It's not easy to stand out in a world populated with over 6 billion homo escapeons. We're stuck with our given name throughout our lives and most of us were at the mercy of our parents when that happened.
I was born in the 50s when everybody named their kids Debbie, Ricky, Johnny, Cindy, Davey, Kathy, Marky, Billy, Mary and Donny.
My Mom actually spelled it Donnie.
When I was in college I had the bright idea to drop the "ie". Having grown up alongside Donny Osmond I was sick of it. To make matters worse my surname, Coppens, rhymed with Poppins!
So from that day forth, I would just be Donn.
Nowadays $ellebrities or human "brands" demand instant recognition by having an uber-unimoniker like Cher, Madonna, or Donn.
Nowadays $ellebrities or human "brands" demand instant recognition by having an uber-unimoniker like Cher, Madonna, or Donn.
Anyone notice my apparent predilection for these?
Now there are only a handful of people with my surname on this side of the pond. I've been busy collecting other Coppens on Facebook and most of them are still in Europe. They all have cool "euro" names.
Now there are only a handful of people with my surname on this side of the pond. I've been busy collecting other Coppens on Facebook and most of them are still in Europe. They all have cool "euro" names.
So when I google mons nom, I still expect to see something related to moi.
Imagine my surprise when I did a quick check yesterday...OOPS
*Don't forget the presumption of innocence until proven guilty in a court of Law thingamabob..
Bear in mind that I'm much younger and prolly look completely different than the other Donn Coppens.
This sort of thing is bound to happen to all of us as the Interwebs eventually connect all the dots. I also thought that my blog title was quite original until I found this clever fellow .
Have any of you ever encountered a similar incident and proceeded to add another consonant or change your name completely?
My goodness Donnie you have an uncanny resemblance to the great Tom Jones
ReplyDeleteSarah: Shall we throw our panties at him?
ReplyDeleteDude, you have no idea what name hell is like.I will have to e-mail you the attrocities, as the interweb is no place for such horrors...lol...
ReplyDeleteHe OBVIOUSLY ripped you off, dude!
ReplyDelete"Uber-unimonikers" is just brilliant.
ReplyDeleteI ended up with one of those 50's/60's names, and I loathed it the entire time I was growing up. It conjured up images of beach bunnies, blondes in bikinis, etc. I officially changed it many years ago. Unfortunately, now that I'm living with my parents again at almost-40, they refuse to address me by the name I chose.
ReplyDeleteI had searched for "Fat Sparrow" a while back, and not much pops up, so I think I did okay. "Blogito Ergo Sum" was taken, so "Fat Sparrow" it was. Although some Chinese bint got "Fat Sparrow" on Facebook when they did the whole name+addy thing, and they wouldn't let me join as "Fat" so I had to be "Fata." Some dumb rule about only real people, or something like that. Right, like that's really Matt Damon on Facebook.
I know a white guy, aged 30 and not a guitarist, who legally changed his name to 'Jimi' as a Jimi Hendrix tribute. I am a Hendrix fan, but I think that's pretty fucking lame.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't born in the '50s (12 days into the '60s - ha!) but my name was still unusual in my generation. That changed in the '80s when every second rug rat with a scrunchy in her hair was named Andrea it seemed. Meanwhile, it seems to have faded away again. *I* wanted to be a Debbie. Anyway, on the subject of names: http://didrooglie.blogspot.com/2007/01/other-me.html
ReplyDeletePS My dad is also a Donny.
i always thought you were shady.
ReplyDeletei love you, donn coppens. still.
despite.
I once googled Leni Qinan. There were a few Lenis and a few Qinans too, but I'm the only Leni Qinan in the net, for the moment.
ReplyDeleteBut the other day I went shopping in my neighbourhood and I saw this shop with a neon sign that said "LENI-2". They print works there. At least I went back home thinking I'm still LENI-1, hahaha.
well not that I know!LOL
ReplyDeleteCool pic!hehe!And nothing to worry about that guy,your blog is unique!:)
It's these buggers hiding behind aliases that really piss me off.
ReplyDeleteHa! That's funny about the cons who share your name! I have a cousin named Job--the biblical character, not the synonym for occupation. Can you imagine the hell he went through?
ReplyDeleteI've googled my given name, and found a few interesting people--some scientists, an editor, and a statesman. When I googled my blog identity, I found various gamers, artists, and some sites for swingers and sex clubs! And I did find some of my posts on sites I never really posted on, but at least they gave me credit, so can't really complain.
The bow tie chart is good info, as I've used a clip on bow tie (the kind with the strap that goes all around the neck. I do know how to tie a regular though).
My parents had the bright idea of taking a perfectly normal name and dropping a letter from it - my name is Stacy, not Stacey. I'm constantly having to tell people, "No E." To avoid confusion, as you've no doubt noticed, I generally go by Stace :)
ReplyDeleteThere are other I Don't Do Mornings sites, but they all sell night wear..perhaps I could start up my own range of lingeri, ,lol..well, If Kylie Minogue can then surely..I could right?
