I'm a word nerd. I like words, and can entertain myself by reading a dictionary. I also like to make up words, make puns and come up with names for inanimate objects.
Not everyone names their cars or appliances, but I do. My car is named Alec, because the nav system voice sounds like Sir Alec Guinness. Previously, I had a Mercury. I named it Freddy, because I'm the queen. The next car was named Brian, because he carried Queen after Freddy died. Yup, I named a car after an astrophysicist/rock star. I have a robotic vacuum cleaner named Dustin, because that's what it's doin'.
Sometimes, I don't care what name you use for something. Couch, sofa, chesterfield - doesn't matter to me, just have a seat. Other times I am very particular. My career demanded precision in language, and some activities do as well. They are treadles on a loom, not pedals. There is a difference between sleying and threading. Just because it is in a martini glass doesn't make it a martini.
Coming up with names for your children can be fraught; do you use a family name?; will the inevitable nicknames be something you can live with? Do the initials spell something undesireable? Some people choose names that are trendy, but it can mean that your daughter is one of six Alecia's in the classroom. Spellings that are twisted and tortured annoy me. Tiffany. Not Typhannie. Please. Sometimes, your best intentions just go sideways. Francesca Alexandria Isabella Mary went through the first five years of her life being called Googie.
I always wanted to be called Grandma. Not Granny. Not Nana. I called my grandmothers Grandma, and my kids called my mom Grandma. Fortunately, my grandchildren's other grandmothers want to be called Granny and Nana, so I have the title of Grandma to myself. My daughter has a friend who told her parents that they could choose what they wanted their grandchildren to call them. Annabelle calls her grandparents Queenie and Saint, per their request. I considered being called Your Highness or Your Majesty, but given our penchant for shortening every name to a single syllable I didn't like the idea of being call Your, Hi, or Maj. So Grandma it is. Truth be told, sometimes my grandson calls me other names, but that's between us.
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