Security Check: Exploding Kittens
Before I start writing, I just want to first explain and put to rest any fears you may have after reading the title of this post. No kittens were harmed nor exploded during the occurrence of this story or during the writing of this story!
I like to play board games and card games. This was another hobby, besides traveling, that I obtained through my family. Sometimes after dinner, my mom would clean up the kitchen, and my dad would play a game with my sister and I. We had a lot of the Disney board games and would play those. I always had fun playing and would get competitive. Some of my favorite games are Scrabble, Risk, and Ticket to Ride. My friends and I would usually get together on Friday nights in Indianapolis to play games.
In Lafayette, the friends that I had met during NaNo (short for National Novel Writing Month) introduced me to the card game, Exploding Kittens. It is a game where you want to be the last man standing. If you get an exploding kitten card and you do not have a defuse card, then you explode and are out of the game! You do have to have a sense of humor, as it is made by The Oatmeal. You can find out more about the game and The Oatmeal here: https://explodingkittens.com/ and http://theoatmeal.com/
For Christmas 2017, my boyfriend (now husband!) gave me the Exploding Kittens Party Pack. When you open the box, it plays party music! It sounds like cats meowing and playing maracas! It is quite funny and energetic! It is a small box and will fit easily into a suitcase if needed. Well, back in October 2018, I traveled to San Antonio, Texas to visit my friends. My friends and I enjoy playing new games, and I figured I would pack a few of my games into my suitcase so we could play them together during my trip! I packed four that could easily fit in my suitcase; normally, I do not have much room in my suitcase for extras, such as souvenirs, but this time, I miraculously had some room leftover!
As I neared the TSA pre-check line at the Indianapolis airport, I had no fears about getting through. However, the security guard asked me if I had a pack of business cards in my suitcase. I said, “No, but I have card games.” He then pulled my suitcase off to the side and opened it up. He picked up my Sushi Go game which is in a tin. He asked if he could open it up, and I said, “Yes. It’s just a card game,” without any attitude. I just said it matter-of-factly. He proceeded to open it up and saw that it was indeed just a card game. He then reached for the Exploding Kittens game and asked if he could open that up. I looked down in embarrassment as I said, “Yes. It’s going to play music when you open it. It’s a card game.” I was so incredibly embarrassed! As he opened it slowly, it started to play its happy party meowing maraca music!!! It was incredibly funny, but neither of us laughed because I did not want to get in trouble with a TSA officer! I do not know what the security guard was thinking, because I had my head down. I was ashamed and embarrassed, so I did not see his reaction to the music! He then closed it, put it back into my suitcase and let me have my suitcase back. He finished with saying, “Thank you for your patience!” I am sure I gave him a funny story to share with his co-workers!
I then shared this story with my boyfriend over the phone who kindly told me that to the TSA officers, the game would look like a bomb because it was block shaped and had wires in it to play the music. Also, it did not help that the title of the game included the word, “Exploding,” and that the box has a picture of an explosion! At least I got to play the game with my friends in Texas to make this whole situation worth it!
Now on my way home, I was anxious of going through the security line at the San Antonio airport. I packed the games in a convenient spot in my suitcase in case the officer did need to open up my suitcase. However, they did not stop me! I was clear to go! Moral of the story: be aware of what you pack!
