Hi, My Name Is: (insert name here) by Bryan
name my newest pet and win BIG! prizes and fame included!
Sunday, my friend Jen, ’08 – Course 14, and I went out pet shopping. We went to PetCo by the CambridgeSide Galleria. (The Galleria is the closest mall to campus; a free shuttle leaves from Kendall square about every 20 minutes).
Sunday was pretty hot and the shuttle’s AC was broken, so before PetCo we stopped in at Borders for smoothies. They had Magic Berry Smoothies and Lightning Bolt-shaped Rice Krispy treats (I wonder what they were getting ready for)
Now I’ve had pets in the past, but this would be the first pet that if it died overnight, my mom wouldn’t be able to replace it overnight.
Back at home, we have a Rottweiler-German Shepard mix, Toby. My younger brother got it for his birthday a few years ago and my brother loves the dog. Me, not so much.
Before Toby, there was Daisy, the beagle that should have been a bird. This dog was way too free-spirited. Daisy is now living the life out on a farm where she can roam free for hours upon hours.
When I lived in Florida, this pet was technically not mine or any of my family’s but since we did live next door and this dog was capable of leaping tall buildings like Superman or just her neighbor’s fence, we considered her partially ours as well.
They went on to make 4 movies in total (I stopped after watching #2)
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, that is Beethoven’s wife. She lived right next door. Life goal #532: Live next door to a celebrity accomplished.
Now, to my first pets ever, my fish. When I was younger, my mom used to keep a fish tank for me with all these really cool fish, and there was this one bottom-feeder who I named Banjo, he was bright orange (just like my links). One sad night in November, the fish all died and my mom had to get rid of them before I woke up and saw them.
(Now the rest of this story I wasn’t actually told until I was older and could understand.)
When my mom was flushing the fish down the loo, most of the fish just floated down the drain, except as my mom watched the whirlpool, one fish, a brave fish, struggled to flap his tail valiantly and escape the vortex, except this fish couldn’t fight the tides, and he was soon gone. Ladies and Gentlemen, it was BANJO; he had the spirit of The Little Engine That Could “I think I can, I think I can.” Ever since Banjo, I’ve never really been attached to a pet, but it was time to face the facts; it was time for a companion since the two pet cacti (Punch & Poke) I’m babysitting over the summer just aren’t cutting it.
Poke and Punch. They’re really exciting, I promise.
So I decided I wanted a pet fish, ergo my trip to PetCo. I don’t actually know if I can have any other types of pets at ZBT, but given my luck with pets, I decided to start off slow. All of the dorms allow fish while East Campus, Bexley, Random Hall, and Senior House also allow cats on some halls. After my photo-journalist desires were extinguished by the woman who told me I couldn’t take any more pictures, I got to business, and after discovering how hard it is just to take care of goldfish, I ended up getting a Beta Fish.
Pictures I managed to snap anyway:
BE A PART OF HISTORY AND GIVE MY FISH A NAME IN THE FIRST ANNUAL “I NEED A NAME SO GIVE ME ONE CONTEST”
Here’s a picture of my unnamed pet to inspire your creativity.
Here’s a few rules and recommendations.
1. No movie names (ie Nemo, Flounder, Flipper) Be original folks.
2. Foreign names are welcome but if a translation is possible please submit them as well.
3. Submit as many names as you want by either commenting or emailing me at [email protected]
4. I will select the finalists on Sunday July 17 and blog readers will vote on the best name.
5. The winner will get a prize. I’ll think of something creative. Don’t worry.
Fish are probably the easiest pets after cacti of course, and for all you folks interested in Course 15, you should try the Fish Sticks too.
MR. CHANG
there is nothing better than forcing everyone to refer to your pet as mr.
Fish,
Blue,
FishyMcFish,
or,
Slut-Face.
When you link to the Course 14 site in the beginning, I get distracted by the amazingness that is MIT economics and forget to read the rest of your entry.
Red Fish.
Well when naming anything first one must observe the specimen in order to come up with the appropriate name.
If the fish is serene, playful, and nice:
-WANDA, Betsy, Tom,
If the fish is violent/strong:
-Fish-a-nator (Arnold inspired of course)
If the fish is original and seeming to have its own voice per say then:
-Arielle (Sorry. I was trying to avoid references to pop culture.)
If the fish is athletic:
-Mia, Kobe, Lisa, Serena, Venus…etc
If the fish is just an interesting type:
-Uncle Earl
If the fish that despite being sluggish continues to try and try (type of fish that might be picked last in a game of fish dodge ball even though it should be picked first and saved from such a horrible fate) then: Rudy
If the fish is particularly mysterious then: –Jasmine
Ugh. My train of thought has ended. Well
When I saw that your fish was a “beta”, for some reason the first name that popped into my head was “Zeta”. As in your fraternity. Zeta Beta Tau. Yes, I am an idiot, or just weird.
You could borrow an idea from 5th East and name it after a philosopher. We have a cat named Nietzsche (picutred in my blog). You could name your fish Sartre, or Kierkegaard, or Voltaire, or…you know what? I’m just going to stop now.
One more possibility – betas are also called Siamese Fighting FIsh, so you could name it Mongkut, after the king of Siam in “The King and I”.
much like the rest of your entries — I too–have an explanation for my entries:
Alpha because it comes before BETA
“The Beaver” in honor of your school mascot another rendition thereof, “THE BEAV”
s-MIT-ten, because it’s not a kitten.
MIT-e
Just some random ideas, and as always — keep up the phenomenal work.
– MOM
Hey I love the fact that you included the family stories about our pets, good, bad or indifferent!
NOOOO! Yonas stole one of my ideas. I’ll have to settle for the better one then.
Call your fish Noname.
It sounds threatening…like he’s an outlaw or something.
All of the ‘pretty’ betas sold in pet stores are males. Yours is a male. You’ve got to give it a masculine name. I really like:
Beck
Sanford
Harvey
Jan (Yawn)
Vino
Don Pablo
I left a succulent cactus plant thingy at ZBT in L-shape during CPW. Could you see if it’s still in there and take care of it for me if it is? Thanks senor.
-Jake
FABIO
-Jake
Groker. No questions asked.
blue streak
jaws
blue willy
flipper
slytherin
concorde (look at its fins!)
F16
Bryan’s fish OR Branfish
hydrophobic..lol
Linda
(guess the reference.
hint: it’s from a book.)
or
White Dragon!
Looking back at my previous response filled with suggestions I realized that I left out the one that first popped into my head….Hi my name is..Slim Shady.
Remember son, when you are able, try to lead an eleemosynary life. It’s what IT is all about!
Gelatin.
Matsya – That’s the Sanskrit name for fish.That’s also one of the eight forms that god Vishnu has appeared in according to Hindu mythology.It’s the first form infact.Symbol of biginning of life on earth in sea.