Some people still ask me why we don't let the magpie out. But no one asks why we don't let him in. This is strange, as Misha spends most of his time outside doing whatever he wants, trying to die an unnatural death. He lost his tail feathers again. He only comes to us for treats, to warm himself, to get dry and sometimes to spend the night.
Why Misha's foot is missing: www.youtube.co...
The answer to yesterday's top question:
"Lapra Laprandiel
23 hours ago
Tell us how you come up with names for your pets. How did you come up with the names for the owls, the cat, Silva and Misha? Do the lizards, froggies, spideys and millipedes have names too (other than The Damned)?"
It's pretty simple and straighforward: I have associations when I get a new animal and interact with it, learning its personality and quirks. And I don't follow common rules and conventions. I don't mind if a female is given a male name, or the other way around, and I don't mind if the name is "insulting". Animals don't care about the meaning of their names. And I don't care what people I don't know will think about it.
I have a rare name myself, which a lot of people butcher. (The name Nika is written in my passport, so if you wish to call me Veronika, don't expect me to respond to a name that isn't mine.) And I don't know how you can live with a popular name when so many people around you share it. It must be difficult. That's why I try to give my pets unique names to avoid coincidences. But it doesn't always work, as people copy the names I came up with when they name their pets... And you have no idea how much I hate it when someone names their eagle-owl Philya. ["Eagle-owl" in Russian is pronounced "philin".] Kirkorov is Philya, and the dog from "Good Night, Little Ones!" is also Philya, but leave owls alone!
Gnus. I knew in advance that little owls tend to have a bad temper, so Gnus was born Gnus by default. [In Russian, "gnus" means someone disgusting.] And he's been living up to his name his whole life.
Yuinya. When she was young, she used to be Ooyuika, but grew up a typical Yuinya. ["Yuinya" sounds like a very rude Russian word applicable to any random object.]
Chuchundriy. A miserable tiny owlet found under a car with close to no chance of survival. Kipling reference.
Silva - a neutral name to avoid bringing bad luck. In Latin, "Silva" means "forest", which is very true for a goshawk hunting in woodland. Her name has no connection to Warcraft and Sylvanas. But I think Blizzard got the name Sylvanas from the same Latin word.
Yoll. In the Komi language, this word means "creek". I wanted to name the baby owl after a river, saw "Yoll" on a map, googled its meaning and liked it. I don't like people thinking her name is related to Yule. No, Yule is a grim festival, it has nothing to do with Yolka. It took me a long time to come up with a name for her. For two months she lived without a name and was called "chubby bread" and "little bun" due to her silliness.
Murloc. At first, my sister's husband suggested the name Demon, which I changed to Imp. But after observing the feline for a few days, it became clear that he is not mischievous at all and behaves like a perfect cat, as long as it means he can stay. Also, he loves splashing in water, staring into your soul, being scruffy, not knowing how to meow and being silent in general. A new name that came to my mind was Cthulhu, but it's hard to pronounce, plus I'd always risk summoning the Ancient One by calling my cat to come home... Cthulhu, Dagon, Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn... Eventually the series of associations led me to murlocs from Warcraft. ["Murr" in Russian is equivalent to "purr" in English.]
Pancake. I named her Succade in the beginning, because she looks like one, and I was promised she will grow up orange. She did, but when she lies down with her body flattened and round, she looks like a pancake, hence her new name.
The names for birds I keep temporarily usually come up based on the first impression and the things around them. The magpie became Uk because that's what was written on his box. The scops owl was Yt just because. A little owl was named Holyshmoly because that was the first word that came out of my mouth when I saw him. And Dummy Buzzard was a real dummy.
As for lizards, I only give names to those I feel particular affection for. Most are nameless.
There are two fat-tailed geckos named Ball and Circle - from the names on a string. What's more, Ball came from a breeder whose surname is Sharov. [In Russian, "shar" means "ball".]
Demonson the leopard gecko is the son of a gecko named Demon, well known among breeders.
The bullfrogs Von Pancake (who had this name before Succade was renamed to Pancake) and Vasip (named after a chemist from VK who liked to use Pepe the Frog in his posts).
The crested gecko called The Damned is unique, as he is my only pet named by someone else. I usually don't let this happen.