Believe it or not, there’s another Matt Sevits out there. I thought that with a last name like Sevits, I was pretty much guaranteed sole dominion over the prestigious combination of Matt and Sevits. But, sadly, I was wrong. How do I know this? The answer is simple: I Googled myself.
I know that the other Matt, who is trying his hardest to steal my thunder, is a NASCAR racer. I’m tempted to say that’s reason enough for me to dislike him, but that wouldn’t be very nice. I also know that if what Google is telling me is correct, it would appear that he either lives in or near Arizona, since that’s where he seems to spend all his time racing.
There’s also a Matt Sevits who lives in Moberly, Mo., but I’m going to hope that it’s the same one that races cars. I already share my appearance with someone (I have an evil twin who also attends the University), so I don’t like the idea of sharing my name with two more someones.
See? There’s a lot you can learn about yourself by Googling yourself. For example, I’ve also learned that fans of actor/musician Drake Bell have a bit of an issue with me. One of the results of Googling my name is a posting on a Drake Bell message board in which a fan posted a snippet from an article I wrote called “Songs you haven’t heard (but should).” I wrote, “the track is more mature than his typical Nickelodeon-watching fanbase,” merely implying that children are the primary audience base for Nickelodeon and, thus, for Bell as well.
I had absolutely no intent to take a jab at Bell, or to assume that all of his fans are children, and I certainly didn’t intend to take a jab at Nickelodeon and its viewers. But now there’s a string of posts in which fans go off on me for assuming Bell’s fans are children and for taking a jab at Nickelodeon. One poster even rails against critics in general, saying how snobby and cruel they are.
I have to admit that it was a little painful to read that at first. I never want to come off as snobby or cruel or that I’m somehow better than anyone else. My goal as an entertainment writer is simply to help readers sift through the multitude of entertainment choices available to them today and to help them make the best choices for them when it comes to what to watch, read or listen to. I also like the idea of getting paid to watch movies and TV for a living. Who wouldn’t?
I shouldn’t let it get to me. After all, if I can dish the criticism, I should sure as hell be able to take it. And I guess when the haters and name-stealers get me down, I can find solace in the fact that my Google results are higher up on the page than that other Matt.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go Google myself to see if anyone posts this column on a message board.
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