Separatist Names

There were two new donnings tonight at roughly 4:20 am. (No pot involved.)

What is a donning? When a group of people crosses a certain line and bonds in an evening, and one or more of them still lacks a Separatist name, everyone starts to focus their effort to figuring out aspects of those people to celebrate with a name. There are three parts to a Georgian Separatist name: your main separatist name, your epithet, and your order. Example: Bacchus the Builder of the Order of the Meerkat (Jake). The people around you choose your main separatist name and your epithet, and you choose your order.

Tonight's donnings were highly emotional and full of the deepest confessions. Donned was Pan the Fhole of the Order of Sunshowers (Tami). Donned was Voix the Creator of the Order of the Iris (Liana). EPIC. [Pronunciation note: Voix is pronounced "Voice" and fhole is pronounced "foal"]. Lingo arose in all elements of the evening (see phrasebook), and all parties took turns speaking about what the donned's name meant to the donner, and how the donned could use it as a thing of power.

There's a conversation about what's important in your life, what your passions are, what symbols and works of art have shaped your life, what words hold special meaning for you. For example, Walker is so named for his summer on the walk, Bacchus is named for his love of revelry (rather than wine), Dor for the dormouse in Alice in Wonderland, Voix for her path of singing, Pan for the Capricorn sentiment, etc. But these are only small pieces of the resonances the names have with their bearers, sonically and emotionally.

The Separatist names don't replace given names, they supplement them. We can choose to use these names as often or as little as we want, introduce ourselves with them or not, mention our friends by any of the names ascribed to them including the ones their parents assigned them at birth, when they had no way of knowing their newborn's later interests, passions, personality, and all that sets us apart as people.

Names can also be combined when referring to a unit composed of multiple people. For instance, Dor and Walker are collectively Docker. And when they are hanging out they are "docking." Walker and Bacchus are collectively Walkus, etc.

And most of all, each Separatist name is unique and original. No more confusion among Sarahs and Emilys. Don your redundantly named friends first!

Names to date

• Walker the Unflappable of the order of the Sacred Thursday (Patrick)- donned at meerkat, with a necktie
  
• Tia the Compassionate of the order of the Possum (Tia/Tere)- donned at the pub, with a possum attending
  
• Thor the Willing of the order of the Sacred Thursday (Cohlie) - donned in the library, by hand
  
• Bacchus the Builder of the order of the Meerkat (Jake) - donned in the painting studio, with paintbrushes
• Moon the Mouse of the order of the Magnificent Universe (Molly) - donned in her room, with poems and many moons
  
• Pan the Fhole of the order of Sunshowers (Tami) - donned at Dor's, with a pumpkin, a banana, a bra, and Carl
  
• Voix the Creator of the order of the Iris (Liana) - donned at Dor's, with earphones, a deck of cards, a notebook, a bowl of Special K, and a pen
  
• Dor the Curious of the Order of the Caterpillar (Daniella) - donned in her own abode with uncertainty, Carl presiding
• Tacit ("Tack") the Wave of the Order of the Fro (Ben) - donned at naked o' clock, with a belt, a key, boxers, honey, a kiss, and a blank CD
  

If you remember more donnings, or want to add more details of the ones listed above, please comment. And if you want a name, get your friends together to talk about you and try to find one. The basics are all above, and the recipient gets to veto any names she doesn't like and picks her own order. Isn't it fun to collect identities, and make some of them about what you're really about?

--written collectively by Dor, Walker, Bacchus, Pan, and Voix

(mama / sex / rides / books / events / names / suggestions )