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Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Nicknames

This will be a fun blog post to tell you all about my numerous nicknames I have acquired over the years. My friends Lori and Seal write a blog now called Pickles and Pusses. Two of their nicknames. They have several other nicknames for each other and wrote a post about it. I told them I had about 20 nicknames myself, and they encouraged me to write about them for their readers. So here are my nicknames and how I got them for their readers and for MINE.

My given name is Rodney. Some folks call me Rod, which is not technically a nickname I guess. My initials are R.E.D., but strangely enough nobody has ever called me Red. My clown name is Chip, which is really just a nickname that makes me laugh when I hear it. Some of my other nicknames are variations of Rod and or Chip.

One of my first nicknames was "The Rod". My bowling team mates would call me that whenever I threw a strike, which happened to be quite often back in the day.

Below is a list of my other nicknames. I will tell stories about some of them that make me laugh.

Rodster, Rodman, Rod Dog, Dirty Dog, Dog Star, Captain Caveman, Slick, Rodiknee, Rotteny, Chip, Chipster, Chippy, Chipmeister Meisterchip, Chiparoo, Chiparooni, Med Man, Rodders, Chipper, Catch, Pasquale, Mayor, Rodinator, Legs, Cheeeeep, Chipskii, Wodney, and "Chippy Chippy Chippy"

Pasquale is never used anymore, but it might be the funniest story. As a teenager I would play poker on Friday nights at a friend's house. His uncles would play too. One night his very drunk uncle said "Hey Pasquale, get me a beer". Nobody moved because none of us were named Pasquale. After a couple of minutes he looked me square in the eye and said "Pasquale! Did you hear me? I said get me a beer". I guess I was Pasquale? Because that is much easier to say than "Rodney", when you are drunk. Ha Ha.

A traveling friend calls me Rod Dog. She is from Iowa and apparently they used to sell hot dogs at the county fair called Rod Dogs. She calls me that to this day. But a funnier twist on that story is her boyfriend at the time (now her husband) calls me Dirty Dog. The first night I met him he was with my friend and I was with 5 other traveling nurses, all of which were beautiful women! So he considered me a dirty dog after that. Ha Ha.

Med Man is a camp nickname. The counselors didn't want to just call me nurse. My main job at camp is to pass out the meds. So I was The Med Man.

Rodders comes from my British friends. Also from camp. Some call me "Plunker" but I don't consider that a nickname. It is just a term of endearment. Check out "Only Fools and Horses" if you can. It is a British sitcom with a character named Rodney in it.

Captain Caveman came from another traveling friend. At the time I met her I didn't have a lap top. I didn't even text. I was, and still am, a very simple person. Much like a caveman. She added the Captain to make it sound funnier I think.

Strangely enough, I have been called "Slick" at 2 very different times in my life by 2 very different people who have never met each other. They both just decided to call me Slick out of the blue one day. No explanation from either person.

Rodiknee and Wodney both come from children. They couldn't pronounce  Rodney correctly and it came out Rodiknee from one child and Wodney by another. Quite cute to hear a 3 year old and a 4 year old call me by those names.

Catch was technically given to me by a patient. She told one of my fellow nurses that I was quite a "Catch". I think she was trying to give a hint to my coworker, of course she was under the influence of drugs at the time. My friend that she told that to calls me Catch to this day.

Having the last name of Daly lends some discussion to various people. One coworker decided to call me Mayor, knowing the Mayor of Chicago has the same last name.

Chip is my clown name. It was a nickname a dear friend gave me in nursing school. One day out of the blue she called me Chip. Nobody, including her, had ever called me that. I thought I heard her wrong til she called me Chip again. I had to ask why she called me Chip? She said in a gruff voice "Because you have a CHIP in your brain". I just happened to do well on a dosages and calculations test that day. I am good at simple math I admit. It makes me laugh to this day. Mostly because I do NOT have a chip in my brain, and partly because of the way she said it and how mad she was about it.

There are various forms of Chip including the Russian version Chipskii. Also Cheeeeep, from some beautiful Russian girls who can't pronounce the short "i" sound from the English language. Other forms of Chip always make me smile, but none more than... Chippy Chippy Chippy!

Yes, it has to be said 3 times, but that is Seal's and Lori's story to tell... so check out their blog to see if they ever tell that story?!

http://picklesandpusses.wordpress.com/

Their blog post about their nicknames is below.

 http://picklesandpusses.wordpress.com/2014/07/21/you-called-me-what/

So there you have it. My list of nicknames. There may be others actually, I can't always remember them all :0). Hopefully I didn't bore you with these details, but remember I could have told you about ALL of them!

Now Go Out and Hug a Friend Today!!!
 

Monday, July 21, 2014

I'm Happy

I'm Happy. I do like that song. Kind of a theme song for me. This post is not necessarily about my happiness, but about how I come to be happy. Believe it or not, it is a conscious effort to be happy! I do have a natural "tendency" to be happy which makes it easier for me to be happy most of the time, but not always. So I make an effort to project happiness.

I like how the Dalai Lama puts it...



Some of my friends would be highly surprised to know that I actually have a little mean, condescending, jerky streak in me! True story! Luckily I have learned to suppress that part of me most of the time. But it does still come out some. Usually when I am tired or hungry.  Is it an innate part of me? A product of my up bringing? That is the big mystery question that probably will never be answered. Kind of like the Egg or The Chicken question.

Anyway, I want to be happy and project happy, kind, loving thoughts... so I try to do that as best as I can. It is who I want to be, so it is what I put my effort into. However, the mean condescending jerky part of me does give me perspective on others who are mean or condescending at times. At least I feel it does. I feel I have a better understanding of these people because of my own inadequacy. So it teaches me tolerance to a small degree. And forgiveness. It has to start with my own forgiveness. So I choose to forgive myself for those times I am not what I want to be. This helps me to forgive others, and hopefully my friends who notice that part of me have forgiven me too! I think they do :0).

Now this is not to say that those people are bad people! "Au contraire". They may just be having a bad day. They need to be forgiven too. And it is not to say that happy people are always the best kind of people. It is just the way I choose to live. It works for me.

I do believe most people want to be happy and want to project kind thoughts (Ann Frank agrees I hear). So when you come across a mean or condescending person, don't judge them but instead offer an alternative to their mood... offer Kindness, or Happiness as an alternative. Maybe even offer a FREE HUG!! Or just a handshake! Or if you have the time, an open ear to bend. You may just change their attitude, mood, or even more importantly their life! All be it in a small way, but a small positive change is better than no change, right?!

If you can't change their mood in that moment, don't be discouraged! You may have interjected enough that later in the day they will think of you and smile. It is quite possible!!

My favorite quote relates to this blog and it is attributed to none other than Groucho Marx!!


                                                            

No Go Out and Hug Someone Happily!!!
 

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Positively Absolutely Undoubtedly Maybe

These are 4 words I variably live by. Sometimes they all come together. Most recently this has been my mantra. Stay in Utah, leave Utah, try something new... which could mean staying long term or it could mean traveling again. Sometime before Sept. 1st I will have made a decision. It changes daily as it seems to be on the brink of being a Positively Undoubted answer til the next day when it becomes an Absolutely Maybe answer and so on. Wishy Washy I know. That is me at my best though. So stay tuned to learn the great mystery answer....



This is how I look when I can't make up my mind. Look familiar??!

Now Go Out and Hug Someone Positively Absolutely!