You are currently browsing the category archive for the ‘Names’ category.
Those of you who read my other blog know that I have this thing about baby names. I grew up with a really crappy last name, one that invites ridicule and snide remarks, and it is only now, when everyone I know is having a baby, that I realized how traumatic that was. I implored them to think about their choices, to say them out loud, perhaps even go so far as to run it by a handy eight year old. So far they have listened to my pleas and not branded their children with anything horrible, but it was touch and go there for a while.
In May I’m going to be an aunt for the first time, when my sister in law has a baby. I’m very excited for her and my brother both (and for my two best friends who recently gave birth to Jacob and Dylan respectively). They aren’t really talking names yet, until they know the gender, which is smart move (it removes half the names to fight over). Like most other couples I know, Tim and I started that fight years ago and have since narrowed it down to a short list for each gender. And I’m not even pregnant.
Since I’ve got my own future children taken care of, I’ve been thinking about names for my future niece or nephew, especially since my brother’s child may have my last name (poor thing!). On a recent visit to my favorite independent bookstore, I found Baby Name Wizard in (obviously) the baby section, a place I heretofore did not visit in bookstores, but which, since everyone I know has gotten pregnant, has become like beckoning siren to me.
The first page had me hooked. I love you Ms. Wattenberg! Here is a woman who is so obsessed with baby names that she created a computer algorithm that puts names into families for easy cross referencing. Created. Her Own. Algorithm. It still gives me chills.
What We're Reading Now 