Oh God, the Pressure of a Name

Do names still mean something?

One of my favorite movie lines of all time is from Pretty Woman. Kit says to Vivian, “Oh God, the pressure of a name…” Names are everything or at least they used to be. Apparently there is a lot of pressure when it comes to naming children. My wife and I still disagree about our second child’s name. It’s not awful. It just wasn’t her first choice. The good news is that he doesn’t seem to mind.

Popular Kid Names.

The Social Security Administration puts out a list of the most popular names every year. They will even break them down by state. You can check it out here https://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/. 80’s names are in thanks to Stranger Things. I suppose old English names like Benedict, Edmund, Daphne, and Anthony are back because of Bridgerton.

My name.

My parents, who have both gone on to heaven, get an F. There second child’s name is a disaster and I still haven’t gotten over it. Wendell Craig Henson. The first day of class of every school year the teacher would call my name and I would never respond. You see, my parents called me Craig. I was Bueller, before there was Bueller. Wendell…Wendell…oh that’s me!! I go by Craig.

And…wait for it. The second verse of the song is where the blog gets it’s name. Every Craig on planet earth gets it. You say Craig, they say Greg. “No! It’s Craig with a C. You know, like the speakers.” Craig Electronics are still around and by all accounts, doing well.

Fast forward to 2023 and age 60 and now Greg is the name of my alter ego. Craig is calm, quiet and introverted. Greg? Well, Greg is sarcastic, facetious, blunt, and offers very little grace and mercy. Sometimes Greg is useful, but I’m trying to live in and be Craig. He seems nice. Oh…the pressure of a name!

Here we go.

I suppose we will find out if Craig has anything to say in this space. Look for a new blog every Friday in 2023. Please let me know what you think in the comments and subscribe to get all of the content.