It would have been appropriate to have a sexually charged phrase for today's edition of Stuff People Google. It's the 69th edition after all. But, no one has grossed me out (in that way) lately. Well, truth be told there have been a few search phrases involving teenagers and meatholes...but they crossed the line for me.
Instead, to celebrate the 69th edition of Stuff People Google, I'll give you some old favorites that have creepy sexual undertones and then reveal today's totally non-sexual phrase.
There is a clear difference between baby crazed individuals and non-baby crazed individuals. The more crazy the former gets, the more glaring the difference. Being a baby crazed individual, I must consciously simmer myself around non-baby crazed friends. I intentionally guide my conversational instincts toward movies, work, and noteworthy happenings on my commute (versus names, baby shower tales and family planning discussions). Sometimes I slip up, but that usually only happens when I'm around other baby crazed individuals. The joining forces of multiple baby crazed ladies can be explosive...and super annoying...to the non-baby crazed. But, all-in-all, controlling the baby talk is doable.
It's two baby crazed individuals (Tori Spelling and Dean McDermott)
with their crew of babies. There's actually one missing, their new son Finn.
due to complications from her c-section with Finn.
Let's up the stakes from a conversation between a baby crazed and non-baby crazed lady to a conversation between a pregnant woman and a woman who has been desperately trying to get pregnant for some time. You just cringed when you read that, right? The contrast here is far more glaring. The mama-to-be can't very well deny her state of being, especially if her bump is in full effect. The non-pregnant lady can't very well deny her desire to be pregnant, especially if it was well known before Miss Preggers found herself knocked up.
Simmering baby talk to a non-baby crazed friend is easy enough. Simmering baby talk to a non-pregnant lady (or anyone), when your bump is touching your bowl of soup, is not so easy. So, what does a pregnant lady do? Not talk about babies at all and ignore her twitching belly? Meanwhile, what does a non-pregnant-and-desperate-to-be lady do? Not ask the courteous, obvious questions? Avoid pregnant people altogether?
It's a difficult dilemma requiring some serious sensitivities. With so many of my friends having babies, being pregnant, being baby crazed and wanting to become parents, this difficult dilemma has popped up on more than one occasion. It's never easy to manage - not from inside the dilemma or even as an onlooker. But, the one thing I have learned is to let the non-pregnant lady guide the way. If she wants to avoid all contact for a while, let her, and if she doesn't want to ask the courteous, obvious questions, let her. She's not trying to offend or be selfish, she's just coping.
When wedding season is over, there is a ranging spectrum of interests and desires when it comes to being baby crazy and starting a family. Be conscious of that range. No matter where you fall on the spectrum, it's healthy for you and important for friendships to avoid tunnel vision. Be the change you wish to see in the world...okay, that's totally unrelated, but it felt like a natural conclusion to this deep-ish thoughts post.
On Monday, I showed you the photo below and asked for guesses as to who the perfectly round bump belonged to.
Reveal time:
It's our favorite German-born model, Heidi Klum! Ms. Klum, host of Project Runway, is mother of Helene ("Leni"), Henry, Johan and Lou. The latter three are Seal's biological children and Leni is the biological daughter of Flavio Briatore.
True - I'm obsessed with baby names. I love listing them, researching them, discussing them and generally pondering them for minutes hours at a time. I've written about them more times then I care to count (check out the long list of name posts here).
I can't explain my obsession, but I do know that others share it, which is comforting. I so appreciate a friend who's willing to discuss name meanings and origins with me, repeatedly, because she's equally as passionate about the subject. I'm a name lover and I know it. What I don't appreciate is those passionate individuals who claim to be name lovers, but are really name haters.
Haters gonna hate...
Name haters love talking about names, but their side of the conversation is about how much they hate most names. The joyful brainstorming session of a name lover is quickly smothered by a laundry list of bad associations and inexplicable distaste from a name hater. Here a few short scripts to better exemplify:
Name Lover: "I'm really into modern names lately, like Mulligan and Gem".
Name Hater: "Seriously?! Yuck. Those aren't even names, they're a golfing reference and the centerpiece of jewelry."
Name Lover: "I'll never stop loving those turn of the century, antique names like Wyatt and Coralie."
Name Hater: "I'll never understand why people like those names. If you're gonna name your son Wyatt, you have to hope that he's good looking kid because teasing will pick on him like crazy."
Name Lover: "I just met a little girl named Vera, I love it. Thoughts?"
Name Hater: "It's not horrible, it's just that I had a really annoying coworker named Vera at my last job. It makes me think of coffee breath and a nasal voice."
There is nothing that will invoke a pleasant reaction from a name hater, except if you reference one of the tiny handful of names that she happens to love. It's a disastrous conversation when the lover and the hater come together on their favorite topic. Well, disastrous for the lover. And yet, a name lover can't easily avoid the conversation because the worst part of name haters is, again, that they think they're name lovers and genuinely love talking about names.
The thing is, name haters aren't always haters across the board. Some of the nicest people I know are name haters. It's weird. I think because it's not necessarily rude to give a blunt opinion on a movie or restaurant, people think the same rules apply to names. But that's not true. Name opinions are personal and much more akin to fashion choices or haircuts. The love of a name speaks to personality and taste.
I love shopping at JCrew (online sales), wearing my hair in a ponytail and classic, but less popular, names. I get a bit peeved when someone disses any of these things. So, if you're suddenly self identifying as a hater - quit it!
Alrighty. It's the 3rd go at Name That Bump. This gorgeous mama hosts a television show and has multiple children by more than one man (oh my). Name that bump!
