Thursday, May 26, 2005

Everyone knows it's Wendy

When I first started The Bookish Girl and became involved in the blogging community I though briefly about how I would sign my comments and posts. I knew there was a very well known knitting Wendy out there and it made me feel weird to post my name on my comments for fear of confusion.

This was (and is) strange for me. I have a somewhat uncommon name (It reached the height of its popularity in the 60s and 70s when it was the 47th most popular name, in 2003 it was 288th.) (Side note: have you ever played with Baby Name Wizard? So. Fun.) I have known only two other Wendy's in my almost three decades on this ball of magma. While I have periodically come across the name, either in entertainment or in my everyday dealings with retail establishments and/or other minor public encounters, I have never been confused with another person with the same name.

I ultimately decided to sign my posts with my initials. The reasoning here was to avoid anybody looking directly for me by typing my full name in Google. In other words, I didn't want my full name on the site. This (to me) has nothing to do with courage, as some may claim, it more has to do with my family. The result - WLPR which, as someone once commented here, sounds like a radio station. That amused me and I continued to sign off that way.

As for my comments on other blogs? I decided to use my first name (Wendy) thinking that there was little chance anyone would confuse me with the other Wendy. And you know, it was my name.

Little did I know that there are like 1 million Wendy knitters out there. It's crazy. I read blogs I go to leave a comment and I think, "Huh, I didn't know that I've already been here." And then I realize it's not me. It happens EVERY time I see the name. You see, I just am not used to it.

Identity crisis up ahead. Need for distinction rounding the bend. Irrational loss of self pulling up the rear.

Consistency and clarity to the rescue! In the blog work I am not only wlpr or Wendy but I am also Bookish Wendy (cue the ta-dums.) And from now on I will call myself such. Here on the blog posts and over yonder in your comments.

In celebration of this very dull realization I have christened a new email address where you all can reach me d-i-r-e-c-t-l-y. I will add it to the sidebar once I figure out how to hotlink it and whether or not spam will find me (any hints?). In the meantime reach me at: "BookishWendy at" that wonderful place called "gmail dot com" (combine the words in the quotes, substituting the appropriate punctuation and you should find me.)

I've also done a bit of trolling and found these lovely Wendy's in the Knitting Blog Sphere. If there are others let me know. I'll add them to the list, cause Wendy's rule. These are in no particular order...


Wendy Knits

Spaazlicious

Knit and Tonic

Zibibbo is Good

Multi-Crafter

Wendy's Wee Woolies

Fiberrant

Cat Knits

Not Your Ordinary

See what I mean?! There are a ton!!



BTW - As I mentioned in my last post, I originally saw the "Taste of Yarn" on a blog. Well, that blog was Andrea over at MellowTrouble. Go check her out and give her a virtual hug. She said that she went to on at a yarn store in Burbank, CA. Thanks for blogging about it Andrea!

23 Comments:

Blogger Lauren said...

I, obviously, am not named Wendy, but I was just thinking how weird it was that I read more Wendys than any other name. So strange.

5/26/2005 5:06 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Totally know what you mean about finding yourself in the comments when you don't remember being there - there's a few Cara's out there (I don't know anyone in real life with my name - it's still kind of rare) and it's always a little strange.

You'll always be my first Wendy blog. Really and truly! :)

5/26/2005 5:12 PM  
Blogger Heidi said...

I like the Email Obfuscator for defying the spambots.

http://alicorna.com/obfuscator.html

I know what you mean, I have crossed paths with another Heidi (Absinthe Knits) and also a Heide. Absinthe Heidi even has a list of other Heidi bloggers on her site.

The world is big, but it's small, but it's big, but it's small...

5/26/2005 5:16 PM  
Blogger WandaWoman said...

That's funny. Whenever I see a comment on a blog that says Wendy, I always roll my cursor over the name to figure out which blog that person is posting from. As of yet, I've still not come across a Wanda though!

In Denver, well actually Longmont, there used to be a yarn store Over the Moon owned by Tara Jon Manning (a knitting designer) and she held a yarn tasting once at her yarn shop. It was so much fun and I think it was with all of the Classic Elite line for the winter. I truly enjoyed it and just reading that you had one at your house sounds like something we should all try.

