A History of Nick Names

Since I was little, my family and friends have called me everything but Shannon. Here is a history of nick names:

Gertrude

Nana Babs started calling me "Gert" at a young age. There has never been any explanation as to why, and she still does to this day. I've come to understand it as a term of indearment.

Pooper

My mother called me Pooper. It horrified me even at 4. I insisted that she stop.

Shanny

I believe this started with my Auntie Mac and has been recycled by friends through my 27 years. Today it's mostly used by one of my besties Genevieve. This is one of my favorites.

Bubbles

One summer when I swimming on the cape, my mothers friends you could always find me in the water by my trail of bubbles. So they called me that for a while.

Daisy or Charlie

I went through a phase in Middle School where I tried to get my friends to refer to me by one of these names. I don't know why. Yes I do. I sought attention from an early age.

Mama Shan/Bundle/Boopsie

These all happened around the same time and I was called them consistently by the same group of friends. We used to have sleepovers (boy girl... oooh) at my house in high school, and I tended to be the care giver in these situations hence Mama Shan. Bundle happened one night we were walking around down town late and I had a blanket around me; I was referred to as a Bundle of Joy and it stuck. Boopsie is something my highschool best friend Dan and I called each other. I think he accidentally touched my boob and I said "watch out for the boopsies" because we were awkward teenagers and I didn't know what else to say. We still call each other boopsie.

Diesel

In college I was in a dynamic improv group Mission:Improvable. When cast as a member of this prestigious improv group your elders give you a nick name. Mine was down to Diesel and Kirby. Kirby because I reminded them of the cartoon, but Diesel because I could drink and curse like a truck driver. Diesel stuck. I got it tattooed on my butt. See photo on the left side of this page. that's my butt.

Camel/Skittles

These are recent and only a handful of people call me this. Camel because at rehearsal we were mocking through a game and I played an audience member. Marcelo asked me what my name was and I had one of those mind goes blank moments and said "Camel." The room got quiet, everyone looked at me, and I blushed and we all laughed. It really was a funny moment.

Skittles happened in North Carolina one night this year when Brian Perry and I had a night off from performing while everyone else did. So we walked around and drank lots of mixed beverages and saw improv. By 11:30 that night all of my inhibitions had left me and I found myself wearing a Cookie Monster hat and acting like I was a girl that knew how to freestyle. I am not. However, someone dubbed this crazy character Skittles. Trust me, you want Skittles at your next party.

ShanCon

Never has a nick name stuck like this one. My dear friend Mike started calling me ShanCon, mostly because I think his mouth was too lazy to say my full name. This spread hard and fast and the majority of the Improv Boston community refers to be as such. I love it.

Honorable mentions: Nooner (Genevieve calls me this sometimes), Connolli (When I'm in the North End), Shanooooooooan (Mike Carr would bellow this name).