Next Time, Try The Handle

Thu., Aug. 19, 1999

By Paul Turner srpaulturner@gmail.com

For Cindy Wallgren, the really frustrating thing about some lowlife breaking a window to get into her car was the fact that the doors weren’t even locked.

* The nice thing about loud entertainment events: Other members of the audience can’t hear your gastrointestinal rumbling.

* Living large: Watching kids pour coins into those machines that count pennies and then issue store credit can be surprisingly entertaining.

* Call off the search: The fiend who kidnapped a Bart Simpson doll belonging to local truck driver Steve Simpson returned the toy.

* Spokane described: “Like the French Riviera compared to Cheney.” — from a sports column in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer

* Slice answer: If Jeri Hershberger had one song emanating from her car all day, she’d pick Don Henley’s “All She Wants to Do is Dance.”

* Complete this: “You know you’ve lived here too long when … “

(A friend suggested “You start recognizing the people who appear in photographs in those discount-coupon entertainment books.”)

* Tips on getting in shape for the upcoming pregame tailgating season:

1. Two-a-day buffet workouts.

2. Lots of stretching.

3. Pound that Budweiser.

* Checking out the new phone books: People with Caller I.D. can be forgiven for being surprised that there aren’t pages and pages of listings in the business section under the heading “Unavailable.”

* Slice answers: Readers said cats named Homer, Pudgy and Bagheera stretch out the longest on hot days.

* “Now” time: That mention of cars with Vermont license plates being a rare commodity for those “collecting states” on driving trips prompted Spokane’s Lori Johnson to write.

She and husband Rick used to live in Vermont. Their personalized license plate back in the Green Mountain State said “SEAHAWK.” (She sent a photo.)

“We’ve been married 13 years and my husband, a true Seahawks fan, is saying `This is going to be the year’ for the thirteenth time since I’ve known him.”

* Warm-up question: What was this summer’s best local wedding involving a couple over 60?

* Today’s Slice question: What building around here is most often photographed by visitors who are laughing as they take the picture?

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.