Publisher's Note November - December 2021
On the way to realizing a good idea, strange things sometimes happen. Earlier in the year, when we at DAVID had no idea if we would ever be back in the racks, we created an editorial calendar. As it turned out, it became the repository of all our aspirations for this magazine. This November/December publication was ordained to be our “Celebrations” issue, full of all things good in life. From this vantage point, our intentions seemed pretty noble, if not a tad over-ambitious. With Delta causing misery on an epic scale at that time, was it even possible to find anything to celebrate at the end of the year.
During the pandemic, we grabbed whatever we could to celebrate. The images of citizens serenading heroic essential workers in a crescendo of pots and pans or the fist pump on receiving a band-aid on the injection site of a vaccination come to mind. The most profound celebrations must have been the reunions with loved ones separated by lockdown or the survival of a loved one after a lengthy stay in hospital.
Last month, together with a large group of concert-goers, I entered the Reynolds Hall at The Smith Center for the opening night of the 23rd season of the Las Vegas Philharmonic. After what seems like a lifetime, a concert in the flesh, shared with a live, masked orchestra and audience, was much to celebrate. Joining in and cheering with the thousands in attendance was so much better than solitary applause in my living room. What once we cataloged as an entitlement now seems such a privilege.
Performers are finally returning to the stage. They help us celebrate our nobler selves and remind us to be grateful for those who labor tirelessly to bring passion and artistry into our worlds. I implore you to support the arts, go to a show, a concert, the ballet, or anything else that floats your boat. Las Vegans are privileged to have so many options available; take your kids, they’ll thank you later.
Talking about things that locals should be thankful for, we should be grateful for water, and for those planners and technicians who make sure that it keeps on flowing. From the earliest days, people settled in this desert valley because of the springs that made their survival possible. As the population grew, so did the need to find additional water resources. Today, we receive our water from the Colorado River, which we share with our neighboring states. The white “bathtub ring” at the Lake Mead Reservoir dramatically admonishes us to live responsibly and conserve as instructed by our local authorities. Let’s all do our part!
May this holiday season provide you many excuses to crack a smile and laugh a bit as you celebrate with family and friends. Enjoy every minute, stay safe, and take care of each other. We will see you, as always, in the racks
Max D. Friedland