My mother liked her name, Ann. In films, Ann was always the good girl. She was the one whose moral ethics kept her from doing wrong. Ann was the one the guy married after he’d finished with floozies.

I am not so clear on how “Elaine” is generally perceived. Is she good or bad, shallow or deep, sophisticated or naive, devious or trustworthy, pretty or plain, glamorous like Marilyn, or neatly attractive like Donna Reed, book smart or street smart, soft or hard hearted? Elaine on Seinfeld is familiar to many. Has that character’s personality and actions cheapened Elaine’s impression?

Not in the Top 10--Again

I just read a post on Yahoo that names the top 100 girl and 100 boy names given in 2011. Here are the top ten:

Top 10 girls' names of 2011
1. Sophia
2. Emma
3. Isabella
4. Olivia
5. Ava
6. Lily
7. Chloe
8. Madison
9. Emily
10. Abigail

Top 10 boys' names of 2011
1. Aiden
2. Jackson
3. Mason
4. Liam
5. Jacob
6. Jayden
7. Ethan
8. Noah
9. Lucas
10. Logan

Old-fashioned girl names seem to be in style. Except for Madison, and maybe Chloe, this top ten might have been the same a few hundred years ago. If old-fashioned is in, why isn’t “Elaine” considered more often? It’s now ranked somewhere in the 700’s.

Boy names range from contemporary to early Bible. I wonder what that means.

Hula Hooping at My Age

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Elaine, my name, isn’t bestowed much on modern-day newborns. More often it is found, on tombstones. Even when I was young it was a name for a previous generation.

I am of a certain age, as the French politely refer to an older person. I am almost 64 and on some days I feel older. Of course, in this life, I have never been older than I am right now, so I’m just guessing how older feels. I never used to need a nap and now I often seem to droop around 3 pm. Even if I don’t actually doze, a bit of lie down is refreshing.

Spinning a hula hoop helps me to feel frisky. I had worked up to to being able to whirl that rounded tube around me 600 times. Then I’d take a break for a few minutes and whirl another 600 times. However, one day my break lasted several months before I whirled again. Isn’t it strange how the thought of a bit of effort makes us give up on something we know makes us feel good?

Now, I have started spinning again and the activity really livens me up. Today, in my living room, I was a whirling tornado, completing 800 revolutions nonstop. It took about 15 minutes. Spinning to music is fun too, though today I didn’t feel like getting into anyone else’s rhythm but my own.

After spinning, I work on balance by holding the hoop to my side and putting a foot over and back, over and back 25 times on one side and 25 times on the other foot. It’s not as easy as it sounds. Then for my upper body, I take the hoop and grip it at 4 o'clock with one hand and 8 o’clock with the other. I bring it up high with one arm extended, then down and swing it up on my other side, high on my other extended arm Each arm extends 100 times. Afterwards, I feel energized.

What I like is that my joints don’t hurt the next day. I just made these exercises up and am no expert, but they seems to work for me. A large hoop that is a bit weighted is easier to spin. I bought mine at an athletic store for about $20.

Remember Me?

Someone from the old neighborhood (City Line, Brooklyn) set up a site dedicated to everyone raised there. I joined and have re-connected with several old friends and acquaintances. But, of the over 900 members, very few remember me, or I, them. A reminder of my non-descript youth where I went to school, and played in the street with a few kids who lived very close by. I stayed away from organized groups--no girl scouts, or church youth meetings. I went to Confession on Saturdays, and Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation and stayed away otherwise.

I did change schools from public to Catholic, so there should be two social networks I could draw from, but I never participated in after-school activities. I had nothing to do with the school newspaper, cheerleading, or sports. I had no inclination or encouragement from like-minded friends or parents. I enjoyed being at home, on my own. I could read or watch TV or hang out with a couple of street friends. My father who did not have much education and no belief in the importance of school-related, extra-curricula activities was more concerned with my getting home from high school safe. The school was not in the best neighborhood. My mother did not want any trouble. I did not feel deprived. I had no desire for a longer day at my all-girl high school.

I never had trouble making acquaintances at school. I was never particularly popular, but neither was I shunned. I even had friends close enough to offer to find me a date for the Senior Prom. I declined. I never dated until after I graduated and remained innocent until I was 22 and moved to Greenwich Village. That is, I didn’t go “all the way” until I moved out of my parent’s house.

On the neighborhood site, people I knew have been reported dead, so that limits even more those who might remember me. The good news is that the few friends I was close to are still around and have no problem recalling my childhood. Locals recall the streets, the stores, the games and the other bits of life walked, used and played as neighborhood kids. Much of their reminiscences come back to me like bits of dreams where I am there, observing, but detached.

What’s in a Nickname?

A nickname can say a lot about how others see you. I remember certain younger brothers announcing my visit to see their sister with “Elaine the Pain’s here.” While growing up, I was so often at that neighbor's house, I guess I was sometimes a bit of a pain. Later on, I worked at St. Joseph’s Hall, a terrible place for children, in Brooklyn. “Penny Lane” by the Beatles was popular. Several of the kids gave me that trendy monicker. Back then, I was only 20 years old,and I don’t remember them adding a “Miss” to Penny Lane. I felt rather cool being associated with the Beatles.

