meauxna

heh, for x-ray I could start to be a believer in high numbers, but for physical inspections.. ha. Our last shipment that was held in LA (it's those darn shared containers.. full container comes through Tacoma which = fast) was held for over 3 weeks waiting for this 'inspection'. Naturally I was curious to see what they looked at.
Out of over 200 boxes of mixed, miscellaneous sinister bits (all manifested and labeled on the outside in detail) which THREE cartons did they choose to open?

The ones with paper shopping bags.

lansbury

Ours was a full 20ft container and came via LA. It was x-rayed because Allied handed me the customs paperwork for the charge which said what the inspection was. Also the seal, which I observed put on in the UK, was still intact on the container door.

chicagojlo

I'm guessing that was the object they had not yet been trained to identify on x-ray. Or they knew what it was but were hard pressed to come up with a logical reason for shipping them half way around the world...

meauxna

To the paper bag capital of the country, no less.
I know it's whacky.

chicagojlo

I understand. I was pretty upset when a girl I was taking over a lease from decided to use some of my most treasured paper bags to move her stuff out in, without asking and without returning them.

sambapink

We had a sea shipment and air shipment sent from the UK.. both were flagged at customs.. But my husbands company paid for the move.. and by the sounds of it thank god for that!!..

meauxna

lol... NEW bags to use in a store...thousands of them!

I do have a very fine personal collection of paper shopping bags that I've been accumulating for over 25 years though, so I understand completely.

chicagojlo

Mine are usually from my favorite stores in far off lands. When I lived in Europe the bags from Abercrombie, Neiman Marcus and Victoria's Secret were always the most admired on the subway! Now it's the Japanese ones mostly.