Okay…who out there knew Sarah Palin was such a big Van Halen fan and didn’t tell me?

I really don’t want to get caught up in all that is Sarah Palin but I ran across something today that cracked me up and I just had to share.

Now, before I laugh in public about the name someone gave their kid let me say a few things.

1. Smack my hand because I know…you shouldn’t make fun of people’s names.

2. I’ve been saddled with the name Tammy. It’s horrible. I know. It doesn’t help that there are a whole series of movies about “Tammy,” the bayou girl with a thick twang that’s cute and always manages to win the heart of the rich guy who starts out seeing her as a novelty only to fall madly in love with her. That did NOT happen to me, by the way, with the rich guy although there are many similarities to my plain ole' life in those films. And it also doesn’t help that Tammy Faye and Tammy Wynette are the other “famous” Tammy’s either. So I have some experience in being given a horrible name.

3. Regardless, I still have to share this.

So when we were first introduced to Palin we heard Trig, Willow, Bristol, Piper and Track. I admit…I chuckled a bit and thought ‘someone’s Mama watched a little too much ‘Bold and the Beautiful’ back in the day.’ You know ‘Bold and the Beautiful’ the soap opera where Storm, Ridge, Brooke, Thorne and Ambrosia live.

But people do that to their kids these days. Be it a nature oriented name, one with 2 apostrophes in it or one spelled all phonetically like Leeayh for Leah.

Okay. Whatever.

It’s no different than my Mama thinking “Tammy” was a good idea back in the day. She didn’t realize the trend really wouldn’t be so cute 30 years later when her daughter was looking for a job or wishing she had a better answer than “no it’s just Tammy” when people asked what it was ‘short’ for. Bless her heart…she meant well.

All that said, I resisted the initial urge to blog about those names but I couldn’t resist doing a little research today after I received an article about Palin where her youngest kid’s name—his whole name was in there: Trig Paxton Van Palin.

What? Van Palin. I thought…this can’t be real. So I googled it. Which took me to Van Halen’s official website where they said they learned Palin was such a Van Halen fan she paid homage to them in her son’s name. They linked me to a Wired News piece by AP writers that said as much. (For the record, like Heart, Van Halen doesn't want McCain/Palin using their music).

So there it was…all over the internet for all to see: Trig Paxton Van Palin.

You know, there was a time when David and I thought Rhiannon would have been a cool name for a girl. Luckily that was when we had one too many while watching “The Dance” back in 1997. By the time our daughter came along in 2005 we had a sobered a bit and didn’t seriously consider that. Thank the Lord.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I like Van Halen. David and I have had the David Lee Roth/Sammy Hagar argument many times. Not to mention I grew up a heartbeat away from being a gun toting, deer hunting, NASCAR loving gal myself so I have no problem with Palin's lifestyle and I appreciate a person’s right to name their kid whatever the hell they want to. So don’t rip me a new one or say I’m partisan because I’m laughing.

Take from it what you will. I just laughed so hard I about choked on my diet coke. I’ve picked up the local birth announcements and saw where someone named their daughter “Harley Davidson Smith.” It’s Spartanburg and I laughed then too. But, this is the ‘could be’ president of the United States of America and she named her kid after Van Halen and that is a damn hoot and hell…while there are some that will be all 'what the #%$*'? there will be some that will vote for her just for that.

But, hey I guess you might as well Jump because it’s looking more and more like that is exactly what the GOP has done.

At least she didn't name him Eddie Van Palin. God only knows what that would have done for 'em.

:) t