" TAH !!!! "

My Grandsons name is Christopher Riley Fisher--I haven't seen anyone call him that yet. His Mom called me on day two of his arrival (almost two years ago) and said she was going to call him "Poot" because that's what he had been doing since his arrival. Of course that as all I needed to hear, and he has been Poot or some variation thereof ever since.

It was Poot, then Pootie, then his Pootiness, then Pootie Bunk, then Bunk (pronounced Buuuunnnnnkkk), followed by Pootipottamus, and as of now, POOTIPOTTAMUS BUNKUS REX--(This name is not only his scientific Latin name, but his Indian name not to mention his AKO registered name) --In true southern fashion this could be reduced to "PBR"--but for now I will stop just short of that since he is not legally old enough to drink (he does know what "Yuengling" is and it may very well be his first words ever read)--seriously.

Himself is my buddy. He is the only living creature that runs to the door when I come home from work, actually glad to see me. My own three used to do that, and they eventually stopped. For a while the three dogs did that, but since they love to go to the bathroom indoors they couldn't care less who comes in the front door.

But the Pootster comes running and I always pick him up and get that wonderful hug that only a little one can give.

He has a name for me, too, and HE gave it to me. At first, there was a serious dilemma about what I, the "middle aged not old enough to be a grandfather yet but here it comes so grab your ass and hold on" was to be called--No way was I a Grandpa, Grandaddy, Daddy George, a Paw Paw, a Poo Paw, a Me Maw, or anything like that--it just ain't my style, and after all, I do have a little vanity. So what we kind of worked out was "Pops"--I wasn't too crazy about it but in the scheme of things and the other names I just mentioned, it was the lesser of evils. I had thought he may address me as "LT. Colonel Fisher" but that's a bit formal, and like I said, the little booger has got me by the short hairs now. What has happened, over the course of almost two years, hundreds of episodes of Sponge Bob, baseball games, wrestling with dogs, throwing food across the room, and running buck naked thru the house, is that HE HIMSELF now calls me "TAH"--The POPS came out only like "Puhhh", but TAH comes out just like it is spelled--"TAH".

TAH is my Indian name as well as the Pootipottamus' battle cry. Tah is Cherokee Indian which roughly translates into "Him big chief what is in charge if Grandsquaw Sue say so"--(see photo of Pootipottamus in native garb and ceremonial headdress above).

I have a name now. I didn't have to get it from any other person except who by birthright should give it to me.

The Pootipottamus Bunkus rex.