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3catwoman3

(29,727 posts)

10. My first name is Martha, and I've never liked it.

Mon May 4, 2026, 12:15 PM

Monday

I seldom see it used in any flattering way in books, television shows, or movies. If an unpleasant character is needed, Martha seems to be a go to choice.

The worst case of this I ever saw was way back in the early 1970s when I was in nursing school. I was in the medical library of the University of Rochester, and saw an ad for the stool softener Colace on the back cover of a medical journal. It featured a very cranky looking old lady (think Ruth Buzzi's character from Laugh In) sitting on a high, 4-legged wooden stool, with a ferocious scowl on her face.

It read - For A BM in the PM, give Aunt Martha Colace in the AM. SERIOUSLY?!

It was awful. Couldn't it have been Aunt Bertha? Or Aunt Beulah? Or Aunt Brunhilde?

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