The Slice: Having your name noted on the calendar

A reader in Mead named Eve said that when she was a little girl she briefly believed the night before Christmas was named after her.

That amazing realization filled her with delight.

It was short-lived. Her older siblings soon vigorously extinguished the notion that she might have a special relationship with the holiday.

But more than 50 years later, Eve still wishes she had been right.

Predicted 2017 headlines: Here are three from Wade Griffith.

State licenses Flour Mill marmots to officiate at weddings

Mike Leach smiles at reporter – world does not end

Police Guild alleges ‘pillow talk’ on Internal Affairs investigation

Just wondering: If the Code of the West addressed snowball fights, what would it say?

Christmas past: An item in The Slice recently reminded a retired friend of his childhood. I’m leaving his name out of this because he thinks it might embarrass his elderly mother.

“Our household ALWAYS reused the Christmas wrapping paper year after year. On Christmas morning, my Dad would pass out freshly sharpened jack knives, to everyone, to delicately cut the tape on our gifts. The paper was carefully removed and set aside. After all the mayhem was over, my Mom would iron all the paper and carefully fold it and place it in the gift wrap box in the cupboard above the refrigerator – all to be reused again next year. Some of that paper saw 10-plus Christmases.

“You have to admire that kind of resourcefulness and lack of vanity regarding how many fold marks were in the paper. Some of it looked like you took some aluminum foil, crushed it up, and then flattened it out again, I feel very lucky to have been reared in an atmosphere where resourcefulness, creativity, and do-it-yourself was the daily mantra.”

Night vision: Raymond Myers remembers when Tidyman’s supermarkets sponsored a helicopter depicting an illuminated Santa’s sleigh and reindeer flying over Spokane, Post Falls and Coeur d’Alene.

“Of course, it always flew after dark. I remember watching his flight from our front porch while pointing out his magical ride to our grandchildren. I would tell my grandkids that the helicopter noise they could hear was from the police helicopter escorting Santa on his flight over Post Falls. I always shopped at Tidyman’s after that.”

Today’s Slice question: Are there ancient home movies or videotapes of long-ago Christmas mornings in your family archives?

Write The Slice at P. O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; email pault@spokesman.com. Still time to get your photo nominations in before the end of the year for The Slice’s Inland Northwest Barn Cat Hall of Fame.