Greetings Fellow Life Travelers:

Another mini travelogue after a fun two days in Marin and Napa.  First stop in my friend’s Sprinter Van with our two doggies was a lovely garden wedding of good friend’s granddaughter.  The service was adorable with participation of several kids, one 6-year-old arriving in his tuxedo on a mini-motor bike followed by a little girl tossing flower petals in advance of the bridal party.  Following the festivities, we headed to check into the Embassy Suites in Napa…the only place we could find that would take the dogs. Even with the hefty price of $1000 for the night, I had low expectation – wrong!  The place is impressive with lovely grounds…lots of lawn for dog adventure…and great suites with beautiful linens.  We checked in and then jetted to Auberge du Soleil for dinner reservation where I was using the $319 remains of a long-standing gift certificate.  I figured we’d have dinner and then enough left to take home a bottle of wine.  Dinner for the two of us was $150 over my credit, not counting the tip. However, it was fabulous…service and amenities we at Tahoe unfortunately never see.  Trokay in Truckee would be the closest experience, and Smoke Door at Crystal Bay could be a close second. The stay at Embassy was perfect, providing lazy get-up in the morning before we went to Mustards for early lunch that, again, was fabulous. Then a stop at the Oakville Grocery for more take-home treats. The icing on the cake may have been the fancy loo at the hotel, providing a new opportunity for home improvement.  Look it up – Woodbridge bidet.  

Also, this week I attended the second of Tahoe Music Alive’s summer concert series, this time with Rafael Aguirre, internationally acclaimed guitarist.  Touring the U.S., he will be performing with the San Jose Symphony, Cartagena Festival in Colombia, the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico and major Spanish orchestras.  The next concert on August 17 will feature Bill Charlap and Renee Rosnes, jazz piano.  www.tahoemusicalive.org.  

Next up:  Tahoe Philharmonic with its Red, White & Blue series…Pops and Patriotic songs on July 2. 4 and 6.  Three locations, one at Bartley Ranch in Reno on the 4^th.   https://www.tahoe-philharmonic.com   Now…back to biz.

Residential Real Estate – week 6/7 – 6/13

• Tahoe Sierra MLS – North/West Shores & Truckee.  New Listings – 55; Escrows – 24; Sold – 19
• Incline Village/Crystal Bay MLS.  New Listings – 14; Escrows – 8; Sold – 10
• East Shore, NV MLS.  New Listings – 5; Escrows – 3; Sold – 3
• Reno/Sparks MLS.  New Listings – 138; Sold – 103

High sale for Tahoe Sierra was one in Lahontan for $6.995 million. Incline/Crystal Bay had new lakefront listing at $45 million; Crystal Pointe was reduced from $49.5 million to $45 million. And, Chase had a new condo listing at Crystal Bay Cove for $4.875 million.  

Lakefront report:  Active Single-Family homes – 19 on N/W shores; 7 for Incline/CB with 5 in CB; 8 on the East Shore; 2 at South Lake Tahoe (1 on Fallen Leaf Lake) for a total of 36.  There are two in escrow – one in Crystal Bay, the other on East Shore.

Local/Real Estate/Luxe

• Cowboy Poetry.  A little early, but Jan 26 – 31 is the Gathering for 2026.  Aficionados sign up!  https://www.nationalcowboypoetrygathering.org/
• Tahoe Fund – not so fun fact:  the Golden Mussel can live out of water for 10 days.  Huge emphasis on checking all boats coming to Tahoe.  Concern includes kayaks, canoes, etc. that may have been other places before entering Lake Tahoe.  So – Clean. Drain. Dry!
• TrailCon – debut Olympic Valley June 24-25.  2-day festival aiming to unite and inspire the trail running community. www.trailconconference.com
• Sugar Bowl – breaking ground!  Improving the lodge, its wonderful deck and much, much more.  Check it out.  www.sugarbowl.com
• 6^th Annual Hike for Hope – Suicide Prevention in Truckee Tahoe.  Amazing number of teams and individuals participating.  June 22, Donner Memorial State Park.  Check it out.  https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/peer-to-peer/hike-for-hope–2025-2
• Millennium Tower – SF.  No longer sinking, prices have – big time.  Now is probably great time to buy there, as it’s a beautiful building; its values will recover.
• Rimless glasses.  No longer for grandpa!  Check out Matsuda’s version:  https://www.matsuda.com/products/m3104-b-rx  (These are cool…maybe my next go-round…totally opposite of the big impressive frames of today!)  WSJ
• Flexitarians.  Those who opt for occasional meat eating – a new approach for Impossible Foods as interest in plant-based meats is waning, targeting their advertising to a broader audience. WSJ
• Home Shuffle.  Fun game to guess price of 5 properties at a time.  https://www.mansionglobal.com/homeshuffle

Entertainment

• Honoring Brian Wilson, beautiful presentation by BBC. https://youtu.be/XqLTe8h0-jo?si=wMmGDzYCOPn4fDbn   Worth repeat viewing.  (Thank you, Ed)

TidBits

• To err is human.  To blame it on someone else shows management potential.
• When I am bored, I go around putting these stickers on old-style paper towel dispensers:  Voice Activated. Say loudly – Paper Towel Now!
• Most people don’t think I am as old as I am until they hear me stand up.
• Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.  Winston Churchill
• You are about to exceed the limits of my medication.
• Being kissed while you’re asleep is one of the purest forms of love…unless you’re in prison.
• I married my wife for her looks, but not the ones she’s been giving me lately.
• I heard in a sermon once that the definition of self-control was to choose the important over the urgent.  Min Jin Lee
• Exercise makes you look better naked.  So does wine.  Your choice.
• Books are the nearest thing to a time machine humans have ever made.  James Clear
• Say what you will about women, but I think being able to turn one sentence into a six-hour argument takes talent.
• Husband:  I want you to have this bracelet. It belonged to my grandmother.  Wife:  Why does it say, “Do not resuscitate?”
• Mirror, mirror on the wall…what the hell happened?
• There are many ways to live an amazing life.  Stop thinking about the status of a particular title and focus on the substance of what you want.  You’ll often find there are many ways to get similar amounts of joy, purpose, or freedom.  James Clear
• I have put a lot of thought into it, and I just don’t think being an adult is gonna work for me.
• Ask your doctor if a drug with 32 pages of side effects is right for you.
• Guiding principal for high performance:  Simplify, then add lightness.  Colin Chapman
• I only do what the voices in my wife’s head tell her to tell me what to do. 
• Don’t let them take the temperature on your forehead as you enter the supermarket.  It’s a government plot to erase your memory.  I went for a bottle of milk and a loaf of bread and came home with a case of beer and 12 bottles of wine.
• Sign:  Black Olives Matter.  I knew Italians wouldn’t stay quiet much longer.
• Road signs:  1)   Both hands on the wheel.  Eyes on the road. That’s the skillful. Driver’s code. Burma Shave   2)   The one who drives. When he’s been drinking. Depends on you. To do his thinking.  Burma Shave   3)   Car in Ditch.  Driver in Tree.  The moon was full. And so was he.  Burma Shave   4)   Passing school zone.  Take it slow.  Let our little. Shavers grow.  Burma Shave

End of the Burma Shave series…just love them – thanks to an old friend. What a clever marketing program, maybe one of the best!   Hope Father’s Day, graduations, end of school were great to celebrate as we move into summer at Lake Tahoe!  Thanks for reading and see you next time! 

Best wishes, 

Trinkie