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The Slice: Phone rescuer deserves thanks

Colbert’s John Reid had been night kokanee fishing on Loon Lake and got home at 1 a.m.

His wife told him she had gotten a text from his phone saying it had been found near the boat launch and would be placed behind a rock near the “No Parking” sign.

The grateful Reid drove back up to Loon Lake and retrieved his phone. He just wishes he knew who to thank.

This date in Slice history (1996): Today’s Slice question: Who has the least impressive sunburn learning curve in the Inland Northwest?

If you thought The Slice was done with fireflies: You were mistaken.

Jerry Hickman was researching vintage fishing lures when he came across a description of one made in Indiana. In addition to a three-pronged hook, it featured a clear capsule-like chamber that the angler could unscrew and then fill with a live lightning bug.

“At first I was concerned about such a use for lightning bugs,” Hickman said. “But we do use grasshoppers for trout bait in the Great Pacific Northwest.”

Besides, compared to what little kids have been doing to fireflies for ages, this was almost tame. Theoretically at least, the insect could be released after it had served its time attracting fish. And if it survived, it might have some decent stories to tell.

“So there I was …”

Slice answer: “Hearing aids saved a 40-year marriage,” said a North Idaho reader named Pat.

Hello dere: Marje Peterson said yellow jackets will attach themselves to towels or clothes hung outside to dry. Then they’ll wind up in the laundry basket and be brought inside, waiting to make a surprise appearance.

Today’s Slice question: When you feel something on the back of your neck that you cannot immediately identify, what are your investigative protocols? A) Scream “Get it off me!” B) Yank off shirt/blouse. C) Immediately start smacking the back of your neck on the chance there’s something back there that needs killing. D) Repeatedly say “Serenity now.” E) Ask a family member to recon the area. F) Spend the next 30 minutes scratching mystery itches. G) Other.

Write The Slice at P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; email pault@spokesman.com. Some Air Force retirees here were never stationed at Fairchild.

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