The Slice: Sometimes a jacket isn’t just a jacket

The Slice heard from quite a few readers after asking about valued longtime possessions.

Here’s just one answer to that question.

“I have my late father’s Seattle Seahawks jacket,” wrote Kevin Fletcher. “Us kids bought it for him in the early 1980s when he had season tickets. He would take me and my two brothers to a couple of games each season. Those are memories that I will cherish forever. The same goes for the jacket, which still looks brand new. I wear it often and get many comments about its old-school look. Every time I wear it I feel my dad is right there with me watching the Hawks.”

On the subject of January birthdays: “I love my January birthday,” wrote Pat Mannan. “It feels like a congratulatory party for making it through the holidays with five grown kids and 15 grandkids. I’m always happy to see the backside of December knowing my day is coming, not to mention our only son-in-law has the same birthday.”

It’s all in her head: “After reading your column about great answers that didn’t earn a coveted reporter’s notebook, I realized that most of my awesome answers never got out of my head and off to your email,” wrote Deb Walter. “Trust me, I had some winners. In my mind, I’ve earned a notebook. Your call.”

Slice answer: Diane Jones remembers staying up past midnight on New Year’s.

“As a child, while my parents were out on New Year’s Eve, my three brothers and I were home alone. At midnight we had to be sitting in the seat of our station wagon that we wanted to claim for the entire new year.

“I remember sitting in the back seat by the window well before midnight to claim my spot. My vicious big brother would come along 30 seconds before midnight, yank me by the hair right out of my seat and plop me in the middle.”

Diane noted that the hair-pulling big brother wound up becoming “a caring, loving man.”

Another Slice answer: “Yes, I think kids of all ages should be required to write thank-you notes,” wrote Karla Sherry.

Warm-up question: What percentage of those who say they have the flu actually have a cold and not influenza?

Today’s Slice question: After an elderly relative died and you found yourself in charge of his or her possessions, what did you find in his wallet or her purse?

Write The Slice at P. O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; email pault@spokesman.com. Thanks to the readers who let me know I’m not the only one who still uses cash.