Just call me Gayle

I absolutely love my name, Raquel. I've always felt it somewhat unique. It is not a name that people hear everyday. Most people don't know 3 other people named Raquel. My parents clearly liked the name and thus, Raquel I am! The most fun part to me when I was younger was writing my name. My name had a Q! Not many people have Q's! Secretly sticking my tongue out at whats-her-name next to me in pre-school, she couldn't even write her name and mine had a Q- which I could write! Ha! I win! I never got upset when we were on vacation and I couldn't find a mug or key chain with my name on it. I took that as an affirmation that I loved my name because it wasn't "over used".

It all started in Kindergarten or soon thereafter. My teachers, administrators and anyone older than me that wasn't in my direct blood line seemed to have trouble with my name. Every so often I'd come across someone who would associate my name with the most famous Raquel, Raquel Welch. I quickly learned (at age 5 or 7) who Raquel Welch was and the attraction she held for most men! So when I was faced with, "Oh! Raquel, Like Welch!" I would reply with "yes!" Followed by a thought to myself of, well I guess, except my last name isn't Welch. At least some are "getting" it!

Then there were those who would see the Q in the middle and because its not a letter they encounter every day - threw off their whole equilibrium of thinking! In my head I always imagined them saying this to themselves: "Q, Q Q - Hmmmmm what sound does a Q make well, I see the R, the A, and the E and the L - I'm going to call her Rachel!" Don't call me Rachel - that's not my name! I also don't like to be called Rachelle, Rochelle, RoKel, RaKwel, or Rebecca. The name is simple Ra-Quel. Take an effing phonics class. Q and U together is K. (My dear friend Shelley can probably do the phonics type thing better than I can because she's getting her Master's degree in this sort of thing).

To end on a high note, I'm writing about the woes of growing up with an uncommon name because today just takes the cake. I was on the phone with a call-center-person and he clearly had my information in front of him, I heard the hesitation in his voice, he was stuttering, sweat started to pour out I"m sure. In this instance one would just say Ms. and insert my last name, but no- he was going to be brave! Try that name with the Q in the middle! His inner team was cheering him on! Go! Go! Try that Q! And...drum roll please...... GAYLE! I was called Gayle. I didn't hear him wrong, there was no back ground noise on either end. Gayle! Plain and simple. Let's not get into the idiocracy of this. I don't often mistake my R's and Q's for G's and Y's. I suppose I should be nice and say - he didn't know. However, I'm really not that nice. He probably had to have a High school diploma to get is call-center-job. He probably has some sort of college education too. Don't try to tell me he's never came across a Q before. I find that unacceptable. So after having dealt with this thing all my life - I just can't forgive. And to tap into my mother's concern - NO, you shouldn't have named me Jen or Pam.