Coping with jerks, I think, is a skill you start learning young;
   sarcastic aunts and uncles, big sisters and brothers, who enjoy
   passive aggressive torment... then "the teachers that shouldn't
   be there" (there's always a few) who take out their personal
   problems on the kids under their care, and then by 3rd grade -
   well, that's when Sarcasm becomes the Rule of Thumb; South Park
   got the age right. From then on, you survive and crumble and
   thrive alternatively; a lot of growing up is "running the
   gauntlet" - getting pelted from both sides and trying to make it
   through while smiling. And.. I kind of think growing up is
   something you do your entire life; we never stop learning the
   strange ways of other people - or ourselves :P (waxing
   philosophical tonight; a sure sign of needing more coffee!)