ReplyDeleteSARAH
ReplyDeleteWhat's new pussycat!
whoa-o-wo-woa!
MJ
Keep 'em coming :)
XMICHRA
HAHAHA!
I feel your pain..and you are right,
I did get off easy.
THE Michael
Poor guy..thank goodness I live in another country. It is weird though because I wasn't a John Smith and nobody could ever figure out what "kind" of name I had.
Is that British?
LEAH
Oh thank you..I'm always searching for a catchpherase that will go viral and enter the lexicon. I want to be able to say "Hey I made that up where are my royalties?"
FAT SPARROW
Oooh the Rents are always the last to be "hip" to our wishes. Hard to retrain them.
It is annoying when someone else steals your "perfect" name..that creative collection of characters that is all encompassing and encapsulates your very being...wasted on some wanker!
Blogito Ergo Sum...:)
ALLAN
I concur whole heartidly.
A 30 year old white dude who doesn't play guitar should NOT be a Jimi. That is totally f*cking lame-o supremo!
ANDRAYAH
HA!
OMG! AHNdrayAH! is the ultimate valley Girl Name! Moon Unit used that in Valley Girl.
I'm sorry for using that on you all these years but I can't help myself :)
TUTI
You are a Peach. I really don't deserve your compassion and understanding but my lawyers have advised me to use it as a character reference.
LENI
There is onle ONE Leni and you're it! I'm prolly mispronouncing it though..is it Leenay or Lehnee..and I don't know where to begin with Kweenan? Am I warm?
CANDIE
I have discussed that Insapiens fellow before..a few years ago when I was just starting out. Fortunately my blog predates his by a few months but the similarities are inescapable...and he got a book out fast!
I read his stuff and he was excellent..I wonder where he is at now? I'd love to meet him.
We'd get along famously.
SCURRILOUS VICUNA
Indeedy-doo! Ab-so-f*cking-lutely.
What are they so afraid of?
MR SWINGS
All I can hear is the Sha-Na-Na remake of
Get a JOAB
shananana-na-na-na-na-na
Get a JOAB
shananana-na-na-na-na-na
It's nice that your "borrower" gave you credit for your writing. I should check up on my little thief and see if she is still "borrowing" my joints?
STACEY..I mean STACY
My wife is a teacher and she always tells me when she gets a new student whose parents have saddled their kid with some "creative" version of a classic name...or how many have the same "groovy trendy" name in her class.
Each decade has a list and you can tell when people were born by their names...here anyway.
CAZZIE
Cool. Personally I think that all Lingerie should be made with velcro because it gets torn off within seconds anyway
OOps I mean No..you want the the object of your desire to "linger" in her seductive sensual silkiness for hours..pffft!
Why don't they make lingerie for men? HAHAHAHAHA
I go by "Heff" to break free of the crowd. That pesky Hugh M. Hefner DOES get alot of my much deserved recognition though. Old Bastard.
ReplyDeleteHEFF
ReplyDeleteI wonder what the other Heff did in his previous life to deserve his Life?
Not that I particularily adhere to the theory of reincarnation but just in case it is true..
I'd sure like to know?
I was born with the name Ennis bottomshagger I soon changed it to John.
ReplyDeleteAccording to www.howmanyofme.com, there are 9,221 people in the U.S. with the first name Donn.
ReplyDeleteStatistically the 1951st most popular first name.
More than 99.9 percent of people with the first name Donn are male.
Link is here.
Woah... so thats not you then eh? You haven't been sleepwalking?
ReplyDeleteOLD KNUDEY
ReplyDeleteI completely understand, John is a lovely name..I mean a MANly name.
My cousin Wenis McDimschitz finally worked up the courage to become Dickie McDimschitz...
changed his life Man.
MJ
I love stats!
These US figures mean, statistically speaking, that exactly 1/10th will occur here in Canuckistan:
so, 9.2 guys named Donn and 9.9% of them will be dudes.
Cool. I love Maths.
ANGEL
That would be long way to schlafgehen and solicit funds from people. No it wasn't me..well it was ME but not really me.
I hear you... Working in the public schools for 23 years was more than enough to disclose the trend aspect of naming kids. Toward the end there was this Kaitlyn/Kayla/Kayleigh/Kaylyn/Caitlala phase that I was getting really really tired of because there was one too many in my school and I was SO confused.
ReplyDeleteMy apologies to all personages so-named...
Can you believe it?! After all this, that dumb bint Nicole Richie had the cojones to name her kid "Sparrow." And he's a boy, even. I hope he gets the crap kicked out of him at school.
ReplyDeleteCan I call you "Homo" for short?
ReplyDeleteMy name is very unusual. Googled it and found one man with the same name, in Germany, in Europe. He has the profession I always wanted. He's a blacksmith.
ReplyDeleteum, no. absolutely not one other creature on the planet with my moniker. i dare ya. google the dang thang.
ReplyDeleteblows really to have no doppleganger
corollary: my parents blow, really
ReplyDelete