Choosing a name

[Selene Gregoire]

This account was named after Selene of Underwearworld with the last name having an "old world" Romanian sound to it. At the time, I had no idea the governor of Oregon's last name was the same. No, I'm not related to him so stop asking!

My modeling account was named after the main character in the Kushiel series, Phedre with the last name that just seemed to fit so well, Lefevre.

My other accounts? If I told you, I would have to kill you. No one, other than myself, knows who they are. Not even my real life other half of almost 20 years knows the names of those accounts.

[Fritigern Gothly]

When I responded yesterday, I didn't realize that the question was about DISPLAY NAMES. 

For years upon years, I refused to set a display name, my name was Fritigern Gothly and that was it.

That is until I decided to have some fun and use "Nonaya B. Zwax" as a display name (pronounce that name a few times, and you will get it 🙂 )

Nowadays my display name is "Payne N. Uranus" (again, say it and you will get it 🙂 ) but I am considering changing it again so something else funny.

 

Note that I let people choose whether to call me Fritigern/Friti or Payne (or whichever display name I use at the time).

Edited May 5, 2019 by Fritigern Gothly

[Maitimo]

I'm one of the old-timers with a last name taken from a list as previously described. However, I don't like it much (I only picked it because it was the best of a bad bunch that begins with the same letter as my RL last name) so my display name is simply my first name only.

And Matty is not short for Matthew, it's actually from Maitimo, aka Maedhros, who is my favourite character from Tolkien's legendarium.

[Madelaine McMasters]

3 hours ago, Rolig Loon said:

My part of the world is lousy with loons.

As is mine, but that doesn't stop me from yelling "loon!" whenever I hear one (or greet you in-world) because so few of my friends know that's what they're hearing. Similarly, they think the racket rising from the marsh in April comes from crickets. Though they've lived next to them all their lives, they've never heard of spring peepers (for which I yell "peepers!"). And whenever I see the moon, I point at it and yell "moon!".

Had it been available I probably have considered "Loon" briefly for appropriateness before skipping it because I'm too fond of my RL initials of "MMM". The surname for my first tour of SL was "Marbach" to reflect my German heritage (Dad's side). Now I'm a McMasters to honor my Irish heritage, and because there was no McMistress. Finally, Maddy is my RL nickname. I'm also lazy and don't fancy learning a new name to respond to.

ETA: Many years ago, a good RL friend of mine named her dog Margaret, with the nickname Maggy. I thought that a foolish idea for two reasons. First, it's just more confusion for the dog to have two names. Second, it's even more confusion to visit her home and think she's calling me for treats. I never should have complained about the name, though. After Margaret passed away, she got a new puppy, and named it "Madeline".

There really are times I want to set people on fire in RL.

Edited May 5, 2019 by Madelaine McMasters

[Rolig Loon]

9 minutes ago, Madelaine McMasters said:

3 hours ago, Rolig Loon said:

My part of the world is lousy with loons.

As is mine, but that doesn't stop me from yelling "loon!" whenever I hear one (or greet you in-world) because so few of my friends know that's what they're hearing. Similarly, they think the racket rising from the marsh in April comes from crickets. Though they've lived next to them all their lives, they've never heard of spring peepers (for which I yell "peepers!"). And whenever I see the moon, I point at it and yell "moon!".

I am told that this is a viable technique for learning new words in another language.  You see an object or experience a sensation and verbalize its name to cement it in your mind.  Frankly, I think that's likely to land you in the loony bin if you do it often.  Walking down the street and muttering "lamp post!", "dog poo!" or "aroused!" is not a good way to make friends, at least not the sort of friends you want to know well. 

My grandmother tried a different version of the technique to ward off Alzheimer's, though. Instead of saying the names of things out loud, she would write them on sticky notes and apply labels around the house.  Then she could spot a note and think, "Oh yes, that's a flower pot."  Sadly, the technique did not keep Alzheimer's at bay, but it kept my Grandfather entertained.

[Selene Gregoire]

1 hour ago, Madelaine McMasters said:

As is mine, but that doesn't stop me from yelling "loon!" whenever I hear one (or greet you in-world) because so few of my friends know that's what they're hearing. Similarly, they think the racket rising from the marsh in April comes from crickets. Though they've lived next to them all their lives, they've never heard of spring peepers (for which I yell "peepers!"). And whenever I see the moon, I point at it and yell "moon!".

