What’s in a name?

It’s funny how we need to name people, even when we don’t know someone’s actual name we have to make one up that’s fitting to their appearance or personality.

In the Book of Beginnings Jo has names for all of her customers from Eric the Viking to Caramel Toffee Girl and the Runaway Vicar

I remember growing up in a small village in Shropshire where all my Dads friends had names related to their jobs; Fred the Bread, John the Shirt, even Nick the Death, although I don’t remember anyone calling my Dad, Dave the Insurance 😂

Driving around we always spot the same people going about their day to day lives and make assumptions of who they are or what they do, and often name them. I wonder how accurate we are with our guesses?

Here’s some of my “friends” I can think of; “Smokey Jo“ who I see every day walking to work smoking a cigarette. She’s smartly dressed and I think she must work in a bank and probably has a cat; “Crazy Hat Carol“ walks her greyhound over the same field as I walk my dog, she’s tall and pointy like her doggie and wears brightly coloured knitted hats even in summer, I think she’s probably an artist or writer and lives in a loft apartment; and then there’s “Beard“, he’s a guy I see at work with a pointy beard that I don’t think has an actual name as everyone I know calls him Beard.

I wonder what people call me who don’t know my name and what life they’ve created for me? They used to call me Mighty Mouse in school…….