Not Just a Name

When I was thinking about errors in print, the word that came up most in my head was actually my own first name. More people in my life have misspelled my first name than you could ever imagine. My first name is Bret. Ya that's right, it's with one "t" .

My parents decided before I was born that they would configure my name in such a way that I would have to awkwardly correct over a million people in my lifetime. Maybe it was a ploy to make me more outgoing. If I can tell someone I just met that they spelled my name wrong, then I can say anything ... I guess.

But in reality when I asked my dad why they decided to don me with such a spelling, he told me it was because he is Gary with one "r" and my grandpa was Philip with one "l". Honestly I think Bret with one "t" is much rarer than the other two. In fact, I typed in the name "Bret" into Google and found only three famous people with that spelling that I will be linked to for eternity.

First is Bret Michaels. Honestly, I don't like his music or his sellout personality that sparked such reality shows as "Rock of Love with Bret Michaels", its sequel and then now, "Rock of Love Bus with Bret Michaels". But I still have to give him respect for his first name ... but that's about it.

The next is Bret "the Hitman" Hart. He was a famous professional wrestler for years in the United States and Canada. He started off in olympic-style wrestling until he got an offer from the WWF. Unfortunetly for him, he received a career-ending head injury in one of his matches. But that didn't stop him from writing an autobiography. So there is a Bret with a legitamate writing career.

The last famous Bret that has had to deal with mispelling is Bret McKenzie. He has an HBO show called "Flight of the Concords", that I hear is very funny. He is from New Zealand originally, and was in one of the Lord of the Rings movies - which doesn't do much for me. But what I like about him is that he has made it in the realm of comedy.

So like these three celebrities, I have had my name spelled incorrectly in every way imaginable. I have had gift certificates, name tags, awards, rosters, assignments, emails and even professional documents with the wrong name printed on them. I still have family members that think my name has two t's. But you know what, it's OK. Not everyone has a copy editor by their side 24/7. I have come to somewhat accept my name either way. However, when I do see it spelled the wrong way, I'm not going to lie, I cringe a little. And honestly, I will still probably tell someone I've just met that they spelled it incorrectly.

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