When it is Not Good To Be Retired…
Posted by Stephen on
May 9, 2006
So today at the airport, I was going through customs and found out the hard way that the US doesn’t like “unemployed” people heading over their borders. Because I said that I was self employed, they proceeded to give me the third degree, asking me what I did, why was I going to LA, and did I plan on returning?! Well, I guess they get a lot of people just going down there to find work. When I told them I was going to E3, they even asked if I played video games for a living!
After like 5 minutes of this, they send me off to inspection, where a guy that really didn’t seem to want to be there, started asking me similar questions, probably to make sure my story was consistent. After another 5 - 10 minutes wasting eachothers time, they stamp me through. I mean, come on! I’m coming from the best place to live in the world, to one of the smoggiest, dirtiest, cities in the world, and you think I want to stick around, let alone work?
I guess sometimes, it pays to have a day job, just to say, I work for so and so. Maybe I should get a paper route!
Heh,
Yeah, when I was at customs on my way to Korea going from Van to the US, the guy was a complete bastard! I rarely travel so this was new to me.. I was so excited and happy and was like smiling and being co-operative and saying things in a nice way. And he didn’t even smirk.
But then I went to his boss, and he looked even scarier, but he turned out to be nice and even said to enjoy my trip and smiled
The end.
Yeah, just never had that happen, and I go to US a few times a year. Well, hoping that COMPUTEX in Taiwan goes a lot better at the border. Last thing I need is to spend time in a Taiwanese prison!
Dude… NEVER tell them yer unemployed or self employed…. to a customs agent trying to protect their country, unemployed means “stealing a job from a good american boy, hopefully” and self employed means “drug dealer” “bomb maker” or “civil disobedience lawyer”. These are basic tenets of international travel. Don’t lie, but you DO work for futurelooks dot com, and at the least you are a technology reporter going to a tech trade show. I cross the border probably 20 times a year, and I rarely even have to pause at US or Canadian customs.
Fluxx: walks up to customs in jeans and tee shirt and (usually)wearing funky shoes of some kind, carrying a laptop bag and either a suit bag or a carry on sized suitcase, passport out and form ready.
Agent: “Going to see a customer?”
Fluxx: “Yes”
Agent: “What do you do?”
Fluxx: “Work in VoIP”
Agent: Response A: “Oh like Vonage? Have a good trip.”
Agent: Response B: “Have a good trip”
Maybe I should blog about how to make customs more pleasant.
I would love to hear more tips to avoid the “Rubber Glove”