The Slice: Cat’s out of the bag at no-tell motel

Carol Bending learned that the secrecy aspect of sneaking her cat into a “No Pets Allowed” motel is somewhat compromised if the feline takes to sitting in the room window while the family is off having dinner.

Friday quiz winners: Quite a few readers shared recollections of TV’s “The Outer Limits.” I picked three to receive notebooks.

“In 1964, living in Seattle, I was 7 years old,” wrote Sue Teague. “My grandpa would watch ‘The Outer Limits’ every week while he ate a bowl of strawberry ice cream. I loved the show even though it scared me.”

Ray Lancaster recalls being advised not to watch. “Mom said it would be scary, and I would have nightmares. But I watched anyway, and spent most of the time behind my dad’s recliner.”

And Bob Luhn hasn’t forgotten. “One episode featured an alien life force invading tumbleweeds which, as they were blown together by the wind, started attacking people.

“Living in Othello, where the wind blows and tumbleweeds go everywhere, I have occasionally been startled at night when the weeds are blowing across the road. I find my heart in my throat, irrationally wondering if that episode was true. I have even been known to run over tumbleweeds on the highway on purpose to reduce the threat.”

Cool machine superseded by computers: “Mimeograph,” said Hank Greer. “The smell was better than the lunchroom’s.”

Junior astronomy: Jennifer Bell-Towne’s 9-year-old son, Dakota, reported that he and his dad had seen two constellations – “the Little Dipper and that Hawaiian one.”

The latter is sometimes referred to as Orion.

Today’s Slice question: If Spokane had some equivalent of the “Keep Portland Weird” campaign in Oregon’s largest city, what would it be?

A) “Keep Spokane Sedated.” B) “Keep Spokane Grumpy.” C) “Keep Spokane Under Surveillance.” D) “Keep Spokane Just The Way It Is.” E) “Keep Spokane Stumbling Forward.” F) Other.