I was diagnosed with a norovirus once.  A dozen years ago.  It wasn’t pleasant.  Driving home from work one day, I had to pull over and get out of the car, where I was unwell along the roadside.  Too much information?   Consider it a warning.  I had GI issues for a couple of days, and was advised to avoid other people for a week.  It was a boring stretch and a waste of personal time off.

This is Sweeping the Country

A highly unusual strain of norovirus is afflicting some parts of the country, including California.  Being that we’re at the start of the summer travel season, it’s only a matter of time before it becomes widespread in Idaho.  You’ll know if you have it, and possibly 24 hours after exposure.  My experience was that it came about fast, and it was furious.

Check out this link for more details.   People don’t have much immunity to this particular strain.  The usual advice is to wash your hands frequently.  But we’re not always near a sink, and we share a lot of door handles.  I was at a busy travel plaza a few days ago, and dozens of people were going in and out of the building in the few minutes I was there.

Disease of the Week

I can’t speak for every case, but what I had wasn’t pretty, but the worst was over in a couple of days.  Then I self-quarantined for a few more days.  It should sweep across the state quickly, and then be gone, and offer some immunity for the foreseeable future.

Westside Drive In has been serving burgers, fries, and milkshakes from its corner at State and 21st streets for decades. Many know them for their Famous Idaho Ice Cream Potato.

The dessert, which resembles a baked potato complete with toppings, has helped put Westside Drive In — and Idaho — in the national spotlight. The sweet treat has been featured on national television and has become one of the state’s most recognizable culinary creations.

“This is the greatest drive-in in the United States of America, bar none,” said longtime customer Victor Miller.

WATCH | “Food, fun and fifties”—

Famous Idaho Ice Cream Potato helps put Boise landmark on the map

The novelty dessert offers a sweeter version of Idaho’s most famous crop. Made to resemble a baked potato, it has attracted attention from customers across the country and around the world.

The restaurant’s roots stretch back decades, but its modern identity took shape after Chef Lou Aaron purchased the business in 1994.

“When I bought the West Side, I thought I got to make this 50s [themed],” Aaron said. “So we came up with a little slogan, and the slogan was, I mean, when you think of fun, and happy days, you think of 50s.”

Now, Aaron’s daughter Emily Bolton and son Josh Aaron help oversee operations, continuing the family legacy.

“We both grew up working, you know, I cashiered, he cooked, and we both laughed and said never again, and then here we are,” Bolton said.

The restaurant’s profile grew even larger when Food Network personalities, including Guy Fieri of “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives,” featured Westside Drive In and its signature dessert.

“He says, you know, you better be ready because the people are gonna be flooding in here after this episode airs,” Josh Aaron recalled. “And he came here and really put Boise on the map by, you know, featuring us and all the other restaurants that he has the last few times he’s been here.”

For customers like Miller, the appeal goes beyond the food, “It’s a special Idaho place. It’s like a place that identifies Idaho, Boise, and it’s put us on the map.”

While families continue gathering at the restaurant for a classic American dining experience, Aaron says Westside Drive In also serves another purpose.

As someone in long-term recovery, Aaron has made hiring people facing difficult circumstances a core part of the restaurant’s mission.

“I’m an alcoholic, and I’ve been clean for 36 years now,” Lou Aaron said. “Someone picked me off the ground when I was in the gutter, and it helped change my life. So, almost 90% of our employees at both places are either out of prison, in prison, homeless, you name it. So, we try to help them to rehabilitate them.”

Customers say that commitment to helping others is part of what makes the restaurant special.

“That’s what West Side is about,” Miller said. “It’s about second chances and the lives that he has improved and saved in a lot of ways by giving people another chance in life.”

For the Aaron family, preserving that mission is just as important as preserving the menu.

“You have so many memories here. We have so many customers who’ve been coming here since they were kids,” said Lou Aaron. “It’s more of an institution than it is a restaurant. We will never sell it. I’ll always be in the family.”

Today, Westside Drive In continues serving customers at both its original State Street location and its Parkcenter Boulevard restaurant — carrying on a legacy built on food, family and second chances.

“Mostly what we’re seeing is riders riding above their skill level, also complacency,” Nakashima said. “When you’re riding a motorcycle, it’s probably just a good idea to ride as if you’re invisible — assume that cars can’t see you.”

According to 2024 ITD data, there were 629 motorcycle-related crashes and deaths on Idaho roads. This includes 47 fatalities that represent a 17.5% increase from 2023. Of these crashes, 86% of motorcyclists were injured and 35% of fatal motorcycle crashes involved an impaired rider.

Josephine Middleton, the Idaho Transportation Department’s highway safety manager, said as of Monday there have been 66 lives lost on Idaho roads this year, a value significantly lower compared to this time last year that Middleton noted may be influenced by high gas prices directly impacting the number of trips taken.

Though gas prices are discouraging trips for some, Sunshine Beer, director of the Idaho Skills Training Advantage for Riders (STAR) Motorcycle Safety Program, said motorcyclists are hitting the road earlier with the sparse winter observed in the first quarter of the year.

Lane Triplett, a member of the Motorcycle Safety Task Force of Idaho (MSTF), said he has used his role to review each motorcycle fatality in the state since 2009 and the myriad ways motorcyclists have lost their lives on Idaho’s roads and highways.

“Animal, road hazards, mechanical issues — all those really pale to rider error itself,” Triplett said. Triplett said his review of fatal crashes has consistently shown about 70% of fatal motorcycle crashes in Idaho have been the fault of motorcyclists while 20% of crashes were the fault of other vehicles. The remaining 10% is spread across various other environmental and vehicular variables.

Of the fatal crashes resulting from rider error, Triplett said about 30% stem from failing to navigate a corner. He said alcohol impairment, an issue observed nationwide, is also a major factor. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that 40% of riders who died in single-vehicle crashes across the country in 2024 were impaired by alcohol.