Ten minutes to write. Less time to read.

They don’t call me Twolimes for nothing. In fact, that is one of my current email addresses on AOL, a name I’m about to shed.

It began when I accidentally started drinking Absolut at a cocktail party about thirteen years ago. I’d never had Absolut before but something possessed me at the moment the bartender was ready for my order. Maybe it was those crazy ad promotions the Absolut people were plastering all over the place at the time.

I casually said, “Absolut on the rocks with two limes, please.” And I held up two fingers to emphasize the number of lime slices. Even over the din, the bartender got the message.

So when I joined the AOL family, a year or so after the cocktail party, I needed an email address that was no longer than eight letters or numbers combined. What could work better than Twolimes@aol.com? Of course, this was mostly for my family and friends. My clients communicated with me through another, more professionally sounding, email address.

But, as of September 10, I’m giving up AOL and am retiring my email addresses. It doesn’t matter whether you fall in the friend or client category, you can now communicate with me best via Anne@AnneBrandt.com. And I still plan to drink Absolut. With two limes.