I'm back!

Apologies, dear reader, for being off the grid. I was in Paris for work last week, followed by a weekend in London for fun. And while I had a blast, let me tell you, I REALLY missed not being able to watch NY1’s coverage of the Bin Laden takedown. I had to make do with the BBC, which was actually quite balanced and did not make me want to yell at the TV for its portrayal of Americans (as I frequently did when I lived in the UK).

ANYHOO. I’m back, and delighted as ever to have NY1 back in my life. The highlight this morning was Pat’s imitation of Mariah Carey’s unfortunately named child, Moroccan (that’s right, Moroccan. Not even Morocco, for god’s sake!) during “In the Papers”. He was reading the speech bubble of a cartoon that suggested the child wanted to stay in utero rather than deal with that ridiculous appellation.

Mariah is far from alone in her desire to give her kid a moronic moniker. The list of celebrity baby names is littered with such gems as “Moxie Crimefighter,” “Audio Science,” “Bronx Mowgli” and “Jor El.”

Which makes me think. My flight back from Paris happened to connect in Reyjavik, where I picked up an English language Icelandic newspaper. That’s where I learned that parents in Iceland have to submit their proposed baby names to some kind of government board for approval (that’s a bit of a simplification of the process, but that’s the gist of it). Yes, that sounds a bit Draconian and nanny state-ish, but judging by the names above, it just may not be the worst idea in the world.

Also this morning: Did anyone else CRINGE at Dean Meminger’s recitation of the testimony of the cop on trial from allegedly raping a woman? He was just reading it verbatim, but when he said the words “buttock area” and “freaky”, I just about died.

That is all for now. Go out and enjoy the spring! And don’t name your baby Moroccan!