Nicknames

Thanks everybody for the birthday greetings.  The party (which had like 500 people and dogs) left just after midnight.  Not really.  But I did have cards and treats – that I shared with my brothers.  Good times.

In my blog yesterday I shared how I got my name, Viktor.  And I’d like to talk more about that today.  I mean, you humans are SO interesting.  You pick a name for us as puppies.  In fact you sometimes agonize about what to call us.  No more than two syllables is the “rule” my human uses.  Sometimes it is a “theme” name –my human named some of her dogs after beer – there was Guinness, Harp, and Beamish… Then when she met Frodo, our breeder had been calling him Frodo – and she figured he looked like Frodo  (whatever a Frodo looks like) and she kept it.  Paxton is supposed to mean “peaceful town” in Latin or something – so she thought that was cool.  Our house is anything BUT peaceful with Paxton in it. 

Picking a name IS important.  I’m mean, it’s something you will say probably 165 million times in our lifetime.  “Viktor here”.  “Viktor sit”. “Viktor stay”.  “Viktor – where are you?” “Viktor leave it.”   For the longest time I thought my name was “Viktorno” – since I heard “Viktor no” so often.

But then what do you humans do?  You start calling us OTHER names as well.  For example, besides Viktor, I also have a variety of nicknames including:  Vik (the obvious), Baby V (since I AM the youngest) , Viktorino (which sounds more Italian than Polish!), Trino (which is an nickname name for a nickname),  and one day when my human was in a rhyming mood she came up with Viktor Man-ik-tor.  WHAT the HECK is THAT?!!!   Note that many of these nicknames break the two syllable “rule!”

Oh and it’s not JUST me who has the litany of names.  Frodo goes by Fro, Frodee-o-doe;  and Frofee.  Frofee!!!!?  WHERE did THAT one come from??? Oh RIGHT.  It's short for Frofee Minofee.

Paxton goes by Pax, Paxtonian, Poppie, Paw Paw (sometimes I think my human is losing it!) – and of course, the name that started years ago when he was in the Drill Team – Bucket Head.  Contrary to popular belief that it was a mean spirited nickname – it wasn’t!  It was simply a fact that his head was as BIG as a bucket.  And it IS!!!

So you WONDER why we don’t behave?  We don’t know WHO you are talking to!!!! Top that off with the following line that is always blurted out when I am in the middle of doing something bad:  “STOP!!! Frodo….Paxton…whatever your name is…STOP!!!!!”

I have decided today that I want to change my name – and I will go by one – and only one name:  Goodboy.  I like it.  Goodboy.  It has a catchy ring.  It was either that or Groucho.   Or maybe I WILL use both.  My human would. 

© 2014 Linda Wozniak