"Den of Vipers"

SHAME! SHAME! SHAME! The librarian's finger tip is all up in my personal space, somehow rigid and waggling all at once. "How DAAAAAAAAAAAARE you masquerade as a high school student! How old are you? What year were you born?" Yes, I have come full circle to being "carded" once again, this time for being too old. And even with all the finger pointing, I could handle it 'til she said, "Please! You don't even LOOK 18!"

Um... I happen to agree with her, but tell that to the plethora of adults at my old worksite who were constantly screaming at me to get out of the faculty bathroom because it wasn't for students AND THEN counseling me to start wearing corduroy dresses and bows in my hair (no exaggeration) so I would stop being mistaken for a student. Cheers. And this is after I successfully wrote an entire rough draft (rough being the operative word here, folks) of a literature review during a staff meeting that ended at 5pm for a class that starts at 5:10pm. So my point is, this? This was a bit of a buzz kill. I haven't been yelled at by a librarian in, well, years. I always put them top in the NICEST PEOPLE EVER category. Well, just below such upstanding individuals like my friends John'n'Steve.

So I respond, "Um.... I'm 34? And um.... that is my ... um.... Teacher ID."

"Oh." Retraction of pronounced accusatory finger waggle. swipe of books. "Due back in three weeks. Have a nice evening." Magnanimous librarian smile. As AA pointed out, a Den of Vipers out there in librarian world. And they are all dressed innocent as PowerPuff Girls. Watch out.