Dec 31 got a bad start. Tim and mom had skied enough and 
we went to a wild animal zoo, located at a desolate corner 
north-west of the city, only to find out on arrival that the
place was closed for winter. We decided on the spot to turn
south to Lake Tahoe and half-way there when snow began
to fall, I started to wonder if a new mistake was being made.
What saved the grace was that our Uber driver, an elderly
gentleman whose parents came from Russia in the early
1900s, turned out to be a remarkable guy.

84 years old, his driving was amazingly smooth. His mind was
alert and hearing excellent. He retired 20 years ago from
building software in the Netherlands. We talked about farms,
deserts, solar farms, sports, Garrison Keillor, immigration
life, telecommuting, and of course, health. He skis and plays
tennis all his life to keep fit and pays great attention to diet.
When I brought up Wim Hof, who could control his own auto-
immune system, we agreed that the human body is much
more than what our primitive modern science has let on.

Over the 100-mile drive, he pointed out to us local
attractions including a geo-thermo power plant and went 
out of his way to stop at the Cave Rock State Park for us to
view the great lake. We were so lucky.

South Tahoe the town was OK. It was windy, snowy, and 
freezing cold, though. The lift to the Heavenly Ski Resort was
closed and most shops were full. (Starbucks customers had
to wait outdoors for their turns.) The burger and shepherd's
pie at MacP's Irish Pub, however, were great.

Only four came on board the airport shuttle back to Reno
late afternoon. The wife and the other passenger, a former
legal professional in her 60s, struck a lively conversation
with the driver, an overweight hamburger-loving black 
gentleman in his 50s who moved from Richmond, CA. Tim
and I whined about all the stop-and-go, but in time were
attracted to the on-going discussion at the front. The driver
alleged that pollution from the Chevron Richmond plants 
caused lung cancer and the company paid the locals off for 
them to sign away its liabilities. The three pros still blamed
dietary fat for weight-gain as the topic moved on to food
and air-fryers. In the end, I couldn't believe my ears when the
guy insisted that the First Lady Mrs. Trump had come to the
US illegally. Well. It was an entertaining ride.