I Do Not Think It Means What You Think It Means

For over 10 years, I insulted one of our cats every day, and never even realized it. Her name was Dummy. And no, it never occurred to me that I was calling her dumb. That was just her name.

That was not what her name was to start though.

Before I was born, my parents lived in southern California. And before they had kids, they got pets. A GSD puppy who was named Beelzebub, and a beautiful Persian gray, part Siamese kitten named Alexandria the Great.

The thing was, it was southern California, and earthquakes were not uncommon. When a tremor would start, it would usually cause the little kitten to slide off of whatever piece of furniture she was on. Undeterred by this unexpected event, up she would jump back up, and fall right back off.

Her name became Alexandria the Dumb, and by the time I was born, she was simply Dummy.