R-E-S-P-E-C-T

As Luke and all his little friends get more verbal, I keep bumping into the issue of respect. Particularly respect in addressing adults. I was brought up addressing all adults as Uncle So-and-so and Aunt Such-and-such. That sounds normal to my ears. The Mr. or Mrs. paired with someone's last name also sounds normal, if somewhat formal, to my ears. You know what doesn't sound normal? Miss or Mr. FIRSTname. Actually, it drives me to distraction when someone refers to me as Miss Anisha. Literally--I stare blankly at them for a moment before realizing that they're referring to me.

Here's the thing. I was Miss Anisha at the daycare. I was fine with being Miss Anisha at the daycare. But now? I no longer work at a daycare. I'm not an authority figure for anyone else's kids (well...I guess with the exception of Other Baby, but he mostly tends to refer to me as "Mmgbrf.") And as a non-authority figure, I'd really prefer just being called Anisha. Or "Luke's mom." Or even, "Hey, you there." Seriously. THAT'S how much I dislike being "Miss Anisha."

I guess the most respectful way of introducing your kids to someone--child OR adult--would be to ask that person how they'd like to be addressed. In fact, I've done that a few times and everyone I asked preferred just their first names. So...why is this Miss FirstName thing so popular? And also, if other people get to dictate what THEIR kids call me, does that mean that I then should be dictating what MY kid calls them? Because if that's the case, I'd just introduce them by their first name. Or should I be asking them? Or should I just guess based on how they introduce me to their kids?

Maybe I'll just start teaching him to refer to people by a random color-number combination. Red-two, blue-fifteen, that kind of thing. At least then, I'll feel like I'm living in a spy movie.