Fun House
Spelling it out for her big assistant

By Steve Cimbaluk

I clean swimming pools for a living. Every week I go to the house where a 5-year-old girl named Kiana lives. She loves to be my little assistant and help me clean her pool. But my cleaning tools are way too heavy for her. So I made her a special short pole that is light and small enough for her to use. I even wrote "Kiana Pole" on the side of her new tool.

When I gave her the pole I expected her to be very happy.

But she said, "My last name is not spelled P-O-L-E."

I still chuckle when I remember this.

Has a child you know said something funny? Do you have a humorous story about your spouse or other family members? The best Fun House anecdotes of 2001 will be reprinted after the end of the year, and the selected writers will receive Honolulu Advertiser logo items.

If you have a true, humorous, unpublished short story about your family or a family-related topic, send it with your name, city and telephone number to: Fun House, 'Ohana Section, The Honolulu Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802; e-mail ohana@honoluluadvertiser.com or fax 535-8170.

Enter as often as you like. Preference is given to stories of 200 words or less.