Rolling up to my destination at 1 a.m., a couple of miles north of Weiser, Idaho, where there were two little side roads I had picked out on Google Maps as being a few hundred …

Earlier this month, Mother Earth Brewing Co. opened a tasting room in the town of Nampa, Idaho, about 20 miles west of Boise. That's because in August the brewery fired up a 40,000-square-foot production facility …

My husband doesn’t care for anything too fancy or too hip, especially not a hotel. Give him a Residence Inn, and he’s happy. So when a friend of mine recommended we stay at the Modern …

Pocatello was the end of the line. I needed to get off. I looked around for an exit – a string of fluorescent light cut the darkness and exposed my cover. I didn’t see any …

An afternoon spent at Payette Lake can be relaxing and refreshing – as long as you refrain from dwelling on what lies beneath. The 5,330-acre lake, around which the resort town of McCall, Idaho, was …

Couer d'Alene, Idaho, is a destination perfect for taking in fresh mountain air, clear, starry skies, and scenic wonders that us city folk can only imagine. Its glacier-fed lake, Lake Couer d'Alene, is a popular …

This story is dedicated to the memory of K.P. Ward, who died unexpectedly and tragically on December 22, 2010. Finally, here it is: the start of my summer vacation of 1987, and I just finished …

I'm flipping back and forth between the Boise/Nevada game on ESPN2 and San Diego State's self-immolation in Albuquerque, which, thankfully, is only available on radio. Still, it feels like an unnatural act of media consumption, …

Turns out last week's screed on gambling (emphasis on legal gambling in California) was incomplete. I assure you staff will be disciplined, but in the meantime, let's shout out the good news about mule racing! …

They Are Always Watching Me I noticed my four-year-old with her thumb in her mouth. I said, "Aren't you a little old to be sucking your thumb?" She replied, "I not sucking my thumb. I …

I Like My Four Seasons Here in North Idaho, "Californian" is a dirty word to some people. Which is ironic since most everyone I meet here has lived in California at one time or another. …

I’m a Recovering Pack Rat Last night it took me just over two hours to pick up and put away every toy, game, puzzle, doll, crayon, pillow, blanket, cup, rock, and book strewn about on …

Faded memories There's a line in the 1986 movie Stand by Me about "never having friends like the ones you have when you're young." This came to mind recently while I was going through old …

Hey, Daddy, I’m a Candyvore! Hi, I'm a stay-at-home dad. Now, before your eyes glaze over and you slowly back away, let me just tell you why I am one. Most boys don't spend their …

The Poet of Tolstoy Park. Ballantine Books, 2005; $21.95; 274 pages. FROM THE DUST JACKET: "The more you transform your life from the material to the spiritual domain, the less you become afraid of death." …