Friday, December 07, 2007

The Importance of Being Jr.


Junior. Are you one of us? I'm not talking about a specific year in college or high school. I'm talking about the untold masses of people "BLESSED" with the name of one of their parents. Although it seems for the most part to be a males only club, I bet there are a few of you ladies too who were labeled with mom's name, (and maybe even dad's). You females named "Francine" because your dad was "FRANK" or "Willamena" because your pop was "WILLIAM", don't count. You still got your own name.

I suppose if my parents had been well-to-do, I might have gotten a better title. "The Second" is far more regal sounding. "Junior" on the other hand has a diminutive vibe, which sucks. Or so I thought...

Sammy Davis Jr. once said "The ultimate mystery is one's own self." High words from a guy with the same name as his father. I have never been upset to be a junior, but it is always there. I remember the standard phone call at my house went like this:

"Hello?.... (long pause) .... Senior or Junior?"

It's not a huge big deal, or at least that's what I used to think. My name is Gary Peters. That's my dad's name too. That's also the name of a Major League Baseball pitcher. That's also the name of a Michigan State Senator. There's a bunch of us lost on Google.

But, the other day I Googled my self and included the Jr. There I was! Finally! It's not so bad being a junior. Sometimes the things you think make you the same as other people are REALLY the things that make you stand out.

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5 Comments:

Blogger Julia said...

My dad wasn't a Junior but had the same first name as his dad. So conversations often included "Little John" and "Big John," or "Johnny." My dad's least favorite was "Little Johnny." True to his nature, he snapped one day at whatever relative decided to call him this, saying, "I'm an adult now. Call me John."

12:21 PM  
Blogger Jaime said...

thanks for your comment on my blog! :)

1:21 PM  
Blogger princess slea said...

junior...j.r.....jar....pickles....stork.

without the junior....there would be no stork.

6:16 PM  
Blogger stinkypaw said...

Hubby has the same first name as his dad (but not Junior), plus he has a middle name that he uses all the time, and when people don't (for official doc. etc) he tells them that the one without the "Ed" is his dad. They often refer to his dad as senior

11:16 PM  
Blogger TM said...

When I moved to the area, I knew who you were first. It's only recently I've met your dad and he's the first Senior I've met who intro's himself as "senior." Must be due to your notoriety.

7:25 AM  

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