Tuesday, November 30, 2010

That's Not My Name

I used to hate my name. Only for the fact that I could never find anything with my name on it. It was such a bummer to see all of those personalized kitschy things, but none of them had my way of spelling. As I got older I grew to love the spelling of my name. It's unique. It's fun. I'm not the only one, don't get me wrong. There are a lot more ladies out there that spell their name the same way.

At this point I really don't get upset when service repair people come to the house and start filling out the invoice with the wrong spelling of my name. I just think to myself, "Ah. I may never see them again. Who cares. It'll take longer to correct the mistake than to just get the guy outta here".

But when people that I've known for several years still misspell my name, it irks me, to almost no end. I know some people would say, "Get over it", but it just bothers me through and through. My name is spelled out in one of my e-mail addresses. I sign pretty much all of my emails that need it. If I can keep up with how your name is spelled with an "ie" at the end how hard is it to remember that mine has "ee"?

I know we all have a lot of things on our minds at all times, but it's a simple little gesture. Possibly even a gesture that you care. Even if you don't care, spell my name right. I deserve that much in my forty plus years.

P.S. When I say L-E-E-S-A, why do you hear, Lessa, Leisa, or just Lisa?????









3 comments:

  1. Okay, I've just found your blog, and I had to comment on this piece as well. I know your pain. I too have a name I could never find a bike licence plate for. Everyone used to spell it right, until the T.V. show "Dynasty" and it's main character, Kristle Carrington. Since then, my life has been hell. On the phone to make an appointment: "Crystal. Is that with a 'k' or a 'ch.' It's all I can do not to shout, "It's C-R-Y-S-T-A-L, you know, like God intended!" I was even asked in a job interview once, "Is that your real name, or did you just change it because of Dynasty?" Seriously. Then I got married to a man by the sir name Kelley with an "ey." Now I have to spell both my names. To everyone. Like I said. I feel your pain.

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  2. Thank you for the kind words, Crystal!

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  3. My first name is Dianna - that's with 2 Ns and an A, thank you very much! :-) One of my sisters is named Rebekah, which she always has to spell for people. My other sister is named Nina, pronounced Nine-ah, not Nee-nah. We all hated our names growing up for the same reasons as you did, but now we find them very unique and kind of cool. Still, this is the main reason I gave my kids names that I thought everyone knows how to spell correctly. But let me tell you, there are lots of people out there that spell Samuel like Sammuel or Samuell and spell Isaac like Issac or Issacc.

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