cerreta
Premium Member
So I promised myself not to overspend since I was flying and would certainly have troubles with shipping. Of course I don’t listen. I bought several sps coral, a 10 pack of zoos, and a Joker Protopalythoa, very similar to the PPE, but it has a softer purple/pink center and is very rare. It was in fact the only of its kind and was worth every cent. It was a very nice piece too, with about 20 polyps.
Back to the story. All the corals were packed into a styro box that is the proper width and height of a check-on bag, but it was about 8†longer. Weight was 28lbs. As I checked the other bag in, the not-so-pleasant bag checker asked what I planned to do with the styro box. I stated that I was going to carry it on the plane. She said no, it was too big and would have to be checked. I was prepared for this possibility so I did not argue. However, she claimed that Styrofoam boxes can not go under the aircraft. So, I pleaded to carry it on and revealed that it was live fish, thinking that they would not understand what live coral was, since I actually had no fish, just corals. She shrieked at the idea of Live fish and said no way. She conspired with her co-worker who also shrieked and they promplty called the manager. He also said “no-way†and I was stuck.
After brainstorming with Katherine on what to do we were discussing how to ship the corals and Katherine makes a loud enough comment to be overheard, “I don’t understand the big deal with trying to carry on a bunch of rocks!†Which is kinda what she thinks about these things and my hobby anyways. . . hehehe. So, the ladies are now feeling sorry for us and question the contents of the mysterious styro box. They both look at each other and say “corals?, oh that’s ok. I did not argue that they were alive, but I image they were thinking of dead coral skeletons.
Anyhow, after inquiring about how full the flight was, I bartered to carry the contents aboard claiming that since the flight is not more than ¾ full, there should be plenty of space above the seats to store the box. They agreed and off I went, whew! Good thing I arrived two hours early, because that took 45 minutes.
Oh, it does not end there either. I need to learn to just stay quiet about these things. When checking in at the terminal I immediately went to the counter and recounted the story to the flight attendants about my oversized styro box. They said it was cool, so that proved to be a wise move.
Now, feeling a bit more confidence that all was ok, a passenger behind me in line asked what was in the box. So, I proudly announced it was live coral. She says, “oh†with a rude tone. Then she continues, “sorry, I just think those belong in the ocean.†So I went on to discuss that these were for my aquarium and most were aquacultured corals. She had no idea what I was saying, and I truly believe she thought that I collected these in the California Pacific Ocean. HaHaHa, like there is anything in there I would want in my reef tank!
Lesson learned, keep the boxes small, don’t have a Styrofoam container, and don’t tell anyone what you are packing. Even the security scanner people did not care. If you do have to tell some, be sure to say corals, not fish, they are likely not to get it anyways.
Back to the story. All the corals were packed into a styro box that is the proper width and height of a check-on bag, but it was about 8†longer. Weight was 28lbs. As I checked the other bag in, the not-so-pleasant bag checker asked what I planned to do with the styro box. I stated that I was going to carry it on the plane. She said no, it was too big and would have to be checked. I was prepared for this possibility so I did not argue. However, she claimed that Styrofoam boxes can not go under the aircraft. So, I pleaded to carry it on and revealed that it was live fish, thinking that they would not understand what live coral was, since I actually had no fish, just corals. She shrieked at the idea of Live fish and said no way. She conspired with her co-worker who also shrieked and they promplty called the manager. He also said “no-way†and I was stuck.
After brainstorming with Katherine on what to do we were discussing how to ship the corals and Katherine makes a loud enough comment to be overheard, “I don’t understand the big deal with trying to carry on a bunch of rocks!†Which is kinda what she thinks about these things and my hobby anyways. . . hehehe. So, the ladies are now feeling sorry for us and question the contents of the mysterious styro box. They both look at each other and say “corals?, oh that’s ok. I did not argue that they were alive, but I image they were thinking of dead coral skeletons.
Anyhow, after inquiring about how full the flight was, I bartered to carry the contents aboard claiming that since the flight is not more than ¾ full, there should be plenty of space above the seats to store the box. They agreed and off I went, whew! Good thing I arrived two hours early, because that took 45 minutes.
Oh, it does not end there either. I need to learn to just stay quiet about these things. When checking in at the terminal I immediately went to the counter and recounted the story to the flight attendants about my oversized styro box. They said it was cool, so that proved to be a wise move.
Now, feeling a bit more confidence that all was ok, a passenger behind me in line asked what was in the box. So, I proudly announced it was live coral. She says, “oh†with a rude tone. Then she continues, “sorry, I just think those belong in the ocean.†So I went on to discuss that these were for my aquarium and most were aquacultured corals. She had no idea what I was saying, and I truly believe she thought that I collected these in the California Pacific Ocean. HaHaHa, like there is anything in there I would want in my reef tank!
Lesson learned, keep the boxes small, don’t have a Styrofoam container, and don’t tell anyone what you are packing. Even the security scanner people did not care. If you do have to tell some, be sure to say corals, not fish, they are likely not to get it anyways.
