Why lalagma?

I once made a really rash decision to think I was madly in love with someone and run off to another country to pursue it. A lot of really good things came of that, but there were darker results as well (including hurting my then boyfriend, now husband). One of the upsides was meeting my friend Christopher, unabashedly British, thoroughly charming, and I don't think he would mind my saying this - plays for the other team. When the relationship imploded (if you could really call it that), Chris and I were fast friends for life. At any rate, he once commented that he liked my then e-mail name, which was assigned by the University as a first name, first initial, as many letters of your last name as space would allow = lalagma. I am sure I still have the letter somewhere, but I imagine it went something like this:

lalagma. what a wonderful name. It sounds exotic and delicious.
Like a lalagma cocktail, or perhaps a lalagma torte.

So, while kodamakitty is my current attempt at a life outside of my public persona as staid academic advisor, lalagma is a salute to the impetuous younger me.