The Slice: At least he got her a flour

A friend reported that a Ferris freshman who shall remain nameless recently asked for help in acquiring a “croissant” for his homecoming dance date.

It was suggested to him that, in all likelihood, he meant “corsage.”

Probably. But, you know, there are girls who would appreciate a nice croissant, too.

There is, after all, more than one way to butter up your date.

•Slice answers: So a lot of people around here can make a case that they have met many famous people. Thanks for the e-mails.

Some once worked in and around Hollywood. Some had jobs such as flight attendant or concert promoter. Or they worked in sports or politics. Others have simply lived reasonably well-connected lives that brought them into contact with celebrities.

But to avoid turning The Slice into the People Column Annex, I made a decision.

Let’s move on.

•Beer brands and litter: “At least on the section of Eastshore Road at Priest Lake that I clean up biannually, drinkers of Budweiser (not Bud Light) are the unequivocal winners of the most prolific litterers prize,” wrote Teresa Vanairsdale.

“I spend a lot of time in the woods and see few bottles (which I pick up) and when I do they are Bud/Coors/Miller,” wrote Bruce Werner. “I have never seen a microbrew or an import bottle discarded. You can draw your own conclusions.”

For the record, I got curious about this when another reader noted that he saw countless Keystone cans along roadsides in Spokane.

•Talking about politics at home (then and now): For Walt Lane, one thing’s missing today. “My maternal grandfather’s deep, booming voice, beginning ANY talk of politics with ‘Goddamned Roosevelt’!”

•Just wondering: Does the certainty of another round of ridiculously politicized culture wars over Christmas dampen your enthusiasm for the holiday season’s approach?

•The Slice’s geo-challenge: During a recent family gathering at Priest Lake, Spokane Valley’s Carol Stobie asked her grandkids from Utah what they knew about Washington and Idaho.

Mariah, 12, knew both states bordered Canada and she could name the state capitals. She also knew quite a bit about the wildlife and vegetation. She noted that there are a lot of “fur” trees.

And she had some thoughts about the climate. “They are both very humid in the fall and very hot in the spring,” she wrote.

Depends on your perspective, I guess.

In their written reports, 10-year-old twins, Sarah and Ellie, focused much of their attention on Silverwood and visiting their relatives.

But Sarah added a lifestyle observation: “A lot of people have boats.”

•Today’s Slice question: When a truly annoying song keeps running through your head, are you able to will yourself to switch that off and start hearing a tune you actually like?