Alrighty...just got back from Tahoe a couple of hours ago, and it was freakin fun!!

Flew out Thursday night and got in at Harvey's Casino around midnight. We went snowboarding at Sierra-at-Tahoe on Friday and that place is actually really cool. I didn't wanna do Heavenly, cuz even tho the view is awesome, the place just blows for snowboarding. So we took the time to drive south for 20 miles and to try out Sierra. It kinda sucked cuz when we got there, it was raining. But I just wanted to board really bad. My ankle felt fine, and my new boots were really comfy. They had this dope beer called Sierra-at-Tahoe pale ale, which at first I thought was the normal Sierra Nevada. But this dude at the bar said it was really good, and after trying it, I couldn't agree more. I felt a lil tipsy cuz I didn't really eat anything that morning. So boarding with a lil fade actually felt pretty dope!

But yeah Sierra was really worth it. They had a special college student rate for the week for only $41. The runs were nice and long. Even the bunny slope for the beginners was pretty wide, so no one was crashing into each other. We didn't go to the top cuz it seemed really foggy up there, but we stayed on the west side of the mountain where no one was at, and those runs were longer than the ones up top.

But my final run was probably the best I've ever done. It was close to closing time, and once I got off the lift, I noticed every one was heading the opposite direction, towards the main entrance. But for me, I wanted to conquer the mountain one last time. And boarding down by myself, with absolutely no one around me, felt so great. It was almost relaxing and soothing, just hearing the snow carving around my board and running my fingerse through the snow. (yeah it sounds perverted) . I can't really explain it. I guess its sorta how Lou felt when we did our final run at Squaw earlier this year.

Well, we wanted to go boarding on Saturday again at Sierra, but the weather forecast predicted winds and a lot of rain. But that didn't even happen on Saturday! All it was were partly cloudy skies, and some wind. And what sucked was that Sierra's location blocks a lot of wind, which of course I found out Saturday night reading this brochure I brought. Damn it!! Oh well! All we did was walk around the Heavenly Gondola Village and ate a cheap $9 prime rib deal at the Lakeside Inn. Not too bad for $9.

Anyhow, this crazy thing happened to me also. After we landed at Reno Thursday night, I saw a poster at the airport in which Boyz II Men was having a concert Friday and Saturday night. I was all, 'hey pretty cool! Too bad we can't watch em though, but that would've been nice.'

So today, as we were checking in our luggage at the airport. Guess who I spotted....



Yup, das right...that's NATHAN MORRIS of BOYZ II MEN!! And he flew with us on the same flight!!!

Dude, it was freakin weird. I saw him walking up to check in at the first class. And I'm all pulling on Karen's shoulder, 'Dude...that's Nathan Morris of Boyz II Men.' And she was all, 'Go talk to him!' So after debating what to do, I finally went up to him. And our conversation sorta went like this...

Me: Mr. Morris?
Nate: Yeah?
Me: Hey, I heard you had a concert last night here, how did it go?
Nate: It went pretty well, we had a good turnout.

So me keeping it short cuz I didn't wanna cause a scene...

Me: That's good. Well just wanted to say I'm a fan of your guy's music and its nice to see you back again.
Nate: Thanks man. I appreciate that.

Okay, so why didn't I take a picture of him (yet)? Well, I remembered watching this documentary of the Boyz. And he mentioned something like, 'yeah it's nice that people come up, ask for autographs, take pictures, or whatever, but sometimes we might be busy like having an important conversation or having dinner for example, and sometimes the timing isn't right. There are times when people get really aggressive and want it done right there, so I'd have to tell them, hey let me finish my dinner and I'll get to it then.'

So remembering that, I had to pick my timing. Once I got to our gate, I noticed him sitting down against the wall cuz all the seats were filled. I sat next to him wanting to ask for a photo, but he was on the phone. Then the crew at the gate told us to move, so we got up, moved to this empty corner, and he finally got off the phone. So then, our second conversation went...

Me: Hey, Nate do you mind if I take a picture with you?
Nate: Naw man, not at all

(Karen takes the picture above)

Me: Thank you Nate.
Nate: No problem
Me: So you got more concerts coming up?
Nate: Yeah, we got four performances in Las Vegas at the Orleans, so that's why I'm flying out.
Me: Oh nice, are you coming to Southern California anytime soon?
Nate: Yeah, we got some shows in May at the Anaheim House of Blues, and I know we'll be in L.A. and San Diego.
Me: Cool, I'll try to check you guys out then.
Nate: Cool man.
Me: So how are the other two doing? (FYI, Mike is no longer with the group)
Nate: They're doing good.
Me: Are they still in town or did they fly out already?
Nate: Oh, they both has some stuff to attend to first so I'm flying out now and just gonna meet them up there.
Me: Oh, cool. Aight man, you take care. It was good seeing you.
Nate: Yeah, man thanks!

And that was it! I just basically stood next to him until he boarded. I didn't really wanna bug him too much or anything. Hejust seemed really mellow, almost exhausted if anything. So, the picture is slightly blurry cuz I didn't wanna cause a scene and have him more embarrassed or anything. Hence, I told Karen not to use the flash cuz I didn't want anyone else to see. But it was pretty crazy. No one really recognized him cuz I guess no one's really into Boyz II Men anymore, which kinda sucks. Hehe, I guess no one really paid attention to his Boyz II Men knecklace either. But dude, pretty freakin crazy!

And yeah, maybe I'm overreacting a lil. But man, out of all places (Reno) to run into someone famous. In a way it was a good thing no one recognized him cuz it gave me my opportunity to talk to him. But yeah, it was just weird seeing their poster for their concert, then running into Nate.

Okay, I'm tired now. Sorry for the long post. Happy Easter again!