We've talked a lot here in the past about our favorite NPR personality names (Neda Ulaby! Mandalit del Barco! Lakshmi Singh! Silvia Poggioli!), but I finally came across a formula for creating one for myself. For your first name, you take your middle initial and plunk it down somewhere in your first name. For your last name, you take the name of the smallest foreign town you've ever visited. That makes me ...
(Did you know that my middle name is Michele?)
I've been lucky enough to travel to a great many foreign locales in my day (Israel when I was 16, and then much of Europe in my 20s, plus Costa Rica and quite a few Caribbean islands). I could never figure out what is the smallest foreign town I've seen, so I just picked one that sounded nice. Siena is the town in Italy where my former brother-in-law went to college; we visited there after he and Andy's sister got married.
I almost went with Karmen Monte Carlo, but the Kar-Car thing didn't sound right.
How 'bout you?
Leslime Villefranche
Posted by: Leslie | April 15, 2009 at 05:51 PM
my NPR faves:
Ofeibea Quist-Arcton, Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson!
Posted by: emily | April 15, 2009 at 06:36 PM
Tognay Surrey
(I've only been to Mexico and Canada, so Surrey, B.C. was the first little town that came to mind!)
Posted by: Tonya | April 15, 2009 at 07:23 PM
Lelena Vaison-la-Romaine.
I like it! I may shorten it to Lelena Vaison. It sort of sounds like a stripper name. LOL
Posted by: Elena | April 15, 2009 at 08:28 PM
Mahrk Nassau.
Nassau is actually the largest of Bahamian cities, but it's also the only foreign city I've ever set foot on.
Posted by: Mark | April 15, 2009 at 08:37 PM
Elizvabeth Brugge. I like it.
Posted by: Liz | April 15, 2009 at 09:22 PM
Catheraine Koln (add umlauts)
Posted by: Catherine | April 15, 2009 at 11:15 PM
Hi Karen:
Howz 'Yiszrael Punia'?
I guess you can't hide what people I belong to. Punia is a little village in Lithuania, West of Kaunas (Kovna), where my family lived and left some 150 years ago. I saw it on my trip to Lithuania 3 years ago.
The village is still the same, except presto! No more Jews there. The cemetery is intact, but invisible due to decades of plant growth - just the tips of the headstones are visible.
This exercise was fun.
Posted by: Jamie | April 16, 2009 at 04:53 AM
Helle Karen,
Esllen Bisbee
(My first name now looks more like a liaison/combination of my Mom's name: ESTELLE and my Dad's name: LEONARD
Bisbee is a small town in Arizona we visited a couple of years ago. I could have used Flat Rock, NC, where I lived for six months. Toss-up!
I've always wondered about those NPR women. Where in the world is Carmen San Diego?
Cordially,
Ellen Kimball
Portland, OR
Posted by: Ellen Kimball | April 16, 2009 at 05:07 AM
Samy Esenyurt. That's a small town near Istanbul, Turkey. I was lucky enough to go on Semester at Sea when I was in college, and traveled around the world. Istanbul and the surrounding areas is the place I'd most like to revisit.
Posted by: amy | April 16, 2009 at 05:52 AM
Robjert Betws-y-Coed.
Ok, the j doesn't really work anywhere in either Robert or Bob.
Betws-y-coed is a wonderful little town in the middle of Snowdonia, Wales.
Posted by: B.O.B.(bob) | April 16, 2009 at 07:43 AM
Stetphen Calica.
Posted by: Steve | April 16, 2009 at 10:12 AM
Rachwel Milan... hey pretty cool!
Posted by: Rachel | April 16, 2009 at 10:17 AM
Pajmela Hampstead. I like this name a lot, and intend to use it online (since it's unlikely I'll ever work for NPR).
Posted by: pam | April 16, 2009 at 01:09 PM
Jerananne Castries ... not bad. Not bad at all. (My middle name is Renee.)
Posted by: Jeananne | April 16, 2009 at 09:38 PM
Erian Adare. So many a's!
Posted by: Erin | April 17, 2009 at 11:17 AM
Remembered a smaller town: Erian Doolin.
Posted by: Erin | April 17, 2009 at 04:15 PM
Roxmanna Montecatini
Posted by: Miguelina | April 20, 2009 at 03:37 PM
kjarla lillesand
Posted by: karla miller | April 21, 2009 at 08:34 AM
Sulsan St. Hilaire de Dorset
Hee!
Posted by: Risottogirl | April 22, 2009 at 03:35 PM