Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

The Name Game

People that have normal names, with weird spellings.

I sent an email to my moms cousin Karyn. She was surprised I spelled her name correctly. It then reminded me of a party I wrote about years ago. The woman was dating a guy from MTVs Jackass. And, when I wrote about “Karen’s” party, she was livid. She said, “I was going to save this article. But, nobody will believe you were talking about me.”

Her name was spelled Caryne.

I say, if your parents named you something like that, give your dad a swift kick to the groin. He deserves it. Either that, or get used to incorrect spellings and mispronunciations. I’ve been called Borg. I’ve been spelled Bord, Bored, and won’t even get into the “is your brother named Surf?” type of jokes I endured thru school.

Remember how Steve Martin looked at Sarah Jessica Parker in L.A. Story, when she said her name was Sandy, but it was spelled with a lower-case S, capital “n” and three e’s at the end of it?

I remember hearing a troop leader, when my brother was in cub scouts, say “seen” for the name Sean. I remember a P.E. teacher in 9th grade calling a girl named “Lemieux,” by pronouncing the “x” in that French name. Okay, those adults were idiots.

But, if your name is Michael, and your mom spelled it “Mykoal,” well, your family’s fault, not society.

I remember as a teenager, reading a story about that short basketball player Spud Webb. His mom was asked if she was a potato lover. She didn’t understand the question at first. She then said, “Oh no, I named him after that satellite, spudnick.” It didn’t say whether the reporter told her the Russian satellite was Sputnik.

And we wonder why these shows like “Are you Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” work.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

The vicious cycle of Escondido's abandoned buildings

City staff blames owners for raising rents

I sent an email to my moms cousin Karyn. She was surprised I spelled her name correctly. It then reminded me of a party I wrote about years ago. The woman was dating a guy from MTVs Jackass. And, when I wrote about “Karen’s” party, she was livid. She said, “I was going to save this article. But, nobody will believe you were talking about me.”

Her name was spelled Caryne.

I say, if your parents named you something like that, give your dad a swift kick to the groin. He deserves it. Either that, or get used to incorrect spellings and mispronunciations. I’ve been called Borg. I’ve been spelled Bord, Bored, and won’t even get into the “is your brother named Surf?” type of jokes I endured thru school.

Remember how Steve Martin looked at Sarah Jessica Parker in L.A. Story, when she said her name was Sandy, but it was spelled with a lower-case S, capital “n” and three e’s at the end of it?

I remember hearing a troop leader, when my brother was in cub scouts, say “seen” for the name Sean. I remember a P.E. teacher in 9th grade calling a girl named “Lemieux,” by pronouncing the “x” in that French name. Okay, those adults were idiots.

But, if your name is Michael, and your mom spelled it “Mykoal,” well, your family’s fault, not society.

I remember as a teenager, reading a story about that short basketball player Spud Webb. His mom was asked if she was a potato lover. She didn’t understand the question at first. She then said, “Oh no, I named him after that satellite, spudnick.” It didn’t say whether the reporter told her the Russian satellite was Sputnik.

And we wonder why these shows like “Are you Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” work.

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Escorts & Engagements

Next Article

Prank Queen

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader