Mom, Children Strike a Bargain

--After eight days of a messy house, dirty laundry and cereal and canned spaghetti for dinner, the three children of Michael Dunlap were eager to end a debilitating strike by their housewife mother. Robert, 10; Christine, 11, and Andrew, 14, formally agreed to a contract that stipulates that they treat their mother with respect, acknowledge “that our parents are the final say on anything pertaining to our education, chores, playtime,” and refrain from screaming at their siblings. Dunlap, of Indianapolis, went on strike Dec. 14 over working conditions and treatment by her children, stopping all washing, tidying and cooking. “I think what really got to them was I quit talking to them,” she said. But Dunlap, 45, who has several grown children, said: “I probably learned more from the strike than they did. Maybe I do expect too much from them. They are still kids.”

--The price of gasoline apparently has dropped so low that one gas station owner had trouble even giving it away. Earl Davis, who offered free gas to the jobless at his Anchorage service station, was astounded at the lack of takers at his one-day holiday giveaway. Davis offered 10 gallons of gasoline free to the first 500 motorists who could show a state unemployment claim form. But by evening only about 300 people had pulled in for the free gas. “I am a little disappointed that more people didn’t come,” Davis said. “The only thing we can think of is that people figured there’d be a line,” said Randy McElroy, the station’s shift supervisor.

--She had been a symbol of peace when her life ended in a plane crash last year, and in tribute, a statue of Maine schoolgirl Samantha Smith was unveiled in the state capital of Augusta. “It’s an incredible honor,” said Jane Smith, Samantha’s mother. “And I believe the statue will help remind all people, especially children, that ordinary people can make a difference.” The statue depicts Samantha, 13 at the time of her death, releasing a dove, with a bear cub at her side representing the Maine black bear and the Soviet bear. Samantha gained international attention in December, 1982, when she wrote a letter to Yuri V. Andropov, then the Soviet leader, expressing her fears about nuclear war, and Andropov invited Samantha and her parents to the Soviet Union.

--Citing old age--the horse’s, that is--Queen Elizabeth II will drop her traditional horseback ride at her annual birthday parade in favor of a carriage. A Buckingham Palace announcement said the 61-year-old monarch believes that Burmese, the black mare she has ridden side-saddle at the ceremony for the last 18 years, should be retired. Burmese is now nearly 24.