5/26/2005 5:27 PM  
Blogger Dani In NC said...

I can relate. I have never met another Dani in real life, so you can imagine my surprise when I started seeing my name pop up on knit-along lists that I didn't join!

5/26/2005 6:25 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

There's another Melanie out there, but I can only think of one blog that we both comment on, so on that blog I usually write melanoma. I'm pretty sure I'm the only one of those out here. Sometimes I write "the other Melanie" too... ;)

www.msmelanie.prettyposies.com

5/26/2005 7:03 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

i'm a wendy! i just started blogging outside of LiveJournal, and had the same concern about the famous wendy when naming my blog. i ended up just naming it for my website. as far as posting in other people's blogs, i guess i just figured people could look at where my posts were coming from and figure it out.

5/26/2005 7:52 PM  
Blogger maryse said...

hi i'm maryse. just maryse. haven't met another maryse EVER. i know they exist but never met any. EVER.

5/26/2005 8:20 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

No other Johanna bloggers out there! I just had a ton of fun with the Baby Name Wizard though. My future daughter's name, not there at all. I love that! She won't have any identity problems leaving comments on blogs either!

Jofrog is Knitfrog

5/26/2005 8:45 PM  
Blogger wenders said...

Hey! I am one of those Wendys! :)

I sign off as Wenders because that's what my closest friends and my mom calls me (sometimes), it's clear that it's a Wendy-related nickname, and because I like being Wendy, since I still don't know any other Wendys in person.

I didn't even know about THE Wendy when I started my knitting blog - I was more hesitant to share my full name than anything else. And my intials don't work because they spell out wimp. And I am not one.

Can't wait to see what other Wendys come out of the woodwork!

5/26/2005 8:57 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Enjoyed reading your post and I can relate to everythng you said.

5/26/2005 9:40 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Just to get this out of the way - I H.A.T.E. that song. ;) You're much cooler than that.

Ahem, moving on - I'm thinking you need a Wendy blogroll, or a Knitting Wendys button. Hee hee hee

I haven't run across any other Elisa bloggers, but I told you how strange it was that there were SO MANY Elisas at That Place Where We Work.

5/27/2005 5:28 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Very funny. I like Bookish Wendy. It suits you well. Love the new pics of you.

Katy of Katyknits

5/27/2005 9:04 AM  
Blogger Katie said...

Hey, there's lots of Kates and Katies and Katys too, I've found. I think blogland will only get confused if you start posting more about cats than knitting. ;-)
The swatch party sounded fabulous, just the thing for our rainy Boston weather. My knitting group may have to have one too.

5/27/2005 10:40 AM  
Blogger Lorette said...

I like the "Bookish Wendy" name, though I never had any trouble identifying you in comments! I have yet to see another "Lorette", at least not with that spelling.
Maybe you need to start a Knitting Wendys ring.

5/27/2005 12:03 PM  
Blogger wenders said...

Okay, so I have some free time. We have a webring: knittingwendys.blogspot.com.

I wonder how many of us there really *are*?

:)

5/27/2005 2:13 PM  
Blogger Dani said...

There are tons of Wendy's! Lots of Dani's too!

5/27/2005 5:31 PM  
Blogger claudia said...

Pretty soon you'll have people changing their names to Wendy just to join you guys.

;-)

5/29/2005 7:46 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I could identify with this!My name is Kathy -- one of the most popular nicknames in the 1960/1970s!

5/31/2005 9:43 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Perfect and darned clever.

5/31/2005 11:29 PM  
Blogger Wendy said...

I go by wendymc everywhere, to differentiate. (mc starts my last name, I'm not a closet rapper)

6/03/2005 11:20 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

My best friend in high school was Wendy, too. She was about 6" shorter than me, so I was dubbed "Big Wendy". Hated that.

6/04/2005 9:00 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have yet to run across another knitblogger named Madalyn (or any spelling variation of my name). It's also extremely rare to run into people "in real life" who have the same name as me. When I was a kid, the only other Madalyn/Madeline I ever knew was an older (think: grandmotherly) lady.

Now, though, apparently the name is becoming popular. I was a bit taken aback when I was at an airport and heard a woman yelling my name across baggage claim. Turns out, she was trying to get her young daughter's attention.

6/14/2005 12:24 PM  

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