The Wildcat's Own Private Idaho III

Mom was babysitting our friend Karla's little one, and I was alone this Friday night with the fur children. After working 10 days in a row and looking forward to a rare weekend off from work, I was not in the mood to cook for myself and very tired. Several co-workers had been raving about this new deli in Eagle called Seasons, that had Italian and Louisiana-style sandwiches and food at reasonable prices and huge portions. What better time than being home alone for most of the night to try a new restaurant.

The Seasons menu at the Service Desk at work said that in order to get faster service was to call or fax your order in ahead of time. After I ran to WinCo for some milk and other goodies for the weekend, I tried to call Seasons on my cell phone, but the stupid thing croaked on me before I could get an order in. Steaming about my phone, I drove into Eagle. Seasons is not on a the main road in Eagle, State Street, but it's located among some really nice luxury condos on Winding Creek Road with a nice view of the Boise Foothills.

It only took me less than 10 minutes to get to Seasons, and it wasn't crowded when I got there. There were only a couple of cars in the parking lot, including the owners' car which still had Louisiana license plates from their home state.

I entered the restaurant and was warmly greeted by the two ladies manning the counter. One of them asked if it had been me trying to place a to go order on the phone, and I apologized for my phone's bad behavior. The other girl at the counter and I made small talk while I looked at the menu, and when the lady who greeted me was talking to the chef about etouffe, the Louisana shrimp sauce, the young girl and I got into a nice conversation about the American South. Turned out the girl was from Atlanta and was very familiar with Northern Florida, our future home, and her mother lived in Douglassville, Georgia, where my aunt, cousin, and her daughter live. Small world!

I decided to try something Louisianan and went with the Turkey Muffuletta. A Turkey Muffawhatta you ask? It is native to New Orleans and is a meat sandwich with provolone cheese smothered with an Italian olive mix on sourdough bread. At $8.75 for a half sandwich and an order of seasoned fries, it was dinner at a reasonable price for me.

While waiting for my food to be made, I walked around the deli checking out the surroundings. Seasons is a very nice place with a small seating area, a wine bar, and a little shop with several gourmet food items like wines, teas, and other goodies. After checking out the shop, I sat down at the wine bar to wait for my food and rest after a long day at work.

About 15 minutes later, my food was ready, and I asked the young girl if she had been to Warm Springs, Georgia where Franklin Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945. She had, and we both agreed it was a beautiful place to visit. Hoping to return soon, I headed for home to walk Loki and Katie before eating my dinner.

After walking Loki and Katie and getting into comfy pajamas, I was ready for my muffaletta. They weren't kidding about the huge portions. My sandwich took up half the plate, and the fries were in a small cup. Not complaining at all about the small portion of fries because that sandwich was big enough for a small army, or a small zoo that was circling my plate before I even had a chance to eat it!

The Turkey Muffaletta was really good with the olive topping not overpowering the turkey. Not being a sourdough bread fan, I was nicely surprised by the toasted and buttered bread that had been flattened with the turkey and olives. I ate every bite, and poor Loki only got a little bit of crust in the end, but he didn't take any offense. Belly full, I was able to relax in a tryptophane induced trance for the the rest of the night.

Seasons is open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, and there is a catering service and wine classes available along with delivery if you ask for it ahead of time. The menu is very extensive and has a wide range of Louisianan and Italian sandwiches, soups, and side dishes. There are five vegetarian sandwiches which is more than most restaurants offer especially in meat-loving Idaho. The portions are huge, and the service is very warm, and the people who work there make you feel at home when you go inside. I plan to return a few more times before leaving Idaho in order to get a sneak preview of southern cuisine and hospitality.

April 30, 2008 was my 41st birthday and my friend Leslie's 58th birthday. Since becoming friends 8 years ago, we always try to do something on our day together, and it usually means going out to dinner with my Mom. This year is a little different in that this will be the last birthday in Idaho since Mom and I are moving to Florida next month, and I don't know if Leslie and I will be together for another birthday dinner, so it had to be a good dinner to remember for both of us.

On our birthday morning, I left Leslie a message on her answering machine. Since Leslie lives across the road, I knew she was at work, but I wanted to cut to the chase and see what we were doing that night. Leslie called back later and wondered where we would like to eat, and I suggested Chinese, but she wanted to go to Carrabba's Italian Grill. Mom liked that idea better than Chinese and wondered what the dress code was. This is Idaho, and any one in a suit gets looked at funny. I don't have anything dressy in my wardrobe since working for Home Depot, and Carrabba's is a casual restaurant.

