DOWNTOWN COLORADO SPRINGS, CO -- A local newspaper was successfully used to fix a wobbly table last Thursday as Steve "Colorado Guy" Garufi and his friend Phil sought to place their morning coffees on an adjacent table at Pikes Perk in downtown Colorado Springs.

The weekly tabloid, published by the Colorado Springs Independent, leveled the surface so the two could "place their coffees down in peace" as they discussed their Internet-related projects as part of their monthly meeting.

"The problem might not be the table. It's probably the floor being uneven since it's such an old building." said Phil Ladden (see adjacent photo), a former Colorado Springs high school teacher who recently launched OurSprings.com.

"The newspaper definitely did the trick." said Steve, who almost spilled his coffee on the hardwood floor.

"I felt a little guilty devoting a newspaper to such a fate ... but what else was I going to do?" he added.

Once the table was level, Phil became somewhat philosophical. "Spilling something in public can be really embarrassing and humiliating. Wasn't there a girl who dropped something on your web site?" asked Phil, whose 1958 Chevy Truck is featured on this web site.

Steve admitted that he has used newspapers, cheesy apartment guides and other "freebie" periodicals to level out wobbly tables.

"It generally works," said Steve, "although sometimes you need to watch your feet that you don't rip the paper."

Steve insisted that he meant "no disrespect" towards the free newspaper (see adjacent photo) that "always seems to be around" in local coffee shops. Coincidentally, Steve has sent numerous e-mails to their editorial department asking them to "weigh in" and perhaps endorse a candidate in their upcoming issue for next week's Hair Consultant election.