Writing Practicum #2-2

My Name-

I go by Mandy. Partly because it rhymes with candy. Everyone loves candy- nobody doesn't like candy. It's like Sara Lee and Raymond. Which are also names.

There's no "I" in Mandy. Not like there's no "I" in team.

I had a teacher in sixth grade whose name was Mary with a "Y," like the Virgin, who changed it to Mari with an "I" because she thought it made her sound more "exotic" or some fucked up reason like that. I hated her. Still do with the part of me that's still 12-years-old. Anyway, Mari with an "I" is Mah-ree and that was my host sister's name in Japan. She deserves better than to have some bitchy ex-school teacher share her name.

I go by Mandy because I like that Barry Mannilow song. My dad says that it's really "Randy" and Barry just changed it to be more hetero-normative. My dad used to sing it to me back when we we were poor and I was always sick. He doesn't sing it anymore; I wonder why.

I went by Mandy in Japanese class because I thought it would be one character shorter than Amanda in katakana. It isn't. マンディis four characters, just like アマンダ.

I go by Mandy, even though I sometimes go by Amanda and sometimes go by Marty and sometimes go by Mandita and sometimes go by Mandarelli and sometimes go by Pooh and sometimes go by Kattie and sometimes go by A.J. and sometimes go by Martin and sometimes go by Manny or Manny Panny or Mandy Pandy or Manda Panda.

Honestly, I don't care what you call me, so long as you don't spell Mandy with that damn "I" like my teacher in sixth grade.

Nobody doesn't like Mandy, everybody loves Mandy. That's the idea.