bar, 118 W. Second St., (775) 348-7976: Karaoke, Mon-Sun, 9pm, no cover

We are suspending publication (at least temporarily)

We are not corporate media.

We are 100% independent and need your help to continue reporting local stories and publishing your voices.

please donate at newsreview.com/reno/donate Any Amount will help resume publishing.

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XX,2020 20XX FOR THE WEEK OF MONTH MaRcH 19, www.newsreview.

For a complete listing of this week’s events or to post events to our online calendar, visit www.newsreview.com.

We’re in a coronavirus pandemic.

That means you should mostly avoid going out so as not to be exposed to COVID-19 or to spread the virus while not showing symptoms. So listen to state and local public health officials: Wash your hands often and thoroughly. Follow other good hygiene practices. Keep a social distance of at least six feet from other people. And if you’re in a highrisk group—older or with a chronic medical condition including heart disease, diabetes and lung disease— stay at home.

Many other venues and community groups are cutting back on live events. Some cancellations are happening at the last minute. Before heading out, check with the venue for the most up-to-date information.

If you go out, take care during the coronavirus crisis

EVENTS

RENO COIN CLUB MEETING: Sam Dibitonto will bring his mint state collection of Morgan dollars. All ages welcome. There will be early bird prizes, quarter pot, raffle and more. Tue. 3/24, 7pm. Free. Denny’s, 205 Nugget Ave., Sparks, (775) 815-8625, www.renocoinclub.org.

COMEDY SLICE—STAND-UP COMEDY PIZZA & BEER: Enjoy stand-up comedy from local comedians, as well as nationally touring regional comedians Thu, 3/19, 7pm. $5.

Blind Onion, 834 Victorian Ave, Ste. 5077, Sparks, (775) 351-2000, www.facebook. com/pg/deadpandacomedy/events/.

VISITING SCIENTISTS ENVIROLUTION: Scientists from Envirolution will take part in a variety of hands-on activities related to sustainable energy. You can create your own circuit, electromagnet or shake light, and even generate electricity by peddling a bicycle. Sat, 3/21, 11am, Wed 3/25, 4:30pm. $11-$13.

Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum (The Discovery), 490 S. Center St., (775) 786-1000, nvdm.org.

NEVADA HISTORICAL SOCIETY—PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE: Catherine Magee, museum director of the Nevada Historic Society Museum Director, will talk about the past, present and future of the Nevada Historical Society. Founded in 1904 by Jeanne Wier, NHS is the state of Nevada’s oldest cultural institution. Magree will discuss the founding of the museum and its mission, collections and locations over time, as well as the vision for a new home in downtown Reno. Sat, 3/21, 10am. Free. Galena Creek Visitor Center, 18250 Mount Rose Highway, (775) 849-4948.

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to the statewide closure of all K-12 schools, all Kids Cafe meal programs are currently canceled. The Food Bank of Northern Nevada is working closely with its community partners to get a plan in place and will update on their website as soon as possible. If you are in need of food assistance, please view the Program Schedules page or call (775) 331-3663 for sites and times for Mobile Harvest and Partner food pantries in your area. Thu, 3/19-Wed, 3/25. Food Bank of Northern Nevada, 550 Italy Drive, Sparks, (775) 331-3663, fbnn.org/ covid19/.

RENO ART WORKS: Anything Goes. Fifteen

the Reno Gay Rodeo during the 1970s and early 1980s. Joan Rivers was the grand marshal at one point, and the event sparked the National Gay Rodeo movement. Learn about this and other untold stories at The Salon: Reno’s Gay Rodeo. Fri, 3/20, 6pm. Free. Sundance Books and Music, 121 California Ave., (775) 784-6587, www.nevadahumanities.org.

|

KIDS CAFE MEAL PROGRAMS CANCELED: Due

aRT

NEVADA HUMANITIES SALON—RENO’S GAY RODEO: Our community was home to

24

cOMMUNITY

01.21.21

local artists set up a display of some of their favorite pieces. Their art will rotate out through March 31. All pieces will be available on a “buy it today, take it today” basis. Thu, 3/19-Wed, 3/25. Reno Art Works, 1919 Dickerson Road, www. facebook.com/RenoArtWorks.

MaR/22:

BATS WITH MICHELLE HUNT

Join biologist Michelle Hunt from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to learn about the flying mammals of the night. Bats are important to the environment and are facing several threats. Sun, 3/22, 10am. Galena Creek Visitor Center, 18250 Mount Rose Highway, (775) 849-4948, www.galenacreekvisitorcenter.org/eventscalendar.html.

by AMY ALKON

Callous in wonderland At family gatherings, my sister-inlaw makes critical remarks about my appearance, like my shirt’s very low-cut or I might want to lose weight before wearing the dress I have on. She only does this in front of others, and she says she just tells me because she cares about me. It doesn’t feel that way.

I’d really like her to stop.

Women are said to be the “gentler sex,” because we rarely see one drag another out of the bar by her ponytail for a parking lot beatdown.

But women aren’t better people than men. Female-on-female aggression just plays out differently—less visibly, less identifiably—than the male-on-male kind.

