Tuesday, January 10, 2017

Renewable Children


Been a while since I've posted. I've been building a commerce machine. Things are going good. I've been stressing to people that "Children are our future. Clean burning. Renewable. Children."

I was working at my kitchen table today. Two cute little birds landed at the base of the bay window I was sitting at. I whistled a tune like something like "Whistle while you work". They copied it note for note. I opened the screen on the bay window and they came in and help me re-sew my dress and straighten up.

Have you ever had a thought, so inconsequential, just overtake your brain for a bit? Mine is nicknames.  I’m not saying I’m missing out or anything. I’m living a pretty good life. Good wife. Good kids. Good friends. Good careers. But I was doing some thinking while “hunting” this weekend (Drinking an adult beverage while wearing really comfortable clothes that look like trees), and it occurred to me that while making it to this Half way mark in life (I plan on dying at 94) I never had a nickname. I really wanted one in high school but it never took. On my HS football team, the mighty Ingleside Mustangs, a coach named Coach Brent, who was boning a student, nicknamed me “cave-dog”. Don’t judge it was a simpler time. That only stuck for 3 weeks, four days and six hours. (The nickname, not the relationship).

I know a “Chip”. I know an engineer named “Buzz”. I know hundreds of “Bobbys” I know a guy named “Ira Washington” who goes by June, because his parents hated him, I’m guessing. I know a guy, and I’m not making this up, whose entire little Texas town, calls him “Pecker”. Big guy. Girthy.

My wife has a nickname of sorts. A lot of people call her Mis. All my kids have nicknames, sort of. Coby is called Cobe a lot. Darian is called “Dare” or “Dare Bear”. Shelby is called “Shel” or “Shelly” or “Shelly Belly”. Alexandra is called “Ally” or “Ally Grace” or “Accident”.

But one never took for me.

I have a good friend who calls me “Col” about every 4 months, but that sounds weird from anybody else but him. Let’s do an experiment. Stop reading this for a second and say “Col” and hold the L a little bit. Sounds like you’ve had a stroke, right?

Anyway, have a great 2017! Sorry for the random thoughts, and I pinkie swear promise I’ll try to update the blog more this year.

;)