Adding a “y” to a name is endearing. I remember my mother, once in a while, called me Elainey. Nowadays, my grown son, James, (who has never been a Jim or Jimmy) becomes Jamesey when I want to get across that he’s still my little boy.

I guess my preoccupation with my jack-of-all-trades, master of none preoccupation with harmonica, poetry, and a few other diversions fit my latest nickname, given to me in a preschool where I was officially Miss Elaine, but sometimes referred to, by a few co-workers,as Miss-Elaine-eous. I think they called me that more for the natural progression of syllables, rather than for any deep analysis of my interests.

Elaine coming from a different direction

BabyNamer http://www.babynamer.com/elaine offers the following theory:

Narrative: Though this name (Elaine) is conventionally considered to be a French-inspired variation of the Greek-derived Helen, there is evidence that it could have originated from an entirely different source.

The Arthurian legends feature a character named Elaine, who falls in love with the righteous knight Sir Lancelot. First appearing in Thomas Malory's 15th century re-telling of those tales, Le Morte d'Arthur, the character was picked up by Tennyson for his 1859 Idylls of the King. Tennyson's work was probably instrumental in introducing Elaine to the list of English girls' names.

Many names from the Arthurian legends are of ancient Celtic origin. This has led scholars to suggest a derivation for Elaine from a Welsh expression meaning ''young deer.’’

--
Isn’t a young deer a fawn? So, if the above is true (or even if it isn’t) maybe in another life (or blog) I could call myself Fawn. A baby deer connotes sweet innocence. Forty years ago, that would have perfectly described me. I am still sweet sometimes. Hope there are still some fawns out there who might relate to youth and innocence.

According to the Oxford Dictionary, fawn, with reference to baby deer originates from:

"late Middle English: from Old French faon, based on Latin fetus 'offspring'; compare with fetus”

At first I was not inclined to being referred to as a fetus. Further consideration got me picturing a beginning, a new reincarnation of myself.

“Fawn,” as a verb, according to Oxford, made me re-consider it as my cup of tea:

"(of a person) give a servile display of exaggerated flattery or affection, typically in order to gain favor or advantage:
congressmen fawn over the President
(of an animal, especially a dog) show slavish devotion, especially by crawling and rubbing against someone.”

But, its origin (according to Oxford) has me thinking more positively:

“Old English fagnian ‘make or be glad’

--Elaine

Where did Elaine come from?

Helen would seem to be the root of Elaine, and Helen comes from Greek.

Here’s a Wikipedia link (I am afraid you will have to copy and paste it as I can’t figure out how to link directly) to “Helen” and the many names derived from it, including Elaine.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_(given_name)

Working Elaine

I am sure that at least once I purchased a nightgown or, perhaps, a robe at J.C. Penney because it was labeled “Miss Elaine.” It was the closest I have ever come to wearing a monogram, though, as a preschool teacher, many a child has called me Miss Elaine. And, during school hours, even teachers (married or not) automatically use “Miss” when speaking to each other. As I got older, upon a chance meeting on the street with a much younger co-worker, I would often still be Miss Elaine. I wonder is there a Miss Elaine in the clothing business who once worked in a preschool?

Another business woman, whom I never heard referred to so politely was the New York nightclub owner of “Elaine’s. She recently died and I believe the club has closed. I was born in New York, grew up and still visit family there, but I never went to that night club. I should have, just because.

Elaine in Chinese

Come to think of it, I have met a couple of younger women who go by the name, Elaine. Both were Chinese. One was a waitress who served me in a restaurant and wore the name on her uniform tag. I asked her about how she got the name and she said that it sounded like a Chinese word with a pleasant meaning, so it was given to her as her English name. I wish I could remember what the word was. Above is Elaine written in Chinese.

Looking for Elaine(s)

Elaine (pronounced Eelaine, not alaine, or ellaine) is derived from Greek and means shining light. It is also a variant of “Helen.”

Is your name Elaine? Do you know anyone named Elaine? That is, anyone besides Elaine in “The Graduate,” Elaine on “Seinfeld," Elaine Stritch, or Elaine Boosler? Well, let me introduce myself. My name is, can you guess? Yes, my name is Elaine, and has been for quite a few decades. But, for all the years I've been around, I have rarely met anyone with my same first name. All through school, I was the only Elaine in my class. However, nowadays, I come across my first name more often than I’d like, in the obituaries, usually under the photo of a sweet looking old lady. Most of the deceased are a decade, or so, older than I am, and I never met any of them.

Before it’s too late, I want to meet you, Elaine.

How could such a lovely name go out of fashion? Apparently, it was very popular in the 1940’s. What do you think or know about the name Elaine? I would love to form a group here to share Elaine experiences.

Have you read Tennyson’s “The Lady of Shallott,” in which Elaine dies of unrequited love?

Do you go by Lainey, or some other nickname.

Do you spell Elaine the way I do, or are you Elayne?

Here’s a few links about Elaine:

http://babynamesworld.parentsconnect.com/popularity_of_Elaine.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lady_of_Shalott

Hoping to hear from you soon,
Elaine