Boise Weekly

On the first leg of the 24-hour journey to Amman, Jordan, I sat next to a Marine officer who had recently returned from a 12-month tour of Afghanistan and was now flying home, after having spent a month (immediately following his tour) training with German soldiers in Mountain Home. While I had intended to bury myself in my Lonely Planet Guide to Jordan, the officer, whom we’ll call Tim ... Full Story »

Editor's Note: Idaho State Rep. Brian Cronin is in Jordan this week with the Idaho Human Rights Education Center and a group of Idaho educators. He will post occasional essays on The Grip during his visit, furthering this blog's mission of highlighting global culture in Boise. Brian Cronin On Thursday, November 5, I departed on what was billed an “Education Mission to Jordan,” sponsored by the ... Full Story »

At first glance, the detailed returns from this month’s City Council elections show a city split east from west, generally along Cole Road. But a closer look complicates that stereotyping. First there is Vern Bisterfeldt, who fended off two opponents, winning every precinct in the city, all 81 of them. Vern transcends Cole Road. Then there is Maryanne Jordan, who lost only one precinct, 27—in ... Full Story »

View Larger Map The map above represents the precinct level returns [.pdf] for the recent Boise City Council, Seat 4 race between TJ Thomson and David Litster. Litster won the precincts in orange and Thomson won the green. If you click anywhere on the map, a box will pop up with the vote count for that precinct, including absentee votes. Here's how we made the map. I think it's kind of a hack ... Full Story »

I am back to work after a week-long vacation, the first I've taken in a couple of years. My response to my coworkers' "How was it?" question has been the same each time: "I get why people do this." I had big plans for my time off. I was going to clean out a long-neglected closet. I have a long-overdue personal writing project I was going to finish (actually start). I was going to sand and polish ... Full Story »

With Turkey Day lurking just around the corner, those opposed to gobbling up gobblers, like Questionland user Charles B. , are starting to talk un-turkey. In a recent post, he asked: "Alternatives to turkey? I like all the stuff that comes with the turkey, even the gravy. But the turkey itself is booooring at best. Are there any good substitutes? I don't care if they are vegetarian or not. I ... Full Story »

OK folks, you’ve got just more than one week left to get your entries in for two of Boise Weekly’s most popular annual contests: Bad Cartoon and Fiction 101. Entries for both are due at BWHQ (523 Broad St., on the corner of Sixth and Broad streets) by noon on Wednesday, Nov. 18. Winners and assorted favorites in the Bad Cartoon Contest will be published on Wednesday, Dec. 2, and the winner’s ... Full Story »

The burning question on every man's mind: does size matter? Biggest you've seen? Smallest? Best? Is it in? Am I in? Is it big enough for you? Am I average? Am I the biggest? Am I the smallest? It's bigger when it's hard. How do I compare to other men you've been with? Am I the best? You feel me? Man, I can feel you just fine. (It's ONLY a little over a foot long). The big scepters have to ask ... Full Story »

Sad news for those of you looking forward to a fatty slice of ’90s nostalgia pizza, the M.C. Hammer and Vanilla Ice reunion show on Nov. 14 in Idaho Falls has once again been cancelled . This obviously-too-good-to-be-true showdown was originally slated to go down on June 6 , but was rescheduled for unspecified reasons. This time around, rescheduling doesn’t look likely. Red Tie Concerts laments ... Full Story »

After my arrival here, I was supposed to interpret for the people of my community. I hadn’t thought that I would be an interpreter in the United States. Though I am multilingual, I did not think my English was good enough to interpret in the hospital. Despite my limited English, I was compelled to help my community interpret in sectors like hospitals, offices, schools, banks and police stations ... Full Story »

According to The Cabin, their Readings and Conversations lecture on Tuesday, Nov. 10 featuring Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has been postponed due to an illness in Adichie's family. The Cabin’s artistic and executive director Paul Shaffer noted on their Web site : "We hope to reschedule her Boise appearance sometime early next year.” All tickets already purchased for Adichie’s ... Full Story »

Remember your first bike? Well, here’s your chance to help give that memory to some local kids. The Boise Bicycle Project is looking for volunteers to help fix up some used kids bikes which will be given away to children whose families might otherwise not be able to afford a bike. They’ve already finished 75 of the 150 they hope to gift this year as part of the third annual Christmas Kids Bike ... Full Story »

We wrote this week about Idaho Power's digital smart meters , which most of Ada County residents now have outside their homes. The Idaho Business Review also reported on Idaho Power's federal stimulus grant, as well as other stimulus money coming to Idaho utilities. We did promise ya'll in the article that we'd walk you through the process for analyzing your hourly power consumption, so here ya ... Full Story »

