What's in a name?

I hope Gov. Sarah Palin was at least half joking when she told People magazine she “always wanted a son named Zamboni.”

Of course, she was responding to questioning about the interesting way she and husband Todd, himself a champion snowmachine racer, have named their children. Names like Track, Willow, Bristol, Piper and Trig all have their roots in Alaska — either its geography or lifestyle.

Now our own hockey mom has included the state’s most popular sport. Todd shot the idea down right way, but Zamboni? That has to be a joke.

Using themes to name children is nothing new and I think the Palins have been creative and successful with theirs so far. I grew up across the street from a family where all the children’s names began with the letter “K”— Kim, Kathy, Keven and Kelley. My parents talk about a couple they knew with the surname Christmas, which named its daughter “Merry.” And, there are the sports fanatics. There are many children with the name “ESPN,” and hailing from the Denver area (which, of course, is Broncos Country), there are any number of “Elways” around.

So, I understand — and would even support — a hockey-themed name. But Zamboni would be a zam-bonehead move.

To help the Palins, here are some other suggestions better than Zamboni:

• Hat Trick Palin

• Puck Palin

• Keeper Palin

• Blade Palin

• Check Palin

• Center Palin

• Crease Palin

While I’ve had fun poking a little fun at the notion of naming a child Zamboni, it’s not going to happen, and those who are lauding this as another example of why Palin is too flighty to be VP need to lighten up a bit.

—Greg Johnson, managing editor