Thursday, 19 July 2007

. . . by any other name . . .

I've never considered my name particularly unusual but I've recently realised that, actually, it is. There are not many Juliet Doyles around, as a Google search will reveal. I find this quite surprising. There seem to be even fewer Juliet Holmeses, which is what I used to be. (For a while I was both, but it became a bit complicated.) Which leads me to wonder - should prospective parents be urged to Google selected names before deciding what to call their newborn infant? We have been told that names can affect life-chances in terms of education and career. Perhaps we should all be checking that our kids come top on a Google search too! My elder daughter's name is ubiquitous in this regard (sorry!), but my son and younger daughter have (thankfully?) few rivals, as yet. Will this matter to them? Will they thank me for the ease with which the world can find them, or is it better to be able to hide away in cyberspace undetected. I guess it depends on whether they will, in years to come, have something to say or something to sell.

The school holidays are upon me. Every time I pick up the telephone a green light flashes in two young heads and the message 'Make Noise! Now! Maximum Volume!' is instantly obeyed. The kitchen floor is covered with blobs of suncream. The patio is littered with plastic soldiers and tanks and chinooks. The bath is filled with naked Barbies (and one or two lucky naked Action Men for good measure). I can't find the paddling pool. I think I'm going to have to buy another one smartish.

Oh, I still haven't taken a photo of that piece of twisted seaglass, have I ? I will.

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