 Crickets don't sound anything like loons. Closest to a loon I can think of would be a whip-poor-will and that would be really stretching it.

 

Do you point at the screen in a movie theatre when you see an explosion and yell fire? 👼

Edited May 5, 2019 by Selene Gregoire

[Madelaine McMasters]

1 minute ago, Rolig Loon said:

I am told that this is a viable technique for learning new words in another language.  You see an object or experience a sensation and verbalize its name to cement it in your mind.  Frankly, I think that's likely to land you in the loony bin if you do it often.  Walking down the street and muttering "lamp post!", "dog poo!" or "aroused!" is not a good way to make friends, at least not the sort of friends you want to know well. 

My grandmother tried a different version of the technique to ward off Alzheimer's, though. Instead of saying the names of things out loud, she would write them on sticky notes and apply labels around the house.  Then she could spot a note and think, "Oh yes, that's a flower pot."  Sadly, the technique did not keep Alzheimer's at bay, but it kept my Grandfather entertained.

Well, I don't do it to remind myself what things are called (yet). I do it because so few people notice these things. I'll call out almost anything unusual I see/hear when out in public with friends. I recently pointed 22° left of the Sun and yelled "Sun Dog!", which thoroughly confused my neighbor. She was busily scanning the horizon for some kind of animal.

[Madelaine McMasters]

1 minute ago, Selene Gregoire said:

 Crickets don't sound anything like loons. Closest to a loon I can think of would be a whip-poor-will and that would be really stretching it.

The marsh racket I was referring to was from spring peepers, which the uninitiated think must be crickets, if they notice the racket at all.

3 minutes ago, Selene Gregoire said:

Do you point at the screen in a movie theatre when you see an explosion and yell fire? 👼

No, but when I was young and we watched movies in our barn during warm summer evenings, I would sometimes get shushed for anticipating dialog or plot twists.

[Selene Gregoire]

1 hour ago, Madelaine McMasters said:

I would sometimes get shushed for anticipating dialog or plot twists.

They only do that because they are jealous we are correct 99 times out of 100.

[Madelaine McMasters]

6 hours ago, Selene Gregoire said:

They only do that because they are jealous we are correct 99 times out of 100.

I don't think I ever achieved that level of accuracy, but I did have an annoying (to others) ability to blurt out alternative dialog and plot ideas that (if you believe those others) ruined the movies. Mom could never remember what we watched so she was immune, and I was cut from the same cloth as Dad, so he didn't mind. But, I've got friends who still claim that some old movie is now unwatchable because they can't shake the absurd hidden plot line I lodged in their brains like an ear worm. I argue in return that nature abhors a vacuum and, implausible as my plot lines might be, they are better than the vast emptiness of the originals.

[Selene Gregoire]

1 hour ago, Madelaine McMasters said:

I don't think I ever achieved that level of accuracy, but I did have an annoying (to others) ability to blurt out alternative dialog and plot ideas that (if you believe those others) ruined the movies. Mom could never remember what we watched so she was immune, and I was cut from the same cloth as Dad, so he didn't mind. But, I've got friends who still claim that some old movie is now unwatchable because they can't shake the absurd hidden plot line I lodged in their brains like an ear worm. I argue in return that nature abhors a vacuum and, implausible as my plot lines might be, they are better than the vast emptiness of the originals.

I did it because it was one of the few things I could do to annoy the heck out of my annoying brothers. I was the only girl, the youngest and a neighborhood with only boys. Oldest brother bullied me daily (to the point of leaving a lump in my arm) and other brother did his best to avoid my existence so oldest brother wouldn't bully him about it thus turning him into a bully. It bugged the crap out of them that I am more intelligent.

[Madelaine McMasters]

1 minute ago, Selene Gregoire said:

I did it because it was one of the few things I could do to annoy the heck out of my annoying brothers. I was the only girl, the youngest and a neighborhood with only boys. Oldest brother bullied me daily (to the point of leaving a lump in my arm) and other brother did his best to avoid my existence so oldest brother wouldn't bully him about it thus turning him into a bully. It bugged the crap out of them that I am more intelligent.

