Customs officer Wes P. Nest prepares recent cocaineHAH seizures for the 17th of May celebrations at Smalltown customs station.
Health & Lifestyle
How Common Is Cocaine?
A surprisingly educational visit to the Smalltown customs office
Cocaine is, to varying degrees, present across all types of social groups. In Smalltown and the surrounding area, the most common form is snorting cocaine powder—often in combination with alcohol.
“That’s something we never do here at the customs office,” says Chief Customs Inspector Gina Taxworth firmly to Smalltown Magazine. “Drinking on the job is absolutely unacceptable. Instead we share it among ourselves for home use.”
Inspector Taxworth has offered us a tour of the customs seizure room, and we follow along, a little uneasily. We’ve been warned she’s unusually fond of younger men.
“Cocaine has become fairly common these days,” Taxworth explains. “We’re seeing larger and larger busts, and it’s definitely a problem. To make sure things don’t pile up in the seizure room, we have to use some of it.”
A survey conducted by Myopinion Measuring & Weighing Ltd. reveals that 12% of employees at the customs office admit to using cocaine during work hours—though the real number is likely much higher. “Extremely higher,” according to Inspector Gina Taxworth.
“Cocaine is incredibly addictive,” she continues. “So it’s good we don’t have a supply issue. If we’re ever running low, we just stop a car or two at the border and find what we need. If they’ve got chocolate, we take that too.”
The study also shows that cocaine use is rising especially among older customs officials—something Inspector Taxworth doesn’t find surprising.
“We work in shifts, you know,” she says. “Night after night in a customs booth gets pretty dull when you’re no longer young. By the way, would you like a little surprise bag1 to take with you?”
1 A surprise bag was a 1960s term for a small grab bag filled with candy and other surprises.
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