The Slice: The real reasons you put away your toys

This is a time of year when many of us look back on our childhoods.

But it’s not all carefree recollections of the good old days. No, for some, contemplation of the past can bring with it a sober reckoning. It can mean confronting some uncomfortable questions.

For instance, why, when you were 10, did the railroad you operated fail?

Perhaps some of these factors will ring a bell.

Failure to adequately assess the regulatory environment for electric trains.

Failure to secure loans that would have allowed for expansion and growth.

Family dog kept getting shocked.

Anticipated subsidies failed to materialize and weekly allowance failed to keep pace with expenditures.

Ham-handed handling of labor relations.

Deferred maintenance proved costly in the long run.

Rates and fees inadequate to support operations.

Or you might ask yourself, why did you become estranged from your Barbie?

Resentments emerged stemming from Barbie’s impossibly fortunate genetics.

The whole thing with Ken and his openly mocked manhood just got to be too much psychodrama.

There was something vacant in her eyes.

Barbie used people.

When your stuffed bear mauled her, you found yourself rooting for the bruin.

Or what led to your eventual disenchantment with your G.I. Joe?

You grew weary of his predictable insistence that there is a military solution to every problem.

The guy was just a little too gung-ho, if you know what I mean.

Joseph’s refusal to engage in therapy left him emotionally stunted.

His adherence to a code of conduct based on a steadfast belief in American exceptionalism got old.

Why did you turn your back on your Rock ’Em Sock ’Em Robots?

Their brutish battering had none of the balletic artistry of boxing at its best.

You realized that rooting for the virtual decapitation of one of the combatants was not bringing out the best in your emerging delicate sensibilities.

It all just reminded you too much of your parents.

What made you walk away from your Easy-Bake Oven?

It suddenly just seemed dated.

It clashed with your vision of where the open-concept kitchen was headed.

What you really wanted was a $10,000 chef’s oven.

You decided at a young age that you were more of a take-out girl.

Today’s Slice question: Where is the nearest round barn?

Write The Slice at P. O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; email pault@spokesman.com. Every once in awhile a Slice caller will leave a phone message in which he describes himself as a “longtime listener.”