After Leslie finished babysitting her grand-daughter, she came over about 6 p.m., and we got into my car for the 6-mile trip to Carrabba's. Located near ShopKo and PetsMart near the Eagle Road and Fairview Avenue intersection, this Italian eatery has been feeding nearby workers and locals for about 2 years.

Mom, Leslie, and I were seated at a booth near the bar, and our waitress came over and introduced herself and asked us if we wanted a drink. I got a Sam Adam's while Mom and Leslie got little carafes of wine for themselves. Mom had Chardonnay, and Leslie had White Zinfadel.

Our waitress went to get our drinks while we perused our menus. I thought of getting an appetizer along with my meal, but Carrabba's is a little more money than usual and decided to get a salad with my entree. It didn't take us long to decide what we wanted to eat, and by the time our waitress came back with our drinks, we were ready to order. Leslie, Birthday Girl #1, got the Pollo Santa Rosa, grilled chicken with mushrooms, proscutto and sauce along with Garlic Mashed Potatoes. Mom got the Canneloni with chicken and spinach and Sicilian Chicken Soup for her dinner. Last but not least, yours truly got Chicken Bryan, grilled chicken with Goat Cheese, basil, and sundried tomatoes. I chose spaghetti and a Caesar's salad for my side dishes, and it cost an extra $2.99 to add the salad. All of our entrees cost about $15-$18 a piece, and the drinks went about $5 each.

Mom and I yakked with Leslie while waiting for our food. Being near the bar, Mom and I were able to get glances of the Celtics/Hawks game on the TV there, but couldn't see the score. Oh well, we were eating with a friend and would catch the Red Sox and the Celtics' scores when we got home. Our food took about 20 minutes to get to our table, but in the meantime, we noshed on fresh, hot Italian bread which was coarse in texture and really good dipped in olive oil and herbs.

Once our entrees arrived, we weren't disappointed. The portions were just right for us, and it seemed that Leslie's Pollo Santa Rosa was bigger than our plates. Our waitress came by once to see how we were doing, and continued onto to her other customers. For a Wednesday night, Carrabba's was busy but people didn't have to wait for a table to open up.

My Chicken Bryan was really good with the basil just right and the goat cheese on top of my grilled chicken so rich and not salty. I cleared my salad plate along with my dinner and said I would have to wait a while to have some leftover birthday carrot cake at home. Mom said her Canneloni was great, and Leslie loved her Pollo Santa Rosa but couldn't eat the whole thing and asked for a doggie bag to take her leftovers home when the waitress came back to get our plates and ask us if we wanted dessert.

I paid for Mom's dinner, and our meals cost a little over $46 + tip, and Leslie's meal was about $23 + tip. Carrabba's is a little more than most Italian eateries, but it's well-worth it with the good service and freshly grilled food and pastas. Carrabba's is open seven days a week, and there are dinner and lunch specials and they are also located in other locales nationwide.

Mom, Leslie, and I waddled out of Carrabba's very stuffed and any thoughts of carrot cake went away because by 10 p.m., I was still stuffed from dinner. Oh well, I can have cake for dessert tonight!

With Mom and I facing a move to Florida in the near future, I am trying to see as much of the Treasure Valley sights and sounds before leaving Idaho for sunny Florida. Last week, I had a couple of days off from work and was looking forward to taking Loki and Katie for a walk on the Green Belt with Mom and our friend Karla's kid Lauren. But first, I had to get there from our home in Meridian, and I thought to myself, "I have been interested in seeing the synagogue in Boise since I have always been interested in Jewish history in the USA and Europe.

So I packed Loki and Katie in the car and off we went to check out the Ahavath Beth Israel Synagogue, which is located in Southeast Boise, Idaho. The synagogue is located a little off of my regular route to Karla's house, but it was worth an extra few minutes to check it out before I leave Idaho for good.

Boise, Idaho isn't exactly the hub of Jewish life in the USA like New York City is, but it is one of the oldest congregations and synagogues west of the Mississippi River.

In the 1860's when Boise was first settled by soldiers and miners, there were a tiny number of Jewish miners who came to Idaho to try to strike it rice in the silver and gold mines in Idaho. They needed a place to worship, and a tiny congregation was formed at this time, but a formal Jewish congregation was not formed until 1895 when Congregation Beth Israel came into formation by 25 Jewish families in Boise, and they began construction on their synagogue on Rose Hill Road in Boise at this time.

