It was about the 500th sheet of paper I had to fill out.  The process of applying for student loans is rather painful and I was ready to send the papers far, far away.  I quickly dialed the number to the financial aid office in Boston, hoping that someone would be there to provide me with the last piece of information I needed.  Luckily, someone was.  He kindly gave me the much needed information and then, because the school is very small or perhaps because he was lonely he started asking me personal information.  I answered all the textbook questions about where I was from, what graduate program I was starting and if I was enjoying the winter weather.  Then he asked me if I went by anything other than Kathleen.  I paused for a second.  This was my chance.  No one in Boston would know my name.  If I wanted to I could easily become a Kate or Katie or even a Kat.  I could even try one of the many nicknames for my middle name, Elizabeth.  With the answer to a simple question I would be able to recreate myself.  It was as if changing my name would ensure me a fresh start.  This idea was rather intriguing to me.

The thing is, no one who really knows me ever calls me Kathleen.  For most of my life, my parents and siblings have called me Leen.  This was changed about ten years ago, when my baby sister, Hallie  started calling me Eenie.  My oldest brother, Jimmy, the king of nicknames, quickly changed this to Eenay. I found this to be a much more acceptable nickname than the ones he had given to my brother, Rick (Dickster) and sister, Rebecca (ButtCheeks) so I never complained. My grandma has called me Kitten since I was a baby.  Thinking that perhaps it was inappropriate to refer to an 18-year-old as her Kitten, she shortened it to Kitt after I graduated from high school.

My friends over the years have added to the nicknames provided by my family.  Some combine Eenie and Leen and refer to me as Leenie.  When I lived in New York City one summer, my friends called me Lena and would great me on the streets with a loud, “LenaBaby!”  My ex-boyfriend and his guy friends referred to me as Kathlyn, although I have since banned this nickname for obvious reasons.