Help us Name our Bus
We’ve now had our bus for a little over 3 months – but we have yet to come up with a name for her.
Our bus needs a name!
Well, I should say – we have several contenders, but none of them are quite “it”.
So it’s time to ask for your help.
A little background on the bus, and some of the ideas that we have been playing around with:
- The company who originally owned the bus in 1961, and who presumably she was in service to until she was converted, was Citizen Auto Stage.
- The family’s last name who lovingly converted her in 1989, and did a marvelous job on the woodwork that we love to much, was Purdy.
- She spent most of her life in Arizona, and we found her in the middle of monsoon season – we even went through a few monsoon storms with her.
- The temporary name we used to distinguish her from our other contender buses was Taxi Bus - as she had been purchased by the owner of a taxi company in Yuma, AZ who intended to resell her.
We’re looking for a name that conveys meaning, and we tend to be attracted to things more abstract. For instance, our Oliver Travel Trailer gained the name ‘Orion’ because the three LED ground effect lights looked like the constellation Orion’s belt from a distance.
For our bus, we want something that acknowledges her past and bridges her future as our TechnoCruiser (our friends Ben & Karen of CreativeCruiser have dubbed that her class – we like it). We want the name to convey personality, and the mission we’re on of inspiring and being inspired.
Our bus in the middle of a haboob in Phoenix.
Here are some of the names that we’ve played with that remain on our list:
- Cas / Casey / Cassie / Cassy – Playing with the initials of her first owner.
- Cassiopeia – Again playing with the CAS initials, and keeping the constellation theme. However, we don’t really like the extreme vanity behind the mythology.
- Haboob – One evening in Phoenix, after a long day of building a lithium battery bank, we parked the bus and a huge monsoon dust storm blew through – which is called a haboob. We both thought that could be a cool name, playing homage to her Arizona past. And, as our Camp Nomadia mates told us as we hit the playa – the bus kicks up a dust storm of its own!
- Iggy – My favorite character from the TV Show ’Taxi’, which Chris has never seen.
- Purdy – Cuz she’s a Purdy-bus.
- Uhura / Uhuru – She’s our communications officer, giving us a vehicle to spread inspiration and being inspired from. To boldly explore where no technomad has gone before. She gives us Freedom (what the name means). And the character on Star Trek was progressive for the early 1960s, as was the show in giving a vision for the future that this bus came from and is taking us into.
Would love to hear your thoughts on any of the above names.
And if you have suggestions, we’d especially love to hear them too!
Thank you!
70 Responses to Help us Name our Bus
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Welcome!
We're Cherie & Chris - two technomads. We've been traveling full time since 2006, exploring the intersection of travel, technology, career, community and nomadic serendipity.
Current Adventure: Roaming the USA in a vintage bus conversion.
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I like Purdy, when I read about the family that did the wood work it just seemed they gave the bus a new life.
In all honesty, Purdy is my favorite as well.
JIM (GM)
JIMAD
Jim Pickins
Old Blu
Silver Back
Iron Side
Barnby Blue
“Ester” OK that one sucked. But it is a fun name to say!
Oxi Clean or Billy Mayes? Its the blue stripe that I have stuck in my mind.
Miss. Madia
Mad Madia
TJ
MadiaDunVe
“Ardphy” (from your names Dunphy Ve Ard)
Ya! I like that “Ardphy”! but TJ is also a good name for a bus too!
Hmm.. never though of trying to combine our names like that. Ardphy is a pretty interesting combo!
You own a GM bus and work in software…
Why not “Golden Master”
Hmm.. except for the bus is aluminum (silver), and I’ve never produced a ‘golden master’ before in my niche of software development.
Thanks for trying
Sarah
Hi Bob… can you enlighten us to the meaning behind the name ‘Sarah’ ?
grand momma cass – or gm cass for short. Her initials are on the front of the bus. Must mean something cuz who would put those letters on the front of a vehicle? Right, only the cosmos! Dream a little dream of me.
Hi Ross –
A lot of folks have resonated with name.. clever, thanks!
I personally however, can’t resonate with the whole ‘momma’ thing. Must be the childfree-by-choice part of me.
SKYE: 1) she’s got a sky blue color, 2) the sky’s the limit!, 3) a play on Skype (technology).
The sky’s the limit, for sure!
The Goddess Mothers intals are already there in Chrome. That leaves little choice but to acknowledge the Gipsy Mule who pulls your home across the world at her own plodding pace, she must be Gina Marie reincarnated as a Grand Machine.
Actually.. it’s aluminum, not chrome
The GM is for ‘General Motors’, the company who made her.
