Chapter 15: Mystery and Magic Night Invitations
One seasonably chilly first Saturday of March 2023, I met up with my childhood friends Sarah, James, and Henri, along with some of my other best friends Alex Russo, Justin Evans, Max Greenwald, Carly Shay, and Spencer Puckett, as well as Carly's stepdad, Freddie Benson, at client Hannah Carson's house in Point Breeze to help her hand out her invitations for her Mystery and Magic Night Sleepover in 2 weeks. "Hi, guys!" I greeted my friends. "Hi, Angel!" Sarah greeted back. All Hannah needed to make her invitations were a piece of white paper, a rubber band, and various colors of highlighter pens except for yellow. Then, she handed them out to her guests Ashley, twins Kaitlyn and Colleen, and Beth. Afterwards, we had a special assignment to look through old photos and participate in a video interview for Pittsburgh's Perfect Parties at Sampson Family YMCA Camp out in Plum. We listened to Kate Bush, Lizzo, NSYNC, and 98 Degrees on the way. The Gourley family from neighboring Squirrel Hill South met us at the YMCA building, along with my mentor, Jenna and her younger sister, Jill. "We like working for Pittsburgh's Perfect Parties because it is a job like no other where we get to have fun," James stated. "What other jobs can you think of that are pure fun all of the time?" "We also like working for Pittsburgh's Perfect Parties because we get to make memories," Henri added. "My personal favorite memory is my 15th birthday party where we looked at photos of my younger days, but not the embarrassing pictures, of course," Sarah stated. "One thing that I don't like about working for Pittsburgh's Perfect Parties is dealing with a difficult co-worker." "I have that same problem, too, Sarah," I agreed with my friend. "I have this one female co-worker from Goodwill named Eboni who I cannot stop thinking about at work just because she was being disrespectful and throwing a tantrum. I do not want to act like that at work because that is a good way to get fired." "I feel the same way about Benedict when he got suspended from school for drug overdose, Angel," Sarah told me, "but do you think that I perseverate on what Benedict constantly did at work or talk about him dying of the omicron variant of coronavirus?" "No, Sarah," I stated. "But, I just don't like when people get expelled from school or suspended from work. I laugh about the situation, too, not because I think it is funny, but it makes me nervous." "Ah," Sarah stated. Then, it was Carly, Spencer, and Mr. Benson's turn to speak. "Planning and working out special events, like parties, is a good way to keep busy," Mr. Benson stated. "I enjoy thinking of some new games and activities to do each day," Spencer added. "Some traditional favorite games and activities of ours include pillow fights, sleeping bag relay races, and blindfolded makeovers." "Blindfolded makeovers are my personal favorite because I first learned about them in 8th grade," Carly stated. "So far, the preliminary spring and summer activity schedule has us doing blindfolded makeovers in Bloomfield on April 8, also known as Pittsburgh's Little Italy." Finally, it was Alex, Justin, and Max's turn to speak. "Working for Pittsburgh's Perfect Parties?" Max asked. "It is... pure... fun!" "It reminds me of doing various activities during our splendid spring of 2010 outdoors," Justin stated. "It was just as exciting as our band trip to Walt Disney World over Memorial Day weekend." "We all stated how we were looking forward to the next activity in Plum," Alex added. "Looking through old photos at a YMCA building in Plum was even better than what I had in mind! I was thinking that we would do this activity at the building where we watch movies and stuff, but this is even more magical!" "Is there anything that you don't like about working at Pittsburgh's Perfect Parties, Alex?" I asked. "Sometimes, the food is not always the best," Alex continued. "While my guy friends eat food like pizza and s'mores, I strongly prefer fruits and vegetables. As a matter of fact, I was able to have a fruit kebab with my Stacy's Soy Crisps snack." "I can see why you would want me to lose weight, because I had trouble zipping up my pants this morning," I told Alex. "I also don't want to encounter further health problems down the road." "Well, I just want you guys to be careful about what you eat, that's all," Alex stated. "Although, I do agree with Justin that our junior band trip to Orlando, Florida was epic!" After our interview in Plum was over, it was time for all of us to go home. "Thanks for a great day, everyone!" I thanked my friends. "You're welcome, Angel," Sarah replied. "Good night, guys!" "Good night!"