Another Day at the Library

A forty-year-old man approached me at the circulation desk at the library.

He said, “I’m embarrassed because I need to pay for a book. I put it in my backpack, but I put some ice cream in there too.”

It was August. The ice cream had melted.

I looked up his account.

“You’re lucky,” I said. “At least it was an older paperback. It only costs $7.99.”

He gave me his debit card.

While I was processing the transaction, I noticed that he was looking at me – intently.

“You were probably quite good-looking when you were young,” he said.

What?  What kind of a comment was this? Was this guy trying to flirt with me? Or was he just trying to give me some kind of bizarre “compliment”.

I kept my head down and mumbled something.

It got worse. He continued, “Because you’re still somewhat attractive, even now.”

Really? This was too much. If this was a pick-up line, it belongs in some sort of Hall of Fame of the worst pick-up lines ever.

“Sign here,” I said, handing him the receipt.

I tried very hard to keep calm. I didn’t want to start laughing until he was a good distance from the desk. At that point, I had to take a short break to compose myself.

Every time I think about this exchange, I chuckle. I tell my husband, “You better watch out for the competition. Remember, I’m still somewhat attractive, even now.”

At least to the clever kind of guy who puts ice cream in his backpack in August.