How did you choose your forum name?

[King Of All Cosmos]

Heya, I just joined this forum a few minutes ago.
When signing up, I found myself spending way too much time trying to decide on a name to use. I've never joined a forum before so I had no previous name to fall back on and I didn't feel like using my real name. It got me wondering, why do people choose the names they do?

• Is yours your actual name?
• Is it related to an obscure inside joke?
• Is it something that holds an inspirational meaning for you?
• Is it utterly random and meaningless?

Why? WHY??

[Neo]

For me, the character of Neo from The Matrix is someone I relate to. I've also been searching for the Truth, and believing that there's a reality deeper and more complex than what we're led to believe by conventional wisdom. I also believe that the governments and the media work together to 'pull the wool over our eyes', and convince us that reality is what they say it is.

I was also happy that I was the first to grab this name.

[rdgpjen]

Years ago, I was prompted to come up with an e-mail address on the spot when I was activating an account over the phone. For whatever reason, my posted name is what came to mind. I'm not quick with comebacks, quips or clever things like that, but this one just came out. And I loved it. It was perfect for me. So I've used it for everything, even though it's technically no longer accurate. Here's how mine is broken down: rd: red, gp: jeep (the original WWI vehicles were called the General Purpose vehicles or G.P. shortened to the word "jeep" eventually (typically only jeep people know this...)) and jen: me, Jen. So, I'm redjeepjen, spelled rdgpjen. While I did drive that red jeep for 10 years, I actually got rid of it over three years ago. I'm still somehow identified with that car. So...maybe too much information. But it's a simple story I love and I'm glad I got to tell it! Keep asking fun questions like that, you made me smile for getting to tell my little story!

--rdgpjen

[The Yarnist]

I like yarn.

[King Of All Cosmos]

@Neo
Yup, there's always the initial grab-for-good-names at the start of any forum or service you join. Sorta like if someone tried to catch the name Steve_Pavlina on these forums or something... not giving any ideas here, really!

@rdgpjen
Interestingly specific story. You know, at first glance it seems random (which to other people, it is) but saying it outloud actually has a nice ring to it. Like 'Ardigeepijen'. Also, I'm glad you had an opportunity to get your little story out. It makes me smile to know that I helped someone smile

@The Yarnist
Hahaha, not much to say!

@(myself)
I guess I should say why I chose this name (time will tell if it was a good choice). The King of all Cosmos is a character in an extremely bizarre and awesome video game called katamari damacy. Everything about the game is happy and joyous like it's nobody's business. I feel that this name will remind me to take things lightly and have fun here, as well as feel like I'm King or something. It seems to stand out.

[Light]

Originally Posted by King Of All Cosmos

The King of all Cosmos is a character in an extremely bizarre and awesome video game called katamari damacy.

Haha, I didn't connect that, but it's obvious now.

My name is taken from an anime series called Death Note. The main character's name is "Light" (originally "Reito" in Japanese, but you get "Light" when you romanize it). I wanted take the name of another character from the anime, whose name is simply "L", but you're forced to have at least 3 characters in your name.

[micth]

well... my name's mitch... but with most sites, mitch is already taken as a username. So i swapped afew letters round, and came up with micth.


Wow! wasn't that an interesting story!

[andrew]

Do I really need to tell this story?

[floramorada]

This has been my online ID for various things since I picked my first email address... hmm maybe five or six years ago. I was very into Spanish at the time, and I wanted something that was "me" and "unique." Basically it means "purple flower," and though I don't know how unique it is lol purple is my favorite color. I was also very into Harry Potter, and I found it cool that it resembles the spell alohomora. Silly, I know.

Thanks for making this post, I even forgot about the HP part! And I just realized that alohomora is the "unlocking" spell... interesting.

[Mark Lapierre]

I used my real name because I wanted to remind myself to be as 'real' as I possibly could. To say what I think, feel, and believe, rather than what might sound good, or what might make me sound interesting. I've had a tendency to play a character when posting to forums and I didn't want to do that here.

[Akashic_Librarian]

Mine 'Akashic_Librarian' represents my search to hold all knowledge and control all events. (I guess I have fulfilled part of that purpose by discovering Subjective Reality)

[toomuchtoabsorb]

I've used this handle for about a year.

It refers to the feeling that there's too much information in the world for me to absorb in a calm fashion. It serves as a reminder that I don't have to be informed about everything, and that I should instead be focusing my attention inwards.

It's a bit negative, that I admit, but when I started using it I was on a much lower vibration, so to say.

[SenorKaffee]

Explaining the story of my forum name - Try #617

Once upon a time, there was guy named Michael, and he received a letter by the powers that be. They told him, that he had was about to get drafted into military service in the glorious german federal defense forces. He stated that he is an conscientious objector got into civilian service instead. For 13 months he worked in a retirement home and helped the elderly.

