TIT - This is Tahoe

Did you see Blood Diamond? Leonardo diCaprio's 2006 blockbuster on the moral conundrums of the international gem trade? It was interesting and fast moving, and diCaprio is one of the most talented actors of our generation. In it diCaprio's character often says "TIA" which means "This is Africa." It's the cynical mantra he and his colleagues toss around to explain how things are. I have my own take on this, Tahoe Style. TIT. This is Tahoe.

Situation 1 We had DSL put into our condo recently. Other condo owners have it. It took us two hours on the phone with Exwire plus two visits by Exwire to our condo to get it working.

Situation 2
Dave went to a restaurant in the Village last week and ordered a Hot Apple Pie. He asked the bartender if he knew what one was. Yes, the bartender said. The drink arrived at room temperature and with a lemon garnish. Dave asked if he could please remake the drink to be hot since it's a HOT Apple Pie and to garnish it the traditional way, with whipped cream. After 15 minutes the bartender returned with the drink, again at room temperature and this time missing the Tuaca. Dave gave up and drank it this way.

Situation 3Ski team meets at 8:30a. For perspective, there are 700+ kids on ski team this year so it's a big group that meets. The ski team director updates the web site every morning by 7a so families know if there is a delayed start, the weather is too bad to ski, etc. There is also a phone number you can call, a hotline. On Day 2 we showed up at 8:30a. The start had been delayed until 9:30a because the Funitel is not yet open due to avalanche control. But neither the web site nor the hotline reflected this. Fortunately it was no big deal for us. Our condo is literally two buildings from the meeting spot. But what about the families who drove in 30 minutes from Donner?! The picture at left is taken from our patio. The tree on the far left is where ski team meets. It's that close.

Situation 4On Hwy 80 there are large digital signs that advise motorists of road conditions. They say things like "Chains Required to Pass Summit. Checkpoint 2 Miles Ahead". But there is no checkpoint and there are 2WD cars whizzing by.

This kind of stuff really used to bug me and it still does down in the Bay. But after seven years of spending a good amount of time in the land of the B Team, I've come to accept things the way they are. This is Tahoe.