A couple of weeks before Christmas, Kansas City was still basking in unbelievably warm weather -- the kind of unusual atmosphere that puts everyone in a weird mood. Retailers were praying for cold days to remind everyone to do their shopping. Kids were asking Santa for snow. Finally, in mid-December, a little precipitation started blinking on the radar -- and that was enough to amp up the ol' white-Christmas speculation. Everyone seemed desperate to get into the spirit. On Channel 5, however, Katie Horner launched into one evening's weather report by saying, "For people who
need the cold, for people who
need the snow, I've got it." Then, as she turned to the high-tech maps behind her, she lowered her voice just a little and said, really fast, "Hopefully, people can find that spirit from
within; just my little soapbox." The comment was an unexpected present for everyone routinely annoyed by insipid TV news filler.
