The Slice: Mashing up our megaevents

What if some popular local arts and culture events combined forces?

Well, they would need hybrid names, of course. Which of these would you get excited about?

A) Pigfest. B) Pigs on the Green. C) Bloom Pigs. D) Art Pigs. E) Hoop Pigs. F) Labor Day Symphonyfest in the Park. G) Lilac Torchlight Pigs Parade. H) Spoke Pigout. I) Ironpig Triathalon. J) First Pig Spokane. K) Elk Pig. L) Other.

Slice answers: “My recurring dream is about a very good job that I hated and was fired from,” emailed Fritz Howard early Tuesday morning. “I keep having the dream that they decided they made a mistake and I have to come back to work. I’m remembering the dream from last night right now. Ugh.”

Chuck Boos told about his. “I am in a city, sometimes a familiar one, sometimes not. I am looking for either an office or a shop and cannot find it. One time I was looking for my company’s office, finally found it and no one knew me. When I wake up, I always can remember what I was doing but wonder why.”

And Sandi Douville shared this. “I have a recurring dream that I can jump really high, higher than trees and cover great amounts of land in three or four jumps. If I’m wearing the right clothes I can get those jumps to turn into flying into the clouds. I saw ‘The BFG’ (Big Friendly Giant) and saw him running and leaping out of the city with the girl in his hand. I was so excited to see he can do it too! That’s exactly what my dreams are like. It’s great!”

Sweeping Generalizations Department: Certain cynics have insinuated over the years that Spokane has the personality of a dyspeptic old white man.

That overlooks the community-mindset contributions of women, nonwhites, young people and the upbeat.

But putting that aside for a moment, just how old does one have to be to lay claim to being in sync with such an allegedly crabby city?

And what are the early warning signs that one is turning into a “Get off my lawn!” personality?

Asking for a friend.

Today’s Slice questions: Do people who move to the Inland Northwest and make their residence in an isolated rural setting now feel like they are automatically assumed to have a paranoid worldview? Has it always been that way?

Write The Slice at P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; email pault@spokesman.com. Spokane’s Tomas K. Lynch said his sister in Seattle refers to him as living “Back East.”