How to React to an Obvious Falsehood
Added 2025-07-21 07:00:02 +0000 UTCA lot of people will tell you that Big Ben is the name of the clock, not the tower. A real pedant will explain that Big Ben is the name of the largest of the bells that are housed in the tower, presumably while pushing up their glasses and smiling in an aggravating manner.
My position is that if you show a picture of “Elizabeth Tower” to 1,000 random people and ask them what it is, 999 of them will say Big Ben, so that’s its name.
I had a friend in elementary school.
Shocking, I know.
I’m going to use fictionalized names here, because my point is not about his folly in particular, but human behavior in general. Anyway, this kid was introduced to me by a nickname. Let’s say “Ziggy.” From the first day of kindergarten through the last week of the sixth grade, he was Ziggy. Then, he announced that we would be moving on to junior high school and that he’d like to be known by his given name, “Ron.”
I’m still in contact with him to this day. Everybody (including himself) calls him Ziggy.
Comments
I have a cousin, only about two months older than me, also named Scott Meyer. Whenever our immediate families got together, I was grateful that his parents already called him Scotty.
Scott Meyer
2025-07-25 14:12:47 +0000 UTCWhen I was very young, I was called Scottie. When first grade started, I had moved to a new school, and there was another kid in my class who was called Scotty. Well, I didn't like that very much, so I decided to I wanted to be called my birth name. So I announced to my parents that I was no longer Scottie, and they should call me Scott from then on. Not too long after that, my mother had lunch ready, and called to me from the next room "Scottie!" No response. Tried again "Scottie!" Still no response. She knew for certain where I was, so didn't understand why I didn't answer. Then she remembered my announcement and called "Scott!" "What?" immediately came out of my mouth, and she realized yes, this kid is serious about this. She and I discussed this interaction decades later and laughed about it; we both had vivid memory of it.
Trigon Manthree
2025-07-25 11:54:04 +0000 UTCSunny it is, then!
Scott Meyer
2025-07-21 14:57:59 +0000 UTCI wish!!! There are still people who insist on calling me by the name on my birth certificate. My dearest friends have given me another nickname: Sunny. I love it.
Sunshine Anderson
2025-07-21 14:48:25 +0000 UTC
