Thomas Mountain Music

Sunday October 24, 2010

Join Tom and the band for an evening of Country Gospel music….” Country Gospel Praise Night”…Some of your favorite Gospel tunes as well as some you may have never heard. Banjo, mandolin, guitar, harmonica and a country choir will be leading the congregation in an old fashioned country sing-a-long. Sunday October 24th 6:30 P.M. at South Reno Baptist Church. 6780 South McCarren Boulevard , Reno, NV 89509. Office 775-827-3227 www.SouthReno.com

My wife Gina and I, being married for 40 years, are the proud parents of two fine boys. Of course they are grown men now with families of their own.  We lived in the beautiful San Bernardino mountain village of Crestline California for 20 years during their school years. Gina and I now live in Reno Nevada ( with our two poochies Snickers and Gracie) Prior to our move to Reno we spent 15 years in the glorious high Sierra village of Mammoth Lakes and still consider it home.   We still spend a lot of time in Mammoth as well as Southern California.  Our oldest, Matt, is in the real estate business in Rancho Cucamonga California and his beautiful wife Yvette is an educator.  They have three gorgeous daughters Mariah, Gina and Lanie.  Mariah and Gina are perfecting their dance skills in ballet in a local dance studio and have performed in many programs….most recently The Nutcracker, securing lead roles.  Lanie wants to be a scholar and one day run a marathon with her grandpa (me!) Lanie is already a really fast runner (beats grandpa in the 5K) and has a goal of one day running a full marathon with her grandpa .Our youngest son David and his beautiful wife Amy live in Reno Nevada close to us with their son Luke and daughter Dylan .We are having fun spending as much time as possible with all of our grandkids.  David has a growing landscaping business and Amy is a webb designer for a local company. Our whole family thrives on being in the outdoors ,running,  hiking, camping, skiing, fishing, bike riding and taking lots of pictures of God’s glorious creation.

Wedding Cakes… Since leaving the bakery in the late 70’s I have always kept up my cake decorating abilities as a hobby.  Everyone gets a home-made birthday cake in my family,  Also when friends and family members have weddings I usually volunteer my skills making the cake and always giving it as a gift.  Here are a few cakes I have done over the years.

IN THE BEGINNING… I worked as a baker on Ford Island, Pearl Harbor  Hawaii in the Navy from 1970-72.  After leaving the service I worked as a baker in the San Bernardino Mountain village of Blue Jay, California. During my time in the Navy and my time at Jensens Old Country Bakery,  I  began to learn the art of cake decorating and gingerbread house creations.  It has been over many years since leaving the bakery behind but I have kept up my decorating and gingerbread house building to this very day. Over the years I have worked hard at perfecting my art.  Gingerbread houses for family members at Christmas and within the past 10 years or so I have entered in decorating competitions  in local fairs. I also donate gingerbread houses to the local Mammoth organizations like Mammoth Hospital and Mammoth Mountains Disabled Sports for their fund raising activities.  Here are some pictures of my work throughout the years.

Paul MCcartney.com
Bob Dylan.com
John Denver.com
Rolling stones.com
Elton John.com
Neil Young.org
Neil Diamond.com
Willie Nelson.com
Sheryl Crow.com
Taylor Swift.com
Alanis Morisette.com
U2.com
Allison Krause.com
Johnny Cash.com
George Harrison.com
Ringo Starr.com
Beach Boys.com
CrosbyStillsNash.com
CD Baby.com
Highsierrastriders.com
Planmember.com/tschemenauer

*Sunday September 5^th : Anaheim Disneylands Half Marathon. I will be running my 198^th road race at the” Happiest Place on Earth” .  Celebrating it’s 5^th Anniversary the Disneyland half marathon runs through the theme park as well as Angel Stadium and winds its way back to the finish by the Disneyland  Hotel.  I am looking forward to this one as it will be a tempo practice run for my next Marathon on October 2^nd in St. George Utah. Also I will have a “pacer”. My good friend Norma Thomas from Moreno Valley California will be running with me and she is really  fast ! She regularly wins her age group in big races around the country like Boston and Chicago. Can’t wait to race in Disneyland !

*Saturday October 3^rd : St,George Marathon, St. George Utah, This has been a family favorite for many decades. We go to the race and then camp for a week or so in Zion National Park. If you have never been to “Zion” you are missing out on a gorgeous part of our country. The red rock canyon walls and the Virgin River running through it makes for one of the most exciting and breathtaking places to camp and hike. I am in the “20 year” club. This will be my 21^st St. George Marathon. They bus you 26.2 miles out of town and you race back ! It’s a totally awesome and inspiring place to run.

