Fernando contributed: > Maybe from now on I will not >feel so embarrassed as I used to when I have to face >the daunting task of pronouncing someone's name over the >phone and get the other side to understand who I am >referring to. :-)
The other possible embarrassment is guessing the gender of one's correspondent. Some first names which are strictly for girls in the UK are ordinarily given to boys elsewhere. And what tactful question can you ask to establish the truth? It can be a more localised problem too. Some while ago I had a protracted email correspondence with Sam ***** in a large firm of publishers and had formed the mental impression of a large man with inky fingers and a green eyeshade, possible smoking a cigar. What a surprise to meet Samantha who was petite and very pretty! Tony - aw shucks I'm blushing - Moss
