Way Too Funny At 12:38 In The Morning

A couple of nights ago, I had just finished the new Soduku puzzle in the back of T.V. Guide and was coming off of that high. I hadn't been able to finish the crossword (as pathetic as that is) so I asked Eddie (gently woke him up) for some help. He politely and sleepily told me that he would rather continue sleeping. So I asked him a question. He didn't move for a second, then his eyes opened and I knew his wheels were turning. I had him.

He reached for the magazine so he could better examine the mess I had made, took the pencil away from me and furrowed his brow in midnight concentration.

I have an unconventional method for crossword puzzles, one that Eddie has not yet adopted. If I don't know what the solution is immediately, I skip it. On the second round, anything that makes sense and might fit gets put into the blank. It's so much more fun that way, but if you have someone come behind you trying to finish it, that can make for some interesting faces on the evaluator. Eddie usually makes those interesting faces...sometimes followed by a giggle.

When he takes the magazine, I know that he is no longer helping me. I know that it is now his puzzle and my contribution is over. That leaves me free to bother him, play with the dog distractingly and start conversations about unrelated, trivial things. While I was talking and he was concentrating, he took in a breath and exhaled, "You know what would fit here? Nebra."

-"Nebra?"

Then he lost it. The magazine fell on his chest and he covered his face to hide the laugher. He giggled for 10 seconds then broke out into a full laugh for the next 3 full minutes. That kind of laughter is infectious. We both laughed until it tapered off and it felt great.

Yes, "Nebra" may not be the funniest thing you or I have ever heard, but we've just entered this phase where we're thinking of baby names. (Not because we're pregnant or thinking of becoming pregnant in the next few months, but because we know that we'll eventually want to have a tot of our own and we'll have to call him or her something.) However, thinking of baby names is far too boring and for us, it usually transforms into conversations of what we won't be naming our spawn. It usually involves the combination of 1 male and 1 female name until we laugh. Laughter is the litmus test. Nick + Debra = Nebra. Nebra passed.

Other combinations have included: Nictoria, Jaychelle, LeStacy, Roynette, and Timabella.

The last laugh was about a nickname. Nebra would inevitably be called Nebbie. Nebbie.

"Hey, Neb."