not-so-common name

As a child
I was always so disappointed
there were never any products
such as
mugs
keychains
pencils, etc.
with my name
J.O.I.E.

it never dawned on me
to blame my parents for pushing me
to the brink of depression
because the spelling of my name caused me to be an outcast
{how do you like that melodrama?}


as I got older I, obviously, matured
and embraced my name for its uniqueness

well, almost

I'm not afraid to admit that in cheap souvenir shops
I will always scan the "j" section--just in case.
Who cares that it's all flimsy, useless junk.
I always hold out hope that I will see my name
among the Jennifers, Jodys, and Julies.

Alas, in the 80s it was never meant to be.
Along came google.
All of the sudden my name
is know for good and evil in English and French.

Then a miracle happened.

On my birthday this year
my mom made up for all those years of disappointment
by giving me a whole breakfast cookware set with my name on it!

No, she didn't have them personalized for me.
There is actaully a store called

Joie Shop
{click}


and every kitchen gadget has
my name
on it.


They are just the cutest little pans I have ever seen! Thanks, Mom!

So take that...
you over-priced
massed produced by children in sweat shops
tacky
common-name souvenirs.





{however, thanks to a large explosion
of little girls named Madison in the 90s,
I can now check for my last name :) }