in the name of dog

One of the things we know about Jasper is that you can call him pretty much anything you like as long as you say it sweetly.  He responds readily and immediately to baby-talk.  And as we are prone to making up words in this family, to creating our own language, not surprisingly, as a consequence, the names we have made and use regularly for our 4-legged companion are both many and varied.  For some, we have no remaining idea of their origin.  We just keep saying them, the sound, just as it is for Jas himself, completely divorced of meaning, an endless babble of love.

That endless babble confirms, as often as possible, that Jasper is not just cute, but made of it, adding -- as Sally would say -- more cute cells every day.  He puts the cute in subcutaneous, a uniform layer of gorgeousness covering his entire body, just under the skin.

As he ages, as he has gone gray under his chin and around his eyes, loving him through these changes has been such a powerful lesson.  May we celebrate with as much delight our own human signs of aging, pet the gray hair at each other's temples, love up the sag.

Herewith I give you a compilation of the Names of Dog.  Appreciate that it has taken weeks to remember all of the variants, all three of Jasper's people adding to this list their most common expressions of love for our 13-year-old brother, son, friend and companion, Jasper Bacon Trelaun.


Jass
Jassy
Jassapequa
Jassy-pone (combo of Jass + pony)
Ponus
Pooss
It
Pony
Sharbs
Sharbies
Sharbles

Darkwing Dog

Larb

Donks

Dardimps, Dardumps

Batty in the Ocean
Toast Hound
Pig
Pig Eye
Fur Pants
Fangor

Mr Pokey Pegs
Mr Pillow Sticks
Mr Gray Beard
Mr Flat Worm

Frog Legs
Gandalf the Gray
Brown
Brown Guy
Mr Big Stuff
Old Man
Sweet Boy

Sweet Cakes

Baby Cakes

Baby Snakes
Mr Wagglesworth
Mammalgator
Moose
Fur Face
Barrel Snout
Lumps
Lumpus
Seal Breath
Sealipo

Love this creature just so much very much!