The Slice It’s Really No Contest For Apple Maggots

We have a winner.

Thanks to the 61 readers who entered our Caption Contest. Here are a few samples of their offerings.

“I told you not to order extra onion on your Whammy.” - David M. Bennett

“Stop crying. Do you know a way out of this pothole?” - A. K. Kutsch

“OK, OK. We’ll call it Latah Creek. I promise. Just don’t look at me like that!” - Paul Harder

“No, we’re not planting any more lilac trees.” - M. Bolick

“Ooooo-ow. What an ugly wig!” - Margaret Cummings

We liked those and a bunch of others. But we’re declaring Nan Hager the winner. Here’s hers.

“Who transported the homegrown fruit? These apple maggots are killing me.”

Slice answers: Most responding readers said any sprain or break suffered skiing would be a contender for the title of the Inland Northwest’s No. 1 status symbol injury.

But Jim Churchwell, tongue in cheek, suggested it might be a gash on the bridge of the nose incurred when a driver slammed on the brakes and hit his head on the steering wheel after being caught by surprise when the car ahead of him actually stopped for a red light.

Good stuff: Glen Jones has a stapler in his kindergarten classroom that’s at least 30 years old. His dad employed it in a tax accounting office. “It’s a joy for me to watch my kindergarten kids use something that my father once used,” he said.

Cindy Hoffman of Libby, Mont., has kitchen knives, tea balls, a potato masher and pans that once belonged to her great-grandmother, who was a caterer in Hollywood, Calif.

Spokane’s Kristen Vollar wrote: “I have a lot of Gram’s things. She was my best friend and sometimes I feel even closer to her now, especially when I’m in my garden. Gram sure loved her gardening. And I’m just starting.”

Frances Baertsch, 83, treasures a spade that belonged to her mother.

Others told of having special feelings for handed-down items ranging from a bread knife to a rabbit’s foot. Some of these things still see plenty of use.

“My great-grandfather, D. A. Downs, owned and operated a butcher shop in the late 1800s in Guy, Wash., (which later changed its name to Albion),” wrote Janet Lake of Kellogg. “I have a knife from his shop, and use it regularly in my kitchen. It is battered and worn, but still holds a good edge. I think of my family history every time I use it.”

Today’s Slice question: What’s special about your favorite store? , DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo

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