What’s in a name? Where have I heard that question before? A Rodríguez by any other name would be a Smith or a Jones. But I digress. I have such a common Spanish name: David Rodríguez. So my mother always told me to use my middle name Diego to distinguish myself from all the other David Rodríguezes in the world. So I am now David Diego Rodríguez. And my oldest son is David Diego Rodríguez, Jr. I lost the naming argument with my ex-wife when she was pregnant. At the time, I realized that this world didn’t need to add another David Rodríguez to that already extensive collection. And that’s why I wanted to name my first son Carlos. Wait a minute! That would make him Carlos Rodríguez! I know there must be hundreds of Carlos Rodríguezes in the world since Rodríguez is one of the most common Spanish last names in the world. Do you see the problem of having such a common last name?
So I began using my middle name religiously: David Diego Rodríguez. Always. Even for my telephone book listing. However, one friend didn’t call me after finding my listing because he thought it sounded too Mexican and he didn’t think of me as Mexican.
Well, thanks to the Internet, I discovered that there were two other David Diegos in the world, one in Spain and one in Israel. However absurd this may sound, we felt a certain kinship with each other! Mainly because they didn’t live on my block and we wouldn’t get each other’s mail. I’m thinking of changing my name to something very unique: DavidRodriguez.us!
Chicago USA 