The Slice A Fragrance By Any Other Name…

We asked for it.

Readers’ ideas about what to name a perfume inspired by Spokane included Smoke, God’s Own, Red Light “The unstoppable fragrance,” Lilac, Lilac Breeze, Summer Breeze, Spokalapew, No Scent “For allergy sufferers,” GEG-GAG, Eau de Road Apple, Red Light (again) “It’s unstoppable,” Essence of Carbon Monoxide, Incinerator “Separates the trash from the treasure,” Lilac Delight, Lilapine, Eau d’CO, Eau d’Stockyards, CO for You, Pollution, Sweat Equity, Manito Mist, Apathy, Duh, Burning Passion and E.P.A.

Achievements in the snoozing arts that we heard about included sleeping through…an Alan Jackson concert, fireworks, a burglary loud enough to tip off other members of the household, a car horn that wouldn’t shut off, an earthquake, a hail storm on a metal roof and the commotion that ensued when a bull and 60 cows and calves got loose right outside the snoozer’s window.

Then there was this. “We have photos of my father, Conrad ‘The Rad’ Wicht, napping on trips all over the world,” wrote Sue Lani Madsen. “His most amazing snoozing achievement was on a whitewater rafting trip down the Salmon River. My dad, my mom and my daughter Amanda went on a special kick-off for the start of Amanda’s senior year in high school. The Rad was determined not to fall out of the raft, so he hunkered down in the back behind the guide while us ladies enjoyed the excitement up front. We looked back to find that he was snoozing away, oblivious to the Class III rapids we were splashing through.”

The best seller at a Made in Spokane store? Among other things, readers suggested it might be the Junior League cookbook, a “Pet pothole” or yellow wigs with black roots and a poodle perm that starts halfway down the head.

Made in Washington employees Ian Pederson and Pam Blott wrote: “It would be Spokane calendars, Spokane snow globes and toys that make screaming noises.”

And after asking who on earth eats sardines, we heard from Hayden’s Mindy Remmick, 15. “My parents love sardines,” she wrote. “It’s a special treat for them, I guess. They used to eat them as Sunday night snacks regularly - ugh! I think they smell and look disgusting.”

Hosers: A reader we’ll call C.G.C. told about a deluxe tree house a buddy of his built in a Montana cottonwood back during the Depression. The two boys drank lots of homemade root beer up there but seldom had to come down because of a handy funnel-and-hose setup.

Today’s Slice question: If there was an umpire at your workplace, which of your colleagues would get ejected?

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Drawing

MEMO: The Slice appears Monday, Tuesday, Friday and Saturday. Write The Slice at P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; fax (509) 459-5098. Evidence suggests many people who become parents are not up to the challenge.