Names

Just the other day I was talking to a few friends of mine online and, in the lull between random insults and ideas, we realized we had no idea what each others names were. At all. We had all used the screennames to direct an idea or sentence to each other. There was a small, awkward pause once the subject was breached, but we told each other and then went on - still using the internet handles.

This got me thinking - there's a lot to a name. It's beyond just how it sounds or if it's feminine of masculine or how to spell it. There's a whole identity attached to it. This is especially true of someone you've never met in person, someone you can't identify by the color of their eyes or the shape of their face. Sometimes a name is all you have for yourself. This marker, though not unique on its own, is unique to a specific person that claims that identity. How many Mikes do you know versus how many Mikes were the bane of your third grade class? It's all a matter of perspective and preference, not only of your connotation by the personality and life behind that name.