I’m changing my name from “Kyle Anderson” to Kyle Cascade". I’m changing it in anticipation of a new family member, and my wife and I figured it would be nice to all have the same last name together, without patriarchal traditions. And it sounds cool.

But seriously, it marks a new chapter in my life. We wanted to pick a new name that represented us. We wanted a nod to nature, but also nothing too far out there. We also didn’t want to “steal” someone else’s last name, so we didn’t want to select a name that was already in wide use. “Cascade” fit the bill nicely.

Isn’t it great that we live (at least in the US) in a society where one can choose their own name (and other traits)? We exist first, sure, but then our essence comes second. Wouldn’t it be neat if we had a tradition of people picking their own name (first and/or last) for themselves, as a rite of passage into adulthood? One’s identity is not determined at birth, and your parent’s last name doesn’t define you, it’s just a reminder of where you came from.

Also, the name change also means an excuse to buy a new domain name :). My new email address is now kyle@cascade.family and the new blog is at kyle.cascade.family.

If you are subscribed to RSS, the new RSS feed is here. Email or any other updates will be automatically fed from the new blog, no change required.

That means that this blog is sun-setting. It has been almost 18 years and has been a great run. All content will be marked as read only and the URLs won’t change.

See you on the other side!