Construction of the Beth Israel Synagogue was completed in 1896, and the Jewish population finally had a place to worship together. But during World War I, Congregation Beth Israel split up into two synagogues, and the second congregation founded Congregation Ahavath Israel, and a second synagogue for this congregation was built on the corner of 27th and Bannock Streets in downtown Boise in 1947.

The split of the two Jewish congregations in Boise remained until 1986 when Congregation Beth Israel and Congregation Ahavath Israel came together to become Congregation Ahavath Beth Israel, and they worshipped at the 1896 synagogue on Rose Hill. In 2003, Synagogue Ahavath Beth Israel was moved from its location on Rose Hill Avenue to its present day location on N. Latah Street in downtown Boise. It is located near a cemetery on many acres of land. About 210 Jewish families from the Treasure Valley worship here today, and its full-time rabbi, Daniel Fink, has been here for over 20 years and gives speeches at the schools and universities throughout Idaho and writes a column in the Idaho Statesman. There is also a part-time female rabbi named Laura Rappaport at Congregation Ahavath Beth Israel.

Services at the synagogue are during Sabbath or Shabat from Friday night to Saturday afternoon. Congregation Ahavath Beth Israel is the Center of Judaism for all of Idaho, and the old synagogue on 27th and Bannock Streets is now a Jewish school and the synagogue office.

I wasn't dressed properly to tour the synagogue's interior, but I hear it is a beautiful place, and I don't think the rabbi would have appreciated hearing Loki and Katie crying from my car or one of them relieving themselves on the temple's property. So i just took some pictures from my car before heading to Karla's house for our walk.

The summer of 1994 was a crazy one for me. I was just married, and my now ex was off in Colorado tending to his sick mother, and I wasn't about to spend the summer in Moscow, Idaho, where we were attending the University of Idaho alone and not making any money with a crappy summer job up there because every summer, Moscow becomes a ghost town when school's out for summer.

So I went home to Donnelly, Idaho to spend time with Mom, my sister Erika, and our zoo which at the time consisted of two German Shepherds named Nicholas and his younger brother, the famous Loki, and four cats. I worked full time at Bryan's Burger Den, where my sister was a manager, and I had worked there for the last 6 months of 1993 before going to the University of Idaho to complete my Bachelor's Degree.

Being home was a lot better than being alone up in Moscow, and Mom and I did a lot together on my days off from work. One of our adventures with Nicholas and Loki was a day trip to Lake Josephine. This tiny and pristine little lake about 10 miles north of Dad's home in McCall is a favorite fishing and hiking haven for locals and very little tourists.

But getting to Lake Josephine was an adventure in itself. Nicholas was not one of the best car passengers, and most of the trip from Donnelly to McCall was listening to Nicky barking at every that passed us on Highway 55, and it's made worse that his barking and jumping in the backseat of a 1985 Mitsubishi Mirage hatchback made the car shake everytime. One bark for cars and two for trucks!

After about a half-hour of travelling with 95 pounds of hell in the back seat and his little brother, we got to the road leading to Lake Josephine. Now this is where it gets even more treacherous. No car traffic, but we were now facing about three miles up a dirt road full of rocks and potholes that would make ones kidneys rattle. Dear Readers: Ever notice most of the Fernstrom family adventures involve twisty, dirt, and rocky roads? In a small car like ours, it was worse, and there were points on this road from hell that we thought the bottom would fall out of the car after hitting some nasty bumps.

But rest assured, dear readers, Mom, Nicky, Loki, and I made it to Lake Josephine intact, and we were greeted with some of the most beautiful scenery in Southwestern Idaho. Mountains surrounded the tiny lake that had rocks and fallen trees sticking out of it, and Mom and I soaked it all in for a few minutes before heading to Lake Josephine itself.

Nicholas was a pretty smart German Shepherd in his short life, and he could sniff out a swimming hole in his sleep, if he could, and before we were out of the car, Nicky and Loki had jumped out of the car and were halfway to the lake before Mom and I were out of the car. Mom and I had get out of the car fast before Nicky and Loki saw any of the other folks enjoying a day at the lake and greeted them.

But "Jaws I and II in flea collars" were having a ball in the water and could care less about the other tourists. Mom and I walked around the lake and took our shoes off to enjoy soaking our feet in the cold water of Lake Josephine while taking pictures and throwing sticks into the water for Nicky and Loki to chase. Surrounded by huge pine trees and mountains, there was plenty of shade to shelter all of us from the July heat.

