The Slice Hypocrites Feel At Home In Spokane
It’s a fact of life around here.
The people who complain the most about Spokane are often the first ones to ridicule a person’s decision to take a job in another city.
“Who would want to live there?” is their favorite question.
Another tantrum story: “It was March of 1981 and I was traveling from Spokane to Massachusetts with my 17-month-old son and 3-year-old daughter, wrote Fran Menzel. “We were in Chicago and they had just announced the boarding call for our flight. In addition to carrying my son down the jetway, I was lugging three winter coats, one carry-on bag and a double-stroller that was folded up and very awkward.
“We were halfway down when my daughter stopped, threw herself on the floor and began screaming ‘Carry me!’
“For a minute, the line of people behind me just stopped. Then, like water going around a stone in the river, streams of people went around me and on down to the plane. Unable to get my daughter up, I started to cry.
“Just then a very distinguished man in a nice business suit stopped. He helped me get my daughter up on to my hip and then he picked up the coats, bag and stroller and carried them onto the plane for us.”
North Idaho amusement park renamed: Debbie Carollo’s 5-year-old daughter, Bethany, recently asked when the family would be going to “Silverware.”
One of the best things about big family gatherings: Watching someone who doesn’t have much experience at holding a baby go from hesitant to enraptured.
Three things that make a person difficult to be around for sustained periods: 1. Inability to listen.
2. Lack of awareness of current events.
3. Agrees with everything you say.
Three things that make a person easy to be around for sustained periods: 1. Thinks you’re funny.
2. Says “In my opinion” and “I don’t know.”
3. Asks questions that aren’t of the “How much did you pay for your house?” or “Why don’t you have any kids?” variety.
Warm-up question: When waiting in airports in other cities for flights to Spokane, what percentage of the time do you see someone you know at the departure gate?
Today’s Slice questions: What’s the best small-town summer festival in the Inland Northwest? Why?
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Drawing
MEMO: The Slice appears Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Write The Slice at P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; fax (509) 459-5098. We like the way that singer pronounces the word “beer” in “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?”