I'm 22!...Really!

Since I have moved here I have been asked my age more times than I can count. Yes, there are the usual times for asking, like when you are dating, or jsut meeting new people. But the majority of times I have been asked seems to be that people are curious because they simply cannot tell. Usually I have them guess and it's always a different answer. It used to be that people think I'm older than I was because I was serious about my career at the young age of 19 and didn't mind working early mornings. I guess 19 year olds they knew are different than me. They thought I should be out all night partying or something. I've heard everything from "Wow, you were just born when I started working here," to, "I could be your father." People also have found it hard to believe how familiar I am with songs that were popular way before I was here (thanks to my great education of the Beatles and Carpenters, etc.) But it was always followed by a respect of the level of maturity that could see. Now it seems that people find it hard to believe that I am as old as I am since I am working part time in a less serious environment. Today a nice lady with what seemed like a nice African accent asked me my age and I told her 22. She looked at me strangely and said, " No you're not, you're only 18 years old." I laughed and told her it was the truth, and that I have been married for over a year and pointed to my ring. In society we seem to want people to guess our age as younger than it actually is..unless it's 18! I have tried very hard, since I was an actual teenager to not give people a chance to label me as a stereotypical teenager. Once, in high school during a dance day activity, my date used the horn on my steering wheel to be silly and get the attention to someone at a light that we were stopped at. I was trying so hard not to be a stick in the mud, because he was my date. But I was so embarrassed and didn't want to be in this care with all these...hoodlums. I was above it. I'm not saying that the lady in the hospital was saying I was a crazy teenager, but I think that is what people think of when they think of you as that age. I have been through quite a lot since I was a teenager, and even though I am only a few years beyond, I feel that those years are very significant in me becoming an adult. Granted, 22 in this area gives way for even more craziness in the party scene with all the legality of the age and everything. I love being this age, in fact I think this is where I am finally not wanting to get older. The years are starting to seem shorter and I love being young. This kind of young, where you have your independence, and a little experience to learn from. Not the young where you are in high school and every tiny thing causes so much drama. I thought once I had a two in front of my age people would stop being surprised at my age when I told them, but no, it continues even today. When I met KC and found out that he was an old 27, I thought there was no chance that our ages could be compatible. Then we figured out that through his kid at heart attitude, and my seriousness, we really balance each other out. We switch place at times, and other times we meet in the middle. It seems to work out okay (well, better than okay, I guess). Maybe I'll wear a sign on my head or something, but then again, I am always intrigued as to what people have to say. Let's see how long 18 lasts.