The Slice: She thinks it’s all just a pile of bologna

Perhaps you have noticed.

Husbands and wives don’t always see eye-to-eye.

Take Dave and Jane Swett, for example. The couple, who live near Deer Park, have been married 49 years. They agree about most things. But not about sandwich construction.

You see, Dave believes that, when building a sandwich, the order in which you lay on ingredients makes a big difference. In his view, there’s a correct stacking sequence and then there’s anarchy.

On the other hand, Jane thinks it doesn’t really matter.

So who’s right?

•The key to teaching someone to ride a bike: “Getting a happy kid on a gentle, grassy slope,” said Tom Rinkavage.

“Patience,” said Lee Picard, father of five.

“Brakes,” wrote Terri Benda. “You first have to teach them how to stop.”

She learned that the hard way when she was 6.

And sometimes all that’s needed is a little encouragement.

“My daughter was in the backyard determined to ride her bike without the training wheels,” wrote Jan Graham. “I was busy in the kitchen keeping an eye out.”

Eventually the exasperated little girl came inside and asked for advice.

This is what her mom told her: “Just say ‘I can do it! I can do it!’ ”

The little girl went back outside. And armed with the power of positive thinking, just like “The Little Engine That Could,” she succeeded.

Later that day, she shared this powerful new mantra with the neighbor boy. And soon he, too, had learned to ride a bike.

•Slice answer: If a CSI-like unit took apart your computer keyboard, what would they learn?

“Someone in this house sure eats a lot of Kirkland tortilla chips,” wrote Lisa Thompson.

•WSU science professor John Fellman’s recipe for deskunking your dog: Mix together one gallon of water, ¼ cup of baking soda, a squirt or two of dishwashing liquid, and a pint of hydrogen peroxide solution.

Using this mixture, thoroughly wash the dog with a rag or a sponge. Then rinse.

•Today’s Slice question: You know how some people always bring up the exact same small-talk topics with acquaintances they see infrequently? Sure. Maybe it’s a reference to one person’s alma mater, an allusion to another individual’s workplace, or a comment about a hobby, sports team or arcane bit of personal trivia that just happened to come up in conversation 15 years ago.

Well, what are some of the topic-headings different people bring up over and over when they see you?