I mentioned this in chat already, but since my user name is changed now, I just thought I’d let folks on the board know I changed my C&F screen name because last month I changed my legal name, as a positive step forward in healing from various things in my past (my old name I shared with a relative). I’ve actually done a lot of changing lately, including cutting off almost all my hair, moving, beginning the process of getting my teeth fixed, and changing my name. These are good times in my life.
“Jack” is a simple, strong, masculine name and I like it a lot, so I went to court and got it changed (changed my last name while I was at it) and I asked Dale to change my user name on here today. Thank you, Dale!
If you still accidentally call me Harold or Cran(berry), don’t worry, no harm done. It’s more something I’ve done for myself than to annoy other people.
On a side note, now I know how dogs feel when they get re-adopted and can’t answer to the new name their new owners gave them!
There was one year in which one brother-in-law went from Chic to Chase, another went from Corky to Gordon, and a third from Matt to Wade. We all got the hang of it eventually.
I thought I’d have trouble answering to “Jack,” but that went away after a couple of weeks and now when somebody says my name, I turn and look at them.
The college had a thing that if a person changes their name, their email address changes but if you send something to the old address, the new one gets it. It’s meant for women who get married, but it works for me too!
As long as your avatar doesn’t change drastically, I’m fine with it. I liked the cat with the head-phones and the Cupie doll head that blinks. Your current avatar is pretty cool, stick with that.
I read in a book by Louise Hay (the Dr. Phil before there was a Dr. Phil) about one’s “inner child” and how in order to really “grow up” (which is something most people never do) one has to connect with that inner child and nurture him, basically you have to re-parent that inner child since most of us didn’t receive an adequate job from our own parents (see Bill Chin’s thread).
Some of the ways she gave to connect to that child were art, music, and prayer, the kind of expression where you just “let go” and let the spirit move you, as it were. I’m sure most of us here know what that’s like.
Well, anyway, a few weeks into studying her writings along with a support group, and trying to apply them as best I could, after I had already decided that changing my name was a positive step and had the court date, I suddenly realized that one of the most crucial parts of having a real child (and not an inner child) was to name that child. I had been given a name which was never my own by my parents, who made a lot of mistakes and now I am blessed to be able to re-do that experience and to pick a name for myself, to define myself and recognize the significance therein. It was a pretty moving experience and I am still experiencing it a little bit every day.
