The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash., Best 'o The Slice column

July 28--Paul Turner is taking some time off this summer. In his absence, we dive into the archives here at Slice Central. Today, we revisit July 28, 2005. Look for new columns to resume next month.

Tina Johnson wonders.

When hearing someone refer to "the Y," how many newcomers to Spokane assume the speaker is talking about a YMCA or YWCA instead of the prominent fork in the road?

OK, now try not to start humming that Village People song.

Saying goodbye to pets: Christopher Treece's family spread the ashes of a beloved dog, Sadie, in a lake cove. "Every time I now go to the upper Priest Lake, I know that her spirit is running free in a place that she loved," he wrote.

About a year after her dog was killed in an accident, Jayce Keeling said goodbye to the golden Lab named Tanner in a dream.

Before her dying dog, Titus, had to be put down, Shauna Linde prepared for him a feast consisting of all his favorites -- from tortellini to ice cream. "His tail was wagging the entire time he gobbled down his meal," she wrote.

Others told of holding their furry friends as euthanizing injections did their work.

But Mary Testa-Smith's story is a bit different. "My mother, who lived with us for almost 20 years, died suddenly in 2003, also the year our ancient and arrogant cat Peaches died," she wrote.

She bought rose bushes to honor each. "One for Mom's ashes, the other for Peaches' ashes."

In a fitting tribute, her mom's rose plant is vibrant, open and beautiful.

Not so, Peaches' plant. "The bush with the cat's ashes grows reluctantly and blooms when it feels like blooming," she wrote. "The thorns are deadly, drawing blood from any person who goes near the bush."

Maybe that nine lives thing includes reincarnation.

What you learned when you Googled your own name: Spokane housewife Dana Freeborn discovered that there is a Dana Freeborn out there who happens to be, literally, a rocket scientist for NASA. "Oddly, no one has yet mistaken me for him (or her)," wrote Freeborn.

Slice answers: Dale Roloff said Spokane's all-time best-looking anchor tandem was Elaine Murphy and Rick Douglas, when they were at KXLY almost 20 years ago.

Lan Hellie said the church that gets hottest around here is "The one with the most sinners crammed into it."

And the thing that made Carol Woodward angry when applying for life insurance was the fact she'd have to die to get the money.

(Hey Carol, check out whole life policies.)

Today's Slice question: What possession have you lost and found the greatest number of times?

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