TSA Horror Story: Always Keep Your Pipes in Your Carry-ons

[Deleted member 2386]

Just a quick PSA about the TSA: they suck. You knew that already, and so did I, and yet I made the mistake of packing some pipes in a checked bag on a recent trip. Not only was my bag lost (sorry, "delayed") but when it finally showed up the next day I opened it to find a TSA note saying my bag had been inspected...and all my carefully packed pipes now loose and rattling around. "Maybe they're all okay," I thought as I extracted them...they were not.

The two casualties were an Old Dominion cob that I rather liked, and far worse, my one and only meerschaum, a vintage specimen with what I think might be an amber stem. More fool me for packing it in a checked bag, I know, but still so fricking pissed. Took pics of the broken pipes and will submit a claim with the TSA, but even if they do reimburse me for the damage y'all will appreciate it's not the monetary value of a couple of pipes, but the sentimental value--that meerschaum was a Christmas present years ago, and previously belonged to a lifelong navy man, so there's a story and connection there I'll never get back.

Rant over, and the moral is don't make the same mistake as me--never trust the TSA not to break your stuff!

 

[Corncobcon]

I feel your pain. Too bad about the pipes. The TSA people just don't seem to care about the traveler's personal belongings. Understandably they have a job to do, but they could do it with a little bit more caring.

 

[Brewdude]

Hey-Suess Maria Jesse, that's a sobering and cautionary tale as ever I heard one! That sucks donkey d**k and then some!

Hope you can get some resolution through a claim. Good luck on that, and as you say the Meer had more sentimental/emotional value which cannot be quantified.

The way you write this it seems as though the breakage was intentional and possibly vindictive - like from a vehement anti-smoker. Perhaps a case could be made that there would be no way those pipes could have been abused in such a manner otherwise. Maybe that's a straw to grab on, but it's all I got.

And clearly, when I fly (if ever again, and there's some doubt about that) I'll be sure to carry my pipes aboard the cabin and hope they don't come under suspicion of the goons that monitor the x-ray stations where carry-on luggage and shoes are examined.

:x

No Cheers,

RR

 

[Deleted member 2386]

Well, I never wanna assume ill will when plain old thoughtlessness seems equally probable--I'm sure the agents were in a hurry and just shoved things back in after determining there was nothing of interest in the bag. That makes me annoyed enough without speculating on actual sabotage!

 

[Ozark Wizard]

:fpalm:

 

[riff raff]

We fly a lot these days, absolutely nothing of any value gets checked.
Keep us posted on if the TSA really does come thru with a reimbursement. I'd have been tempted to list them as collectors smoking pipes, $500 each in value.