Placer is no longer the small, rural county of old. It now boasts medium-sized cities, major employers and a population expected to grow at a faster rate than the rest of the region.

Sacramento to Stockholm: It takes about a day to travel between these two capital cities. But they have more similarities than you might think, considering they are half a world apart. They also have lessons to teach each other.

With each interview I conducted and report I filed, I sought to understand how these great rolling machines had destroyed the person I used to be and killed the person I cared about most. But publishing stories about high-speed rail never helped. Like other pain relievers, print journalism became one more way to avoid facing what happened that day.

I was getting more hesitant as the hours passed. Would I run into unsavory people? How crowded are we talking? And, being inherently conservative, I wondered about the cost.

I’m talking about my decision to take light rail for the first time … and doing so alone.

 You probably need a vacation. Most of America does. Between 1976 and 2000, the average worker took roughly 20 vacation days annually, according to data from Project: Time Off. But as the economy buckled in 2008, so did our desire to flock to the beach, and in 2015, the number plunged nearly a full week lower, translating to 658 million unused vacation days.

We all deserve time off from the daily grind, even if we don’t get a traditional paid vacation. I’m looking at you, fellow freelancers.

It may seem odd that a nonprofit named Rise Up Belize! would be based out of Sacramento, California. But spend some time with founder Joey Garcia, and it’ll all make sense.

While bankruptcy was a rough patch for Stockton, it is important to recognize what opportunities can grow from a city that has seen more than its fair share of challenges.

In 2014, we reported on the progress of the contentious and embattled California high-speed rail project starting to take shape (“One-Track Mind” by Allen Young, January 2014). We recently checked back in with Jeff Morales, CEO of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, to see where the project is now and why it’s still making headlines.

Connecting with the community through outdoor adventures has been one of the more rewarding aspects of All Good opening its flagship store in Sacramento.