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The Slice: By all accounts, her future still looks warm and fuzzy
Caterpillar Girl is back.
Slice readers with near-total recall might remember Midred Scheel’s great-granddaughter, Riley.
Back in 2013, when Riley was 7, her class went on an autumn field trip to a pumpkin patch. She made friends with a fuzzy caterpillar and wanted to bring it home on the bus.
Riley’s mom, also on the field trip, nixed that idea.
At which point Riley called her mother’s attention to the pre-trip letter that went to the homes of the pupils. It expressly prohibited food, beverages and gum on the bus. There was, however, absolutely no mention of any caterpillar ban. Therefore, was it not implicit that caterpillars were, in fact, permitted?
No, said her mother.
That was then.
“She is 9 now and her literal logic continues to surprise and amuse her parents,” said Scheel.
Riley has developed a yen to travel to places she has read about. Her mother tries to postpone any serious travel discussion by suggesting it could happen, but well into the future.”
That doesn’t always satisfy the little girl. Consider this recent exchange.
Riley: “I want to go to Japan.”
Mother: “Well, maybe after you graduate from high school.”
Riley: “Oh, you have to graduate from high school before you can get into Japan?”
I said it 2013 and I’ll say it again. We haven’t heard the last of Caterpillar Girl.
On this date in The Slice 20 years ago: Here’s an item from April 25, 1995.
People always say it’s a bargain-minded town: “I was at Excell a few weeks ago, and I always check in their reduced price meat department because sometimes the deals are really good,” faxed Spokane’s Donald Hipkiss. “Well, I found a trout, for about 90 cents, and I decided to buy it. As I walked away with it, this little, tiny boy comes running up to me and grabbed the arm of my coat and yelled: ‘Mister! Mister! Don’t buy that fish! They’re FREE, if you got a fishing pole!”
Today’s Slice question: How old is the youngest person in the Inland Northwest who uses the expressions “swimming trunks”? A) 90. B) 67. C) 59. D) 44. E) Other.