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Did you know that George Foreman (former professional boxer) has 12 children? And did you know that his five sons are also named George?
They are, George Jr., George III (“Monk”), George IV (“Big Wheel”), George V (“Red”), and George VI (“Little Joey”). Imagine if they didn’t have nicknames? How on earth would they know when they were being addressed?
I can sympathize with all the Georges.
I was born in the 60’s and at that time, Mary and Maria were two of the top 3 names given to baby girls. I was also born in Puerto Rico where almost everyone is a Maria. In recent decades however, it has become more ‘acceptable’ to use less biblical names which means there will be fewer Marias in our future (oh no!)
Speaking of biblical names, I have decided to reveal my full name for you today (I know, it’s so exciting!) Once you see what it is, you will never think of me in the same way, especially if you thought my name was really Brickhousechick.

Once you know my given name, you may feel the urge to bow to me, carry rosary beads and definitely pray.
Ready?
My birth name is….
Drumroll please…
…
…
…
…
It is: María de Jesús
We’re talking Mary of Jesus, people! Yes, of THAT Jesus!
(You can start praying now)
To add to this most epic proclamation, I will tell you that my mother has the exact same name. She too is Mary of Jesus.
Will you believe me if I tell you that my sister is also a Maria? She is María Luisa, as is a cousin of ours. Two other cousins are both named María Rosa and others are, María de Los Angeles, María del Carmen, María Milagros, María Consuelo and María Concepción.

Hello, my name is Maria
You may be wondering how we function and interact with each other while sharing the same name. The truth is that we do what George Foreman does. Everyone has a nickname. It’s like an Oprah giveaway, “You get a nickname and you get a nickname and you get a nickname!”
In fact, we use our nicknames so much so, that I had to do research for this post in order to find out their real names!
Some of our nicknames are common for our given names but most make absolutely no sense at all.
We are: TUTI, CACHI, TITA, CUCHI, LULU, FIFA, CONCHI, CUCA, CUCH.
(If you need a cigarette after that, I’ll understand)
As for the Puerto Rican men in our lives, many are named José with a second name to follow such as, José Luis. Their nicknames, I find, do not accurately represent their stature, strength and particularly, their machismo. Well, judge for yourself:
PEPITO, PEPE, TITO, PEEWEE, XUANCY, WISO, KIKO, ÑITO, PAPO, SAPO, CHU
(Not exactly RAMBO type names)
When I started this blog, I decided to call myself Brickhousechick because I didn’t have enough names attached to me already I thought it more closely depicted what I am all about; strongly solid on the outside yet somewhat mushy and soft on the inside. If you are wondering what in the world to call me now, just know that you can continue to call me Brickhouse unless you feel inclined to call me María de Jesus The Mother of God’s Son, which I will gladly respond to.
All names matter except when you all have the same name, in which case, all nicknames matter.

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What’s your nickname?