# I need a new name. I think. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 29, 2004, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036 "2004-08-29T02:25:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Oregon\_sunshine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/50afbb/32.png) [@Oregon\_sunshine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oregon_sunshine)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/1 "2004-08-29T02:25:25Z")
I’m thinking about changing my SDMB screen name. When I look at my screen name, it lacks a certain… luster. Also, I’ve started using capital letters (thanks to you guys’ good influence!!!) so it seems kind of out of place now. The name was kind of randomly chosen - it’s short for grandaddygurl (Grandaddy is one of my favorite bands), which is my Ebay handle. I thought it up on the fly when signing up for the Dope. Now, I’m not sure it’s the right name. I’ve thought of a few ideas: 1. My real first name 2. Something about being a pinko commie 3. A name invoking a favorite author/work of literature 4. My cat’s name (Levitz), which might leave people thinking I’m a guy, so maybe not 5. Something numerical 6…? Any suggestions are appreciated. Give me your second choice cool screen name. The ideas I have are rather amorphous, but it’s late and I’m tired. I think changing my lackluster screen name is probably a good idea though. Thanks in advance, all! ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/2 "2004-08-29T02:30:35Z")
> [@ggurl](#): > > 1. Something about being a pinko commie **Patty Buchanan**? ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/3 "2004-08-29T02:35:42Z")
Well, since you asked for cool secondary names: If I weren’t **Aesiron** , I would be **Deimosan** , **Dioscurion** , or most likely, **Kalandian**. The first two are Greek mythology inspired (Deimos is the personification of dread and terror and is a son of Ares; the Dioscuri are the Gemini twins) and the second one is tagalog (the language of the Philippines) for … uh, well, I’m not sure exactly but I know it means “friend” or “more than a friend” or something. Maybe a resident Pinoy can tell you for certain. Either of those three suit you? ---
**Author:** ![Oregon\_sunshine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/50afbb/32.png) [@Oregon\_sunshine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oregon_sunshine)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/4 "2004-08-29T03:04:57Z")
Thank you so far! **Aesiron** , thanks for your runner-up names! They all sound a little too masculine for me… Of course, I guess being the personification of dread and terror is not necessarily a male role. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with an gender-bending or androgynous screen name. Here’s some more names I thought of, some of which are probably taken… Kicker of Elves Gonzo Tyler Durden Libertina Spaghetti Western Redheaded Stepchild I need to go to bed. I will brainstorm more about this when I am coherent. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/5 "2004-08-29T04:45:24Z")
**Kicker of Elves** - available **Gonzo** - taken **Tyler Durden** - available **Libertina** - available **Spaghetti Western** - available **Redheaded Stepchild** - available ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/6 "2004-08-29T05:55:07Z")
\*\*Deimosan \*\*is too masculine but **Tyler Durden** isn’t? :dubious: Since you seem to be a fan of “Fight Club” and female, how about **Marla Singer**? ---
**Author:** ![BraheSilver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@BraheSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BraheSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/7 "2004-08-29T06:31:42Z")
Oddly enough, **ggurl** , whenever I see your username I think “It’s a g-g-girl!” in a Shaggy (from Scooby Doo) voice. Taking the _Fight Club_ theme and running with it, I came up with **Slide!** , **Spirit Penguin** , **Acid Kiss** , **Single-Serving Doper** , and **Project Mayhem** (turn the c into a k for your pinko commie flava 😉 ). For some reason I’m also thinking of **Sergio Leona Helmsley** , which I suppose comes from the “Spaghetti Western” idea. It’s kind of long, but I’ve seen longer names here. Too bad it sounds like a bad Wheel of Fortune answer. ---
**Author:** ![Oregon\_sunshine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/50afbb/32.png) [@Oregon\_sunshine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oregon_sunshine)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/8 "2004-08-29T14:11:13Z")
> [@Aesiron](#): > > Deimosan is too masculine but Tyler Durden isn’t? Oops. It was late and I was tired. Mistakes were made. Not to mention that I \*don’t \* want a masculine name, really. During a recent hilarious phone call, a friend of mine suggested that I was Tyler Durden, though. Never mind. You had to be there. Yeah, I think I want something “female” and maybe even a little “flirty”. \*\*Marla Singer \*\* is a great suggestion… I was even kinda like that in my twenties, (wardrobe of discarded clothes, chain smoking), minus the support-group-voyeur thing. Hmmmm. The stuttering thing is taken into consideration, **BraheSilver**. I always mentally pronounce it “gee-girl”, but that doesn’t mean everyone else has to. A Shaggy-voiced stutter doesn’t bode well for the impression a screen name makes. I think too much. And I have too much time on my hands, obviously. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/9 "2004-08-29T15:43:52Z")
