Carson River Dance

You could call it Carson River Dance.

About two dozen of Miriam Blanchett's Irish dancing students, performed their way down the route of Saturday's Nevada Day Parade.

Her school consists of between 50 and 60 students ages 4 and up.

They performed Friday night at the Governor's Mansion and were in the Nevada Day Parade.

Miriam has been doing Irish dance since she was 5 years old growing up in California.

"My mother is from Limerick and taught me this long before River Dance came," she said.

The 34-year-old and her husband David have lived in northern Douglas County since 1998 and she started her school to keep occupied.

"I started the school in 1999 mainly just for fun and a hobby and it has taken off through word of mouth," she said.

Typically about 25-30 of her students appear at any one event. They've performed at Carson's Court Appointed Special Advocates.

Miriam is a new mother; Riley is 1.

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The weather went from summer to winter in zero flat.

On Thursday the zucchini and tomatoes were still alive, even though I stopped watering them the week before.

Friday morning I stepped out of the house and there was a little snow and everything was dead.

So much for the $100 in lawn care and building supplies I bought to work around the house this weekend.

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Carson City resident Louise Carmack moved to Carson City from Las Vegas in 1975, so she has seen some wind.

However that didn't keep it from playing a trick on her, when it grabbed her car cover and sent it soaring. Louise says the cover is a big one and it flew from her home on Sharon Drive three doors down.

Her husband found it while she was calling the Appeal, because her plan was to issue an all-points bulletin.

"This wind, I tell you, everything was shaking," said the 72 year old, who celebrates a birthday in a couple of weeks. She writes letters to the editor on a regular basis.

"I love Carson City and when anything pops up, I write about it," she said.

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Speaking of writers, Gail Bellenger, who I profiled last spring for her novel "68 A.D." has published a Western/Romance story in an online Ezine about the Comstock.

Gail says her story can be found at www.keepitcoming.net. The story is called "Mountain Passion" and is in the alternate section under western.

Gail is a long-time Carson City resident, who works for the Nevada Department of Transportation when she isn't writing.

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I think it is important to recognize the great work by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office on keeping people informed about the Oct. 24 hostage situation in Gardnerville.

We were getting two-page reports from sheriff's Sgt. Tom Mezzetta within hours of the incident.

One thing people might not have read in the stories was the final two paragraphs of the last press release Tom sent out about the incident, but I think it is important:

"The Douglas County Sheriff's Department extends our condolences to the family and friends of Richard Mackey.

"To those whose lives were so profoundly affected by this tragedy, our thoughts are with you and our door is always open should you need help coming to grips with what you have endured."

Kurt Hildebrand is city editor of the Nevada Appeal. Reach him at 881-1215 or hildebrand@nevadaappeal.com.