I'm SO ageist

I worked with a new librarian today, somebody who has been out of school for a few years but who has only recently started in an actual library job as a substitute librarian in our system. Today was her second day on the job, her second day of sitting behind a reference desk and dealing with the public. Welcome to my library, where shit that isn't bolted down is stolen! Where we call the cops on a nightly basis!

She has teenaged children, and was asking me if I'd set out to be a YA librarian. I told her no, I hadn't set out to do this, but it turns out I really like young adults. They are smart and funny and you can sort of reason with them. Sort of. Unlike, say, 2-year-olds. Plus, I have immense empathy for people undergoing radical transitions, and a pretty high tolerance of most things. She seemed perplexed when I told here that I like kids, but I don't want them in my home. I work with them for 8 hours a day, then I go home to my place which has no kids, only a husband an hopefully, soon, some nice, entertaining furry creatures of the canine and feline varieties. Where it is quiet, and where I can do things without worrying about bedtimes or babysitters or whatever.

So it was insane today like it is most Mondays. It would be helpful to grow another head and at least another two pairs of arms on Mondays in order to deal with all the questions. Permit me to digress briefly: I spent 45 minutes trying to find a movie for a customer. Only one library has a copy of this movie in the U.S. according to WorldCat. This library refused our ILL request. This library is in Alaska in a town of like, 600 people. When I tried to call them I learned that the library was closed today due to roads made impassible by snow. This was my first reference question of the day, and it sort of set the tone for the day...

The new substitute librarian asked me while I was dealing with about 3 other questions simeltaneously if a teen had to sign up on the queue to wait for a teen computer when there were empty adult computers available. I robotically gave here the answer that yes, teens use teen computers, kids use kid computers, adults use adult computers. Most people in this area don't have computers in their homes. There are adults looking for jobs, writing papers for classes, etc. for which they need to use our computers. Many teens get on computers in our library to play games. That's just reality.

Later on, the librarian told me I was ageist for imposing this rule on a girl who needed to use the computer for school. She had apparently left the library quite upset because she needed to type something up for tonight, and waited until 4:30 this afternoon to do it. 4:30, when our network slows to half speed because there are so many people online in our library system. I'm ageist? For imposing rules on a teen? Because I don't want to have to police the computers and throw all the OTHER teens off the adult computers who have jumped on because they saw another teen on an adult computer? Because I don't want to deal with upset adults who need to work on their resumes but can't because some kid is adding videos to his MySpace?

Does and adult's job application take precedence over some teen's RuneScape? I don't know. Maybe I am ageist. I just happen to believe that all hell will break loose in my particular library if we happen to relax this rule. (It would've helped if I'd been told she needed a computer for schoolwork--we make exceptions for these situations.)

In other news, I applied for a MN drivers license two weeks ago. They don't give you a new license at the DMV the day you test for/pay for one. You have your current out-of-state license defaced in some way (they cut a small corner off my license) and they give you a receipt showing you paid for a new license. Apparently having the corner cut off your license makes it invalid unless this paid receipt accompanies it. So, when I tried to order a glass of wine at my local pizza joint and got carded, I was told they would not serve me booze, since I presented my ID without the receipt. My MI license has my picture and my birthdate, which clearly indicates that I am 30. But I guess this wasn't good enough for my waitress, who looked to be approximately 20 years old.

Am I too old? Am I too young? Apparently, I am both, and I discriminate against those who are both older and younger than me. I'm going to drink some scotch and then go to bed.