like stallone

I rarely have a problem with my last name. It's my first name that is constantly being feminized, to the point that my nickname in our office in New York was "Justine."

But the last name can also get tricky. It's not very musical. It's not Berlusconi or Mussolini. It's Petrone. And it's hard to say 'P's and 'T's over the telephone.

Today's conversation with someone in The Netherlands went something like this:

"What's your name again?"

"Justin Petrone."

"The last name again, sir, I didn't get it."

"P - E - T - R - O - N - E," I said [and remember, the Dutch alphabet isn't said the same way as the English one]. "It's an Italian name. You know Sylvester Stallone? Well, it's like Stallone, except in my case it's Petrone."

"Ah," she said. "Very well, Mr. Petrone. I'll connect you immediately."

[Petrone is a southern Italian patronymic, by the way. It means "Peter's son"]