Big Bertha? Black Bart? Nutting? Dinner Getter? Freedom?
Let’s see … well, I don’t want to remember that place; while I love A Christmas Story, I wish not to jinx myself; oh, she’s definitely something but will never be used for hunting or defending myself, unless, I guess, zombies are really real.
A number of Facebook members chimed in upon my request for their suggestions soon after I was honored by our children with an early Father’s Day gift. It was acquired from Cabela’s a month early only because of a great package deal offered online. It is a Ruger 10-22 rimfire rifle with a Viridian Scope and a 10-roud scope, and it even came with a hard case.
Quite the deal.
Once I posted a photo of her yesterday, many folks adopted the “black” theme with suggestions such as Black Betty, Black Velvet, Black Widow, and even Ebony. Many, though, obviously noticed my “she” reference in the post and offered more terrific ideas. There were Delliah, Lucille, Ol’ Betsy, Tilly, Large Marge, Maude, and Daisy.
But it was this suggestion that finally guided me to the name: “Gertrude.” It’s an older female first name not many hear any longer, and it reminded me of two others, Agnes and Veronica.
What It Means
Agnes was my Grandma Novotney, an immigrant from western Europe who raised my father and his brother all by herself after her husband passed away when my dad was just 3 years old. Despite those challenges, she prospered on American soil as an entrepreneur on the North Side of Pittsburgh. She lived into her early 90s, passed away in October 1995, and was my best friend with whom I lived during several summers and even after college.
Veronica was my wife’s mother and our children’s grandmother. She worked for the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston for nearly three decades before she suddenly passed away in March 2011 at the age of 73. “Gram” was the matriarch of the Eikey family with nine children, and she help raise our kids, and every one of her grandchildren while living on Wheeling Island. She was my friend while making me tow the line so she could be certain Amanda and Michael were always offered the best opportunities.
So “Agnes Veronica” it is so I will have yet another reason to recall those two wonderful ladies who had an enormous impact on our lives.