Casper? Incorporating ‘Citizen Auto Stage Purdy Electronic-stuff Rain’? Plus, it looks like a ghost from the past.
I love Casper because of the Cas meaning and the per which could be that the bus purrs along smoothly and contains the way cool cat named Kikinator!
Hmm.. pretty cool.
Could add more meaning with Caspur? Pur for Purdy
My vote’s with Casper. It incorporates a little bit of all the history you are trying to encapsulate in the name.
kitchen cleaning services
What about Cassiomadia?
A constellation-like theme with Technomadia flare.
Check out Sarah´s recent awesome post .."Every individual matters. Every Individual has a role to play. Every individual…
Hmm… that does indeed have a nice ring to it. Thanks!
I really like the name Uhura. I think that’s awesome.
Check out Christine Gilbert´s recent awesome post ..There’s a Small Child In My Sink
I really love the multiple levels of geekiness of it. And I’m a trekkie girl to the core.
Unfortunately, I’m having trouble convincing Chris of perfection of the Uhura or Uhuru.. who has never the original series!! How did I end up with this guy???
Hacienda Tom…Its an Anagram of Technomadia…..Cheers Regards Empidog
Check out Steve Reynolds´s recent awesome post ..Fridays stuff and not a cycle in sight…..
How very cool Steve! Hadn’t thought of anagrams!
Now.. if ‘Tom’ had any significance to play off of. Hmm… our cat Kiki is named after ‘Kiki’s Delivery Service’. And the boy who pursued her was Tombo.
How bout Maximus Busimus…Max for short.
Love reading your stuff.
Hmm… except this bus is definitely female. Could go with Maxi, maybe. But in terms of buses and coaches, she’s actually kinda small at 35′ and 96″ wide.
Here are some ideas;
Tilli (Technology Inspired Lifes Love Innovation)
Bluto (Bus Lovers Ultimate Traveling Orgasm)
Hah.. I’d think we’d need a turbo engine installed to be a bus lover’s ultimate orgasm
My offering is:
TechNomad. or Nomad Blue.
I got your website indirectly from Dan VeArd’s wall pics. I knew him in Groton CT.’ ‘
I actually worked for him for a few months.
Thanks for the opportunity
Ken Perkins
How cool, Ken! Dan is my doggie daddy uncle!
Had a few ideas, but, “Casper the Techie Bus” best’s all of mine. Although Casper the Friendly Ghost was created in the late 30′s he was brought to television (emerging high tech at the time) in the late 50′s to early 60′s, about the time your bus was conceived. Plus, “CASPER” would look great on a license plate.
Bob
We’ve become quite fond of ‘Caspur’ over our day of driving
I really like GMama Cass.
Here are a few suggestions
1. Keeping with the constellation theme GrusGrus is a constellation in the southern sky. Its name is Latin for the crane, a species of bird. It was introduced in the late sixteenth century. (G)for GM (R) (US) bUS
2. GeMini
3. Genesis
Here are a few others.
1. Gertrude
2. Gus
3. Blue Moon
You got your ‘G’ on man
Really appreciate the research in to GrusGrus… pretty clever there!
You’re gonna chuckle about your suggestion for #2 soon, I tell ya.
How about “C C Ryder”, a play on the old Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels song from the ’60s, incorporating your first initials
But I think you should call your coach “Technomotion” Self-explanatory!
RJ
From Wikipedia: “The term “See See Rider” is usually taken as synonymous with “easy rider.” In particular, in blues songs it often refers to a woman who had liberal sexual views, had been married more than once, or was skilled at sex. ”
Uh-oh, RJ – you know me better than I thought
Chris clued me in! Hehehehe
I love the word “Sassanid” which is the name of the empire ruled by King Bahram V who was, probably, the inspiration for the “The Three Princes of Serendip”. Nothing to do with any of your suggestions.
We tend to live (in Cape York,Australia) in a serendipitous manner – and love the way you do the same.
Check out Seamus Campbell´s recent awesome post ..Road Conditions
Interesting.. gonna have to look up these three princes. We totally grok the serendipity. We thought about just naming her ‘Serendipity’ – but that would be too simple.
I was going to suggest Reverend Jim from Taxi but I like Iggy too. I also like Purdy and Haboob.
P.S. Show Chris the episode where Rev Jim gets his driver’s license.
What do you do at a yellow light?
Slow down.
What…do…you…do…at…a…yellow…light?
Oh I love Rev Jim.. and his character so embodies the spirit of our relic of the 60s bus.
