News item: A church official’s recent admission to stealing parish funds to fuel his gambling addiction makes one wonder if there weren’t warning signs. Brothers and sisters, some among you may have heard whispers within our community of certain questionable financial matters at this parish.

Our favorite recent dishes that have us coming back for seconds Ox-tail chili cheese fries at Bachi Burger Few would imagine chili cheese fries as a fine-dining appetizer, but Bachi Burger dresses up this lowbrow American classic with sweet ox-tail meat chili, bright green rings of sliced peppers, and a sunny-side-up egg, turning what was formerly known as a gloppy mess reserved for theme parks and greasy spoons into a layered dish of surprising complexity. Each bite provides bursts of contrasting flavors (with the egg and the peppers playing particularly well together), all anchored by a thick bed of fries.

Saving room The Barrymore is a throwback to old-school gourmet rooms, but the flavors live in the now The restaurants of the Block 16 Hospitality Group are casual, bold American eateries with obvious mass appeal – the all-encompassing burger universe of Holsteins in the Cosmopolitan, the rambunctious LBS Burger in Red Rock Resort and the iconic L.A.

The discomfort: Hey! He’s a lover, not a fighter The zone: He takes lessons in the Israeli martial art of Krav Maga So there I was, eating a Cool Mint Chocolate Clif Bar, anxiety forcing my heart into thumping beats, unsure if it was nerves, the green tea in the Clif Bar, or the three cups of coffee (decaf, but loads of sugar) I consumed sitting all day in a social media marketing seminar. I was 15 minutes away from leaving the comfort of my home office to drive to Krav Maga Las Vegas’ Henderson location for my first, free, drop-in class.

Keeps on giving Some of the best gifts can’t be wrapped We’ve all had the joy of shopping for a kvetcher moaning about the wasteful nature of human beings, the coming apocalypse courtesy of peak oil and the moral outrage of importing plastic goods from China. As for that purist who eschews the notion of all material goods, consider the gift not of a thing, but of an experience.

‘Musical engagement enhances learning.’ Once upon a time — OK, four years ago — about 80 miniature violins were gathering dust in a Sunrise Acres Elementary School closet.

new and notable Walls could talk Have you, like us, been thinking: I would kill to paper my exercise room in vintage Soviet-era art? WALLS 360 is a locally based business that specializes in stickable wall graphics—er, make that high-resolution, Ultrachrome digital ink prints on “premium self-adhesive re-positionable fabric paper.” That means everything from rose decals for a princess bedroom to life-size Star Trek characters for your socially awkward friend.

A Lift Up Org What they do: Provide furniture and household goods to families What they need: Able-bodied humans who can lift in the Furniture Bank Warehouse, and for delivery and donation pick-up service. Donations such as furniture and household goods are also welcome.

Our must-get gift picks for him and her By Maureen Adamo Home stylish home The beloved shelter blog has finally been compiled into a vibrant, time-warping print edition, complete with home tours, DIY projects and tutorials. If she ever pokes her head up from its beautiful pages, you'll enter a wormhole of thank yous.

Enjoy the season's events Ethel M. Holiday Cactus Garden Nov.