Look out for the flaming massage oil!

So, last week when my family came out to visit me in my hippie/lesbian/wiccan town, I gave my mom and aunt massages. I have to insert a bit of history here, and tell you all that my mother is first of all an RN and skeptical of massage therapy, but also has chronically dry skin. So, I was excited to show her what massage can do. Let me say my statement about her skin is actually quite lacking- she has excema pretty much covering her body. 90 + percent, in fact.

She ended up really enjoying the massage, especially how moisturized she felt after I was done rubbing a massage gel blend of apricot, grapeseed and sesame oils into her very dry skin. So, I told her she could take the 2/3 of the jug of gel that I had left home with her. This is where Homeland Security steps in.

My mom was stopped at the conveyor belt while checking her carry on-where she decided to stash the gel, hoping it would be less likely to explode or come open than if it was in her suitcase. The dude at the monitor thought he saw what looked like a bleach jug and called her over to search her bag. Upon finding the offending gel, he seemed momentarily unconcerned, but was then shocked to find "highly flammable" in the fine print on the label. Well, duh. It's oil. He reported to his supervisor, who then reported to his supervisor. After thoroughly questioning my mother, cross-referencing her story with her flaking arms and cracked knuckles and the fact that she did say her daughter was in massage school, they agreed to let her board the flight, with her gel.

I'm glad we have these security checks- you never know what a wacko with a jug of massage gel could do.