Until you know what image you want to portray, talking about names is waay too early. To me “ggurl” is pronounced guh-GIRL, and connotes something kinda like Grrlz, ie a tough but feminine gal with some attitude who’s probably between 15 and 25 years old. She’s fun, dresses a bit sexy/skanky/retro (Doc Marten’s and fishnets wouldn’t be out of place), but she’s not really a skank. She can hold her own in an argument or a tequila-swillin’ contest. She’s no mall-queen socialite, but she’s not a lowlife either. Just Gen-X writ a little larger-than-life. So I suggest you figure out what picture you want to portray, tell us what that is, then we can help you pick out a couple of words to use for a name. Or just pick something nonsense, like “Spaghetti Western”, and leave it at that. It means essentially nothing and is just about as arbitrary as the nonsense word “KoombaLoombaWhatsis.” ---
**Author:** ![Brainiac4](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brainiac4/32/3534_2.png) [@Brainiac4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brainiac4)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/10 "2004-08-29T17:05:24Z")
I rather like **Redheaded Stepchild**. It has a certain flair to it. As does **Kicker of Elves** , for different reasons. ---
**Author:** ![luluBahrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e5b9ba/32.png) [@luluBahrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/luluBahrain)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/11 "2004-08-29T17:17:46Z")
I was thinking about changing mine to **Vther** but I am not sure yet. ---
**Author:** ![JoeSki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b487fb/32.png) [@JoeSki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoeSki)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/12 "2004-08-29T20:33:05Z")
Nuke the Daisys ---
**Author:** ![Greenback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/2bfe46/32.png) [@Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greenback)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/13 "2004-08-29T20:53:26Z")
In the [FAQ’s](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/faq.php?s=&do=search&q=change+username&match=all&titlesonly=0) , the impression is given that a better reason is needed to change a username than just a whim. Did something change? I have seen at least one other thread saying that they changed their username. Did I miss a meeting? I don’t mean to give you a hard time **ggurl** , I am just curious. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/14 "2004-08-29T21:44:55Z")
> [@Greenback](#): > > Did I miss a meeting? Sort of. The FAQ you linked to is stock vB. However, in the ATMB [FAQ thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=106617), **C K Dexter Haven** says: > [@C K Dexter Haven](#): > > If you want to change your username, or if you forgot your password, please please please do NOT do just register under a new username. Contact any Admin (for quickest results, contact several Admins, in case the one you write is on holiday or something), and we’ll be glad to change your name. > > We want people to be responsible for their posts. There is history and there are consequences to what you post. We do not permit “sock puppets” for exactly that reason – they are a way of not taking responsibility for what you post, and of trying to avoid consequences. That’s not acceptable here. > > It’s similar with name changes. If you re-register under a different name, you’ve severed the contact with the old name. That’s not acceptable. We’re happy to change your name and it will reflect throughout your history. > > Well, we’re happy to change your name once. Twice, you’d need a damn good reason. We’re not about to change your name every other week. So, basically, you can certainly change your name once, even on a whim. Changing it again, however, requires hamster sacrifices, gifts of chocolate and acts involving goats that are illegal in 37 states. ---
**Author:** ![Greenback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/2bfe46/32.png) [@Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greenback)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2004, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-new-name-i-think/262036/15 "2004-08-29T21:51:24Z")
Thanks for clearing that up **Q.E.D.**.