白美秋

I got named yesterday.  In some cultures, naming involves ceremonies, celebrations, at the very least usually a parent might peruse a baby name book or try out grandpa's middle name or something. 

We were at school registration.  The form asked for my name, and then for my Chinese name.  Which of course I didn't have yet because how do you just pick a name for yourself in a language you don't know?  And Andrew has been insisting (rightly I think), that my Chinese name should come from a Chinese person.

So the registration guy (about our age, and Chinese), asks what my name is, asks Andrew what his Chinese name is, looks at me for a second, and then just fills out the form.

Bai Mei Qiu

The whole process was a little unromantic I suppose.  But he was a very helpful registration guy (another post topic sometime: how many passport photos and different stamped papers does one really need to be admitted to language school?)

It means Beautiful Autumn.  And it's fitting, no?  Beautiful Autumn?  Autumn is harvest time - arguably my favorite time of year.  Of course, he mostly just chose it because it sort of sounds like my real name.  But that's fine.  It's pronounced "Buy May Chyo" (um - second, third, first if you know your tones).

Wait - small correction.  It's actually (literally), "White Beautiful Autumn"  White (Bai) is the surname, and also happens to be Andrew's last name in Chinese.  Amusing, no?  That I go to China and now I take his name?