Birthplace of golf finds new ways of creating the next generation of duffers. by William Echikson, GlobalPost LADYBANK, ScotlandFor Bill Miller, the Scottish Golf Unions Director of Youth Development, it was understandable that the Spaniards would challenge his nations golf supremacy. But when golfers from Denmark and Sweden began walloping Scotlands national team, he knew something had to ... Full Story »

Idaho Rep. Walt Minnick just released the following statement indicating he will vote against the House's Affordable Health Care for America Act : “Over the last several months, I have met with thousands of constituents from all over Idaho’s First Congressional District. They are gravely concerned about the economy, about job security, and about the kinds of opportunities their children and ... Full Story »

We get a lot of announcements for contests, but this is the first time we’ve ever seen one asking people to decorate their shoes with holiday themes. Shu’s Idaho Running Company is holding the Shu’s Holiday Shoe Contest between now and Dec. 23 as a fundraiser for Girls on the Run , an organization that helps young girls through mentoring and track. Contestants are challenged to decorate a pair ... Full Story »

Vidiot gets deja vu. by Travis Estvold This movie had everything its prequel had, but thats precisely whats wrong with it. Cars turn into robots and vice versa, Megan Fox sits in suggestive positions wearing low-cut clothes, Shia LaBeouf spazzes out, the government displays its ineptitude and everything explodes or is riddled with bullet holes; Ive seen this once before, but with a better ... Full Story »

Editor's note: Finbarr O'Reilly is a Reuters photographer based in Africa. He has made three trips to Afghanistan over the past three years, embedding each time with the Canadian army and their Afghan counterparts operating in Kandahar Province's Panjwaii and Zhari districts, from where the Taliban originated. This audio slideshow captures some of the chaos and confusion of a worsening conflict ... Full Story »

Haute couture, a classic holiday Christmas tale and George Clooney staring at goats. The BoxNorma (Cameron Diaz) and Arthur (James Marsden) are in dire financial straits when a mysterious box with a big red button shows up on their doorstep. With the box comes an offer: Press the button and get $1 million, but somewhere, someone is killed. With 24 hours to decide, they have more than moral ... Full Story »

New book details history of Boise's local ski hill by Deanna Darr Books chronicling the early development of ski areas seem to be a trend, and Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area has hopped on the bandwagon. Building Bogus Basin by local author Eve Chandler hit stores earlier this fall, although BW had the scoop two years ago. Clocking in at 224 pages and retailing for $27.95, the book looks at ... Full Story »

Local stickman Louis Ruiz competes for a national king of the drums title. by Tara Morgan Local stickman Louis Ruiz will be one of 214 drummers moving on to district finals (on Thursday, Nov. 5) in Guitar Center's 21st Drum Off competition. Winners of the district finals move on to regionals and from there, five drummers will go forward to the grand finals, where one will be crowned the winner ... Full Story »

This month's Fettuccine Forum presents a discussion led by Boise City Councilman David Eberle. by Andrew Crisp This month's Fettuccine Forum presents a discussion led by Boise City Councilman David Eberle, Ph.D. The talk, Our Great Recession: Its Impact on Idaho and the Boise Valley will host a panel of local economists to engage the public in a discussion about our nation's economy and what the ... Full Story »

How many people do you know that request health care that they know they don't need but they want to have 'because it's covered? by Nathaniel Hoffman The Regence Group, which sells Blue Cross and Blue Shield health insurance in Idaho, Washington, Utah and Oregon, has launched a high-tech political and marketing campaign that the company says helps people understand health-care reform. But ... Full Story »

In the ski world, being the little guy on the block isn't such a bad thing. by Deanna Darr When I was little, there weren't a lot of child care problemsat least in the winter. Once a thick layer of snow had covered our mountain home, my parents always had the option of just dropping me off at the small local ski hill, where I could spend hours whizzing down the slopes, along with all the other ... Full Story »

Legendary comic debuts in Boise on Saturday, Nov. 7. by Amy Atkins Saturday, Nov. 7, 7:30 p.m., $35-$57.50 Morrison Center2201 Cesar Chavez Lane208-426-1609mc.boisestate.edu For ticket information, visit idahotickets.com. For more than 40 years, iconic actress Lily Tomlin has infused the roles she takes with a joie de vivre wholly unique to her. Precocious, 6-year-old Edith Ann, sitting in her ... Full Story »