1/15/2011 - going by a different name. . .

I never had a nickname growing up.

OK, that's not exactly true.  My parents never called me by my full Chinese name; instead, they called me "Bao bao," roughly translated to "precious one."  A nickname for sure, but not exactly something I would ask my friends to call me.

I always wished I could get one though, have friends know me by something other than my actual name.  But by the time I realized I wanted one, it was too late.  I was already Austin.  It was the name teachers called me, the one classmates used to tease me: "Austin Boston" and "Austin Texas" were staples growing up.  It bothered me and was annoying, but on hindsight, it wasn't offensive or even creative in any way.

(Sidenote: I knew a guy in college named Halsey, and he said that growing up, kids would call him "Cerebral Halsey."  That's creativity.)

To my knowledge, there is no formal shortening for Austin, no "Joe for Joseph" equivalent.  It's awkward to even informally shorten my name, like Kev for Kevin, Jase for Jason.  Aus?  Aust?  Tin?  Maybe if I had embraced the teasing as a kid, I would now be known as Tex.  I guess that might be pretty cool.

Allen inexplicably calls me "Austie Spumonti" sometimes, and it makes me feel like I am six years old.  It feels strangely nice actually, but seems like something of a consolation prize for not having a more accessible nickname.  

As an adult, I am fine with Austin, appreciate the forethought my parents had to give me a name in the 80s whose popularity peaked in the 90s.  I even like hearing it now, when my boss talks about me during meetings, when Sam calls for me from downstairs to help him with something, when I give it to hostesses at restaurants.  It's never confused with any other name.  Well, except the guy I once met in Chinese school who thought my name was Oscar, or the regular who used to come to Max's Opera Cafe weekly and call me Shawn; I never had the courage to correct either of them.  OK, so maybe it does get confused with other names, but I certainly don't think I've ever been confused with any other Austin.

And what is the point of all this?  Why am I bringing this up now?  Because I have just spent an hour and gone back to anonymize most of the other names in this blog but my own (Halsey stays).  I even considered going by a different name myself, but I couldn't imagine seeing a different name as the author of this blog.  And even though it's not like I am doling out personal information and social security numbers, and who knows if anyone even cares, I figure that if I put this much thought into my name and the weight of it in my life, others may have too, and I should handle theirs with care and discretion wherever possible.