Buddy

I just read this article in the NY Times (okay, yeah, it was the "Style" section) about modern parenting and the use of the nickname "buddy," and I was surprised that the author didn't mention J.D. Salinger's character Buddy Glass. I guess Salinger's books came out in the 60s, but it seems like a lot of young parents these days would've read those books and possibly adopted that word for their own kids.

(I mean, my kitty is named after Franny Glass... it worked for me.)

I always thought that by calling him Buddy (his real name is Web), Salinger was (maybe?) making him the Jesus-y type, or, in other words, confirming that Buddy is just that: a friend to all. Buddy is the most likable Glass family character, isn't he? I found a description of him as a "spiritual guide" to the other characters on a website offering analysis on this book for students; it's been a long time since I did this kind of analysis myself  but that makes a lot of sense, considering that Buddy was supposedly a representation of Salinger himself, and that religious themes were a big deal in those books.

(Somebody told me last week that they "used to think you were smart," and I'm still trying to figure out if this was a diss, or a compliment. Am I still smart, or has it left me? It's possible I seem dumber now; I'm very tired most of the time, and I'm not that great at writing down my thoughts, though the quantity of words required to do so seems to be increasing. I know, I know, it's quality, not quantity!)   Anyway, I don't know, I'm struggling to connect J.D. Salinger's decision to name his character "Buddy" to some young dad calling his kid "Buddy" in the playground. I felt the connection when I was reading the article but I'm not making my point very well, am I (this is a rhetorical question; please see below). And, yeah, it's possible (but not a sure thing) that if I took longer to think about it more, I could figure out how to say what I feel in a better way, but come on. That's not going to happen. Not today, anyway!)

(Our nicknames for our own little child tend to be even more descriptive: "Booger Boy," "Cutest Boy in the World," etc. They change based on the situation.)

So, the other day I got an anonymous comment on a (admittedly long and rambling) silly blog post from 2007, and the writer made a polite request: "Please get off the internet" (no punctuation). I didn't publish that comment because, fuck, man, how rude!, but also because this is my blog and I can be as dumb as I want to. You're the one with the choice to read or not to read; I only choose to write or not to write. Whether or not it's any good seems to be totally beside the point. Enjoy or don't, that's up to you! Maybe you, Mr/Ms Anonymous, are the one who should get off the Internet! Makes no difference to me!

Have a nice day, everybody!