"Makat"… Eversince I’ve worked at IC, most of the people there have been referring to me with that name. I thought it really sounded weird and awkward, but I didn’t show my objection at that time for the fear of being tagged as "primadonna" (I was still a newbie then & wasn’t thick-faced yet to react…). I just thought that it was their way of distinguishing me from the other Kat in the institute. But as time passed (a semester actually), I do get that itch to correct each one of them not to call me by that name.
Call me unreasonable, but I do get a bit irritated whenever I find my name sounding funny. When I was in grade school, my classmates used to make fun of my surname by calling me "basket". I was quite humiliated with that that back then, I secretly wished that I have a better sounding surname, one that does not rhyme with "basket". Of course now I don’t have any problems with that issue now. I’m even thankful that my Dad has such surname, tunog artistahin kasi (Maria Katrina Vasquez do really sound nice, isn’t it? hehehe…).
Back on the "Makat" issue, I don’t know whoever started the idea of calling me so but as far as I can remember, when I was asked during the interview about my nickname, it’s crystal clear that I had answered "You can call me KAT." I was just stunned when somebody approached me during the first day of my work and called me "Makat". Ok, so I get it that they just cut Maria Katrina short, but I really find it weird. What’s worse is that even the people I’m with during my undergrad years started to call me the same way as if they never occurred to them that they call me Kat back then. The first thought that came into my mind when I heard that name: sounds like "bakat". I am aware that they are not aware of the rhyme but I know that they will learn it soon and I kind of worry that some immature person will start defacing my identity (alright, I’m exaggerating…). Matutuwa ka ba naman na tawagin ka sa pangalang katunog ng bakat, di ba? I just don’t mind it before but lately I was getting conscious of the way they call me (nakakarindi din kasi pala) that I have the tendency to answer them something like ‘just eliminate the "Ma-" para mas maiksi at di na masayang ang laway mo’.
Now you know the reason. So I appeal to the public, particularly to the IC people, please DON’T call me Makat, ok?
Le Papillon 