Hip baby boomers shun `granny' names

Houston Chronicle ^ | 3/20/04 | ELLEN WARREN

[qam1]

Hearing, "You don't look old enough to be a grandparent," is a little like being a good-looking corpse. Not the greatest compliment.

Baby boomers entering the grandparent years are launching a small semantic revolution to avoid the traditional label of senior citizen status. These youth cult boomers are demanding that their grandkids call them names with a younger sound than the traditional "grandma" and "grandpa."

"Baby boomers don't want to adhere to the blue-haired old granny stereotype. They are choosing young-sounding names for themselves because generally they don't think of themselves as grandparent age," says Norah Burch, 30, a self-described "name nerd" who has been tracking options for the new slew of first-time grandparents on her Web site, www.namenerds.com.

Burch's own mother decided that her grandchildren would call her "Moogie," the term for "mother" from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

"I don't have any problem, even for one second, being a grandmother. For me it's just the name," explained Laura Burch, who became a grandmother, at age 51, to Mikala, who is now 9 (followed by Jacob, 5, and Ari, 2).

Norah Burch says her mom, a potter who lives in Ithaca, N.Y., chose the unconventional name "because she associated `grandma' and `granny' et al with bingo playing and driving a giant Oldsmobile."

"My mom and her whole circle of friends, when they started having grandkids in their 50s, the thought of being called `grandma' was pretty awful to them. They weren't gray-haired old ladies sitting around in rocking chairs baking cookies."

One correspondent on namenerds.com writes, "My mom is your typical white middle-class suburban Southern Baptist Bible-thumpin' Dubya-suppportin' Texan. She has big, puffy, shellacked blond hair and wears T-shirts with three-dimensional objects hanging off them. She believes in Jesus Christ, the Republican Party, craft fairs and spiral perms. She has rebelled against Grandma because it sounds `old' and she's only 41."

She wants her grandkids to call her "Peaches." "She's even thinking of having a peach tattooed on her toe."

[cupcakes]

Don't blame you 2Cents. I think you understand too that when us xers start ranting it is about a certain, seemingly large portion of boomers that fit this bill. I wish to God that my parents behaved normally and I could sit here and retort threads like these. Unfortunately, all to many times they and their circle of friends fit every thread that comes along on boomers. Much to my dismay, believe me, I'd rather my parents behaved and at least enjoyed being grandparents.

[CalKat]

What makes you think these grandmothers don't make cookies for their grandchildren, or rock them to sleep? And how are they turning up their noses at women like your grandmother? By wanting to be called something besides "Grandma"?

[mathluv]

My daughter and I talked about what I wanted to be called when she was expecting her first child. When he was about a year old, he came up with what HE wanted to call me.

[wtc911]

You will notice a core of boomer bashers. They do little but whine about how hard their life is going to be because of us. (although we are supposed to be the whiners)

You will also notice that it is usually not long before one or more of them start talking about killing us all off (post 53 is a form of that sentiment).

Many of these threads devolve into individual therapy sessions wherein the poster bitches about how lazy, selfish, self-involved, un-nurturing his or her own parents were, and then proceeds to extrapolate their misfortune of birth to any one who reminds him or her of the evil mommy or daddy.

It's all pretty sad, especially when I look at how my own grown kids lead their lives.

[cupcakes]

LOL--my 6 yr old was just tickled when a friend of hers said that is what she called "them". She is used to our non-cutsie term and just thought it was something else.

[truthkeeper]

I'm another one who became a grandmother at 41. Mine calls me Gramma and I wouldn't have it any other way.

[jwalsh07]

I had my first grandaughter when I was 48. Now I have five grandkids all under 5 years of age and the sound of Grandpa truly lights up my life.

[radiohead]

but I don't know any baby boomers who have ever insisted on being called Mr. or Mrs. (or even Ms.)

I do. When I first started my doctoral program, I was a TA. It is common here for TAs and profs to be called by their first name. Well, no 18 year old kid was gonna call me by my first name. They were instructed to call me Mrs. Radiohead and I would do the same w/ any class of undergrads. With grad students it's a little different.

I also instruct too-friendly sales people who want to call you by your first name, that my name is Mrs. Radiohead.

I am quite friendly with some of my son's friends. There is no way on God's green earth that they would just call me radiohead.

But then, I was raised by a mother whose constant refrain was, "I am neither your friend nor your peer." I guess it took. : )

[BSunday]

Burch's own mother decided that her grandchildren would call her "Moogie," the term for "mother" from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

I shall call her ... "Dorkie"

[kittymyrib]

I'm older than you boomers, but I must say, your generation is looking more and more ridiculous. Last night CNN had a disgusting special on about plastic surgery and boomers that I surfed through. This pathetic CA couple in their late 50s had pulled their faces up so much that their eyes looked ridiculous, just like Nancy Pelousy. Obviously, they see something different in their mirrors than the rest of us see when looking at them. The sooner the Boomers leave this mortal coil, the better our society will be. No wonder their children want nothing to do with these ego maniacs who have always put themselves first.

[MaryFromMichigan]

Just went to your page.
Mr. Tooters (hah!) and I have 3 boys and a girl, too.
Our older kids are about the same age as yours except our youngest just turned 12.

On a far more sombre note, being an "old timer" here yourself, I don't know if you caught the news of Harpseal having passed on. Laz has a post.

[.38sw]

Baby Boomers should just be put in mass graves

Whoo! Thanks, but I'm not ready for any grave just yet. And, as was pointed out, no generation is monolithic in behavior. Some of us were actually properly raised. And, had I had children, I wouldn't have minded any of their offspring calling me "Grandma". I'm not all that vain.

Although I'm a baby boomer, I'm really appalled at the behavior of the people in this article. It's part of that "never wanting to grow up" crap. There seems to be some notion that if you "grow up", you can't have fun any more. Well, I'm here to tell you that that simply isn't true. I consider myself "grown up" and mature, but I still know how to have tons o' fun. I just don't have fun stupidly like I did when I was, oh, say 20.

[cupcakes]

mY parents worked and raised a family in the 70's too. It did not change the fact that they morphed into some pretty self-centered people as they aged. I thought maybe they changed over the years, but looking back I realize the propensity and behavior was always there. It is me who has gained the wisdom to see it more clearly that has changed.

[FourPeas]

Oooh, I like that. May I borrow it?

[kb2614]

GROW UP bump!!!!!!!!!!1

[kb2614]

GROW UP bump!!!!!!!!!!

[cupcakes]

Amen. I remember my Nana would sew me dresses and dolls when I was younger and I could always count on her to tell me what was proper even if I didn't like it.
My other grandmother was a hell of a cook and relished the fact that she had this grandchild and that.

[dirtboy]

Baby boomers entering the grandparent years are launching a small semantic revolution to avoid the traditional label of senior citizen status. These youth cult boomers are demanding that their grandkids call them names with a younger sound than the traditional "grandma" and "grandpa."

"Dipweed" works for me.

[cupcakes]

Many of my hubby's relatives, native to West Virginia, still use that.

[Blood of Tyrants]

I saw it. Harpseal was posting on Thursday and then died Friday. Very sad indeed.