Everybody knows in our "don't offend anyone" kind of society we live in today, that you're not supposed to call anyone a name.  It isn't considered nice and it might hurt their feelings.

But I can't help it.  I'm a "name it" kind of a guy.  I guess this is a bad habit I picked up when I was in elementary school.  Or maybe it comes from watching one of my favorite movies, "A Christmas Story" too much.  Remember this little piece of dialog from the movie?

Schwartz: Hey, smart a$$. I asked my old man about sticking your tongue to a flagpole in the winter, and he says that it'll freeze right to the pole, just like I told ya.
Flick: Ah, baloney. What would your old man know about anything?
Schwartz: He knows, because he once saw a guy stick his tongue to a railroad track on a bet, and the fire department had to come get the guy's tongue off the track, because he couldn't get it off.

In Real Estate, I often find myself naming houses.  For example, I can still vividly recall the "Snake House."  That was the vacant house I showed a couple of summers ago that had a big 6 foot long black snake curled up in the toilet.  Yep, that was a fun showing.  And recently there was the "Tragic House."  This was a vacant, unfinished house I showed not long ago that had the markings on the floor for the carpet and tile, unfinished kitchen cabinets sitting around, wires poking out of the walls, a ton of builder's trash in the garage and a dead bird lying on the floor.  You felt sorry for the house as it just sat there, neglected and empty.  (Don't lecture me about feeling sorry for the builder - I don't know him.  I know his left behind house!)

I will forever remember my "First Real Estate House."  This was the very first house I ever sold in Real Estate, way back in 2007.  The buyer did no inspections, purchased with cash and closed quickly.  I thought if Real Estate was that easy that I had picked the right career move for sure!  There are other names I've used in regards to houses too like "The Donkey House," (where a cute donkey lives), "The Country House," "The New House," "That Pink House," "The Golf Course House," "The Hill House" and on and on. 

If we're honest with ourselves, we have to admit that we name people too.  Greg Nino recently wrote a post about his experience with this.  In my part of the world, we have "The Text Queen."  She's the Realtor you can only get hold of by texting her.  We also enjoy the antics of "That Guy."  You know him too.  He's the one who, when his name is mentioned, everyone goes, "Oh, THAT Guy!"  I find myself being jealous of "The Builder Agent" because she does so much new construction business.  But I am NOT jealous of "The Foreclosed Lady" because she is grumpy, hard to reach and obviously over stressed.  There is one person I chase after a lot and that is "The Big Dog."  I want to be him/her someday!

Sometimes I wonder what my "pet" name is among the local Real Estate community.  I hope it is something that reflects the kind of person I want to be rather than the kind of person who I wouldn't want selling Real Estate to my mother.

I hope I can live up to that. 

Snake picture from Flickr Creative Commons:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/7147684@N03/1290596778/
Texting lady picture from Flickr Creative Commons:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/dogpaste/3734602167/