And wouldn’t it be cool, Chris could call me ‘Latka’ as I’m fixing the engine?? Of course, he wouldn’t know he could.. as he’s not seen Taxi! Again, how did I end up with this guy… no Taxi, no STTOS???
I keep trying to incorporate the battery bank. But it’s late, and so far I gots nothing…
Check out Glenn Dixon´s recent awesome post ..Wyoming
We could call her our LiFePo!
ok, I’ve had 24 hours to ruminate. Unfortunately tonight I had a bottle of wine. BUT – I like the whole desert/monsoon/haboob idea too. But ‘haboob’ by itself just doesn’t work for me. So how about, maybe just ‘boo’ ?
Other ideas – Gemini XII (original ship in the pilot episode of Lost in Space)
Nautilus (incorporates awesome Jules Verne sub plus water theme)
OR – if you just HAVE to go with the Purdy thing, at least change the spelling – it has the added bonus of being cat-themed…
“Purrdy”
just sayin’
Check out Glenn Dixon´s recent awesome post ..Wyoming
Gregorio Montez, because his initials are on the front.
Check out Michael Robert Lockridge´s recent awesome post ..Farewell, Steve-
How about “PYT: Purdy Yuma Taxi” ?
rollin’ free
no cords
Otis
Purdy Blue Moon
Blue Moon
Blue Purdy
Love You Guys!!
I’m terrible at the naming game given that I named all my stuffed animals (and real animals) by their literal names as a kid (our duck was named “ducky” just to give you an example).
BUT I have to admit I like the ring Purdy has to it…kind of sounds like “puuretty” too which is a nice touch.
Nina
Check out Nina´s recent awesome post ..Plans Sculpted in Jello -> More Slide Woes in Eugene, OR
My vote: Gia Movent
mama cas or daisy would work
As mentioned before: “Technomotion”
Keeps with the Technomadia theme.
Enjoy the rally @ Choo-Choo!
Why not Citizen Purdy?
That’s an interesting one! We had considered Citizen Taxi before, but hadn’t thought of using Purdy in place. Hmmm.
Nicknames need to be able to roll of your tongue without much forethought. That’s what make them stick for me.
Of the mentions so far I am partial to..
1. Gus-Just a cool name
2. Gertrude-I’m old enough and Kentucky enough to remember ladies named Gertrude and I always ask shy little girls that won’t talk if their name is Gertrude.
3. Caspur-Cool
4. Boo-Really Cool
As a nod to the AZ heritage and the haboob what about Dusty? Or even Lefty?
Cause Dusty and Lefty would probably be technomads instead of cowboys if they lived today…
Davy
My pun-sense immediately switched Casper to Caspur, but that is too short and a little too “masculine” for a feminine bus. I think you should name her CCasspurr, spelled with two C’s at the beginning–but they should be back to back, as in your Technomadia logo. You’ll need to use some techno-graphic magic to make it right. Then you’ll have the history of the bus, the constellation theme, and Cherie and Chris and Kiki all snug inside.
Yeah.. as much as we like the Casper/Caspur intents, it’s just not calling us all the strongly. And I think a lot of it has to do with the masculine/feminine difference.
How about Yuma?
Check out JoAnna´s recent awesome post ..The Art of Negotiation
Unfortunately, we weren’t all the impressed with Yuma – especially not enough to name our home after it.
And besides, then everyone would call it ’3:10′ – a reference to a movie we’ve not even seen.
one more iteration, just because I like the way it sounds…
haboo
Check out Glenn Dixon´s recent awesome post ..Wyoming
How about a name from another Scifi show—Moya.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moya_%28Farscape%29#Moya
Don’t know if you guys watched Farscape, but I always loved the idea of a living ship that is also your home. If you named her Moya, I gues that would make Kiki either Pilot or Rygel. -)
I offer you PurrdieM – because
-you like ‘Purdy’; cat and bus
both purr; you are loving life
one day at a time; I suspect
you enjoy the evening (PM) more
than ‘butt crack of dawn’ (AM).
Best to you, Ingo
It should have a full name “Technomads Purdy Citi”. Purdy for short… Love the vintage bus.
Mark,
I think she looks like a Betty. The name reminds me of someone who would work in a roadside diner and wear a white and turquoise double-knit uniform and comfortable shoes.
Matilda
USB
Since you are tech nomads. Just my 2¢
Safe travels to you both.
Haha.. that’s very clever! Thanks!
After seeing the Nomadia license plate pictured in the video, I’m going to suggest “Madi” or Maddy.
let’s see you are Apple people, have a bus that floats down the road ( I used to drive for Greyhound and I remember) Apple + float = the IFloat