Psychologist Anne Campbell explains that women evolved to avoid direct confrontation—physical fights or calling somebody out to their face—and instead compete with other women through sneaky “indirect aggression.” This is aggression that doesn’t quite read as aggression, like the public shaming that wears the plastic nose and glasses of concern.

Another popular form of woman-on-woman sneaky sabotage is spreading mean gossip to knock another woman down the social ladder and maybe even get her ostracized. There’s also “constructive criticism”—supposedly well-intentioned remarks meant to stress a woman out, make her feel bad about herself and get her to dim her shine.

Campbell believes women’s tendency to use indirect aggression is “a result of their higher parental investment”—the fact that they’re the home and ground transportation for the developing fetus and are children’s caretakers. A physical fight (or more male-style fighting words that led to a punchout-fest) could damage a woman’s reproductive parts or kill her, and an ancestral woman’s survival was key to her kids’ survival and to her passing on her genes.

People like you, who are repeatedly victimized by another person, often don’t realize they never set any boundaries, never told the abuser to stop. This effectively sends their tormentor a message: “Keep doin’ what you’re doin’!”

Whenever your sister-in-law turns a family gathering into a forum on your weight or outfit,

calmly assert yourself, saying only these words: “No more comments on my appearance, please.” Be prepared for her to insist you’re crazy, oversensitive and unfairly accusing her. This is bait. Do not take it. Getting into any sort of debate allows her to cast you as neurotic and mean and cast herself as the victim.

Be prepared for her to “forget” and attack you again. Simply reiterate your mantra, in a cool, calm voice: “No more comments on my appearance, please.”

Waking the dad My boyfriend and I recently discussed having children. I want them, but he’s a little on the fence. He says he needs to be in a better financial place before thinking about kids. I wonder whether that’s just an excuse to put off the topic indefinitely.

Children bring their parents a lot of joy—and it helps to remember that as you’re jazz walking to the office so you can put your gas money toward your kid’s fourth round of dental work.

Children are seriously expensive, so maybe your boyfriend just feels a serious sense of responsibility to support the little buggers while being unsure of exactly how many million bajillions that could take.

Economist Daniel Ellsberg observed that we humans are deeply disturbed by ambiguity. Some people are so ambiguity-averse (a.k.a. uncertaintyaverse) they’ll opt for an immediate sure loss over the possibility of a future gain.

To figure out where your boyfriend really stands, replace the ambiguity with information.

Together, add up the costs of having kids (factoring in health care, emergencies, grad school, rehab, etc.). From that, project the date of his financial readiness.

You might also ask him about any fears he has about having kids.

Discussing them might shrink them—or make it clear that he isn’t daddy material and that you should start looking for a man who is. Ω

ERIK HOLLAND

Got a problem? Write Amy Alkon, 171 Pier Ave., No. 280, Santa Monica, CA 90405, or email AdviceAmy@aol.com (www.advicegoddess.com).

01.21.21 | RN&R | 25

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We interrupt your regularly scheduled horoscopes to offer insights about the virusdriven turning point that the whole world is now experiencing.

And while the coronavirus is the main driving force, it won’t be the only factor. Here’s the astrological lowdown: Throughout 2020, there’s a rare confluence of three planets in Capricorn: Pluto, Saturn and Jupiter. They are synergizing each other’s impacts in ways that confound us and rattle us. In the best-case scenario, they’ll also energize us to initiate brave transformations in our own personal lives as well as in our communities. I encourage you to respond to the convulsion by deepening your understanding of how profoundly interconnected we all are and upgrading the way you take care of yourself, the people you love and our natural world.

In the horoscopes below, I suggest personal shifts that will be available to you during this once-in-a-lifetime blend of planetary energies.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Possible crises: 1. Your power spot may be challenged or compromised. 2. Your master plan might unravel. 3.

There could be disruptions in your ability to wield your influence. Potential opportunities: 1. You’ll be motivated to find an even more suitable power spot. 2. A revised master plan will coalesce. 3. You’ll be resourceful as you discover novel ways to wield your influence.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Possible crises: 1.

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Your vision of the big picture of your life may dissipate. 2. Old reliable approaches to learning crucial lessons and expanding your mind could lose their effectiveness. Potential opportunities: 1. You’ll be inspired to develop an updated vision of the big picture of your life. 2. Creative new strategies for learning and expanding your mind will invigorate your personal growth.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Possible crises: 1.

There may be breakdowns in communication with people you care about. 2. Contracts and agreements could fray. 3. Sexual challenges might complicate love. Potential opportunities: 1. You’ll be inspired to reinvent the ways you communicate and connect. 2. Your willingness to revise agreements and contracts could make them work better for all concerned. 3.

Sexual healing will be available.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Possible crises in the coming months: 1. Friends and associates could change in ways that are uncomfortable for you. 2. Images and expectations that people have of you may not match your own images and expectations. Potential opportunities: 1. If you’re intelligent and compassionate as you deal with the transformations in your friends and associates, your relationships could be rejuvenated. 2. You might become braver and more forceful in expressing who you are and what you want.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Possible crises: 1. Your

job may not suit you as well as you wish.

