What's In A Name?

I love names! It's as simple as that. It is one of the many odd and quirky fast facts about me. I love when people have babies...happy the baby is well, but what did they name it. I usually favor traditional names, ones that do not require a lesson in phonetics to decipher. When we were checking out of the hospital after having Clay, the woman asked us if we named him after the American Idol contestant, Clay Aiken. Are you kidding me?(although without any makeup on, I am a dead ringer for his identical twin).
I grew up with a fairly different name, Eden Powell Zentz. When I was born, the church we attended said with a name like mine, I would grow up to be the first female president. Little did they know that I am indeed the first female president of this house. My name was to be Holly(thank you dad for nixing it, especially since my b-day is two days before Christmas). Oftentimes in school, my name would be called over the loud speaker. It sounded like "Eatin' Zits". This didn't do much for my self esteem during those awkward preteen years. When I was fresh out of college, I went for a job interview at an ad agency. The company president called me into his office and the first thing he did was ask me if my parents were hippies. I told him that they were not, but rather conservative Republicans from the Midwest. I didn't go back to that office. When I worked at HSN, people would call in on air to talk to me and ask for "Mr. Eden Perry". I have been a boy, a foreigner, a town in Minnesota(Eden Prairie). You name it, people have called me it. Last week, our insurance guy called me Edna. Edna, Edie, Edith, Eben...I just go along with it. The receptionist at the doctor this week asked if Mr. Perry needed any prescription refills, I kindly told her that I was Mr. Perry and I am actually a girl. The church goin' folk love it..."as in the garden", I reply repeatedly.
I have grown to love my name, but I often wonder what it would be like to have a name that is traditional or rather normal. I come to the same conclusion every time, it wouldn't suite me, for I am neither traditional or normal. I'm just Eden!