With Memorial Day over and summer kicking into high gear, it’s officially the season of poolside parties and backyard bashes. Naturally, summer parties include plenty of ice-cold beer. If a few bottles of brew manage to survive your bash, use them in a recipe or around your house. Here are six ways to use a 12-ounce bottle or can of beer:
 

Next time you are hiking through the woods, or even mowing your yard, pay attention.  "Many parts are edible".

Last weekend I came across a little-known restaurant with surprisingly good home-style food. The Upper Deck is tucked away at Argyle Lake State Park, just outside of Colchester.
 

Picture this: a greasy white glob of Crisco falling slowly from a big spoon held over a frying pan. That’s the image that comes to my mind when morel mushroom season rolls around.
 

Looking for a fun-filled day trip or perhaps a weekend excursion close to home? Consider the Peoria area - home to Eight Counties with Infinite Possibilities.

With the recent economic downturn, more people are turning to truck driving after losing their jobs or because they want to increase their income.

David Crook has worked in the Dot Foods warehouse at Mount Sterling, done heavy construction work and had a job in a large hog confinement operation. Now, he's working full time as a long-haul trucker.

Clayton Murphy, 24, of Bushnell, didn’t decide to earn his CDL because of the economic downturn, although getting the CDL gave him a financial boost.

Burnt out on teaching and coaching for a living, Klynt Johnson turned to long-haul trucking to help pay off debt and pay his wife's way through school.

Macomb native Sonya Weston shares her story of living and working in Guinea, west Africa.

The first spring vegetables, rhubarb and asparagus, have officially arrived. Good Hope Gardens, my favorite source for local, sustainably grown produce, has asparagus ready for picking right now.

Learning is ForEver, part of the center for International Studies at  Western Illinois University,  recently announced  the spring 2009 courses.  Any adult is welcome to register for a LIFE course.  There are no age or educational requirements, nor are there any prerequisites or exams. To register for any of the following courses, call 309-298-2501.

Macomb High School graduate Megan Williams shares her story of volunteering in Senegal, west Africa.

When the rhubarb begins sprouting rosy stalks capped with dark green leaves and the asparagus pokes up from it’s winter dormancy, I know spring has finally arrived. The sight of the first vegetables of the season makes me want to rush out into my backyard and start to work on my garden.
My friends at Good Hope Gardens, a family-run produce and meat business in Good Hope, have rhubarb and asparagus growing on part of their 20 acres devoted to fruits and vegetables, but they are not quite ready for picking.
 

Macomb High School graduate Ricci Shrock shares her story of living and working as a freelance journalist in Senegal for a year.