Ms. vs. Miss; to Dame or not to Dame (was Re: Titles)

[Rosmerta]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at y..., Jen Faulkner <jfaulkne at e...> wrote:
> Ms. has come to be pretty much standard in the US since the women's
> movement of the 70s.

Dearest Jen,

This bulletin just in from the suburbs: I wish it weren't so, but the 
Ms. title is unambiguously NOT standard ANYwhere I've lived for the 
past 10 years, and that's including the overeducated/overmonied towns 
of the Northeast U.S. I didn't change my name when I married *and* 
use the title Ms. or at least try to, a double violation of some code 
I haven't yet deciphered. People have assumed I'm a lesbian, a 
divorcee, a nanny or a kidnapper (all of which have their 
possibilities, but none of which I am). 

~Rosmerta
Who loves the riddle of the "maiden name": you don't *have* one until 
you've given it up.