leonard

[Muad'Dib]

FINALLY, another rabbit named Leonard (and this time he's the furrry kind)!

Okay, I realize this may need an explanation (even if it doesn't, I want to give it):

The first pet rabbit I had as an adult (person) was a New Zealand Red mix. She was similar in color to Leonard, except not being part Dutch, she was the orange/fawn color almost all over, except for a white belly and white undertail. Her name was VW.

For many years in the US, the car known almost everywhere else on the planet as the "Volkswagen (VW) Golf" was known here as the "VW Rabbit". Since I also owned the VW Rabbit vehicle, naming my furry friend VW was an obvious choice.

However, this sometimes led to minor confusions among friends of mine, since statements like "I need to pick up the rabbit" or even "I need to pick up VW" could be misunderstood as either a trip to the vet's or a service garage. To avoid future confusion (and to keep VW from having her oil checked), I needed to give my car a name!

I therefore named my car during a formal naming ceremony (sort of like a baptism, but with soap and a soft brush!) "Leonard Pinth Carnell". This name was a slight modification of a Saturday Night Live character played by Dan Akroyd ("Bad Opera Review"). By coincidence, within one or two months of Leonard being given his name, a new and very popular TV commercial appeared. What the commercial was selling, I no longer remember, but the catch phrase in the TV ad was "Hellooooo Leonard!!!". This became the standard greeting from my friends whenever I picked up any of them for a ride in my car. And since this was normally said in a loud enough voice to attract the attention of anyone within one or two blocks, I'm sure there were people walking by who simply assumed I was a hard-of-hearing (and fun-loving) guy named Leonard!

But until today, I had never met another rabbit named Leonard. So let me be the first to greet you with the official greeting given to all such-named rabbits, whether vehicular or furry:

• "Hellooooo Leonard!!!" (Welcome to the club!)