How Seattle's streetcar became known as the SLUT

Catch up quick: By the time the trolley's 1.3-mile line opened between downtown and South Lake Union in December 2007, the cheeky nickname had already become a minor national sensation.

• Cascade neighborhood residents Jerry Johnson and Don Clifton came up with the original version of the shirt pictured above and sold it at Kapow! Coffee, where the first 100 sold out within days, per HistoryLink.
• The joke was also intended as a jab at rapid development in the neighborhood and its rebranding to South Lake Union, Johnson told the Seattle PI.

Yes, but: Some have disputed the story that "South Lake Union Trolley" was the original name before officials noticed the unfortunate acronym.

• But a 2005 city Design Commission presentation included an architect's map labeled "South Lake Union Trolley Route," even as city records later dubbed the project the South Lake Union Streetcar.
• SLUS just doesn't tickle our juvenile funny bone as much.

The bottom line: Some acronyms are simply too good to forget.