I’m registering a class of high school students for library cards.
Student: Yo does the library pay ok?
Me: It pays decently.
Student: How much?
Me: Something like $16 an hour.
Students: DAAAAAAAAAAAMN
Student: Yo Teacher how much you make?
Teacher: None of your business, that’s how much.
Teacher: But it’s more than $16 an hour.
Student: Screw college imma get a job at the library
Me: $16ish an hour is approximately enough to live on if you’re lucky, have low-to-no debt, and have roommates.
Student: You playin.
Me: I can not lie to you about my income. All City salaries are available to the public at http://data.philly.com/philly/payroll/? and you can check on anyone at any time. Some of those numbers will piss you off, though.
Student: But that’s so much! Teacher we can skip all the books and stuff, I wanna work here!
Teacher: You don’t think reading is part of working at the library?
Student: He don’t do nothin but sit here!
Me: Kid, if you don’t get out my face
Student: He don’t gotta read!
Me: And if you count all the time Teacher works outside of the school, I guarantee you they are making less than my $16 an hour.
Teacher, sighing: You’re right about that…
Student: Shut up, they don’t do nothin’ outside of school.
Teacher: Your ability to deduce the exact parameters of peoples’ jobs is baffling.