I had a boss who called me by my first and last name for years. I didn’t think anything of it because, well, it’s my name. It’s not a unique name or anything. Names are changed, but let’s use Ellie Mae, with Ellie being my first name and Mae being my last.

It’s common to have Mae as a middle name or double-barreled name where I’m from.

One day, my boss was filling out some paperwork and needed my full name.

Boss: “What’s your last name again?”

Me: “Mae.”

She starts fussing.

Boss: “No! Your last name!”

Me: “Again, it’s Mae.”

Boss: *Snarky.* “So your parents named you Ellie Mae Mae?!”

Me: “Um, no. I have a separate middle name.”

I tried to explain. She digs the hole even deeper and is pretty much shouting at me:

Boss: “Your middle name is Mae! What is your last name?!”

I shout back at her:

Me: “Ellie Mae is my whole name!”

Boss: “Then why have you been letting me call you Ellie Mae this whole time?!”

Me: “BECAUSE THAT’S MY NAME!”

My boss threw her hands up in the air, put Ellie Mae Mae on the form, and stormed away. The HR office deleted one of the ‘Mae’s and said to leave it with her. Apparently, it took a further ten minutes to explain…