Usernames: Thoughts

[astoryandasong]

So I have been thinking for a while about changing my username, and I just kind of had a comment that made me think: Gemma, your username, while being cute six years ago, has become uncute. For real. It wasn't a bad comment or anything, not at all, I totally agreed with it. Highlander Fandom----> Panic! fandom? Do not go. In fact my username limits me, pretty much even in my own head. Therefore, I am thinking of changing.
Something non-fandom specific. I'm Flame_alchemist on buzznet and myspace, but again I don't want to be that.  So here is a question, how did y'all pick your usernames?

Comments

[queenofhell.livejournal.com]

I used to be Evil Willow back when I was totally in BTVS fandom, but when I got on LJ I was kind of done with BTVS fandom, and I think someone else has evilwillow as a username, anyway. I choose queenofhell because I've always liked the Persephone myth, and apparently she's the goddess of my birthday. And I really like "Pandora's Aquarium" by Tori Amos, which references the Persephone myth as well.

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

I think I actually remember you from BTVS if you were evil willow.
Thanks for the answer: hearing about other people's usernames is helping me out. I'm still trying to decide if I have enough affection for the name and the character to keep it.

[heynderyckx.livejournal.com]

Mine was the last name of some random person I saw in Wired magazine about 7 years ago.

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

I had always wondered. It's so unique, and also hard to spell :-)

[raveninthewind.livejournal.com]

I chose a nonfannish name so I could use it long term, and I picked something relevant to me personally, revealing to those who know me well, but not to those who don't.

I posted in detail the reasons I chose this pseud, but that's a long post, so I won't link it. In sum, I went with symbolic, real-life relevance, and personally descriptive.

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

Hmm. Thank you for replying. I love your username: it always makes me think of the Raven in American Gods for some reason.
I think the problem was that at the time I chose the name I was 16. I didn't really know myself all that well at that time. I've changed a huge amount since then. Maybe that's why I've been thinking of changing.

[halfnorn.livejournal.com]

I was eleven years old when I first started doing 'net time because of this artificial life sim called Creatures. The point of the game was to raise and breed these... well, creatures called norns. Being a young and writerly sort, self-insert fics followed, leading into the concept of a 'half-norn', and it stuck. The name's become pretty much symbolic for my entire internet existence, so I've never really bothered to even consider changing it (though I do go by Righteous in some venues for, uh, reasons I'm not too clear on, except that's what I call my computer).

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

You know, I'd wondered about your username? I remember wanting to ask back on camp_toccoa but never got around to it. My first username was completely cringe-worthy and I would never have kept it *ever*.
Righteous, heh. I call my laptop 'pain in the ass'.

[halfnorn.livejournal.com]

Heh, I was in luck that the guys at CyberLife (who created that particular game) were classics nuts, which automatically means that people tend to assume I'm referring to those Norns with the username. ;)

I watch too many American television series that involve surferspeak, obviously. This may also explain why I keep giving in to the urge to call people 'Dude'.

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

I use 'dude' all the time, which according to my American friends is hilarious because I am so very Scottish. Also I remember my Spanish friend asking me to swear down the phone at someone to be funny, which I did. It was only afterwards that she told me it was her PARENTS. Mortification ensued.

[halfnorn.livejournal.com]

I was once described as sounding like 'an old, embittered Englishwoman who spent the better part of her life traveling the United States'. Which I find hilarious on account of being so very Dutch otherwise.

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

That sounds like me describing my friend Nicole! She grew up in Denmark but went to International school (english is her first language) so she has a verrrry strange accent. I mock her more than I mock anyone else because I love her THIS MUCH.

[halfnorn.livejournal.com]

By the time I got English in high school, the teacher was using me as a dictionary because he felt 'it was quicker'. I think television is entirely to blame for my accent. I mean, I manage to work 'arse', 'dude' and 'cunt' into the same sentences on a regular basis. There's gotta be something wrong there.

I can only imagine the chaos when I move to England. Heh.

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

You are moving to UK? Cool. I'm moving down south soon :-) If you ever need a bed or patch of floor in Scotland let me know.

[halfnorn.livejournal.com]

Not for another year and a half at the least - I've only just started seriously plotting my post-bachelor life, and the UK's where I'm planning to be headed.

[stepps.livejournal.com]

Hey new friend, I'm just doing this thing where I read through your journal a bit to get to know you before you start popping up on my flist :)

So, Stepps is short for Steppenwolf, which is a 70s rock band that say "Born to Be Wild" which is completely Sirius Black's (Harry Potter) theme song, and the first username I chose when I started out on HP forums 5 years ago. It got shortened for signing comments in forums, and by fandom friends, and Steppenwolf was taken on LJ, so Stepps it was. And has been ever since. I have RL friends overseas that only call me Stepps :D

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

Hey new friend!
The only RL nicknames I have are 'vaguely irritated snuggle bunny' (Jane, my flatmate) and 'Jemima Puddle Duck' or just 'Puddle Duck' (my family). Both of these nicknames serve to showcase their awesome strangeness, and the fact I am sometimes a grouchy ditz.

[halfnorn.livejournal.com]

mephiztopheles calls me Georgie. Not out of any kind of affection, but because he knows I hate to be called a hippie and he thinks I look like George Harrison.

< /random info >

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

One of my friends from high school used to call me Gemmaliz, or 'my little lamb', sometimes 'Mags'. But that was because he was insane.

[klgrem.livejournal.com]

My name is me. The first initial of my husband's name, the first initial of my name, and the first few letters of our last name. :P

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

Hee. My name then would be gemcerlean. It's always made me laugh because my initials are G.E.M and my name means a precious jewel or gem.

[klgrem.livejournal.com]

What a lovely name. :) Perhaps ceruleangem then? :)

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

Thank you :-) my mum wanted something that wouldn't sound awful in our local accent, and I like the name. Some people hate their name but I've always been content. I'm also the only one on Facebook, believe it or not!
Good idea, maybe that or something to do with diamonds or rubies- rubies are my favourite stone and diamonds are my birth stone.

[klgrem.livejournal.com]

haha. Rubies are my birthstone. :)
Good luck with your search.

Congratulations on being unique! :D

[lq.livejournal.com]

Chiming in a bit late. ^^;; But if you are still interested, when I choose a user name, I want something that is a good representation of me and who I am (or who I pretend to be XD).

LQ is short for Lizard Queen. No, nothing (intentionaly) to do with Jim Morrison and his whole "Lizard King" shtick. I got it off of an episode of the Simpsons: They went to Duffland, Lisa drank the water on one of the water rides and went tripping. ALL of my nearest and dearest love the Simpsons and I would always quote Lisa, so when I needed a pen name...out came Lizard Queen.

Over time, it shortened to LQ. It reminds me of my friends, my younger happier days, and the awesome love and goofiness we all still share.

[astoryandasong.livejournal.com]

That's cool *grin*
My friend Laura quotes the Simpsons all the time!