Saturday Sept. 23,2000 Tom and his youngest son David hiked from saddlebag lake , over the 12,500 FT. North Peak, and down the fertile valley that leads to Roosevelt Lake. The elusive widow maker was not seen. However many gorgeous 12-15 Inch rainbows were caught and released. A wonderfully warm and beautiful day it was, spent in God’s most awesome and magnificent creation.

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So going back we took “THE RIGHT TRAIL,” a nice gradual down hill, which would have been a nice gradual uphill in reverse! Making it back to the meadow in half the time it took us to go up, we were happy to be able to eat at the grill once again. Our problem now was that our ride home wasn’t coming until tomorrow afternoon since we hiked out a day early. And wouldn’t you know it, nobody was home. So for 31/2 hours we called every half-hour and even tried hitch hiking. I made a sign that said “MAMMOTH” on it, however, no takers! Finally we got through on the phone and our ride was on its way. Back at the grill for ice cream, we talked to an 83-year-old man about when he was young and stationed at the Apennine Mountains in Italy during WWII, just prior to the German surrender. He taught us a song called, “90 Pounds a Ruck Sack, a Pound or Two of Grub.” I hope I am in HALF the shape he is in when I am his age! No trip would be complete without a stop for dinner at Matt Tumie’s Whoa-Nellie-Delli at the Tioga Gas Mart. I mean, where else in the universe is the best food around found at the Mobile Gas Station? UNREAL !!!

And so, the end of our summer adventure. I felt like a kid again and it felt really, really good!

“As age comes on , one source of enjoyment after another is lost , but natures sources never fail. Like a generous host , she offers her brimming cups in endless variety. Served in a grand hall, the sky it’s ceiling, the mountains it’s walls.” John Muir 1898

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Breakfast at the grill in Tuolumne, FLAPJACKS OF COURSE, and then on to Young Lakes. We were to an easy 6-mile hike, we thought, after coming over an 11,500-ft. pass. Well, we managed to take the WRONG trail, “WHERHEGAHHHHHWEEEEE?” after being told which way to go AND reading the map prior to departure!

The trail via Dog Lake was straight up, I mean straight up, straight up the friggin’ mountain. We now know how Dog Lake got its name. YOU ARE DOG-TIRED ONCE YOU GET THERE! “WHERHEGAHHHHWEEEE?” So, we asked everyone we passed how much further to Young Lakes. Two more miles a little further, a ranger tells us we are, “Half way there” and many a, “It’s just over that ridge.” After much insane trailside banter, we stumbled into lower Young. We decided on Middle Young Lake. The ultimate goal was Roosevelt Lake, known for its monster, whale sized rainbows. Only problem, it was over a HUGE mountain range, or so we thought. Young Lakes are nestled beneath beautiful rocky crags (10,912 FT Ragged Peak being one of them). A grassy shoreline and crystal clear water make it quite a picturesque place to be. After dinner, we all sat around and talked each other OUT of hiking on to Roosevelt, and INTO hiking out the next day and scrap our attempts to reach the monster trout. With tired backs, sore feet, and a general feeling of “having had enough,” we decided to call it quits. We would hike out in the morning.

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Trail side banter: “You know what I miss on this trip? Bananas and cold cereal in the morning” said Tim. “No kidding. You know what I miss? My soft bed and a warm shower” said Tom. “I miss my bed, a shower, and not having to strain my back while taking a dump,” said Jake as he leans against a tree. 7p.m. to 7a.m, 12 hours of sleep after the day before a “BUTT KICKING” hike and not having to keep one eye open for the friggin’ bear. Those bear cans may be pain in the ass heavy, but they have some very good side benefits! So a nice FLAT stroll of 6 miles into Tuolumne. Jake is the only 15-year-old I know that grunts and farts like an old man. Double cheezeburger, chilidog, large fries, and a soda that one “could dive into and drink their way out” is a backpackers dream lunch. Out in the wilderness you so forget the normal everyday things you take for granted like prepared food, toilets, lights to turn on in the dark, a car to get around in! We had a delightful shower at Tuolumne Lodge with hot water and everything! We camped at the backpacker’s campground and went to the campfire where a longhaired ranger talked for an hour. Actually, he lead camp fire songs for 45 minutes, and spoke for another 15 about some animal he had never seen and knew absolutely NOTHING about. Har, har, hee, hee!

SOME ANIMALS OF YOSEMITE : BEAR , DEER, TROUT , WILD SHEEP , GROUSE , SQUIRRELS , ROCK RABBITS , YELLOW BELLIED MARMOT (and that one the ranger talked about…but has never seen….we didn’t see it either !!!!).

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