Since adopting my new last name, I have learned that there are many variations of the name Sommer. When I first met Kent I could never say it right, but it's pronounced Sommer, the 'o' sounding like 'on' or the sound you make when you open your mouth for the doctor to look down your throat...."Sahhhhhhhhhmmer".Anyway, I've noticed that people most often mistake it for Sommers, which isn't too bad, just an extra 's', but it is also confused with Somners, Somner, Sumners, Sumner, Summer, even Pommer. That one was during a phone call, so I can understand the confusion. I was probably mumbling. (West was an easier last name, but it's lower on the alphabet chain. No more being second to last on the role.)
Either way, the name confusion is the reason for our blog title. In college, Kent's good friend, Dave, thought Kent's name was Kent Somner. They were in the same ward for about a year, but Kent always remained Kent Somner. I think Dave was disappointed when he found out it was Sommer. They had to get to know each other all over again. That 'm' versus 'n' made a big difference.
So, we're actually Kent and Nellie Sommer, not Kent and Nellie Sumners. It's tricky. I love my new last name and if you do say Summer, you're not wrong. Sommer does mean 'summer' in German, just don't forget the 'ahhhhh' sound.
