It is one of the (many) quirks of my personality that I usually have a Song of the Day. So as my wife and I were waking up on one recent way-too-cold spring day here in Hoosierland, I had a question for her: “Would you change your name to Yvonne?”
She didn’t miss a beat. “If I was going to change my name to anything, it would be Alma,” she said.
“Good luck with that,” I replied.
We’ve got a lot to unpack here.
The Song of the Day, most of you probably know by now, was “Jambalaya,” which was written by Hank Williams in the middle of the last century. Why was it my SotD? I have no idea. These things are as random as lottery numbers. Something will pop into my mind and my day suddenly has a sound track.
The lyrics of the song include this line: “My Yvonne the sweetest one, me oh my oh.” So now, if you’re at all familiar with the song, that line will be stuck in your head for the rest of this day. They call it an “earworm.” You’re welcome.
(By the way, “Jambalaya” has been covered by many, many artists. Apparently, anyone who has ever spent more than five minutes in a recording studio has sung about poling a pirogue down the bayou. I’m assuming most of them didn’t even know what a “pirogue” was.)
I like the song because, well, I just do. As they used to tell Dick Clark on “American Bandstand,” it’s got a nice beat and it’s easy to dance to. It’s just a fun song, and sometimes that’s enough.
I will never attempt to eat the dish that gave the song its title, however. The short course is that it’s meat and vegetables mixed up with rice. A little further examination, however, reveals the traditional recipes include seasoned sausage and the “holy trinity” of Cajun cooking — onions, celery, and green bell peppers. I have a friend who hates pickles. My palate excludes seasoned sausage and the rest of those jambalaya components. I wouldn’t even want to be in the same room as they’re in.
So now we get to Alma. It seems that when my in-laws were expecting the child who eventually grew up to become my wife, a relative offered them $100 if they would name her Alma. Alma was a family name from years past and the offer was an attempt to keep the name alive among her descendants.
According to an internet inflation calculator, $100 in 1954 would be worth $1,066.79 today, a pretty good chunk of change. If she were to collect anytime soon — and I am rather certain the offer is well past its expiration date — she’d get a little more than a grand today, taking into account the 968.8 percent inflation since then.
According to babycenter.com, Alma was the 260th most popular name for girls in 1954 and was No. 447 among names given to girls in 2021. Celia, the first name my wife’s parents gave her almost 68 years ago now, was No. 373 in 1954 and No. 822 in 2021. Susan, the middle name she goes by, was No. 5 in 1954 and No. 2,221 in 2021.
David, in case you want to know, was the name of my dad’s best friend when he was growing up. It was No. 5 in 1953.
Would my wife’s life had been any different if she had been named Alma or Yvonne? I do know that if you want to get on her bad side, call her Sue. This irritation predates the Johnny Cash song “A Boy Named Sue,” not that it matters.
If you’re going to give her a nickname, she prefers Susie. I’ve been known to call her Ace or Hot Babe, but it would not go well if anyone else tried that. You would incur her wrath. Mine, too.
Maybe I’ll start calling her Yvonne.
daves@news-banner.com
