VS.









I think I need to move. Living in a town that shares its name with a Russian town, is not always a good idea. Here in North Idaho we pronounce it (Mahw-sco), not (Moss-cow). People don't get it. It's like those people who say (Los Angle-ease) for Los Angeles. Okay, I don't really know anyone who says that, but I wanted to compare it to a bigger, hipper, more city-like city.

I am almost always asked to spell it when I must give my address over the phone. After saying M-O-S-C-O-W so many times, I have finally just begun telling people to just put Mo. That's what we call our daughter, whose name Moira is never pronounced right. So, why can't it be good enough for my city?

Until we move I will be accepting mail in Mo, Idaho. With my luck, there is already a city in this fine state that uses that name legally. I mean we do have Athol (lovingly referred to as the A** hole of Idaho- with a lisp),  Atomic City, Dubois (not pronounced at all like they would in France), Melba (like the toast), Onaway ('nuff said) and Paris.

 I like to think I am unique, but today, after Googling myself (I don't recommend it unless you need to bring your mood down a few notches) I realized that not only do I share my name with a few others, but some of them even share my profession. The other one is a plumber, which is not that far removed from a journalist. (We both are knee deep in poo for half our careers.) The "real" Erin Harty (that's me) doesn't show up until page 2.  The most prevalent of the Erin Hartys is not only an accomplished veterinarian, but a published author and journalist. She has written a book on horses, has a blog, a domain name using my name and she is starting to annoy me. Okay, I confess, she looks great on paper and if she loves animals, she is probably okay, but now I feel the need to change my name, or at least add an initial or even a silent letter. Hmm, maybe an H — Ehrin Harty? No, okay, what about an O —Eorin? Whatever!

Anyway, in an effort to bump my name to page one I am going to repeat my name over and over in this blog post hoping Google recognizes that 36 Erin Hartys in a row are better than one.

Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty Erin Harty