Rudolph IS NOT a boy's Name

When I was a teenager my parents would sometimes go on a one day adventure. One December, on a Sunday afternoon, we took a drive to Sky Bridge. My sister and I were at those teenage years and had lost interest in those trips. Our interests were on boys!
We used to have several guys over to our house almost every night. Most of those guys were just our friends, not boyfriends. We would all gather in our den and watch television. The guys we had over usually felt comfortable enough to flop down on our couch and just lie there for hours. We only had one couch in the den so those not on the couch would round up whatever chairs we had in our house and they would prop their feet on anything that would make an ottoman. There were always some big pairs of "feet" on top of something in that house. Those big feet, with big tennis shoes, were the first thing you'd see when you walked into the room. My sister and I loved having all those guys over. My dad didn't always love it! I can't imagine why. Did he think he needed a chair to flop in to as well?
My dad was happy to get away the day we went to Sky Bridge. My sister and I cried. We did a lot of crying when we were growing up. We used to take trips and continually ask “Are we there yet, and How much farther?” This time we kept asking ”Can we leave yet, and Is it time to go home yet?” I’m surprised my parents ever took us anywhere the way we carried on.
Most of our guy friends had nick names such as Hooter, Rooster, Huey, Dewey and Louie. Ok, maybe not those exact names, but close. My dad could never remember all their names - he just knew some of them had some “weird” names.
After a day full of “crying and whining” at Sky Bridge, we stopped to eat supper. My sister and I usually loved to eat but not this time. My sister kept yelling “We have to get home to see Rudolph.” I chimed in as well. My dad said “What are you two crying about?” Again, my sister screamed “Will we be home in time to see Rudolph?” My dad’s face turned red and he slammed his glass down on the table. He then raised his voice and said, “ I AM SICK of hearing about those BOYS and I’ve seen enough of those big feet propped up on every table and chair in the house.” “Can’t you two go just ONE DAY without seeing those BOYS?” he asked.
I can’t remember my mom, my sister and myself ever laughing so hard. On our way home we explained who Rudolph was. We always loved cartoons. I still do. Rudolph was actually Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer, the cartoon. We watched it every December and we definitely didn’t want to miss it that night.
My dad finally figured out who Rudolph really was. He smiled too. That little trip to Sky Bridge ended up being a fun trip after all, due to us not being able to stop laughing. We still laugh about it to this day.
The moral to this story may be: Don’t assume Rudolph is a boy’s name. It just might be a reindeer. Oh, in case you’re wondering - we did get home just in time! Hooter, Rooster, Huey, Dewey and Louie still continued to prop their feet up on our furniture, but not Rudolph!