I've always been crazy - but it's kept me from going insane!

So what would you call your blog? That is the question I kept coming back to after reading my daughter’s blogs and deciding to attempt to express myself in this neuvo-techno-style as well. But what to call my musings? Should I call it something related to my profession? No, that changes too frequently. Something related to my family or maybe a catchy title related to something I enjoy doing for fun... nothing worked for me. Then, reaching way back into my childhood I was reminded of an old companion with whom I have shared many conversations and someone who has shared much of my life – my friend, Minner D. I suppose before I get into any of his musings, I should probably tell you about Minner D. What kind of a name is Minner D? That is a great question to which I'm afraid I don't really know the answer. In fact, I'm not even sure how to spell his name. Though I have known him most of my life, I never asked him how to spell his name! How would you spell Minner D if you had never seen it written down and the name had only existed phonetically in your mind? For, Minner D was a creation of my imagination when I was a very small boy. Though a great listener, Minner D was not much of a talker so he never shared with me the exact spelling, or the source, of his lovely name. Sure is poetic though, isn't it? And where exactly did Minner D come from? Growing up on the windy and dusty high plains of the Texas panhandle in the mid 1950's, suffice it to say that there were very few things for a little tyke like me to do. My father, like his father before him, was a farmer. He grew cotton in the summer and wheat in the winter. I'm sure that my only dreams or ambitions in the early years of my life were to just be like my daddy - a farmer. Apparently Minner D came along at about the same time I received a pedal-powered tractor on which to practice my farming skills. My mom tells me that I would go outside and ride my tractor around the grassless, dirt yard for play and enjoyment. When I would come back in the house, she would ask what I had been doing. My explanation was normally, "oh, me and Minner D have just been plowing". In years to come, as I grew older and more knowledgeable about things more complicated than farming, Minner D and I would learn to play football or baseball together. (I found it to be quite convenient that Minner D and I shared the exact same interests!) I suppose that the first few times she heard me refer to my imaginary buddy, my mom had to wonder what weirdness had come over her little boy. But over time Minner D and I became such good friends and he such a part of my world that eventually my parents bought me a little cotton-stuffed fabric, boy doll and told me that his name was Minner D. I wish I could remember how I reacted to that. This friend, who had existed only in my head as far as I knew, now had a body - though no voice or movement. Apparently I was happy to accept the fact that if I was crazy, so were my parents so we could just all be crazy together! Minner D became and even more significant part of my life, my constant companion whether sleeping, eating, playing or bathing. He would remain a part of my life for quite a few years. Everything Brad did, Minner D did as well. We were best buds! Eventually, I am told, Minner D took one too many baths with me and actually disintegrated. I have often wondered what prompted me to create this imaginary friend at such a young age (actually a behavior I have seen repeated in my own children). The best I can tell it is just a relatively rare thing that extremely intelligent people sometimes do. I suppose we just needed someone to bounce our stupendous ideas off of and someone to talk to who could understand us on our advanced cognitive level. Well, there you have it. When I began trying to think of what to name my blog, I just kept coming back to Minner D Musings. He's always been there for me - here's to his immortality! And happy musings, Minner D!