Mar10: Middle Name Pride Day

Summary: Middle Name Pride Day honors the seldom used middle name that often sets you apart from others. It was selected with care, so you should be proud of it.

Here's two big reasons to be proud of your middle name:

First, there are plenty of John Smiths and and Mary Jones. Its the middle name your parents gave you that makes your name unique. (unless they gave you Lee or Ann)

Second, your parents chose your middle name with great care. It often was selected to honor a friend or relative. That person may have possessed certain characteristics that they want you to inherit. (unless they gave you Lee or Ann)

Do you know why your were given your middle name? If not, todays the day to find out. If it was in honor of someone, find out a little more about that person.

We encourage you to enjoy your middle name on Middle Name Pride Day, and every day!

Note: Middle Name Pride Day is uniquely different from Name Yourself Day.

Synopsis: I have really struggled with how best to celebrate this amazing day. Part of my struggle was whether to celebrate it with the middle name I was given at birth, or the middle name I "chose" when I got married. I think I have decided to celebrate it by sharing 2 funny stories that occurred when I was in the process of changing my name.

Story 1: In the summer of 2004 I had been on vacation for a week or so and was confronted with a difficult customer on my first day back. It was a customer that I had not worked with previously, and I think I must have been in a "just back from vacation" happy mood because I really went out of my way to give her great service. I spent HOURS on my first day back hand-holding through how to use our document management system -- something I normally would have just sent her the documentation to figure out herself. She ended up calling one of the VPs and reporting that I had been very unhelpful! I was so upset!

The following spring I got married. Sometime afterwards I sent out an email to all users of the document management system. She ended up replying back to me and commenting on my (new) last name. She asked if I had family in Ecuador, and I responded that my husband had family in Ecuador. We ended up having a very nice email exchange, and I relished in the fact that she had no idea that I was the same person she had been so rude to the past summer. New name, new me!

Story 2: Post-wedding, I headed over to the Social Security office to get my name officially changed. I really had no idea what to expect from that whole process, so I was staring at the form and trying to determine what my ""new"" name would be. My mom was a 4-name person (ie. her original first middle last names + her married last name). I did not want 4 names. I settled on dropping my original middle name, and I am definitely happy with that decision. Not because I didn't like my original middle name (shout out on the queenb blog subtitle to it), but just because I am happy to have kept my maiden name in the mix. Anyhoo.... I was talking to my mom post-name-change and updating her on my trip to the social security office. The conversation went something like this:

Me: yeah, I just dropped my middle name
Mom: you didn't just drop your middle name
Me: yeah, I'm pretty sure I did. it's not there anymore
Mom: you can't just drop it
Me: no, I promise. It's no longer on my social security card. Isn't that like the official record or something?
Mom: *still not believing this is the current state*

I guess I just didn't really stop to think that she was probably flashing back on the hours that she and my dad had spent researching, arguing over, and coming to agreement on why I should be Queen B instead of Mary Ruth. I guess it was a little insensitive of me to just do away with all of that hard work. But I didn't want 4 names!"