I had a wonderful childhood as an only, so my inclination to annoy people must stem from some deep seated inner evil.

(I'm too lazy to log in as Snugs to make that observation.)

[Selene Gregoire]

1 hour ago, Madelaine McMasters said:

I had a wonderful childhood as an only, so my inclination to annoy people must stem from some deep seated inner evil.

(I'm too lazy to log in as Snugs to make that observation.)

Both my parents were onlys/onlies. I wish I had been.

Evil? Nah. Dark place maybe, but not evil.

[Rolig Loon]

1 minute ago, Madelaine McMasters said:

I had a wonderful childhood as an only, so my inclination to annoy people must stem from some deep seated inner evil.

You work with the talents you are given.  Embrace your inner evil one.

[Mollymews]

for your first display name I suggest you go with Molly.  It is the name you chose when you started and whatever reason you had for that, still holds

and Molly is the best name ever

[Parhelion Palou]

6 hours ago, Madelaine McMasters said:

I recently pointed 22° left of the Sun and yelled "Sun Dog!"

You rang? My first alt's first name is Sundog, by the way. I was too lazy to come up with something original.

[Madelaine McMasters]

4 minutes ago, Mollymews said:

Molly is the best name ever

I'm not going to disagree...

 

[Maryanne Solo]

<-> Guess who?!  

I didn't really know pink polka dot/brunette nooby "me" would become "me" in the full context of SL. I came here to make clothes after all.

Last name Solo? I wasn't at the time, say no more. Display name now: Aveline Echraide and there are not enough spare alphabet characters left to delve into that one 8^) (historical/traditional/mythological rah rah rah).

 

[Roxy Couturier]

On 5/5/2019 at 3:30 AM, RaeLeeH said:

Those who lived through pre-mesh and bling and flexi and painted on pink polka dot dresses, and still managed to stick it out to this day.

If you look at those items and clothing with a historical eye, those painted on texture / flexi / sculpty clothing, hair shoes etc.. were a big step above Avatars of contemporary online games and even single player ones too. Even with a freebie skin and hair, I loved the level of detail and customization. It was something I commented on to the friends I'd left behind in those games. With the advent of mesh I think SL has kept it's edge in that regard.

On topic, I chose Roxy because it was the secret identity name of one of my favorite City of Heroes characters, Poprocks (an Earth/Bubbles controller for those who want to know). The last name began with a 'C' and Couturier was close enough and I liked the sound of it.

It was much later on that I found out different sign-up portals had different lists of last names available.

Molly, go with whatever name you like for a display name. If it turns out problematic, you can always change it to something else in a week. (Is it still a week? I've only changed one accounts name and have never changed it since.)

[Sasy Scarborough]

I had been Sassy before and thankfully SL did not let me have that extra s after the as, it was a moment in time when they were more censor minded. I am glad of that though now, and Scarborough just because I liked the two S's, both me and my bestie are Alliterative. Growing up there was a charm S just randomly in our belongings, I thought it was something to do with my middle name, now it was just meant to be  

[MoiraKathleen]

I just used two names that I thought sounded nice together.  I wasn't really concerned about not having a last name. 

[CheriColette]

20 hours ago, Maryanne Solo said:

<-> Guess who?!  

I didn't really know pink polka dot/brunette nooby "me" would become "me" in the full context of SL. I came here to make clothes after all.

Last name Solo? I wasn't at the time, say no more. Display name now: Aveline Echraide and there are not enough spare alphabet characters left to delve into that one 8^) (historical/traditional/mythological rah rah rah).

 

 

Maryanne Solo is more memorable. I wouldnt remember Aveline Echraide even if I could spell it!

[CheriColette]

3 hours ago, moirakathleen said:

I just used two names that I thought sounded nice together.  I wasn't really concerned about not having a last name. 

I want just one name too...dropping the 'resident' one. But thats not an option.

[MoiraKathleen]

1 hour ago, CheriColette said:

I want just one name too...dropping the 'resident' one. But thats not an option.

True.  However, because I rarely have to ever type the "resident" part, I rarely think about it being there.

[Halo Minoptra]

Yeah, I wouldn't use my real name or even something remotely similar.