The Slice: Love is in the air

Slice readers recalled a few moments of real romance.

“Valentine’s Day, 1968, my boyfriend of about nine months sent me the most effusive card, proclaiming his love,” wrote Patty Gaul. “Up to that point, he had been rather reserved in that arena, so it knocked my socks off. I sat in my dorm room crying and crying, because I knew this was it. And yes, he was indeed ‘it,’ until his death in 2012. A rather good run.”

Cathy Harris shared this. “We’ve generally had low-key celebrations on Valentine’s Day. Homemade gift baskets, dinner out. Or more often, cooking in. But one year before we married (nearly 28 years ago), my then-boyfriend bought me a card, flowers and a bag of M&M’s.

“We were both college students of limited means. But he had actually bought a large bag of M&M’s and selected ALL the green ones. Then he emptied a small M&M’s bag and filled it with the green ones. I had always eaten the green ones first. I’ll never forget the thought that went into that.”

Here’s one of Nancy Meuler’s special memories.

“My now-husband went to college in Oregon, but would come home often, which he did Valentine’s Day weekend in 1971. We went to see the movie ‘Love Story.’ After the movie, in his defroster deficient Volkswagen, he asked me to reach under my seat to retrieve the rag he kept there to wipe down the window. Instead of a rag I found a heart-shaped box of candy. I was so surprised and felt so loved. I still have that candy box in my cedar chest.”

Marilyn Fleenor recalled the two times her husband, Michael, surprised her with romantic Valentine’s Day classified ads in The Spokesman-Review. The first time was in 1993, not long after they had gotten married. The second time was in 2000.

“I am a very sentimental person and saved and laminated both. They and he mean the world to me. We have had our ups and downs over these almost 25 years, but our love has managed to carry us through.”

To be continued.

Slice answers: Lynda Evans said the contractor with the most memorable forearms might be Chuck of Sundance Construction, because of his colorful, upbeat tattoos.

Then there was this, from Glenn Winkey. “When we say a person is from “Up north,” that means anything farther north than Deer Park. If they ARE from Deer Park, we say they are from Deer Park.”

Today’s Slice question: To what extent are the Inland Northwest’s wide-open spaces a mixed bag because it could be argued that, along with some good people, they attract a certain unhinged element?

Write The Slice at P. O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; email pault@spokesman.com. It’s rough when you can’t find your pill organizer.