What's In A Name?

My morning usually starts off with a cup of tea and reading the online edition of the newspaper. I never have time to read the entire paper but I always read the obituaries. The other morning I noticed that a Mr. Pitz had passed on, I didn’t know him but I continued to read…he was survived by his wife of 55 years...her name was Olive. Please believe me, I mean absolutely no disrespect…but for the past 55 years, this woman has been known as Olive Pitz.

This got me thinking about other people I have known with ‘unusual’ combinations of names. In England I went to school with an Olive Green, and an Anne Teek. In high school I knew an Ann Franscisco.

As a teenager, I had a summer job at a bank; we had a customer named Izadore Bell (is a door bell), sometimes keeping a straight face wasn’t easy!

Another woman I knew was called Hope Lewis, she married Larry Hope and became Hope Hope. I wonder if she thought about that before she said, “I do.”

A good friend of mine used to date Jim Bagg, and I still like to tease her about that! For a while I worked with Mr. Fish…his mother’s name was Iona. Iona Fish, I dare you to say that without a smile!

In elementary school, my son had a teacher called Mr. Case, his first name was Justin. Justin Case…what were his parents thinking?

I’m sure I’m forgetting a few others, I probably will remember them as I fall asleep tonight!

Have you come across some odd name combinations?

Christmas Past

The other day, as I sorted through Christmas decorations, I found myself tripping down memory lane and thinking back to when my Dad was in the RAF and no matter where he was stationed, we as a family, always went home at Christmas time. When I say home, I really mean my Grandparent’s house in Cornwall.

Nan and Gramps lived in an old mill house, in the village of Tregonissey just outside St. Austell. It was an old stone house with no central heat, no running water and no indoor plumbing.

Even after all these years, I still have vivid memories of Christmas when my Grandfather would go in search of the perfect Holly tree. I never knew where he found it but he somehow managed to bring one home, much to everyone’s delight. He would then set it up in the front room and I, along with my Mom and Dad, would help decorate it. When it was completed we would light the little candles for a few minutes. Yes, you read it right…real, live candles on a real, live tree! Looking back that may have not been the smartest thing to do but that’s what people did back then, and nobody burned the house down…amazing!

Back in Christmas BC (before computers), gifts were simple and delightful. A game of Snakes and Ladders, a book, a rag doll; all gifts were appreciated, not matter how small. Most presents were hung on the tree and nothing was touched until after Christmas dinner was finished and dishes were done. Finally everyone gathered in front of the fireplace and a ‘Santa’ was selected. Presents were open one at a time, and displayed for everyone to admire. It always seemed like there were a lot of presents but actually there weren't, it just took so long to open them! Waiting for your turn could be agonizing when you were only 5 or 6 years old.

In the early evening, the oil lamps were lit and all gathered at the table for Christmas pudding. I HATED Christmas pudding! My only incentive to eat it, besides my Mom giving me her famous ‘mother look’, was the hope of finding the sixpence, wrapped in wax paper and hidden somewhere in the pudding.

While the ladies cleaned up, Gramp would crank up the old gramophone and slowly Christmas Carols would fill the room. Before I knew it, Mom would remind me that it was bedtime and because I knew there was no point in presenting the ‘but it’s Christmas argument’, said my goodnights, collected my hugs and climbed the long stairway. The only warmth provided was from an antique space heater and a huge, red hot water bottle. I always tried to fall asleep fast, before I froze to death!

What fond childhood memories of Christmas do you have?

Collections

The other day I visited my friend Betty. Betty collects angels, and must have well over a hundred in various forms; figurines, pillows, plates, pictures and even an angel rug. One of the good things about collectors…they are easy to buy gifts for and always seem grateful for an additional treasure.

On the drive home from Betty’s house, I started thinking about all the assorted collections I have had in my lifetime. When I was a youngster, I collected dog figurines; I had about fifty of them when my interest turned to stuffed animals. Bedtime became a nightly ritual of clearing the bed to make room to climb in and the morning ritual of putting them back usually made me late for school. After a year or so, I donated all my stuffed buddies to the Shriners Children’s Hospital.

During my teenage years, a friend got me interested in stamp collecting, and I in turn got my Dad hooked on philately. (Don’t you just love that word?) I also collected Beatle records, oh how I wish I still had them, I probably could retire on their value!

Over the next forty years I have collected, not at the same time; cats, wolves, WW2 memorabilia, foreign money, Pairpoint Cup Plates and cobalt blue glass. Not to mention the accumulation of things that I didn’t purposely collect, like ticket stubs, 45 rpm records, shoes and such.

When I married my husband, he came with a collection of dragons, when my parents passed on, I inherited their collections.

There reaches a point in life, for many of us, when we have to downsize. A time to part with items packed away, perhaps for so long, we forget we had them! A time for someone else to provide a good home and dust enjoy.

All my collections have been sold or given away, except one…for over ten years, I have collected sheep. No, not real sheep and not cutesy sheep…they are more primitive and folk art sheep; and because they are not easy to find, my collection is a reasonable size. I can’t think of anything else I want to collect except maybe time and money!

What do you collect?