This 'Magic'al Season

 We are a family of long-suffering Orlando Magic fans - well three of us are anyway.  The other two tend to sway towards the Milwaukee Bucks.  But I digress.

  Living in Orlando and being a fan of the Orlando Magic has meant we have attended a slew of average to below average games. They had some pretty good players on the teams through the years, but just could not find a combination that clicked or jelled.  

Since moving to Orlando in 2015, the Magic's record has been 241-376 (not including this current season). This includes the bleak 2020-2021 season record of 21-51 and the equally horrible 2021-2022 season record of 22-60 when they decided to overhaul the whole team and do a complete rebuild.

Emerging from these seasons at the basement of the league, meant high draft choices and in 2021, the Magic had two which they used to snag Jalen Suggs with the 5th overall pick and Franz Wagner with the 8th overall pick.  In 2022, the Magic hit a stroke of luck in the draft lottery and got the number 1 pick which they used to bring Paolo Banchero on board.  They also replaced their coach, Steve Clifford, around this time with Jamal Moseley since Clifford was not interested in a rebuild.  

Last year, Magic fans had a little to cheer about as we watched those core 3 grow and improve each game. They were surrounded by talented players like Jonathan Issac, Cole Anthony, Mo Wagner,  Markelle Fultz, and Wendell Carter, Jr.  Though their record was only 34-48 and they still came in 13th in the Eastern Conference, anyone watching couldn't help but be excited about the possibilities ahead.  

The games we have gone to this year have been SO...MUCH...FUN!  

Even the players are enjoying this ride.  It's so nice to attend a game and have something to cheer about and the attendance has been trending upwards all year. I think they won every game we went to this season. 

I don't know what the outcome of this year will be - right now they are 42-28, 4th in the Eastern Conference, and knocking on the door of the Cleveland Cavaliers for 3rd.  But whatever happens, this has been a fun season and the future is looking bright.

Names

 I always considered naming my child to be a very significant responsibility.  After all, this is not only the name your "baby" will have, but this is a name your child will hold throughout school - while being addressed by teachers and peers - and then take into adulthood where they will be addressed in the workplace by co-workers, bosses, and others.

My husband and I did not quite see eye to eye on names at the time because he wanted names that would sound good for his son when he would one day became a big star quarterback for Notre Dame.  He was also big on alliteration so the names he would throw out - like Kit or Kellen  which would fit the alliteration bill with Koeck  - were instantly vetoed by me because, you know, what if he DIDN'T grow up to be a famous sports star and just had to live in "the real world".  Right?  

With the far out-of-the-box names suggested by my husband, it is a wonder we agreed on mainstream common names like Christopher, Jonathan, and Zachary. 

So.....................names..............................

I've noticed a couple trends lately that I am NOT a fan of.  Far be it for me to suggest that my opinion is right, but this is MY blog and I am going to express My opinion on My blog (which no one really reads anyway...haha)

TREND #1

What is this movement to give what have been traditional "boy" names to girls now.  I've noticed many people have begun to give their girls names like Noah, Tyler, and James.  And just recently, I've seen baby girls named Clarke, Wesley, Beckham, and Slate. James has become wildly popular as a girl's middle name ---- and I'm just not digging it. Also, as a teacher who is handed a roster (which doesn't list gender) weeks before the kids are back to school, I would probably go about planning for male students if I saw those names. 

TREND #2

"Trendy" or "trailblazing" names that seem to be for social media attention.  The following is a list of names I have seen on social media lately and I am not impressed with ANY of them.

- Banjo (boy)

- Marna (girl)

- Maple (girl)

- Graylee (girl)

- Kilmer (boy)

- Bronx (boy)

- Collins (girl)

- Prescott  (girl)

- Boyer (boy)

- Haven (girl)

- Suede (boy)

In my opinion....social media wanna-be influencers desperate for comments on their children's "unique" names. Parents fishing for social media validation and then the poor child will have to live with that name the rest on their life!