Nicknames

My name is Jessica. This frequently gets shortened to "Jess" by my friends. I like this. (I hate "Jessie" and won't stand for it.) My dad calls me "Red" (for my hair) and my mom calls me "Ladybug" (for...I dunno why), but they're the only ones who use those appellations. Lately, I've acquired a new nickname: Kessa.

It's like this. Tianna ("T") has a nephew (actually, she has several), and he can't say either of our names properly. T is "Tanna" and I am "Kessa." I decided I really liked "Tanna" and started using it. She decided to start calling me "Kessa" as well.

This whole Kessa thing, though, has gotten quite out of hand. There's another Jessica at work, so we decided when I first started that I would use "JHJ" on forms and emails and whatnot to cut down on confusion. But T uses "Kessa" to others all the time, so it's been picked up by my coworkers. Including the one who does a lot of our computer support, so my login is Kessa. In more than one place, actually.

I remember the first time "Kessa" was used by somebody I wouldn't name a close, personal friend. I was at work, at a computer in a large, open area. Minding my own business, y'know? From far away, I hear a shout: "Kessa!" It took me a minute to realize that I was the one being addressed. Another minute of confusion ensued when I realized that it was coming from exactly the wrong direction for it to be Tianna calling me. I turned, and a coworker was talking to me! So weird. Since then, though, it's become pretty established, even at work.

Now, don't go thinkin' I don't like the nickname, 'cuz I do. It's just taken some time to get used to it being used by everybody.