One of my favorite pictures from this trip is one of me with Nicky and Loki. Sitting on a log in the water, I am holding a stick in the water that Nicky is staring at in hopes of another game of fetch. Loki is staring at the camera with that cute puppy dog look that we have loved over the years. Everytime I look at that picture, I get many warm and fuzzy feelings.

Our time at Lake Josephine was very relaxing for dogs and humans alike, and Mom and I were glad that the other tourists had left, and we had the place to ourselves to enjoy. After swimming, Nicky and Loki got out of the water and ran around the shore with Loki following his big brother through the woods and on the logs in the water.

After about 90 minutes at Lake Josephine, it was time for all of us to go home. We loaded Nicky and Loki into the car and made that lovely ride down the rocky road to Warren Wagon Road and to Highway 55. The swimming and fun had whooped Nicky, and he and Loki slept the whole way home in the backseat that was torn up from Nicky's nails. Mom and I enjoyed the peace and quiet the whole way home.

Nicky suddenly passed away from twisted stomach or colic in May 1997, and his brother is now 14 and arthritic but still a lover. Looking at Nicky and Loki enjoying Lake Josephine that day in July 1994 brings back a lot of happy memories from that crazy summer and a couple of hours at one of our Private Idaho's favorite places.

Another adventure from my Summer of 1994. Shortly after arriving back home from school in nortern Idaho to work and be with family for the summer, our friend Anita calls me and invites me to spend the day with her and her husband Sam fishing at Lick Creek, another hidden gem outside of McCall, Idaho. I don't fish, but I relished the idea of spending a day in the great outdoors with a good friend and co-worker like Anita.

So Anita and Sam came and picked me up at our house in Donnelly in their big yellow truck with the extended cab. Their German Shorthaired Pointer Missy was in the backseat and greeted me warmly as I climbed into the truck. Glad Missy was friendly, or I would have had a long ride back to McCall in the backseat with Cujo!

Lick Creek Road is located east of McCall, and you access this dirt road (here we go again with the dirt roads!) near Legacy Park, McCall's beach and boat marina on Payette Lake.

Anita, Sam, and I spent the entire trip chatting and looking at the scenery. Being a big hunter and growing up in the McCall area with his parents and brother Tom, Sam knows the woods near McCall like the back of his hand, and was able to point out many of the interesting sights we could see from the truck. Lick Creek Road is another secret gem of mountainous vistas and secret fishing holes.

About an hour into the trip, we stopped near a little creek so that Anita and I could go fishing. Sam and Missy went in another direction to do some hiking and Sam was probably checking out some future hunting areas for the Fall hunting season. Anita had her fishing pole in hand, and I had my camera, and off we went to the creek to try to catch the big one!

Anita and I talked a lot about things while she was fishing, and I walked around the creek taking pictures of Anita fishing and the scenery. So beautiful. Then I went and cut my shin on some branches, but after putting my leg in the cold creek, I stopped bleeding soon and ignored the pain to enjoy time with a good friend.

About an hour later, Sam and a panting Missy returned from their hike, and we were ready to continue our adventure. After traveling a little more on Lick Creek Road and seeing more scenery, Sam turned the big yellow truck around and we started to head back to Donnelly to drop me off. I turned down Anita's kind dinner invitation for elk steaks (Sorry, don't do Bambi or anything with a cute face!) and came home exhausted but full of great memories and a camera full of pictures.

A couple of years later, my stupid now ex-husband thought it would be cool to go ice fishing when he heard Sam talking about it when we were in Donnelly for Christmas. I hadn't packed any heavy clothing for our trip, but the idiot was admant about going ice fishing for the thrills, and we had to borrow thermal underwear from Mom and Erika since it was going to be pretty damned chilly on Lake Cascade.

Anita and Sam picked us up early the day after Christmas for the short ride from our house in Donnelly to Lake Cascade. It was 10 degrees out and freezing, and I was cursing having to leave a warm bed and my idiot now-ex every minute of the way. Thank God Anita had brought hot chocolate, and I brought tea to keep our hands and bodies warm. The fish weren't biting in the lake that day, but it was a nice time to talk to Anita and watch Sam and the idiot-ex walking around every ice hole they dug and writing their names in the snow from our seats on the shore of Lake Cascade!

Lick Creek Road is best accessed in late-Spring, Summer, and early-Fall. In Winter, the best way to go on Lick Creek is by snowmobile because of the rough road conditions the snow can bring. Lake Cascade is accessible at several points in Cascade and Donnelly, Idaho.