Please Don't Call Me That

When I met my husband and knew that I was falling in love with him I asked he what his last name was. I was a bit apprehensive after spending most of my life with a last name which no one could pronounce even though it was phonetic-Chumchal (Chum-chall).

I was elated when he told me it was, “vye-no” and assumed the spelling to be vyno (rhymes with rhino). I then asked him how it was spelled so that I could write down his necessary information in my address book. When the letters, “V-U-J-N-O-V” spilled from his lips I was confused.

He went into a detailed story on how it got changes, pronounced differently and so on while I listened. A crazy last name wasn’t going to stop me from falling in love.

After 16 years of holding on to a last name which no one can pronounce correctly not only am I jealous of the last names, Jones, Markley, Downs, and Helms which are simple and phonetic, I am thrilled when I run across other names which seem impossible.

I recently read an article written by, Ligaya Figueras okay, so at least “Linda” is easy. There are plenty of difficult pronouncing last names as well as difficult first names I am sure.

I know that I am not the only person in the world who receives phone calls and the person on the other line butchers their last name, and I’m sure that if I had a simple last name, I would blend in with the thousands of other “Linda Brown’s”

For now, I will enjoy the uniqueness of my last name, and pray that when I win an Academy Award, the cue card for the announcers reads, “Vine-oh”

Comments

Sarah Markley said…
Chad always asks me how Vine-oh the Wine-oh is doing...hee hee.
Erin said…
my last name (compliments of my ex-husband)is Scheidt...we had Hunter baptised in North Daokta so my grandparents could be there, and the pastor was very happy to wecome "baby sh*t" into the house of God. And did I do any better with Kevin? Pesak looks normal enough, but it's pronounced Pe-shaak. I give up. At least Erin is easy to pronounce!
Denise said…
Yeah, i had butchered the pronunciation of your last name.
This Jones never wanted a simple last name. i LOVE my maiden name "Teodosio" (tea oh doe see oh). Those out of the ordinary names are great conversation starters. No one talks to me anymore.. i think they are intimidated, feeling they must "keep up," when really i am just an ordinary anybody.
AnnieBlogs said…
I can say your name totally correct, but can't spell it. Or Zack's either, apparently. :)

Still looking for a cheap flight to CA.....
I always wondered how you pronounced it! I always wanted to "marry up" as far as last names go. My married name is an improvement from my maiden Fulkroad, but not regal sounding like I wanted. Oh well. :-)
Melodee said…
My maiden name was even better--it started with an M and was impossible to misspell. However, it did rhyme with an unfortunate body function.
I have also posted about this very thing. In a nutshell: Maiden name: Batt. Ugly--Ugh-leee. All I ever wanted was a reprieve from the jokes. So who did I marry? A guy whose surname is "Crow." I am not kidding; I went from Batt to Crow. God has a sense of humor.