The Slice: The slice: Break up into groups and discuss

Please select a topic and talk about it among yourselves.

1. Always losing the right-hand glove.

2. Cats climbing Christmas trees.

3. Emotional connections to the music in “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”

“Punting situation: “When I got divorced from my husband, one of my first vows of independence was ‘I will never allow football to be shown on a TV in my home again,’ ” wrote Rebecca McNeill of Coeur d’Alene.

“Welcome wagon: “Five years ago, when we moved to Spokane from Tucson, Ariz., our first business was to get new driver’s licenses,” wrote Lorin Love. “We were surprised when the clerk exclaimed, ‘Why on earth would you move here from Arizona?’

“It seems that there are a lot of people living here who would rather be someplace else. We came here to be with our daughters and grandchildren and feel there’s much to like about Spokane.”

Tucson’s winters weren’t bad, though.

“Man vs. rodent: “I’ve had a cheap plastic bird feeder for years,” wrote Pullman’s Bill Brock. “Squirrels like it, too. Last night, I modified it for the fifth time to repel the toothy interlopers.”

And that made him wonder about others fighting this battle. “Who has the most highly modified bird feeder in the Inland Northwest?”

“There’s nothing new: So I was watching this history show on the Battle of Stalingrad, and found myself wondering if anyone had ever used the term “Spokanigrad” to describe the Lilac City.

I couldn’t find that city nickname in the S-R archives. But then I did a Google search, and “Spokanigrad” shows up in a MySpace discussion involving someone in Spokane going by the online name “naughtynursejennifer.”

“Re: Sunday’s Slice: “I was intrigued by the question about the phrases ‘ramp it up,’ ‘ratchet up,’ and ‘kick it up a notch,’ ” wrote Gail Johnson of Spirit Lake.

“… What really interested me was my gut reaction to memories of how the terms were used in business meetings. ‘Ramp it up’ meant a competent manager was planning ahead to prepare for future needs. ‘Ratchet up’ meant that someone was going to be asked to do too much work in too little time. ‘Kick it up a notch’ meant that we were already working nights and now we would be working weekends too. When the last two terms get used too often or they are just assumed to apply to every project, it’s time to leave.”

“When in doubt, ask a woman: A young guy in a store’s baking goods aisle turned to Vince Eberly’s wife and said, “Is nutmeg a liquid or a powder?”

“Today’s Slice question: Does bitter cold help smokers quit?