Skip to main content

Name Game


 Some friends of ours recently added a new puppy to their family.  We met him the day after they brought him home, and I asked what they named him.  "I think we are going to call him Sam," my friend responded.  She said her daughter had always wanted a boy dog named Sam.  Hearing that reminded me of when I was a kid and wanted so badly for my name to be Samantha so I could go by Sam because it was such a good tomboy name, and that resonated with me.  As an adult, I now see the irony in wanting to change my name from Bobbi to Sam so I could sound more like a tomboy.  

Bob.

I wonder if Sawyer will feel the same irony when he looks back on wanting to be named Beaver because he cuts trees and stuff like a beaver, when his actual name literally means "one who saws." 

We weren't as spot on with Fischer who wanted the name "Red-hot Fire King of Wheelies."  That one was a bit of a mouthful and luckily, didn't stick around for long.  He does like to fish but I've been wondering recently if Hunter might have been more appropriate for him.   

He loves to hunt.  Recently he lost some BB gun privileges because his accuracy needed work.  He immediately started putting in extra time on target practice.  His work payed off. This week he shot and killed his first dove.  With the confidence of a seven-year-old professional hunter, he cleaned his bird, breasted it, built himself a fire in his homemade firepit and cooked it.  He and his siblings all gave it a taste test.  Everybody swallowed it, but the boys determined it was overcooked and over salted.  Emerson, who would lick a salt block given the chance, gave it a big thumbs up.  Fischer generously saved the last chunk for his dad to try when he got off work.  I wasn't offered any and didn't ask.  

Ross was a good sport when he got home.  He gave Fischer lots of praise for his work, graciously popped the blackened lump of breast meat into his mouth, and bit into a BB.  No good deed goes unpunished.  He agreed with the boys that the salt level needed to be dialed back several notches and discussed the importance of removing any shrapnel prior to cooking.  

Overall, it was a successful learning experience.  If the ship ever goes down, these boys now know how to cut fire wood, harvest meat, and build a fire to cook it on, not a bad skill set to have.

...And you can call me Sam. 

 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Little Bit Dicey

 This might be a little controversial.  I try to steer clear of such topics in this space, but it needs to be said.  Take it as you will, but know that it comes from a place of love, concern, and respect.  Here it is: there is a right  way to cut an onion. Now, I'm not saying this to try and get anyone's dander up.  I'm just saying it's a subject that needs to be addressed in kitchens across America.  There may be more than one right way to skin a cat (I can't say I've tested that), but the same does not hold true for onions.  Please, you can teach an old dog new tricks - learn how to properly cut an onion.  It will save you time, frustration, onion tears, and possibly a finger.     Now, since I'm still sitting here on blogspot like it's 2003, I'm not going to post any how-to videos, but I'll do the next best thing.  I'll paste a link right here .    Check it out.  Practice it.  Make it a habit.  T...

Advanced Placement

 Not to brag or anything, but I think we are raising some very advanced children.  At two-years-of-age, our girls have already worked out the art of manipulation and deflection.  It's the antithesis of endearing.   They went missing the other day - the girls did.  That's never a good situation.  They were in the house, and I knew they were in the house, but I couldn't see or hear them.  Silence is the loudest alarm system.  Fischer took action and found them both in my bathroom.   "MOM!" I met them in the hall.  Carter was covered in clumps and blobs of hand cream. "Emi did it," was her unsolicited response.   "No," I told her.  "I think you  did it." That night I got ready for bed and pulled out my one "self-care" splurge - my face cream .  It was in my drawer where I always keep it.  The lid was screwed on.  And it was empty, wiped clean.  "EmmmeerrrrrSON!" Guilty.  They were both ...

Staycation

 We recently had to spend some time at home as a family because: Covid.  I don't hate being stuck at home, but it was not exactly the greatest timing.  When is it a good time to be sick?  There were some things that the kids were especially sad to miss out on, but I made up for it by letting them have cereal for breakfast.  That pretty much heals all wounds in our house.  I guess they are tired of option oatmeal.   Anyway, between that and some extra screen time, we came out smelling like lilies - almost as good as roses.     Looking at the bright side of things, it also saved me from having to see people face to face while my face exploded.  Why, pray tell, am I almost forty with the acne of a fourteen year-old?  I am currently sporting a second chin.  You're welcome for my staying at home.   When I was younger...much younger, somebody said that having skin that tended to be on the oily end of the spectrum woul...