The Slice Nothing Like Stale Beer Smell In Spring

One heartwarming sign of spring in Spokane is the ritual of bars on Sprague propping open their front doors, so pedestrians can enjoy the sight of bleary-eyed fellow citizens guzzling beer for lunch.

She can stand the heat (not to mention dumb jokes): Nancy Kitchen is a cook at the Third Generation restaurant in Cataldo, Idaho.

Slice answers: Movies that readers recalled their parents vetoing included “Jaws,” “The Exorcist,” “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas,” “Purple Rain,” “The Bad Seed,” “The Graduate,” “The Shining,” “Yellow Submarine,” “Father Goose,” “The Red Shoes,” “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” “Rocky Horror Picture Show,” and “The Moon is Blue.”

And Sandpoint’s Cathy Dean, 81, wrote that her parents wouldn’t let her see “The Birth of a Nation” (which already was older than she was) when she was a little girl growing up in Chicago.

In other matters, we heard from a family that refers to the Discovery Channel as the “Panzer Channel.”

Barby Casey, noting our lists of celebrity sightings, told about brushing shoulders with Mike Tyson on a sidewalk in Manhattan.

And add Jan (Shea) Weskamp’s name to the list of those who fondly remember backyard ice rinks.

Overheard in a hospital lab: “And now, on top of everything, I have to spell Coeur d’Alene.” - submitted by E. Rushton

It’s new, I swear: We heard about a covered cake plate given as an anniversary present that, when opened, revealed a partly consumed box of crackers. It turned out the giftgiver’s children had found a use for the plate before she got it wrapped.

Today’s Slice question: Inasmuch as countless drivers seem to take such pride in saying they avoid Division, how come it’s still so crowded?

MEMO: The Slice appears Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday on IN Life. Write The Slice at P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; fax (509) 459-5098.