The Slice: Greetings from Spokane

I asked what people sending postcards from Spokane long ago said about the Lilac City.

Marilyn Miller dipped into her collection and shared excerpts from cards originally mailed from Spokane by various people over the years.

“Some of the quotes are not the entire message,” she wrote. “But the omitted parts relate to family or business.”

Here they are.

“No use telling you of our weather – about 35 degrees right now, but was undecided which side of 0 to stay on for several days.” – mailed in November 1955

“We are now in a great wheat and apple belt.” – mailed in April 1926

“I rode twenty two miles yesterday in a two seated surrey, but feel fine today.” – mailed in February 1913

“We are having lovely weather here now, feels like summer. I have seen this park (Nat Park) many times – it is grand. People take their lunch out here and stay all day.” – mailed in February 1908

“No doubt this is a surprise to you. We are going to settle in Spokane. The folks here are lovely and helping us along.” – mailed in August 1934

“This is a beautiful city, though business has been dull for some time. All the real estate men are talking fruit ranch. Though a great apple country, they cost more here than in Indiana.” – mailed in November 1909

“We are having beautiful weather and flowers are blooming in profusion. I wish you might have the delicious pears that are falling off the branches on these grounds (Fairgrounds) and going to decay as fruit is so abundant that no one cares for them.” – mailed in September 1911

“The Macys would give you strictly fresh eggs if you made them a visit this summer. They bought twenty chickens from a neighbor Sunday evening and Monday morning there were four nice big eggs. Six laying hens and fourteen small chicks.” — mailed in August 1942

“Hello. Well, I’m just about as far away as I can get in the U.S. and boy is this some place – mud up to your knees. Seven days a week here. Expect to be driving a truck today. Spokane is 7 1/2 miles from here. Got mail once in two weeks.” — from a card mailed by PFC John Rice at Geiger Field in March 1943

So what would you write in 2016?

How about “The folks here are lovely.”

Today’s Slice question: What’s the favorite topic of people who don’t know what they are talking about?

Write The Slice at P. O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; email pault@spokesman.com. Sign up now for The Slice’s Never Been to Hawaii support group.