Best of Reno 2002

A trip to here

Dear Mom,

How are you? I’m fine here in Reno. Today I was riding to Raley’s on the the bike I bought at College Cyclery when I saw my favorite novelist Bernard Schopen jogging at Idlewild Park. I was listening to CDs that I bought at Tower Records and thinking about having a couple of tacos at Beto’s, a tiny Mexican restaurant on Fifth Street, or stopping by the Purple Bean for coffee. I recognized the famous novelist from seeing him sign his detective books at Reno’s best independent bookstore, Sundance.

I waved my arm—the one with the Pirate’s tattoo of a dolphin on it—at the writer, but I don’t think he saw me. That’s OK, Mom. Because there are plenty of interesting people in Reno. At least, that’s what my beautician Tami Harris at Costcutters says. Reno has talented actresses like Mary Bennett and funny DJs like Bruce Van Dyke, who is also a columnist for the Reno News & Review, a weekly newspaper that’s free. Once a year, the paper lets its readers vote on the best people, places and things to do in Reno, Sparks, Carson City and Lake Tahoe. This year, I heard that probably a higher percentage of people voted in this election than in the political primaries. Isn’t that weird?

Anyway, Mom, it’s almost lunchtime and I’m hungry. You know who I’d really like to take to a great casino buffet, like Toucan Charlie’s at the Atlantis Hotel Casino, for lunch?

Oops, I’m out of room. More later.

Love,

Murietta