How can you tell if you live in the boonies? And what exactly is meant by that? Since I have moved to Emmett we have several new traffic lights, a McDonalds, several modern gas stations and the prerequisite Albertsons. Yet somehow I get this feeling that since I have to drive to Ontario, Or or Meridian or Nampa,ID to find a Walmart that I am not living in an industrialized hub of activity.

Or maybe because when I round a curve in the highway and see someone standing in the road with their dog I do not just blaze by them at 55mph but stop and ask if they need help. And that person then answers "oh no hon, we just got some cows up in the road ahead". So I round the next corner and stop behind all the other cars patiently waiting.

And maybe it is the boonies because this is not an unusual sight here in Emmett. Cows, sheep, or horses - someone is always moving something up and down the highway. Although I must admit the sheep and their dogs are quite an impressive sight to see.