Friday, November 9, 2012

What's in a Name: Pat II

So admittedly, I have one of the most difficult names to pronounce. the k is more of an illusion at the statrt and the sh have to be attached to the k and stretched so that it almost sounds like x but in xylophone but isnt quite there because the sh is attached to it. And I have a lisp too, to make matters worse for me actually.

It was quite embarassing as a kid because I could not pronounce my own name till the 7th standard which is like I was 13. Led to a lot of loss of self esteem and 7th std was easily my worst year ever. But then I practised it and am now quite capable to say it out loud as long as I'm consciously thinking of what Im saying. The moment I am in a hurry or not focussing, it's all over the place again :P

Anyways, the only positive I see out of all this is that when foreigners mispronounce my name, im ablt to understand why and take it with a pinch of salt. So recently I had a call with some guys from Puerto Rico and since their native tongue is Spanish rather than English.( funnily foreigners who know english are better at saying my name, don't know why) . And this guy is being really nice to me and trying to ensure he gets my name right. So he started off with Xeeteeja, which is good for a first time person saying my name who is not in Indian culture, 10 mins down the line he went Xeeja, then Xena and finally by the end of the call I was named Katrina!!! :D

Anyways, it's all fun. I have several names due to the difficulty people have saying my original name. Kates, Nicky, Dexter, hello(strangely enough because I have a habit of greeting everyone with a friendly hello no matter how small an interval ago I just saw the person :P) a. So I say to myself, what's in a name??    :) 

No comments: