DMcG --

Don't appologize. Just consider your post "serious fun" ;-) I do.

I actually think your comments about attitude get to the heart of what I was aiming at. Our names are what people call us, and how they think of us, and therefore are often at the core of how we see ourselves. Our attitudes toward that self-image are what our personality grows out of.

Using my high school friend as an example, I often wonder if she was just naturally cheerful because every time she entered a room, people would say: "Hello, Sunshine!"

(either that, or she could have gotten defensive and grown into a grouch)

And to turn this into a quasi-music thread, here is a link to one of the most famous names in children's songs (at least, here in the States): JOHN JACOB JINGLEHEIMER SCHMIDT