Graphic designer escapes meltdown

Tuesday morning at 7:10 a.m., the sleeping city of Sandpoint, located on Lake Pend Oreille and only one hour's drive from the Canadian border, was rocked by a small nuclear "accident."

It seems that a graphic designer, too attentive on a current project, forgot to monitor his microwave in which he had placed a cup of oats for heating. Local firemen and police officers called to the scene of the accident were amazed that no one was seriously injured considering the amount of oats that had overflowed the cup, although the graphic designer was suffering severe burns to the face from embarrassment.

The artist (whose name is being withheld pending further investigation) when questioned by the officers confessed he did not hold a license for operating the nuclear device. After a short clean-up time, the police and firemen were able to depart the scene. The graphic designer was last seen hunched over his keyboard slaving away at his project in a vain attempt to recoup his lost time.

GREG SMITH

Sandpoint