It’s Not Like Our Family Had Sexual Identity Problems
My mother’s first name and the names we called her two sisters, seemed normal. When you grow up hearing names, a kid just doesn’t think anything about it.
Until you mention the name to a kid at school.
My mother’s name was Cass, her sisters were Aunt Tim and Aunt Zig.
Cass. Tim. Zig.
Sooooooooo?
Cass was not short for anything. Her name was Cass Eugenia.
Her older sister, Tim, was christened Tamson, a name I only heard her husband and one other nephew call her. To everybody else, she was Tim.
The oldest sister, Zig, given name has tons of nicknames. Elizabeth.
Cass. Tim. Zig.
Maiden name? Zeigler, not i before e, prounounced Zig-ler. Not Zay-gler.
Soooooooo?
When those three got together it was one laugh over another! Remember when we got married (in the middle of August) and Aunt Zig wanted to make us something? She went to the hardware and bought a coal bucket and spray paint and voila! we had a magazine “bucket”! They were such fun! I miss them all!!!
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Yeah, Aunt Tim would be funny. These days folks would assume it’s a transgender thing. But within a family it would seem perfectly normal.
Rickie Lee was actually in honor of Rickie Lee Jones, the jazz singer. We did call her Rickie when she was a baby, but when we moved to California my dad said “No. Her name is Erika.” And everyone else ended up following suit. Erika she remains.
Boolie WAS made up by Sam, but afterward I found out about the character in the movie. And ever since, when we call her Boolie in public, I wonder if people think she’s named after that character.
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@Gretchen: Difference is, as a kid, I didn’t know these were nicknames until somebody pointed out the oddity of having an Aunt Tim! I was kind of slow (still am???)
I love Rickie Lee – how redneck for a gal. Do you call her that? Never knew Boolie wasn’t anything other than a made up name!
Our youngest is Rebecca – Becky or Beck. Reba McIntyre was hot when Becky was in high school and I started calling her Reba at home. She got a call and I hollered for REBA and her friend heard it and then in high school that was her nick.
Amy is Aim or Mamie.
We had some similarly odd nicknames in our family. Noteworthily, my sister and I both called each other Boob. We were a pair of boobs. I was the smaller one.
Erika’s name was originally meant to be Rickie Lee (how southern/jazz can you get?) but her birth certificate says Erika Leigh.
And Boolie? Dan Ayroyd’s character in “Driving Miss Daisy” was named Boolie. And, obviously, male.
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