In the time, he met an old lady, that had the habit of shouting "Schwester! Kaffee!" at breakfast. Translated that means "Sister! Coffee!" or "Nurse! Coffee!". So Michael came up with the idea of a comic book character named "Schwestar Kaffee" (Sistar Coffee) - in everyday life a young man working in a retirement home that transforms into a cigar-smoking, sunglasses-wearing anti-hero when he hears the words "Sister! Coffee!". His archnemesis was the corrupt german health system and an alien creature named "Atomarer Chmuilmann" (Atomic Chmuilman), that spent most of its time basically just hanging at the ceiling above his throne... thinking about spreading evil!

Michael used SchwesterKaffee as his nick for a long time, but since it caused a lot of gender confusion, he changed it into something with a serious masculine undertone - SenorKaffee. Although he more or less stopped drinking coffee in favour of black tea, he stayed with this name. SenorTee sounds kind of stupid, doesn´t it?

[Calculusaurus]

Originally Posted by King Of All Cosmos

@(myself)
I guess I should say why I chose this name (time will tell if it was a good choice). The King of all Cosmos is a character in an extremely bizarre and awesome video game called katamari damacy. Everything about the game is happy and joyous like it's nobody's business. I feel that this name will remind me to take things lightly and have fun here, as well as feel like I'm King or something. It seems to stand out.

I love that game.

My name? Dunno. Dinosaurs + math just seemed like a good idea.

[ZenDude]

I like Zen and the way Zen practitioners look at the world. And then I like the word dude and it's association with humor, self relativity and the surfer lifestyle.

[Klamachpin]

"Klamachpin" is a shortened form of a name I was given years ago.

The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) have a sub-organization called Order of the Arrow (OA), meant for encouraging leadership within scouting activities. There are three attainable honors in the Order of the Arrow: Ordeal, Brotherhood, and Vigil.

Ordeal was basic membership, given to those voted into the Order by their peers within their own troop. Brotherhood was attained through active membership, including learning the history of the OA, why it was created, and how it serves the community. Vigil was a recognition of leadership among those members of the OA - a leader among leaders per say.

Upon being given the Vigil honor, a name is chosen to describe you as seen fit by your peers. This name is in the Native American language of Lenae Lenape (I hope I got the spelling right) and could be serious or funny, based on a knowledge of your personallity or on a single memorable incident.

I was given the Vigil honor within that organization about 7 years back, with the name given to me being very fitting of me at the time. It was Klamachpin Sachgaganummen, meaning "Quiet One who Leads". I immediately took to the name, as my efforts leading to that honor had far more meaning to me than even my efforts leading to attaining the Eagle Scout rank in the BSA.

Since then, I've been less of a leader due primarily to multiple blows to my confidence. After surviving the life-changing interval of time that was my early 20s, that leadership quality (as well as my confidence) is starting to finally reappear. However, it was also during that time that I was more active on the net, and often took the screenname "Klamachpin" meaning only "Quiet One" on various messageboards. The name has grown to become my internet identity - it is now just as natural to respond to that name online as it is my birth name in real life. The fact that nearly no one else utilizes the word as a screenname is just a bonus .

[Lotus]

Several reasons!

*I follow a mostly-Buddhist form of spirituality.

*I have a tramp stamp (tattoo on my lower back) of a pink lotus -- not very tantric, this body art, but I have piercings too, so... meh.

*I go by "Lotus" or "LotusSutra" on most forums I join, if at all possible.

My real name is Jamie. Namaste, everyone.

[jpfieber]

Almost 20 years ago when I signed up for my first e-mail account in college I was staring at the telnet screen asking me what I wanted my login name to be. Geez, I don't know! It had some suggestions, based on my name, so I took the first one. Since then (I now work at that university, so I still have the same account!), I use the same login name for most everything so I don't have to try and remember which one I used where (I do use a different password everywhere though based on a sort of 'formula' so I don't have to memorize all 500 of them).

[Holden McNeil]

I think it was Ben Affleck's character name in Jay and Silent Bob Strikes Back. Saw a funny scene of it on youtube + randomly looking for a name.

[Gene]

My forum name is Gene and it is the name I have been known by among friends most of my life.

It was a decision to be up front about who I am and what I believe in yet another way.

Reality, I can do reality! What a concept!

Gene

[Love]

For me,

I chose Love because that's what I wanted to remind myself about. That I have it and that I should give it.

[songwriter]

Well, I wanted to choose a name I can easily remind but not my name.
I could put singer, guitar player or piano player too. But the thing that I feel more like me is "songwriter".

[skinnyninja]

My real name is Pat, but I started a Yahoo email account way back when and choose skinnyninja just to have some fun with it. I've been using it as an online handle ever since. Just some sillyness really, just to stay light-hearted.

[andrew]

I just had to say, very interesting stories here. A great read for such a topic.