The Slice: True veterans shoot straight about service

Readers said there are several ways to tell when someone is lying about having served in the military.

Unfamiliarity with certain basic acronyms and mispronunciation of duty stations are a couple of red flags.

And while it is not unheard of for an actual veteran to brag about his or her combat exploits, several readers said it would be appropriate to regard with suspicion anyone doing so.

•Today’s “good dog” story: Several people who supposedly know a lot about canines warned Steve Manning that his mixed breed pooch, Brandy, would not be good around children.

They were wrong.

One day while Brandy was sleeping, Manning’s young daughter, Melissa, ran across the room and jumped on the big dog. “She quickly jerked up from a deep sleep, ready to take care of whatever attacked her,” he wrote. “But upon seeing my daughter, Brandy reached over, gave her a kiss on the cheek (covering a good portion of her face with her tongue) and went back to sleep.”

Brandy even allowed little Melissa to use her as a step-stool when, say, an inviting chair was too high for the toddler to reach.

That sweet dog is gone now. But her family will never forget her.

•Slice answer: “My husband Michael spoils me always in so many ways, but one small thing just really makes me feel loved,” wrote Valerie Adams.

“Our garage is about 100 feet from the house. I come home from work later than he does. When the weather is rainy and miserable, nothing warms my heart quite like pulling into the garage and seeing my purple umbrella waiting for me.”

•Local woman gets some exercise – details at 5: “Being from New York and New Jersey, seeing TV crews around meant there was usually something big going on,” wrote Vicky Ferro. “Not always the case here.”

Well, after being lobbied by friends to join a spinning class at a Spokane health club, Ferro finally agreed. And on the first morning she arrived at the gym and encountered a TV news crew.

So on her way in, she said to them that she didn’t really think her finally working out merited this sort of coverage.

•Pitch and catch: Last Saturday’s discussion of tossing TV remotes jogged Lou Sachse’s memory.

“Wa-a-a-ay back in the ’60s my husband, Tom, worked for the railroad,” she wrote. “One of his jobs was to throw tools to workers who were working on lines overhead. He was very careful when he threw them because he didn’t want to hurt anyone. Finally his boss told him, ‘Throw the (expletive deleted) thing at their head. They’ll catch it every time.’ Boss was right.”

•Today’s “Spokane” sentence: “Simply put, one karat ain’t nearly enough.” – Lea Sammons

•Today’s Slice question: If lost in the woods with zero supplies, could you find food and start a fire?