We had major addition to the Sierra snow pack last weekend, including up to a foot down here in Reno. Winter sports activities are in full swing for the season and there are plenty of holidays-related activities throughout December. For the immediate future, here are some things to check out this weekend.

"A Classic Christmas Celebration" at John Ascuaga's Nugget - December 18 - 20. This show, in the Nugget's Celebrity Showroom, features a multi-talented cast of 25 singers and dancers of all ages decked out in a display of million dollar costumes. The performance will feature the sights and sounds of your holiday favorites, including a charming Toyland Finale. Show times are 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with 3:30 p.m. matinees Saturday and Sunday. Ticket prices are $23 for adults, $21 for seniors (55 and over), $19 for students (with valid ID), and $12 kids (12 and under), and are available by calling (800) 648-1177 or (775) 356-3300. Dinner and show packages are available.

The Nevada Shakespeare Company Presents "A Christmas Carol" - December 18 - 19. Don't be a Scrooge! Get in the holiday spirit this season when the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival and the Nevada Shakespeare Company present Charles Dickens' memorable classic, "A Christmas Carol." The December 18 performance is at the Cal Neva Resort, 2 Stateline Rd., Crystal Bay, CA. On December 19, it's at the Resort at Squaw Creek, 400 Squaw Creek Rd., Olympic Valley, CA. Tickets are $15 youth, $25 general, and $35 preferred seating. For information, call (775) 832-1616. For tickets, call (800) 74-SHOWS.

The Reno Baroque Ensemble Presents "Handel's Messiah" - December 20. Join The Reno Baroque Ensemble, Music Director Eric Gault and members of the Reno Philharmonic, American Bach Soloists and Chicago's Callipygian Players as they join nationally acclaimed vocal soloists for an unforgettable performance of Handel's beloved "Messiah." Presented by the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival. This performance is at Nightingale Hall on the UNR campus, 1664 N. Virginia St. in Reno. Tickets are $35 for general admission, $45 for preferred seating. For information call (775) 832-1616.

"Handel's Messiah" Performed by the TOCCATA Orchestra, Chorus, and Soloists - December 18 - 20, 22. Here are the performance dates and places...

• Friday, December 18, 7:30 p.m. - St. Theresa's Catholic Church, South Lake Tahoe
• Saturday, December 19, 7:30 p.m. - St. John Presbyterian Church, Reno
• Sunday, December 20, 3 p.m. - Resort at Squaw Creek, Squaw Valley
• Tuesday, December 22, 6:30 p.m. - Capital Christian Center, Carson City

Tickets at the door are $15 adults, $12 seniors (62 and up), and $5 for students 25 and under with valid ID. Preferred seating is available for $35 by calling (775) 313-9697. The Carson City performance is a fundraiser for the Carson High School Choir and admission is $25 for adults, $15 for students, and $45 preferred seating, which includes a post-concert reception. For more information, call (775)-313-9697

For additional events and performances, refer to my Reno Christmas and Holiday Activities Guide. And don't forget about Rink on the River for a fun family outing this weekend.

If you have an event or activity you'd like to publicize for free, you can do it right here on RenoTahoe.About.com. Just go to Reno Area Events Submitted By Readers and fill out the form at the bottom of the page. Once approved, your entry will appear in date order according to when it will be happening.

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Workforce Development and Continuing Education (WDCE), offered through Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC), has electronic gift cards good toward non-credit personal enrichment and business education classes. Right now, you can give five lessons and five full-day lift tickets to Mt. Rose-Ski Tahoe for only $129. If snow isn't the right thing, there are lots of other upcoming courses in December and January as well.

Sparks Parks & Recreation is offering holiday gift certificates, good for passes, classes, fitness centers, swimming and more. For details, call (775) 353-2376. To see the possibilities, check out the Autumn & Winter 2009-10 Activity Guide.

Need something for a budding astronomer? The Fleischmann Planetarium has Galileoscopes, inexpensive but fully functioning reproductions of the instrument Galileo Galilei used to check out the universe 400 years ago. The telescope kit comes with assembly instructions and includes a 50-mm-diameter glass objective lens of focal length 500 mm, a plastic eyepiece of focal length 20 mm (magnification 25x), and a plastic 2x Barlow lens yielding 50x when used with the supplied eyepiece. In addition, free Galileoscope workshops will be available at the end of the year and into spring of 2010. Scope it out by visiting the planetarium at N. Virginia and 16th Streets, on the University of Nevada, Reno campus, or call (775) 784-4812.

Sources: Press releases from WDCE, City of Sparks, UNR Extended Studies.

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I've added new information about upcoming H1N1 (swine) flu vaccination clinics to my forum thread. The vaccine is no longer restricted to high-risk groups - it is now available to everyone. If you or someone you know would like to get the shot, check out my Reno / Tahoe Forum message for more details.

The gaming win, a leading economic indicator in Nevada, plunged again in October, the latest reporting month. Statewide, the take was down 11.6% from the same period in 2008. Put another way, the total was the lowest since December, 2003. In Washoe County it was down 13.9%, the 28th straight month of year-over-year declining revenues. Drilling down a bit, we get local declines like this - Reno at 16%, South Lake Tahoe at 24.1%, and the Carson City area at 7.3%. Adding to the bleak picture, another casino is going down - Bill's Lake Tahoe Casino in Stateline is closing on January 4. If there is a bottom to this, we're not there yet.

As a primary revenue source for Nevada (30% of the general fund), it looks to me like gaming is a sinking ship that is beyond repair. The numbers are indisputable - Nevada is simply no longer the nation's gambling mecca. When given the choice they now have, all those gamblers in California go to their local Indian casino rather than drive over the hill to Reno or Lake Tahoe. Throw in a recession and winter storms and it's really no contest.

It's obviously time to bite the poker chip and get serious about restructuring Nevada's tax and revenue structure, from Carson City on down to the local government level. Depending on others to pay our bills no longer works and I don't see it coming back. If you've got some ideas, leave a comment and let's talk it over.

Sources: Nevada Gaming Control Board, Reno Gazette-Journal.

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