What's in a NAME?

I read somewhere that parents spend more time thinking of a name for their child then choosing the kind of Child car Seat, or Crib they want for the baby.

No Shit.

We found out Erin was pregnant in October, and shortly after we found out the little guy has a Penis. I saw the thing myself on the sonogram, at least I hope that's what I saw, I guess it could've been a snail shell with a worm sticking out between his legs, but that's highly unlikely.

So that night we spent about 15 minutes coming up with the name Seth. I've always liked the name Seth, I remember reading in school that Seth was the third son of Adam and Eve. He was the good son, he had nothing to do with that whole murder deal between his brothers.The name is a hebrew name which means appointed one. I assume he was appointed by God to populate the whole friggin world, which means he had to sleep with his sister, right? Anyways, that's a different subject that doesn't need to be explored right now.

So for a month the name was Seth, baby Seth, or Fetus Seth wherever you fall in the whole debate, I don't want to offend anyone. Anyways, shortly after, Erin and I started hearing whispers like:

Don't you want to take more time to figure out the name?

Shouldn't we consult our friends and family?

Don't you want to think about other options just in case?

In case of what? In case he's a hermaphrodite, and he needs a more feminine name to offset his masculinity? Erin suggested we should buy a baby name book.....just in case. I said no. We don't need a book to figure out our growing baby, er, fetus, name. I could use that money to buy a Dvd or a pair of socks or something. Believe me, right now with our financial situation, a pair of socks is a luxury.

Then my friend complained that the name was too plain. Imagine that?

My friend JAGO thought the name Seth was too boring.

He kept saying Seth sounded too much like Sloth...like he was a creature that would move REAAAL Slow. Seth the Sloth, he'd say.

I said if we were going to give him a unique name, we should make his middle name unique. I suggested Qui-Gon, like the character in Star Wars. Seth Qui-Gon Manukay, or Yoda,

What about Seth Yoda Manukay?

Erin looked at me like I was insane.

I don't know why....who the hell wouldn't want to be named after a Jedi Master?

The guys at work said don't pull a Nicholas Cage, who named his Son Kal-El which was Superman's Krypton name. I told Erin, she liked the name Kal-el, said we can call him Kal. Apparently that's an important thing, a nick name to go with the name.

Kal-El Manukay?

That's a lot to live up to. Super-friggin-man.

Anyways, apparently, Erin wanted to give the little thing her family name as his middle name. Which was Danielson.....yes, Erin knows, in High School they always teased her by calling her Daniel-san like in the Karate kid.

Seth Danielson Manukay.

Then something happened. A small strange nebbish man came into my job named Seth. I looked at him, and quietly asked myself

Is that what a Seth looks like?

Are there any athletes named Seth?

Is Seth a nebbish name?

Is that a book worm name?

I don't know any Seths maybe it's not a good idea to name him Seth?

I came home proclaiming his new name was Marlon.

Like the Fish? Erin asked.

I looked at Erin.

No, like Brando.

I realized that this was going to be more complicated than I thought.

The next couple of weeks was a nightmare. Every night we'd go over names. At work I'd looked at the names of the characters, and actors on the Dvds I was surrounded by.

Leonardo, Rocky, Vincent, Josh, Angelo, Christian, Modigiliani, Bogart......Bogart Manukay What about Brando Manukay?

Nothing was off limits. I tried everything. I even tried athletes but everything sounded odd.

Vlad, Shaq, Magic,Troy, Jarrod......Kobe...God no...

Then we finally came up with Quentin......yes I know....Quentin Tarrentino. But we liked the name......we could shorten it and call it Quint.

I told people it was down to two names:

Quentin or Seth ?

I had remembered that there was a Pitcher for the Angels named Seth Etherton, he was athletic and strong looking, so the name wasn't just for small nebbish men. Seth was a good name.

But once we admited we had reservations about the name Seth. Everybody...I mean EVERYBODY started to voice their concerns. Erin's Dad informed us that the main character on the O.C. was named Seth. We've never seen an episode. People admitted that it wasn't there first choice either. They said it was too plain.

Then my friend Ron admited to me that he didn't like the name Seth, he said Seth reminded him of the guy you got to fix your computer, and the guy screws it up, and makes it worse.

He also shared with me that he once knew a guy named Seth, apparently the guy's car broke down on his way to a Van Halen Concert, it was plowed into by a drunk driver killing him as well as his wife and kids.

Nice.

Quentin Danielson Manukay......little Quint.

I looked up the name Quentin, and apparently it means "the fifth" as in the fifth son.

Which means...... jack shit to me.

Everyone also kept thinking that we were huuuuge fans of Quentin Tarrentino.

Wesley, Cameron, Russell, Garrett, Truck, Rock, The Rock.....I know.....

What about David?......That way when I call him, and the dog I can say David!!! Mamet!!! Come here!!!

Erin was not amused.

Rod, Jason, Ryan, Quinlan, I liked the name Gabriel...

But my friend Norman has a new born son named Gabriel.

It was a nightmare....I hated thinking of names. I was ready just to name him Ray Jr.

It was too hard...... basically, we were looking for a unique name, that we could shorten, that had a cool meaning, and if possible.... tied in with the family. In short we needed a miracle.

Last night a miracle happened.......

Brayden

I don't know anyone named Brayden. Anyone. For some reason it sounded so familiar though. The meaning of the name was of celtic origin and meant Brave ....interesting. You can shorten it and call him Brady or Bray...... cool. And if you also notice, my name is within that name:

B-RAY-den.

Brayden Danielson Manukay

But why did it sound familiar? Brayden....Brayden......Brayden?

Then I realized it sounded similar to another name.......Hayden.....as in Hayden Christianson....who played Anakin Skywalker.......the Jedi Knight.

Thank you God.

So for now we're going with Brayden......Brayden Manukay.

I guess.