When mentioning mages, most people would think about mage towers that reached the clouds, orderly libraries, wondrous automatic magical tools, elegant mage robes, long beards that represented wisdom, and, of course, eyeglasses.
Actually, I've never seen any mage that could do all of the above—no—I should say that I've seen incredibly few mages who could keep their places clean and tidy.
In fact, most mages' laboratories were chaotically messy, with books haphazardly stacked everywhere and unwashed experimental test tubes letting off a disgusting stink. If there were some that weren't cleaned for far too long, then it was even considered normal to see some magical beasts or slimes as well.
"Aren't there self-moving brooms or puppets that can automatically clean the bookshelves?"
