During a national governor's meeting last winter in Washington, Walker attended a dinner at the White House and found herself seated at the same table as President Bush and Schwarzenegger. At one point, a silver plate with a fork, spoon and finger bowl was delivered to their table.

"Olene, vat is this?" Schwarzenegger said.

"The finger bowl is to wash your hands," she said. "I don't know what the fork and spoon are for. Watch the president."

More laughs.

Presidential encounters

Once, when his wife was about to attend a White House reception in which President Reagan would be present, Myron dared her, "Olene, I'll bet you $500 you won't tell the president, 'Ronnie, do you think Nancy will mind if I call you Ronnie.' "

"Don't be ridiculous," Walker replied, but later that night when she returned from the event she told Myron, "I want my $500." While waiting in the reception line that night she thought the comments by the people in front of her "were so fawning and ridiculous," that she decided to take Myron's dare.

"Mr. President, would Nancy mind if I called you Ronnie," she said.

"No," he said, smiling and taking both of her hands in his. "I'm sure she wouldn't."

Later, as she was leaving, Walker saw the president again and, feeling guilty about what she had said, announced, "President Reagan, I really enjoyed being here. Thank you for inviting me."

"That's all right," he replied. "Just call me Ronnie."

There is one incident that is a favorite among Walker's fans — the time she landed a verbal jab at Clinton. It occurred about a month after Clinton had gone to Arizona to announce the designation of the Grand Staircase-National Monument, which made 1.7 million acres in southern Utah off limits to development. Many considered it cowardly that the president didn't come to Utah to make the controversial, much-maligned decision, or that no one ever told Utah's leaders about it before the announcement.

When she met Clinton at the White House with other lieutenant governors, she says, "I was still hot." When introduced to Clinton, she said, for all to hear, "You should come to Utah, especially the next time you want to dedicate a park in Colorado or Arizona." There was a brief pause. "Good one," he said, smiling. (Several lieutenant governors later told Walker they couldn't believe she had the nerve to say it, but they loved it.)

Funny incidents

Things haven't always gone smoothly for Walker, though.

Myron tells this story, but only after he says, "She will be unhappy with me for telling it":