Explore More of YOU: The Animal in You - episode 131
After some more serious exploration, we thought it would be fun to look at a popular personality test called The Animal in You https://animalinyou.com. Playful, whimsical and with just 10 questions, it is an easy assessment to do. The results yield the selection of an animal, the animal in you. Get it? There are 50 possibilities and of course they all have particular characteristics. Over 22 million people have taken it.
As you can tell we enjoyed our conversation. While I don’t see myself as an eagle, with all the daring, risky outdoor activities, I did like being described as having “an infectious joie de vivre.” I do see Hillary as an otter stated as small, fun-loving and communicative. And finicky? Nope, I’d say discerning. There’s a difference.
Which animal are you?
At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and what you want.
— Lao Tzu
What’s in a Name?
Thoughts from Explore More of YOU: The Animal in You
It’s been a pleasure taking these tests, learning more about myself, more about Hillary, sharing and comparing notes. There are a lot of ways to characterize who we each are. Some feel close to home while others feel a bit more mysterious or even downright incorrect. (No matter what they cannot fully flesh out the complexity and depth of the individual.)
Another thing that is ours is our name. The first, the last, the middle. (Some don’t have a middle, I’m aware.) I always liked my first name due to its unique sound and spelling. The first name goes well with the middle name, Renae. Again unique spelling. This was my grandmother’s idea. Not sure why she chose that spelling, I think it had something to do with a character in a book she was reading. She gave it to my mother. My mom gave it to me. I gave it to my daughter. Three generations of the same middle name, same spelling. I like that.
When it comes to the last name, typically it’s given through the father’s side. Conde. Before writing, this is what I knew. It means “count” as in a title of royalty. I can assure you we know nothing of any nobility in the family line. The other things I knew of with the Conde name: a place in Brazil, a street in our ‘old town,’ and Conde-Nast (no relation) a mass media company.
Further research brought these findings for the name Conde.
A title of Spanish/Portuguese/Galician nobility, in English “Count” or “Earl,” female “Condesa”
“County” or territories associated with the title
France has 26 places and it’s a personal name
French dictionary definition - ‘permission granted by an authority’
A town in Paraiba, Brazil
A settlement in north-west coast of Portugal
In tagalong (Filipino) it means ‘kind to everything’
Keep in mind this was not a deep dive, rather a precursory look into the name. I knew about the nobility part but not to the extent I found here. All the places in France? No, no idea. The two different meanings depending on the county? Not that either. That’s what I think is fascinating about exploring more of what makes you, you. I’m learning right alongside each listener who wants to understand the different parts of who they are. I think it matters because you matter.
I went to a high school reunion a couple of weeks ago and a classmate wrote to me afterward. He wanted to share this photo he took when he recently visited New Orleans, Louisiana. Since it bears our family name he figured I’d be interested. He was right. Now I’m sharing it with you.
We all carry inside us, people who came before us.
— Liam Callanan
