Scare Bear Tactics

This is a bear, a stuffed toy and nothing else. It doesn't look like a bomb to me, well, I don't know if it does - for you. Do I really look THAT suspicious wherein I always pray for World Peace?

Care Bears look so innocent, right? No joke, they really do. It's like they have a spell that when one looks at them, one is prompted to buy them. Come to think of it, how many Care Bears are there? Try buying one then after some time you want to buy them all. There are a lot of Care Bears and to buy them all is like buying all the Pokemon there are. Gotta catch 'em all!

I got one as a post-Christmas gift from my blockmate. He gave it to me after our Calculus class (wherein we were given our long tests results) maybe to calm me down after receiving my paper. I just saw a purple head and knew right there it was a stuffed toy. Even Pikachu would know it was a stuffed toy. My blockmate was so excited with it he quipped, "Open it, open it! It's really pretty obvious what it is, but open the gift and bring it out!"

I was like, "I like my gifts opened at home, save me the excitement. I only saw the head and not the entire gift. Thanks!"

Open the gift at home... I was WRONG. Then I went home with my LRT-mate / blockmate. The line for inspection for female was pretty long I wanted to sneak in at the other line, which is for males. (No, I don't look like a man. Wait, yeah, seriously. I don't even look like gay. Oh well.) Then the horrible lady was there. It was like someone tipped them for a bomb scare or something. It was not even the second day of classes, it was uhmm, the second day! No one would bomb the LRT station, I guess.

Finally, it's my turn. Yes, I decided to stay at the female line since I won't be allowed at the male one and would just look like an idiot if I do so. The lady scanned my bag which I opened fast. A white plastic bag with a small red paper bag inside with a fluffy, purple semi-round thing inside.

She asked me a question, (not where I live or what not) "What is this?" while poking (so hard the person behind me can hear the sound of the plastic) the plastic with her wooden stick. I replied, "It looks like a stuffed toy to me."

I thought that was it. She was waiting for me to bring out the paper bag from the plastic. So I did, since I was eager to go home and I'm taking too long at the inspection area. When I finally brought out the paper bag, she held the head of the mysterious, suspicious stuffed toy. STILL discontented, she held the bear at its head, brought it out in the air for everyone to see, AND groped every inch of the stuffed toy to I-don't-know-what. I was sure she was checking it out for any signs of bomb things or what.

You think she's commendable for being that curious?! But she (I think she's a she because well, she looked like a woman to me!) didn't check the other pockets of my bag for possible terrorism-inspired things/paraphernalias. Then I realized I was given a Care Bear particularly Share Bear as a gift. I found out about it right there - at the inspection area, at the entrance of the train station - with the guard, with the students behind me, with the rest of the people wanting to ride the train, and with Share Bear looking at me while being held in the air. She's bringing a stuffed toy with her? Whatever.

What the heck?! But hey, thanks for the gift, Calvin, I adore it. Don't worry, Scare - I mean Share Bear is safe with me. I'm currently looking at the bear right now. Eyeing its twin lollipops with hearts. Oh yeah.

MORAL: Bring out your IDs, or show them where they can be seen easily. I thought that if only I brought out my ID, the lady wouldn't be that crazy. Don't bring stuffed toys when riding LRTs or going to malls, especially Care Bears (I have no grudge against them, I really STILL find them cute even after the incident), because they look surprisingly suspicious to inspectors/guards. To possible terrorists, drop the stuffed toy idea, you'll get busted. Try other methods like uhmm, hmm, a hollow book with the bomb inside? Guards don't seem like bookworms to me.