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perhaps it was a desperate need to fit in, but i used to tell kids in school that my real name was actually emily. i genuinely don't think i fooled anyone with that lie, especially when my accent was still very noticeable whenever i spoke back then.
regardless, i thought my first name was too long and it was a pretty common name to have in colombia, so i always sported it like something that was mandated, assigned, but not something i actually appreciated.
throughout the years, i met a couple of emilys, each very lovely, who fit the name very well. and that's when it clicked: i couldn't actually picture myself carrying that name for the rest of my life and truly feeling at home with it.
valentina still felt like a mouthful, but i realized it did actually feel like me. anyways, that was a pretty long time ago and i cherish my first name in all its nine-character glory.
i hope you find comfort and feel at home with your first name/chosen name– it's so important to how we view and present ourselves.
Nov 21, 2024
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I have a very traditional biblical name as some of you may know and i was sad that it was entirely un-nick-namable but I think it suits me and my personality now. My parents almost named me Kirsten and I sometimes wonder if I would be different if they had gone with that… and I LOVE when little old southern ladies say my first name and middle name together especially if they preface it with a Miss.
my last name is actually too unique, hyphenated, and ridiculously long and was embarrassing to me for most of my life but I’ve found peace with that too and wouldn’t change it for anything 🫶
Jun 8, 2024
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my first + middle name is: arabella emerson (no last name hehehe you're not gonna catch me) when i was younger i used to change my name almost every summer. i went to a super woke summer camp that would let you put whatever you wanted on your name tag and so i was bella and onyx and oliver on an on and off roation for about 6 years. eventually i stopped because my mom found out and freaked out about me being trans, so i went back to being arabella for a while, and then in high school people started calling me by my last name (which was cool, but you're still not gonna get me) and then that evolved into me going by emerson, not for any particualr reason, it just sort of happened. my mom had less of an issue with that so i just stuck with it and it's what everyone calls me now. kind of rock with it also because people assume i'm a women less so i'm #showingthepatriarchywhoseboss but TBH with changing my name, you should just do it. like people will attach whatever ideas to your name change even if it's just from kevin--> kev or as jurrastic from kevin-->gabriel so you should just live your life. names are names, i understand the signifgances and nunaces to having certain names, and i would never deny anyone those, but when you change your name, you're not getting rid of the old one, you're just evolving. IMPORTANT: in changing your name, you are not wiping your past you're creating a new future. is that corny?
Dec 24, 2024
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I've had issues with my name, I never really liked or identified with it until recently. I think it's really pretty but idk it just never felt connected to me. Thankfully, it isn't my full first name, Amaya-mei, so online and for a chunk of my life I went by "Mei" and most people who've met me online still call me that.
Now, I've come to really like my own name, whether it's Amaya, Amaya-mei, or Mei. But I've also really enjoyed being called by the usernames that I choose. So Juniper, Cosmo, Meiji, etc. In the end go with what feels right for you! I've had sooo many names across the interwebs and they all feel like me. So I'd say go with what feels like you.
Jun 7, 2024
Top Recs from @verygoodvalentina
I adore finding a random video from like 2005 and reading through the comments the way a historian would examine an old manuscript from the 1700s. Are these people still active YouTube users? Or are they forgotten accounts? What did @jjlwis mean by "awww im gonna miss rob too!!!" ? Who even is Rob?? Anthropology in the digital age... so many questions... it's fascinating.
The important thing for me is not to add new comments. I feel like I'm disturbing an old archeological dig site and my sticky modern commentary will make the video crumble away into oblivion. More importantly, I don't want the algorithm to suggest the video to a bunch of people who will spam the comments section– major yuck 🤢
Jan 25, 2024
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with social media being this pervasive entity that has weeded its way into our daily routines for the past 20ish years (plus a global pandemic that really solidified those habits), many young adults today have spent a large amount of their lives living online. it has become the new norm and i’m not gonna pretend i’m above any of this because it’s so easy to fall into it (i am literally writing this rec on my phone whilst it’s a perfectly sunny day that i should probably go out to enjoy).
with that being said, in the larger scheme of life, being in your 20s is still in a weird way the beginning stages of your life. it’s a period to try new things, make mistakes, learn from them and develop an identity that’s independent from the environment and people who raised you. though you can learn to do some of those things online, they don’t hold a candle to actually experiencing those things for yourself in real life.
all in all, the best way to not sleep thru your 20s is to prioritize in-person experiences that allow you to get a better understanding of yourself and your values. whether that be getting your first tattoo, moving to a new city or country, exploring your personal style or taking up hobbies you couldn’t or would‘ve never done as a kid, this is an important formative time to venture out and get a sense of who you truly are.
Sep 30, 2024
early 80s to early 2000s truck models are the perfect sizes imo. current trucks are transformer-sized behemoths that could easily crush normal vehicles into smithereens upon impact and i legit don’t know how those things are even street-legal. also, idk if it’s their design, reliability or the nostalgia factor per-se, but there’s a certain sazón those older trucks have that newer ones don’t.
2024 Ford F-150? 🤮🤢
1980 Ford F-150? 🫦🫦
Feb 9, 2025