WTF America?

[tiggymalvern]

I'm 38 years old and still getting my ID demanded to buy alcohol. Twice in the last 10 days - once because I ordered a glass of wine in a restaurant and again today for buying a bottle of wine at the supermarket.

Seriously, people, I haven't been under legal drinking age, even under America's idiotic laws, in a very long time. I have wrinkles. Can you cease the puritanical paranoia now and leave me to buy my booze in peace, please?

Comments

[arabwel.livejournal.com]

I am reminded o this one time when my sister and I were on a crusie ship.. we went to the bufet and me being 16, we wen tin with one full price, one kids meal. now, fast forard half an hour.

a woman approaches our table, one of the staff. she then goes and proceeds to ID my SISTER who had a las sof wine - I didn't, duh - because one of us was underage.

I was 16. My sister was 27. Legal age for drinking? 18.

I have never let her live that one down! :P

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I suppose since people tend to drink with friends of a similar age, and one of you had self-identified as a kid, it wouldn't be that unreasonable to check. But I can understand your sister being unimpressed :-)

[arabwel.livejournal.com]

My sister would have been mor eimpressed if not for the part where she IS older by 10 years. I was equally unimpressed at her weddding when i was asked if I was her older sister...

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

Ouch. That would sting! You can put it down to the glowing bride effect, she's supposed to look radiant :-)

[arabwel.livejournal.com]

Indeed.. that and the fact that she is 5'2, I'm 5'9, and I am also about the size of a small whale so... no one can tell my age that accurately! :P

[king-chiron.livejournal.com]

That was probably the problem, you must have been dining with a group of very young-looking people that night. :)

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

Well, there you go, obviously it's all your fault XD

[mamishka.livejournal.com]

Personally I would take it as a compliment. You don't look even 30 to me!

Another possibility is that school is back in session, so places are being more paranoid/careful not to accidentally serve/sell to underage drinkers. I've also been told that some places card everyone, even if you're stooped over with grey hair.

Personally I'm jealous. I bought some peche lambic at QFC the other day and on my receipt it said, "age verification bypassed". Gee. Thanks. ;P

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I normally get the age verification bypass too, which is why this one puzzled me (I was in QFC, where they have signs on the checkout saying, 'We card anyone who looks under 27'). Maybe that particular member of staff needs glasses XD

[mamishka.livejournal.com]

I think you just have to own your own hawtness and youthful good looks. >;)

[teaforme.livejournal.com]

Don't worry, randomness rules when it comes to ID checks for booze, so I'm sure they'll get you later. I'm 45 and still get asked for ID occasionally. Getting old enough now that I do take it as a compliment most times. ;-)

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I'd take it as a compliment if it wasn't a reminder that even civilisation here in Seattle is still part of the rest of the US!

[mac-lynn.livejournal.com]

ROTFL. I think I have you beat, sweetie. I was carded yesterday when I bought a couple bottles of wine. So I don't think its going to stop any time soon!

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

::sigh:: Why does the US pick such inane things to obsess over? It's a bottle of wine - I could legally buy a shotgun instead!

[mac-lynn.livejournal.com]

Because they don't know how the hell to set priorities. I swear we have the most idiotic laws.

[mamishka.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure you need ID to buy a shotgun too. ;) But yeah, this is the US, where stupidity rules and the rest of us suffer.

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I would need an ID to buy a shotgun, I checked today out of curiosity - and I'd still need to be 21 too in Washington (I think some states it's younger?).

[tameiki.livejournal.com]

But you look so young! You really do. If I were still bartending I'd have to card you just to make sure :)

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

Well, I'd expect you to say that, because you're so gloriously and reliably delightfully nice :-)

[tameiki.livejournal.com]

Surely, you can't be talking about me! *giggles*

Without knowing your age I can't blame someone for thinking you look like someone too young to buy alcohol. I promise not to card you when we go out somewhere alcohol is being served when we're in SF! :p

[iibnf.livejournal.com]

I had the same thing when I was in the US, too.

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I don't doubt it. You'd think with the murder rate in the US they could concern themselves with something more important than if maybe, occasionally, someone who's only 20 and old enough to be married and have kids, manages to buy a beer.

[iibnf.livejournal.com]

I don't know what the legal drinking age is here, either 16 or 18, and yet we manage to murder each other far less. Maybe card someone on buying guns, instead.

Mind you, we have a glassing problem.

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

Mind you, we have a glassing problem.

Ouch, that's not fun. Sadly, the same can definitely be said of certain areas in the UK....

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I could buy that in the restaurant maybe, since they're not generally the brightest lit places, but under the fluorescents in QFC, there's really no getting away from the harsher truths!

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

Do I look younger than my age? Probably. Do I look younger than 21? Not a chance in hell. And as several commenters have pointed out above, they're still carding people in their 40s. These people are serious jobsworths.

[imre-nico.livejournal.com]

I think it must be your porcelain "English rose" complexion, don't you? >:.)

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

Maybe they're all so dazzled by my fabulous accent, they forget to look XD

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

It is not my nation's fault you're well-preserved.

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

No, but seriously - I was never asked my age in England when I was 17 XD

Sadly, they've toughened up a bit since those days, as my 17-year-old niece has been known to complain, but they're definitely still not checking IDs on people over 30....

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

If you're a store owner or clerk you don't want to get caught not checking people-- the fines are astronomical and can affect your insurance, and some people have a zero tolerance policy on getting busted. The local deli down the street fires anyone who gets caught selling to anyone underage, no exceptions.

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I'm aware the rules are draconian, and pretty much the same is now true in England, but they still don't card 40-year-olds there! There's got to be a sensible cut-off point below that, and I think QFCs signs suggesting 27 are reasonable. They just need to persuade their staff to stick with them XD

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

Ah, but maybe you look 27~

It is pretty ridiculous, though.

[cherrybomb23z.livejournal.com]

lol Ok i haven't seen you for a few years but you don't look as old as you think you do.

I like being ID'd it makes me feel young.

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

Funny the difference a few years can make! It was only 5 years ago I discovered I had wrinkles when I looked closely into a hotel bathroom mirror under really vicious fluorescents. 'That's not so bad,'I thought, 'They'll stay subtle for while longer yet'.

And then I learned that when they start, they accelerate fast!

[moonriddler-mim.livejournal.com]

LOL! ^_^

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I'll bet you get carded over here, oh young one XD

[moonriddler-mim.livejournal.com]

heck, I get carded over HERE too! XoP

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I'm assuming you have an 18 drinking age or something sensible?

And you *are* young and adorable, so that's not so shocking :-)

[moonriddler-mim.livejournal.com]

it's 20 here now, they raised it a number of years back. or was that for voting... I forget. which means I'm too old to have to worry about it. heh.

aw, thanks. ^_^