Why the url and title?

In my first post I made the following (remarkably tedious) promise, "As for why this blog has the title and url I've given it, that's a subject for a future posting."

Sorry but I guess a promise is a promise. Here goes.

About the url (http://ihopemomapproves.blogspot.com/) there's not much to explain since it is at least as obvious as your typical vanity license plate. Mom, being the exact ideal of what a good (great!) mom should be (I'm probably saying something about myself here.) enjoys a good deal of prestige in my eyes and in the eyes of my family. I've been known to cross her but, mostly, I prefer that she approve of things. So why not hard wire that preference into the fabric of this blog?

The title, Joe Says, may also seem obvious. Well, ha! It's not. Like the url, it does involve Mom, though.

I've always liked to think of myself as an only child, a habit my five younger brothers and sisters, for some reason, have been known to find annoying. Too bad. After all, the historical record is clear on this subject. There actually was a gloroius year and a half period when I was a bona fide only child and that's more than any of my siblings can say (Please don't tell any of them I wrote this.).

However, I wasn't the only person in the house who was impressed by my special status as first among equals. Apparently, at some level, Mom too seemed to realize that any right thinking person would also be impressed. So, unknown to me, when Mom wanted to emphasize a point to one or another errant brother or sister of mine, she would often preface her remarks with the phrase, "Joe says."

It was decades before I discovered this and, even when I did, I can't say that I found it annoying. For some reason, though, my brothers and sisters did.

Maybe that's why when a time came that rest of the brood decided to christen one of our number as "the good son," they didn't ask Mom what, "Joe Says" about who would be the most suitable candidate. Instead, they did an end run around both of us and selected one of my younger brothers for the honor.

I don't mind, though. Adolescent rebellion is just a fact of life and I can live with it. For sure, merit can't have had anything to do with their decision.

So, getting back to this blog, events made it impossible for me to call it, The Good Son Says. Joe Says works for me, though, and ihopemomapproves.