Dopplegangers, Nicknames and Mash-ups

Ted and I are both very skilled at spotting dopplegangers and making up nicknames for strangers.  It's something we realized that we had in common very early in our relationship.  It is an activity that has helped to keep things relatively light and to occupy us our brains on this vacation. 

There are certain people that we have been finding for years everywhere we go.  For example, Ted has a good friend from graduate school named Randy, who is Indonesian.  We find Randy of all races nearly everywhere  - White Randy, Black Randy, Mexican Randy - the kid is everywhere.  In fact, this vacation is one of the very few places that we haven't seen a Randy in our whole five and a half year relationship.  My friend Greg gets seen a lot - but mostly in Latin American countries.  I've always been able to spot a Greg. The most incredible one I ever found was in Tamarindo, Costa Rica, while vacationing with my friend Rachel.  The only difference between real Greg and Tamarindo Greg was the accent and the fact that Tamarindo Greg made a living by selling pirated CDs on the beach.  Other common dopplegangers that Ted and I find often are - Fake Pauls (my brother), Fake my dads, Fake Perrys (Sadie's dad......Long Island Medium's husband anyone?), Fake Josh Lauranos (Mexican Josh Laurano is, in fact, tending bar here at the Silversands Resort in Cancun).  We found a Fake KLKer ("clicker" - Ted's old girlfriend).  And Fake Ted's dad is also staying at the Silversands resort!  Dead ringer!  We've never seen him before as far as I can remember.  We keep commenting how rude it is that he parades around with a woman that isn't even a Fake Ted's mom (Real Ted's dad did WAY better in the finding of a partner than Fake Ted's dad.  Real Ted's mom is WAY prettier).  Her nickname is, "your dad's mistress" or "my dad's mistress" - depending on who is pointing her out.

Ted brings a new talent to our relationship - he is really good at spotting people mash-ups.  Yesterday he found another Greg on the beach...but it wasn't an ordinary Greg.  It was a mash up of Greg and the waiter from breakfast.  Also, it was a girl.  She was sort of masculine.  I helped Ted with a mash up yesterday when he spotted another girl on the beach who he said looked like my friend Eowyn.  "Mashed up with Deja!", I said.  She has become "Dejwyn".  

We also like nicknames (because who doesn't?).  Dejwyn has a crew here.  She hangs out with a gal we call "Peacock" because she likes to show off on the beach, dancing and parading about.  They are with two dudes who we call "Right said Fred" and "skull cap".  Skull cap is also a doppleganger for Ted's San Diego football watching buddy, Mike C.  Other nicknamed friends include - "Face time" (a French Canadian who pushed my buttons at our shared hibachi dinner table one night by "face timing" with her daughter at home through the whole "show"  Her daughter squealed in delight, making "Face time" a very good mommy but my resort sworn enemy), "Out going girl" and her boyfriend "wet towel boyfriend", "The mean sisters" (who gave us dirty looks when we put our towels next to them at the pool, "Beard guy" (who drunkenly went on and on about how bad ass Ted's beard is), "Loud chick" (this woman on staff who I LOVE because she is so enthusiastic and loud, and others)....  

Tomorrow we go home (and I think my internet connection also runs out).  Yes, we have managed to enjoy this vacation.  We have also done a lot of reconnecting to each other, talking about our growing family and what is important to us in this life we've been handed.  I have cried through dinners, on the beach, next to the lobby bar, and by and in most of the pools.  I can only imagine the nicknames that I have been given by other vacationers - "Crying pregnant chick", "Sad mom" or "cries on vacation" perhaps.  I have been calling myself "Gigantinator" because girlfriend is LARGE.  Ted's probably got some good nicknames as well...maybe centered around his beard or the fact that he is with the "Gigantic sad mom".  We are sad to leave this place.  It has been nice to be in this fake reality for a while...with all of our fake friends and family, mash ups of the people from our real life, and whole new cast of strange characters.  Like I said, going back home will be like a smack in the face.  Today I am hoping to get the resort photographer to take some professional photographs of us, while Ted and I are still on a vacation high.  I want to make sure that Baby M knows that my pregnancy with him wasn't all grief and despair.  I want him to have a little album, like Maxie has, with photos of his parents happy and anxiously awaiting his arrival.  I want him to know that HE is our reality.  He is what we are holding onto and his arrival is what is keeping us going.  His nickname is "Baby M" and he is our hope....and he will be perfect to us no matter what....even if we are sort of hoping for a Maxie doppleganger or a baby Mash-up.