A man was stopped by airport security over a mystery Christmas gift that his grandmother had instructed him not to open.
In a viral TikTok video, actor Brett Gaffney told viewers, “I got stopped at the airport security, and you know what? It was because of this briefcase my grandma gave me as an early Christmas gift, and she said don’t open it until you get to California.”
“I was like, ‘What is in the briefcase? It’s super heavy,’” the Kansas native added, saying that his grandma expressly told him not to open the present. “I was like, ‘Grandma, I’m going to the airport, like I need to know’.”
Like the dutiful grandson he was, he followed her instructions to a tee, which led him to be questioned by TSA as he set his briefcase on the x-ray conveyor belt to be scanned.
“They asked me what was inside, and I said, ‘I don’t know, I don’t know,’” Gaffney continued. “They said, ‘What do you mean? You’re bringing a briefcase, and you don’t know what’s inside?’”
Security flagged the briefcase, and after a TSA agent gave it a closer inspection by opening it up, Gaffney finally found out what the mystery gift was: a vintage typewriter.
“Who am I, Tom Hanks?” the actor jokingly referenced the Oscar winner’s penchant for typewriters. “Am I going to go to the park and write a whole book with a typewriter?”
He added, “I almost didn’t get into the airport because of this typewriter.”
Since Gaffney posted the video last week, it has garnered over 500,000 views on the platform, with the majority of the comments cracking jokes about the situation.
“The fact u listened and didn’t open it is so innocent lmao,” one user commented, to which Gaffney replied, “I’m a man of pure trust.”
Someone else added, “I feel like the words ‘I don’t know, it’s a surprise’ shouldn’t be uttered to TSA, let alone in one sitting.”
“Oh nah, I’m checking for sure,” another joked. “Grandma Escobar ain’t getting me in trouble.”
Since getting home, the actor has been giving his followers regular updates on his typewriter, sharing that the device was an SCM Smith-Corona 250. In one video, he attempted typing on a page pulled from a journal but discovered that he needed to buy some brand-new typewriter ribbons because the ink was too faint on the page.
On Wednesday, Gaffney uploaded a video sharing his progress with the machine, comparing it to a new toy and getting in touch with his inner child as a result.
“I got this new typewriter, because I’m becoming an old man,” he said. “And all I want to do is stay home and type on my typewriter.”
The following day, he posted a video of him typing away with gusto, captioning the post: “I didnt think I’d use this, but here we are. Its so calming.”
At the end of the week, the Kansas native had finally bought the proper ribbon and paper to type to his heart’s content.
