The Slice: Keep your eyes up here, pal

The question about ways to discourage men in the workplace from blatantly staring at women’s chests reminded Hayden Lake’s Linda Fabrizius of when she was a grocery sacker at a California supermarket years ago.

Her uniform was a dress. “They were short because we were trying to look really cool in the middle of a miniskirt world,” she recalled.

Fashion-wise, that was OK. But the dresses made uninvited staring a problem. And we’re not talking about guys gawking at the girls’ chests.

“My boss, Ray, would stand behind us at the checkout stand, hoping for a glimpse when we bent over to get the bags.”

So Fabrizius decided to send a message.

Using orange and black yarn and a carpet needle, she sewed “Hi RAY!” in big letters onto the seat of a pair of underpants. And, after alerting her co-workers, she wore them under her uniform dress one day.

Ray, up to his old tricks, fell into the trap.

“I never knew a face could turn that red,” said Fabrizius, who today is a mural artist. “And he never did it again.”

That tactic probably isn’t applicable to over-the-line staring at chests. A woman with “Hi RAY!” emblazoned across the front of her blouse probably wouldn’t get much done at work that day.

But it is worth noting that guys who believe their ogling has gone undetected are quite often wrong.

“Slice answer (memorable falls): Judy McKeehan’s mom was on her way out of the formal dining room in an elegant hotel in Naples, Italy, when she tripped and fell. “She was hurt, but what really concerned her was the fact that her purse had opened and all the sugar packets she had been gathering as free souvenirs were scattered all over the fancy marble floor,” said McKeehan.

“One sign that your kid is on to you: A local boy, an 8-year-old named Joey, asked his dad to walk outside and accompany him down the street. His dad, citing the fact that he had recently gotten stitches in his foot, said he couldn’t.

Joey’s reply? “Then how can you go play golf today?”

“Proposed title for an instructional video to be given to all newcomers: “So You Couldn’t Catch Your Dream.” — Alex Cook, 16

“Inland Northwest Lawn Mower Hall of Fame: Cheney’s Dave Haugen bought a 5-year-old Toro in 1971 for $25. He used it to mow his lawn and a large adjoining lot for the next 25 years. “Finally, one day it clunked loudly two times, belched out a cloud of horizon-obscuring smoke, and died,” he wrote.

Haugen wasn’t angry. “I saluted its years of servitude, drained the oil and gasoline, removed all rubber and plastic, and gave it a solemn burial at the Spokane Recycling Center’s metals bin.”

“Today’s Slice question: What would men learn from reading romance novels?