The Slice: Spring tends to reveal our trashy side

On the other hand, the arrival of spring will mean once again confronting the reality of Spokane’s embarrassing litter problem.

OK, let’s move on.

•Turn left at Omsk: Linda Woods plays viola in an amateur orchestra.

She was on her way to a performance at a local senior center, relying on her car’s GPS system for directions.

Then that navigation aid conked out.

In a moment, it came back to life. But now the directions were in Russian.

A simple matter to switch it back to English? Not really, Woods explained.

You see, the instructions for doing that were in Russian also.

•How many South Hill residents does it take to screw in a light bulb: “Easy,” said Alyssa Swartz of Coeur d’Alene. “It takes two. One to pour the glasses of wine and one to call someone in Hillyard to come and do it for them.”

•Defining “back in the day,” Spokane-style: “I immediately thought of the late ’50s and early ’60s Spokane Indians baseball team,” wrote David McCallum. “Pacific Coast League AAA. Willie Davis, Tommy Davis, Frank Howard and many more. The Dodgers came to town for an exhibition game. Don Drysdale pitched for the Dodgers, and the Indians won. I was about 12 years old. It was magic.”

•Most cars from the same model-year: “My husband, John Akins, has lovingly restored three 1959 Chevrolets,” wrote Cathy Akins. “An Impala convertible, an El Camino, a two-door Biscayne, and he is working on a 1959 Impala hardtop and a 1959 Chevrolet Napco 4-wheel drive pickup. And we can’t forget the baby 1959 Metropolitan. So six 1959 cars in all.”

Susan Burrows in Sandpoint said her husband, Hal, has five 1932 Dodges and Plymouths – one roadster, three coupes and one sedan. “Two are driveable.”

And Archie Oestreicher has five 1965 Chryslers.

•Speaking of old cars: What debates about generational parenting styles did the opening funeral scene in the movie “Gran Torino” spark in your family?

•Slice answers: Leonard Stephenson figures he has lived in 10 places that have greater average annual snowfalls than Spokane.

And if asked to autograph a photo of herself, Laurie Dretke would sign her name and tack on, “Regular contributor to The Slice.”

•Today’s Slice question: Have you broken off with friends or become estranged from family members because of disagreements over vaccination policy?