Nicknames . . .

This blog is dedicated to MWS staff - current and former!

Some of the regular swimmers at the Y are best known by their nicknames - everyone loves "Sidestroke Guy" who goes by Bruce in the real world;  no one wants to swim with "Splash Boy" for obvious reasons; and "Backstroke Lady", alias Barb, is just a sweet lady with an extremely unique backstroke!   This fall, I've been swimming with a new guy - "Tattoo Man" - and last Thursday, I finally got to talk to him when we arrived at the lap lane at the same time.  In my quest to discover why people have the tattoos they do, I asked "Tattoo Man" why he had such a large tattoo on his right shoulder.  He told me his dad had died when he was 18 and the tattoo was in his memory.  His dad had had a picture of Michael Angelo on his desk and now it was forever on his shoulder - painful at the time and pricey!  I did also ask "Tattoo Man" what his real name was and he said, "Josh" - and it connected with me!  I was talking to Josh Sutherland, local youth pastor, who's mom Cyndee taught with Sam at MWS!  So I said to Josh, "You're Josh Sutherland, your mom is Cyndee and your brother is Jesse and you're 33 years old!"  I think I put him in to shock - then I told him who I was!  Not only did we have a good chat, but so did Dean, "The Guppy", who joined us in the lap lane!