This just happened this morning and I'm still fuming. I just can't believe how insulting this SC was.
SC is a regular patron to whom I once recommended King Rat by China Mieville. She enjoyed the book right up the end where the rat king is revealed. Creeped her out to no end. And there has been no end of her ribbing me about reading creepy books about rats. And it was moderately amusing and then fairly tolerable until this morning. #background
SC comes up to my desk; she's got a book to check out and a book on hold.
SC: CamJuniper, you're what, 23? 24?
Me: [warning bells--personal questions = bad news]. Thereabouts, yeah.
SC: [in a jokingly incredulous tone] You're just so young! You're still a baby!
Me: [pastes on false smile]
SC: But you read books about creepy rats!
Me: I like that kind of thing. [shrugs] You should see Mieville's other books. [seriously. His creepy factor for each new book is exponential]
SC: Huh. [in the tone of something revelatory dawning] I guess that's why our generations are so different. We fought in the trenches for women's liberation. You guys are reading creepy rat books.
Me: [semi-strangled, disbelieving laugh]
SC: [leaves, shaking her head]
Me: [clenching jaws]
SO. FLIPPING. MAD. You don't know anything about me or my politics let alone my level of activism in any number of issues that I'm passionate about so how they hell could you even dream that it's okay to make such disgusting, sweeping generalizations and imply to my face that I'm a do-nothing, lazy-ass, weird-book-reading, useless child???
(In the interest of full disclosure, I do, indeed, read weird books)
SC is a regular patron to whom I once recommended King Rat by China Mieville. She enjoyed the book right up the end where the rat king is revealed. Creeped her out to no end. And there has been no end of her ribbing me about reading creepy books about rats. And it was moderately amusing and then fairly tolerable until this morning. #background
SC comes up to my desk; she's got a book to check out and a book on hold.
SC: CamJuniper, you're what, 23? 24?
Me: [warning bells--personal questions = bad news]. Thereabouts, yeah.
SC: [in a jokingly incredulous tone] You're just so young! You're still a baby!
Me: [pastes on false smile]
SC: But you read books about creepy rats!
Me: I like that kind of thing. [shrugs] You should see Mieville's other books. [seriously. His creepy factor for each new book is exponential]
SC: Huh. [in the tone of something revelatory dawning] I guess that's why our generations are so different. We fought in the trenches for women's liberation. You guys are reading creepy rat books.
Me: [semi-strangled, disbelieving laugh]
SC: [leaves, shaking her head]
Me: [clenching jaws]

(In the interest of full disclosure, I do, indeed, read weird books)
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