"1987"

When I was young, I tried to be different. Setting up an e-mail account was the popular thing to do in elementary school and while some people opted for flashy names such as pixiegirl_xoxo and sticky_fingerz_blingbling, I was less creative. Where I lacked in creativity, I prided myself for thinking prospectively. I knew that my boring yet neutral e-mail address would one day save me from embarassment. In retrospect, this was wishful thinking for a naive boy.

williamc1987@hotmail.com

What's wrong with this e-mail address? Nothing seems obviously out of the norm. It has my first name and the initial of my last name (for identity purposes of course), seems simple to remember, and is associated with a popular e-mail account. However, there's one thing that bugs me about it - "1987" is not my favourite number!

My complaint is straightforward. Showing people how old you are through your e-mail address grows more embarassing with age. You might be asking why I don't change it. Here's the problem...

1) My current e-mail account is impeccably organized. I spent too many hours reforming it and I would hate to see all my effort go to waste.

2) There are too many William Chan's in this world and all the variations of my name for a new e-mail address have been taken. "william.k.chan", "chan.k.william", "willy_k_chan", "billiam_chan", etc. are all being used. It makes me wish I had a wacky and crazy first/last name.

Unfortunately, I'm stuck with this e-mail address and must learn to live with it. That, or I could reembrace my lost youth by making a new address that begins with "sillywilly..." - an apt name to characterize the writer of this most random of posts.

I dedicate this to others who share my pain.

WC