It’s Intern Season in Washington, the time of year when cranky people like me become mildly annoyed at the sight of roaming packs of earnest young people.  They are everywhere, of course — filling the Metro, chatting each other up at restaurants, breathing air in and out.

They are often so sincere, especially the ones who work on Capitol Hill. They arrive at their local congressperson’s office thinking they are going to change the world, but some soon realize they are just going to change the toner cartridges in the office printers. It’s sort of fascinating to watch the de-evolutionary process for those unfortunate interns: As the summer goes along, the clothing gets sloppier, the hangdog facial expressions grow longer, and hope is most definitely not kept alive.

But that’s really not the way it is for many interns these days — and I like to think I’m among the more clued-in bosses on this front. I don’t have an intern this summer, but when I do, I really try to make the experience meaningful for him/her. I’ve had some amazing interns over the years — and a number of them have subsequently launched their own Washington careers and are doing well, which makes me feel like a proud ex-Work Dad.

And then there are the Other Interns. Some of them just want to spend the summer partying, or are accustomed to parental support/rescuing when the slightest inconvenience appears, or are simply not very good. Those interns can make a boss’ life miserable.

I once had a summer intern go to my editor-in-chief and threaten to sue after I gave a bad reference to a prospective employer. (Naturally, this intern hadn’t even bothered to ask me in advance if I would serve as a reference at all.)

That threat led to a huddle of corporate lawyers, most of whom were worried about the growing body of litigation in this area. In the end we agreed to say that yes, this intern did work at my company — and nothing more. And that actually became the company standard for anyone calling and asking about the work of ex-employees, good or bad — a reality in a lot of workplaces these days.

But those interns are the exceptions. I’ve reached the era in my work life where I get a lot of satisfaction out of watching former interns build careers that are starting to surpass mine (and I’ve been very happy with mine). For many of them, that all started with an internship. And although my grouchy side may get annoyed when I see a gaggle of interns at my favorite bar, the rest of me is at least a little bit proud they’re pushing their way forward in Washington.