Nicknames

I've said it before, but people in my family tend to have a sense of humor.  Jokes & gags are constantly flying at family functions, or even when all three of the Chang siblings are reunited (e.g., the "I Know You, Chang" bit).  It keeps things light, and keeps everyone on their toes.  I've been the butt of more jokes than I care to admit.

One very interesting side effect of this, however, is that this often leads to people getting funny nicknames.  We crack jokes, something has that ring to it, and next thing you know, that becomes someone's nickname.  Over time, I've managed to come up with a few favorites.  In no particular order:

• "Travesura" (it means "Mischief" in English)
  This one was given to a particularly mischievous kid from the day care, because he would constantly get into some sort of shenanigans or another.  My brother & I were talking about how mischievous he was, and one of us said, "this kid's like the embodiment of mischief."  Next thing you know, we had a new nickname (we never actually called him this to his face, but we all knew who we were talking about if it came up in conversation).
  
• "Little Lu"
  This one requires a tiny bit of background.  My sister has her own nickname, "Lu."  There is a coworker of mine that has many of the same mannerisms that my sister does, so the coworker reminded me of my sister.  I mentioned this fact to my brother once, and he immediately dubbed the coworker "Little Lu."  I protested that Little Lu was actually older than (regular) Lu, but I was reassured that since we've known Lu longer, she gets dibs on the name.  Essentially, Little Lu is Little Lu because she came second.  Frankly, I'm okay with this.
  
• "La Traviesa" ("The Mischief Maker" or "The Trouble Maker" in English)
  I had a random photo of a group of my friends lying around one day.  My mom saw it, and she inquired about who the people were.  I explained who they were, and as I was naming one of them, my mom immediately said she looked like a mischievous person.  I don't know what it was, exactly.  Maybe it was the smile, maybe it was the pose.  Either way, it cracked me up enough that a new moniker was born.
  
• "Bean"
  This one's actually not a nickname, it's my sister's cat's name.  However, I'm putting it on the list because it's close enough, and there's an amusing story of how she came up with the name.
  Sister: "This cat is really energetic, he's like a jumping bean"
  Me: "Call him Jumping Bean then"
  Sister: "Hm, I like it, but it's too long"
  Me: "Bean it is then."
  
  A good chuckle was had by all.
  
• "Naranjita Huando" ("Seedless Orange" in English)
  This one is by far my favorite.  In Peruvian slang, the word for seed, "pepa," is often used to refer to someone's face or facial features. To say that you don't have "pepa" translates to something like, "you're ugly."  The nickname is actually a type of seedless orange in Peru.
  
  The sheer creativity, plus the not-so-subtle dig at the person, make me crack up every time I hear this.  A cousin once removed of mine (an uncle, if you don't care for the formality) was once dubbed this; needless to say, his mom did not allow anyone to call him that in her presence.

I'll also add that meeting new people is always far more fun because there's the possibility that someone will get an awesome nickname as a result.  I'll just have to keep my fingers crossed for a few more good ones.