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Blog Entry 21 of 265 Average Joe. Not.

I was born, therefore I blog. I have a sense of the ridiculous and need an outlet for that. I can be serious too and love to write little stories about little known but important people and events. And I love wildlife and travel and will always try to share those experiences. I make things up (its called fiction) and am amused when readers are duped into believing they are true.

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The importance of a name

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Contributed by: Joe McDaniel on 7/8/2006

Bill Boucher, native of Plainville, Kansas and current resident of North Parker, Colorado inspired me to discuss the issue of names - town names and people names. This may, at first blush, appear to be an unimportant issue. If however, you happened to be born in Hippo, Kentucky or Toad Suck, Arkansas, would you admit it? Or, could you tell the world, with a straight face, that you were born in Intercourse, Pennsylvania and moved to Climax, Michigan? I doubt it.

I read an excellent article by Aaron Weiner, a senior in psychology from Wilmette, Illinois in which he points out that odd town names can be used to some advantage. For example, June 6th, 2006 (remember 06/06/06?) is a special day for the inhabitants of Hell, Michigan, where a huge party is organized on that day; Tee-shirts and mugs with "666" are sold for $6.66, and demonic decorations are everywhere. Weiner also makes the great point, "If a resident of Hygiene, Colorado, decided to run for federal office, he would be promptly laughed at before being eliminated early in the primaries."Aaron laments that he will will be spending his summer agonizing about why Blue Ball, Pennsylvania actually exists.

I encourage anyone who might name a town in future to avoid references to bodily functions or adjectives that will be misconstrued; e.g. Ordinary, Kentucky, Gay, Michigan, Relief, Kentucky, or Buck Snort, Tennessee. There may be a few exceptions, such as Happy, Texas, or Hot Coffee, Mississippi.

Turning to people names; great care should be taken in naming a child. I am perfectly happy with my simple first name, "Joe." Some professional recruiter once suggested that the name "Joseph" would make a better impression on my resume. I refused. I have fond memories of my Uncle Joe, for whom I was named, and would not want to change it just to try an impress a HR person that I probably wouldn't enjoy working for anyway. The only problem I have had is with some who try and abbreviate my name to "Jo." Go figure.

I could not, with a clear conscience, name my child Moon Unit or Dweezil, especially if my last name was Zappa. If my last name were Baum, would I name my son Adam? Unlikely. Names such as Anita or Ann lend themselves to ridicule; Anita Bath, Anita Fixx, Anita Beer; Ann Tartica, Ann Chovie, or Anna Conda are examples.

Some names just work out right. I once knew a guy named Geoff Doctor. He became a doctor and the sign on his office said Doctor Doctor. Nothing wrong with that. I also knew a Professor Mountain who was a Geology lecturer at my university. Perfectly appropriate.

I conclude with a sad but true story about two young children in Tennessee who were having behavioral problems in school and who ended up in juvenile court for a disciplinary hearing. Both of the childrens' mothers were in attendance and the judge took an extra long time to review the documents before him. A good friend of mind was an educator and worked in the local school system as a children's advocate, helping problem kids. She was in the courtroom when the following two exchanges took place.

The judge addressed one of the mothers and said, "Ma'am, your son has an unusual name. How did you decide to name him Carwasha?" The mother replied that the boy had been conceived in a car wash.

The second child stood before the judge, looking very nervous. The judge,with a look of confusion on his face, turned to the boy's mother and said, "Ma'am, can you give me the correct spelling of your son's name and tell me how you pronounce it please." She replied, "S-H-I-T-H-E-A-D, pronounced Shi-thead." Poor kid.

Names are very important. I would like to know how the town of Joes, in Yuma County, Colorado, got it's name. I am also curious about the origin of the name Lay, in Moffat County.

The search for knowledge and enlightenment continues.

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Submitted By: Delete Me

posted on 8/10/2006 @ 9:04:02 AM

Rated Blog Entry

coxsackie NY

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Submitted By: Charmaine Robledo

posted on 7/11/2006 @ 11:50:10 AM

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I had a piano teacher whose name was Bill Hazard. My mom joked that my cousin, a doctor, should have married him so she could be "Dr. Hazard." Incidently, that piano teacher was while my family and I lived in Center, Colo. It was named for the fact it was in the center of the San Luis Valley.

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Submitted By: Brendan Leonard

posted on 7/11/2006 @ 7:06:18 AM

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My high school chemistry and physics teacher (and sophomore football coach) Mark LaPorte left our school after my senior year to take a job at the high school in LaPorte City.

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Submitted By: Greg Liptak

posted on 7/10/2006 @ 6:44:12 AM

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There are two small towns in Illinois--one named Normal, the other Oblong. A headline in a local newspaper read, "Normal Man To Marry Oblong Girl." Greg Liptak

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Submitted By: Meagan Savage

posted on 7/8/2006 @ 10:06:36 PM

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Well, my family knew a Dr. Gasser once. He was an anesthesiologist. We got a kick out of that one. I also read a sign once of a dentist named Dr. Payne. Not the most reassuring name in the world...

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Submitted By: Rob Guthrie

posted on 7/8/2006 @ 9:46:36 AM

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I wish there was a sixth star. Thanks for the great read, Joe---made my day (also got me to thinking and surfing). As a follow-on, a few universal certainties: Superman could never have lived in Krypton, KY. Custer might have flinched at the sight of Scalp Level, PA. Folks that get tired of the same old thing in your Gay, MI can simply up and relocate to Gayville, SD. Residents are just never satisfied in Needsmore, TX. And I get the feeling that some well-intentioned, chowderhead Poe fan got it all wrong when he named Monkey’s Eyebrow, AZ.

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Submitted By: William Boucher

posted on 7/7/2006 @ 11:23:17 PM

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We knew of a family a few towns over in Kansas named Trail whose kids first names were Dusty, Spring, and Sandy.

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Submitted By: Karin Malchow

posted on 7/7/2006 @ 5:56:45 PM

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I went to high school with girls named Sandy Bottem and Jackie Sexaur. When the principal got on the intercom, calling Jackie to the office, he couldn't stop giggling. I believe he even said, "Most people just take a coffee break."

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Submitted By: Joe McDaniel

posted on 7/7/2006 @ 3:27:35 PM

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Thanks Eric! Another one I am curious about is the town of Why, Arizona. Why Why? Inquiring minds need to know these things.

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Submitted By: Eric Lubbers

posted on 7/7/2006 @ 3:07:30 PM

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Well, Joe, my hometown of Yuma is about 40 miles from Joes and shared a school district with it for a number of years, so I'm going to pull some strings in Yuma County and see if I can find the origin of the town's name for you. (Incidentally, Yuma was not named for the small native tribe of the same name, but for a railroad worker who died near the future site of the town while laying track.)

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CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION

Joe McDaniel

Parker , CO

Joe McDaniel has posted 265 blog entries and 376 comments since joining on 9/14/2005. Joe McDaniel's average blog rating is 4.94.

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