Lois Lane must have rung me out at Best Buy.

[sixums]

When I went to renew my license earlier this year, the woman at the RMV told me to take off my glasses before taking my picture. I was utterly confused, and she said something about that being a policy in MA now or something.



It makes NO sense to me! I'm nearsighted, and I'm required to wear those glasses for driving so I can see the road signs. Why would my glasses not be in the picture? I've had cashiers look at my ID before and comment on how I look somewhat different from my photo because of them. I just shrug and pass on what the state told me. Luckily I haven't gotten into a situation like that though.

[Rapscallion]

It makes NO sense to me! I'm nearsighted, and I'm required to wear those glasses for driving so I can see the road signs. Why would my glasses not be in the picture?

If it's anything like the passport photo rules over here these days, it's to avoid any sort of reflection of the flash on your lenses.

Rapscallion

[Jetfire]

Reflection would probably be the main reason. Plus as this thread shows, if you get contacts in the future or what not, it'll always be easier to take off your glasses to 'prove' your appearance than it'll be to find a pair to put on if you ever stop wearing glasses.

[Chromatix]

I've had long hair most of the time for the past 10 years or so.

Right now, my passport has less than a year left of validity. It looks decidedly ratty, having suffered water damage at some point in the past (probably because I carry it everywhere in case I need ID - I don't have a full driving licence). It's a British passport - and I no longer live in Britain, so it's pretty important that it's still recognised as valid.

So no matter what, I am *not* cutting my hair and shaving, as *some* people want me to. Not looking exactly like my photo might, at this point, push my passport over the edge into invalidity.

Of course, when I do get my new passport, sometimes during the next year, it'll be one of the newfangled ones with the chip in it. Given what I've heard about those, I'm not sure whether I like that idea.

[Misanthropical]

When I still had my South Dakota driver's license I was refused a wine sale in California. I was told that since the store was close to a college campus I could have made a fake ID. Now, this was in the early 90's and I don't think the people who made fake IDs could have put a holographic picture of Mt. Rushmore on it.

The clerk sold it to my husband knowing we were together. It has never made a lick of sense to me.

[LadyAndreca]

Whenever I get photo ID taken I try to take off my glasses and have my hair down (or put my ponytail/braid in the picture to show that my hair is nice and long), because while I do wear contacts sometimes, it's actually my hair that makes the difference. I look 18ish with it just pulled back in a low ponytail, mid-20s in a high ponytail that doesn't show the part, and when it's loose it depends entirely which direction I part it. (Usually I'm too rushed to do anything but the low ponytail.) The worst photo ID of my life was my first DL, which was taken with a new-fangled digital camera and the entire side of my face was splotchy blue--yet they wouldn't retake it. The best ever was taken the same year, when I got my military dependant ID renewed, also taken with a new-fangled (and VERY high-tech) digital camera. I was sad when I had to turn that one in, it came out so well. Plus I'd been wearing a halloween costume in it.

Even though most everyone I meet seems to think I'm 18 when they meet me, I almost never get carded--I'm told it's because I ask with a 'dare you to card me' look or smile because I love to see people's reactions when they find out I'm actually a decade older than they think.

[Flying Grype]

Around here it seems like they want you to look the way you normally look. If you usually wear glasses, they first try taking your picture with the glasses on. On my health care card I'm wearing them. In my passport photo I'm not, because the lighting in the store was making too much glare off them (the photographer did try with them on first). I'll let you know what happens with my driver's license.

[KMCA]

My best friend is almost perfect - she can recognise someone she knew as a child a decade and a half ago, who's now adult, with vastly different hairstyle etc etc.

Me? I've failed to recognise my own mother. When we're shopping together, she knows that SHE may have to be the one to find ME if we separate - even though she's my bestest friend ever.

Honestly, I think we're probably at the two extremes. Much worse than me, and it probably counts as a pathology.

Google 'proposagnosia' and 'proposamnesia'.

I got proposamnesia, I can recognise people I knew in childhood, yet getting a description out of me (even of my gf of 7+ years) is nigh impossible. My job is security if that makes things funnier, what's even better is I've got a greater then 99% accuracy rate for finding fake ID's or near identical siblings trying to borrow the older ones ID

[Mr Hero]

I love the title of this thread.

Like Hobbs mentioned, it reminds me of that SNL skit.
I think Teri Hatcher did it as well in her opening monologue.

Different SNL cast members would come out, and she wouldn't have a clue who they were until they took off their glasses.

The Teri Hatcher monologue was actually the inspiration for this thread's title. That and I find Superman bland and will not turn down a chance to mock it.

On a side note, I had no idea other people besides Hatcher did that for the monologue.

[Ree]

On a side note, I had no idea other people besides Hatcher did that for the monologue.

Me neither.
I didn't realize Margo Kidder had also done it.

[Anakah]

In AZ driver license's don't expire until you are 65. I had an AZ DL that didn't expire until 2049, there was NO way I'd look like my picture.... And I think they had you update the pics every ten years--maybe.

It is hard when someone doesn't look like their photo. But in your case glasses shouldn't have been that difficult to figure out...

[MadMike]

Me? I've failed to recognise my own mother. When we're shopping together, she knows that SHE may have to be the one to find ME if we separate - even though she's my bestest friend ever.

I'm the same way, and on top of that I'm also terrible with names. It's not just the faces that I can't remember, it's pretty much everything. I bet the cops would hate me if I was the sole witness of a crime.

"What did they look like?"
"Uh...."
"OK, what were they wearing?"
"Uh..."

I failed to recognize one of my closest friends at the bar awhile back. I saw her walk in, and I knew I knew her, but couldn't figure her out. It's not like I know that many six-foot-tall women, so it shouldn't have been that difficult. She came up and gave me a hug, and I still couldn't figure it out. Once she took off her jacket, then it all clicked. Weird.

Apparently I know almost everyone at the local bar, but I can only remember a few of them, and know even fewer names. The bartenders also know me, and they know what beer I drink, and usually have it out for me as soon as they see me coming in the door. But I can not for the life of me remember any of their names. I feel like they're Homer Simpson and I'm Mr. Burns asking "Who the devil are you?"

[Jetfire]

I'm the same way. Horrible with remembering faces/descriptions AND names.

Heck I've worked in this office for 5 years now, an office with 100-some people, and while I'm pretty sure I would recognize many of them, I'd be hard pressed to match names to more than a dozen faces. (And the other 80-some people, I wouldn't even have names for )

[Sakka]

I'm horrible with names and faces. In school one day I was talking with a teacher I didn't have any classes with in the hallway during a break. Later that day I bumped into the same teacher somewhere else and it didn't click in my memory until several minutes later, after mounting confusion waiting for something to click before I finally asked, 'I'm sorry, but who are you?'

Years later, I still get ribbed about that by the teacher. Although now it isn't as bad as now that I've bumped into that former teacher several times over the years outside of the school environment, I'm finding it a bit easier to match the name, face, and relevant information.

To make this even funnier, this former teacher grew up with my dad and they've known each other for decades now.

[AriRashkae]

Google 'proposagnosia' and 'proposamnesia'.

I didn't know that was an actual condition. I thought I was just weird. I'm not quite that "bad" but I have a very hard time attaching faces to names. Voices, mannerisms, even scents, I can identify fairly easily, but faces? Not so much.

My mother and grandmother decided to be evil one time when I worked at Subway and my uncle came up from PA to visit. They sent him in alone to see if I'd recognize him after not seeing him for a few years. Too bad for them I knew he was coming to visit around then and put it together quickly enough.