The Slice: Before you were sure how to pronounce it

Did you have a brush with Spokane long before you actually lived here?

Let me give you an example. Back around 1981, I was a reporter at the morning newspaper in Tucson. I got assigned to cover a weekend air show at the Air Force base there.

One of the people I interviewed was a member of a B-52 crew, standing beside his aircraft. That crew and the plane were based at Fairchild AFB.

Not sure why I remember that, but I do. (I’ve wondered if he retired in Spokane.)

Do all of us who moved to this area as adults have brush-with-Spokane stories like that?

Oops: It was almost 40 years ago. Cathy Kraus had graduated at the top of her class of aspiring dental assistants at Kinman Business University, located in the Bon Marche/Macy’s building.

She sent out résumés. “I was touting my academic record.”

And she spelled “academic” wrong.

Slice answer: “Yes, my wife and I still quote lines from ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ ” wrote Blake Ballard of Moscow.

References to being “off to see the wizard” and counseling others to “just follow the yellow brick road” are among the more popular.

“My wife Lynda, who has bad knees, will often say, in a squeaky voice, ‘oil can, oil can!’ when she is having particular difficulties.”

And there are several other Ozian lines they employ.

“Now if you ever have a Slice question about lines from ‘Seinfeld,’ we can fill your column.”

Good idea, Blake. I’ll have to do that.

Serenity now.

Warm-up questions: What happened when you dropped a heavy dictionary on your keyboard? Who has visited the greatest number of public restrooms in the Spokane area? How many people have motion-activated lights pointed at their gardens? When listening to music on headphones while undergoing a dental procedure, have you found a certain song especially apt? When someone brings doughnuts to your workplace, is a sonic boom created by the speed of those descending on the sugary treats?

Today’s Slice question: Do you ever wake up in the morning feeling anxious and do a quick stress audit to see if you can remember why and then, when you identify the source of your worry, realize it’s just not that big of a deal?

Write The Slice at P. O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; email pault@spokesman.com. It’s not unheard of for people getting married a second time to wind up with someone who has the same first name as their original spouse.