Choosing a Nickname BEFORE Hiking the Appalachian Trail
Posted By drsao on November 3, 2015
After reading about the importance of having a GOOD NICKNAME (from a link posted by an experienced hiker) I decided that choosing my OWN nickname prior to the hike might – JUST MIGHT be a good idea.
http://matadornetwork.com/sports/11-things-wish-knew-hiking-appalachian-trail/1. Mistakes make great trail names.
“A popular tradition of Appalachian Trail culture is to give thoughtful nicknames to your co-hikers, such as MonkeyButt, Golden Shower, or DangerPants. If you point your headlamp down while you pee in the dark, you’ll be called Flash; if you dig up someone else’s cat-hole while making your own, you’ll be called Divining Rod.
These trail names are what you go by in lieu of your real name — so don’t do something dumb early on, or it’ll follow you for 2,000 miles.”
NICKNAMES THAT I HAVE ACQUIRED THROUGHOUT MY LIFE THUS FAR
After thinking back over a lifetime of nicknames that have been given to me, I reasoned that establishing my OWN trail nickname would be imperative for my self-esteem and well-being. I will share two or three of my former nicknames, so that you get the gist of WHY I need a new nickname and why I am reluctant to have other hikers choose a name for me based on my behaviors.
- BUTCHIE (given to me by my grandfather because I was born without hair and bows had to be taped to my head)
- KLUTZ (short) for my nickname of Klutzy – given to me by my Delta Delta Delta Sorority sisters – probably because I got my foot stuck in the coils of the box springs on my bed while trying to get my fitted sheets on! Ok, so yes, I did live in the olden days when box springs under one’s mattress had visible coils.)
- CRAZY SHIRLEY (given to me by my husband – at the time – who was a radio announcer.) Crazy Shirley was my ON-AIR nickname and I am sure that the nickname made the listeners in Wichita, Kansas enjoy my antics with greater enthusiasm than if I would have had just a normal name!
NAMES THAT I MIGHT ADOPT FOR MY TRAIL NICKNAME
OK – so forget the former nicknames – on with new and better ideas! Here are two or three of my attempts to brainstorm myself into finding a good name. (I think that I must have a bit of a competitive nature because when my HIKING BUDDY, Michelle Martin, mentioned last night that she liked the name ZOE for herself – I felt COMPELLED to come up with my name ASAP!!!!) The pressure was on too, because ZOE is such a great name!
Here are two or three of my BEST brainstormed hiker names
- My first brain flash produced the nickname BAMBI (I liked Bambi because the first movie that I ever saw in a theater was “Bambi.”) I was certain that we would be seeing deer on the trail (and Bambi’s friends included skunks) so I thought that having a deer name that had personal relevance to me would be fun. BUT ALAS, in my opinion, it really didn’t go well with Zoe. I couldn’t see myself posting about “The Adventures of Zoe and Bambi on the AT.” To tell you the truth, if someone didn’t know my history with the “Bambi” movie and the relevance of being with deer and skunks on the hiking trail, Bambi does remind me, and therefore might remind others, a bit of a name that might be assigned to a stripper. I apologize profusely if I have any friends who are currently named Bambi.
The Disney Movie
- PINKIE (I REALLY liked the nickmane of Pinkie a lot because that was the name of my Grandmother Reiter’s horse.) Grandma Reiter was my role-model for successful aging. She died of cancer – but prior to that she NEVER got old. She continued to hike, jump fences – remind me to tell you THAT STORY about what happened after I took her to the Playboy Club in Denver – and square dance EVERY Saturday night. She was funny, rugged, and I always said that I wanted to grow up to be exactly like her! She was the inspiration for me to get my PhD in the field of Cognitive Aging and all my research on Successful Aging was inspired by Grandma Reiter. Thus, Pinkie – her horses name, seemed like a good trail nickname for me – to denote love, family ties, and successful aging! I don’t know why I appear to be so obsessed with strippers’ names – but PINKIE seemed to be a name that might be categorized in the same class as BAMBI. (BTW, I have never met a stripper – that I know of.) I honestly didn’t really like the sound of “The Adventures of Pinkie and Zoe on the AT” either! Shown below is a photo of a horse that REMINDS me of Pinkie (I don’t have any photos of the real Pinkie.)
Grandma Reiter’s Look-Alike Horse
- SCARLETT was the third nickname that popped into my working memory! I have always related to the “Gone with the Wind” character, Scarlette O-Hara! I loved her courage – and spirit – and bravery. That seemed to be TOTALLY appropriate for a hiking trail nickname and I could see myself posting about “The Adventures of Scarlette and Zoe on the AT!” If something a little bit challenging happened on the Trail, I could reassure my hiking buddy, Michelle Martin, that “Tomorrow is another day!” Or if she pointed out some realistic obstacle, I could say, “I will think about that tomorrow!” But then, I got to thinking, what if something DREADFUL and UNEXPECTED and IMPROBABLE occurred (like if we happened to connect with a bear that wasn’t afraid of the sound of the BIG YELLOW WHISTLE that I plan to buy.) I didn’t want to be remembered, by my grandangels, as Grandma Shirley, A.K.A. Scarlett, the hiker who was GONE WITH THE WIND. (Actually it might have been pretty funny – but I don’t plan to let any bears win.)
Gone with the Wind
- My son-in-law, Greg, suggested we adopt the dwarf names of DOC and HAPPY. I rejected this nickname right away because while his mouth produced the names of DOC and HAPPY, I knew that deep down inside his psyche his nickname for me would have been DOPEY, instead of HAPPY!!
MY TRAIL NAME SHALL BE SNOW WHITE
And just like a falling star that fell and zoomed across the sky before my very eyes, while I was saying good night to Grandangel Sarah, I thought of the name SNOW WHITE. My daughter recently said that living with me was like living with SNOW WHITE because of my cheerful nature (Yes, I admit that I am cheerful in the mornings – before coffee or anything!) My daughter claims that I sing greetings like SNOW WHITE, “Good morning…..tra la la. Smile……welcome to your day…..tra la la.”) Sarah said that it was a good name! I trust my grandangels!
Then I searched for any special meanings that might be linked to the name of SNOW WHITE. You might remember that in the beginning of the story that Snow White’s mother pricks her finger with a sewing needle and three drops of her blood fell on the snow piled on her black windowsill. This made her hope for a daughter associated with the colors of red (blood) – white (snow) – and black (windowsill.) This is really great because I love red and black….in fact they are my favorite colors. The fairy tale, Snow White, is built around the colors (white) innocence, (red) maturity and love, and (black) death The story of SNOW WHITE reflects the metaphor of a deep sleep interrupted by the coming of spring. A difficult time of slumber was transformed into a positive outcome for Snow White, all because of a loving gesture! Transformation on the trail, for me – I like that!
So, my heart is happy and I shall be known as SNOW WHITE – my successful hiking adventure will reflect the renewal of a new ME. And I shall wear red and black on the trail!
I believe that my hiking partner is keeping her nickname of ZOE! I love it. Zoe means ALIVE and DIFFERENT (Japanese)! Michelle is hoping to get out of this adventure alive and I am hoping to become transformed into a new and athletically awakened ME.
SO – stay tuned for “The Adventures of Snow White and Zoe on the Appalachian Trail!”
