What's In A Name?

Johnathan and I aren't really big on nicknames. Occasionally I'll refer to him as Johnny, John-John, John Boy or J-Man when I am being goofy, but he has always just gone by the full version of his name and I almost always just call him Johnathan. Likewise, he calls me by my name most of the time. In fact, he uses my name more than any person I have ever met. In the beginning it actually bothered me that he so often put my name at the end of a sentence. I thought he was being condescending. Like if he was trying to make a point and I was misunderstanding he'd say "that isn't what I'm saying, Elyse," and for whatever reason, my name in that sentence made me feel like a child being chastised. But in time I came to realize that he didn't just use my name when frustrated. He also says things like "I love you, Elyse" or "thank you, Elyse." And he uses everybody's name when he talks to them; he is not being patronizing, it's just one of his traits. But my point is that aside from calling each other "Baby" or by our given names, we have never been too big on nicknames and terms of endearment.

However, ever since he bought the a video of It's Flash Beagle, Charlie Brown on an eBay auction, because it was one of his favorite things to watch as a child, I have taken to calling Johnathan "My Sweet Babboo." It's Sally's nickname for her true love, Linus and apparently (thank you Wikipedia) it was what creator Charles Schulz's wife called him. When I heard that, it was just too disgustingly precious not to inflict on him. Linus is not much of a fan of this moniker or the girl who uses it, but [I like to think that] Johnathan doesn't mind it. At least once in the Peanuts series, Sally also said she was Linus's "Sweet Babbooette." I guess that makes them a couple of Babboos.

When I decided to create this blog I wanted the URL to be something that stood for both of us and was personal and it couldn't be taken already by one of the other millions of bloggers out there. I can change the header/title of the page as often as the mood strikes me, but the address would be permanent. So (not that anybody asked) that is why this website is TwoBabboos. And, come to think of it, maybe the fact that all of the titles of Peanuts cartoons he watched as a child ended with Charlie Brown's name had some influence on Johnathan's habit of using peoples' names the way he does.