Over the summer, 25-year-old Cara O’Bannon was flying from Tampa to Jackson Hole, when nature called. She was traveling alone, so right before they started boarding the plane, she asked a woman sitting nearby to watch her carry-on while she used the restroom.
To O’Bannon’s surprise, the stranger said, “No.”
She posted a TikTok video about it the same day.
“I fully expected her to say ‘yes.’ “And she goes …” (at this point O’Bannon acted out the stranger’s facial reaction), “‘No, you should honestly take it with you.’”
O’Bannon then explained that the bathroom was only a couple of steps away, and within view of the gate.
“I can see from here, a few steps away from where we’re sitting. I’ve never been so caught off guard,“ she continued. “So I fully thought she was going to be like, ‘Yeah, that’s fine. Go ahead and go.’ Like, our plane’s about to board. She fully said, ‘No,’ which is fine. You don’t have to watch it, but I’m not going to take all my belongings a few steps away when you’re already sitting here, and you could just watch it.”
“Guys, I’m so embarrassed HAHAHA she literally goes …. no….,” O’Bannon wrote in the caption.
The backlash
If you fly quite a bit, you’re probably not at all surprised that LOTS of comments told her how wrong she was.
- “Girl, that’s the number one thing you DON’T do at an airport.”
- “Is this your first time in an airport?”
- “lol long story short just take your bags with you because you never know some people might think you’re part of a plot trying to destroy the airport”
She actually got so many people telling her what a dumb move that was, that she shut off comments, LOL!
Here’s the video:
@theovonswife_ Guys I’m so embarrassed HAHAHA she literally goes ….🥴😬 no….
What I do when I’m at an airport alone and nature calls
When I fly, it’s typically a vacation of some sort and I’m going with my husband. So while one of us watches all the bags, the other uses the facilities, and then vice versa.
But over the past few months, I’ve traveled to, from and within airports, as a solo traveler, dozens of times. There’s no one to “watch my stuff” and, unlike Cara O’Bannon above, HELL YEAH I know better than to ask a stranger to do it. So if I need to use the restroom, I take my carry on and backpack with me.
My biggest concern during those times, particularly when we’re not ready to board yet, is that I could lose my seat. Some airports have been really crowded and if I lose my seat, I don’t want to be stuck standing for an hour or more. Nor am I really in a position to comfortably sit on the floor. So I’d really rather keep my seat, if I can.
So here’s my secret:
I take something that’s substantial but not particularly valuable. My water bottle. My sweater. And leave it on the seat.
I tell the friendliest-looking person sitting near me that, “I need to use the restroom but don’t have anyone to watch my stuff, so I’m taking it with me. But I’m going to leave my sweater on my seat so no one takes my chair, OK?”
Invariably (and I’ve done this well over a dozen times already), they’ll say yes. After all, they’re not actively watching anything of mine – they’re just ensuring no one takes my seat, which I’ve claimed by putting something on it.
Hasn’t failed me yet. 😉
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4 comments
I read “sweater” and “bottle” and thought you were going to hide the bottle under the sweater while you peed in it!
that’s my next trick…. LOLOL!
I never ask someone I don’t know to watch bags at the gate. However I often do in the lounge (and others have asked me to watch them). IMHO different protocol there. First of all (and not to sound mean) usually slightly different class of people also many leave bags unattended in a lounge.
Ridiculous
The best scammers in the world are to be found in the lounge.