2. A health issue could demand more of your attention than you’d like. Potential opportunities: 1. You’ll take innovative action to make your job work better for you. 2. In your efforts to solve a specific health issue, you’ll upgrade your entire approach to staying healthy long-term.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Possible crises: 1.

Love may feel confusing or unpredictable.

2. You may come up against a block to your

creativity. Potential opportunities: 1. You’ll be energized to generate new understandings about how to ensure that love works well for you. 2. Your frustration with a creative block will motivate you to uncover previously hidden keys to accessing creative inspiration.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Possible crises: 1. You

may experience disturbances in your relationships with home and family. 2. You may falter in your ability to maintain a strong foundation.

Potential opportunities: 1. Domestic disorder could inspire you to reinvent your approach to home and family, changing your life for the better. 2. Responding to a downturn in your stability and security, you’ll build a much stronger foundation.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Possible crises: 1.

There may be carelessness or a lack of skill in the ways you and your associates communicate and cultivate connectivity. 2.

You may have problems blending elements that really need to be blended. Potential opportunities: 1. You’ll resolve to communicate and cultivate connectivity with a renewed panache and vigor. 2. You’ll dream up fresh approaches to blending elements that need to be blended.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Possible crises: 1.

Money may be problematic. 2. Your personal integrity might undergo a challenge. 3. You could get lax about translating your noble ideas into practical actions. Potential opportunities: 1. You’ll find inventive solutions for boosting your wealth. 2. You’ll take steps to ensure your ethical code is impeccable. 3.

You’ll renew your commitment to translating your noble ideals into practical action.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Possible predicament: You may have an identity crisis.

Who are you, anyway? What do you really want? What are your true intentions? Potential opportunity: You’ll purge self-doubts and fuzzy self-images. You’ll rise up with a fierce determination to define yourself with clarity and intensity and creativity.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Possible crises: 1.

You’ll be at risk for botched endings. 2. You may be tempted to avoid solving long-term problems whose time is up. Potential opportunities: 1. You’ll make sure all endings are as graceful and complete as possible. 2. You’ll dive in and finally resolve long-term problems whose time is up.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Possible crises: 1.

Due to worries about your self-worth, you may not accept the help and support that are available. 2. Due to worries about your selfworth, you might fail to bravely take advantage of chances to reach a new level of success.

Potential opportunities: 1. You’ll take dramatic action to enhance your sense of self-worth, empowering you to welcome the help and support you’re offered and take advantage of chances to reach a new level of success.

You can call Rob Brezsny for your Expanded Weekly Horoscope: (900) 950-7700. $1.99 per minute. Must be 18+. Touchtone phone required. Customer service (612) 373-9785.

And don’t forget to check out Rob’s website at realastrology.com.

Bound copies document 25 years of Reno News & Review coverage. photo/matt bieker

by BRUCE VAN DYKE

Viral rant So now, we enter the “Flatten the Curve” era. OK, cool. It’s like the classic old sci-fi story from Astonishing Tales, where the people of Earth are all crazy with war and killing each other, and then the Martians attack, and we Earthlings all suck it up and band together to repel and defeat the invaders.

I’ve long been comfortable with the thought that pretty much nothing could ever again unite our fractured country, even a little bit.

And then ... somebody in China ate a freakin’ BAT? Wacky!

• If you’re 24 or 33 or 42 and you catch this bug, just remember, you ain’t gonna turn into a leper (allegedly). You’re gonna be sick, yes, but you’re not gonna need the hospital (probably). You’re gonna stay home, cough a lot, drink your water, eat your soup, and get it together. I’m reading this morning where the mighty Tormund, badass

warrior dude from beyond The Wall in Game of Thrones, just tested positive. Tormund! He reports he’s fine, showing the symptoms of your basic cold, which appears to be typical for a healthy guy in his 40s.

It’s us old fart geezer baby boomers that gotta watch our rear ends. A bit too much mileage on the old chassis can lead to some weak links in The Armor, chinks that get exploited by ornery little bugs.

So it’s time to lay low and ponder the fate of … The Reno Rodeo? Hot August Nights? The Rib Cook-off?

Burning Man? • We all knew that sooner or later, Dum Dum’s luck was gonna run out. That he was gonna have to deal with a real legitimate crisis.

Something a little heavier than Charlottesville and paper towels in Puerto Rico. Well, ole Twitler’s Reckoning has arrived. And sure enough, his slacks dropped

around his ankles very quickly, and there they stubbornly remain. Oops. The lack of widespread testing in this country for The Virus is nothing less than a national catastrophe. I mean, are we the United States or are we freaking Uzbekistan? Corona could well be Trump’s Katrina … times a million.

• I’m finding it easy to consider the coronavirus as a response to our continuously toxic behavior.

Meaning The Virus as a planetary response by Gaia herself, that She is now ready to fight back against the raging slobitude of humanity, that Mother Earth is freaking fed up with our poisonous bullshit, and She’s finally gonna do something about it. Of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Pestilence is a solid sender, capable of racking up some impressive stats. Ω

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