Reason 188

Party planning. From a young age my mom cultivated in me a love for planning fantastic shindigs. Growing up, my birthday parties almost always revolved around a unique theme and were the neighborhood event of the summer. On top of fabulous treat bags, tasty cakes and rousing rounds of "Happy Birthday," we almost always got to whack the crap out of a pinata and compete in an obstacle course created by my very creative parents (chewing frozen bubble gum and pounding a nail into a 2x4 were just a few of the common stations). As I got older I took over the responsibility of planning my parties (Thanksgiving in July is still one of my favorites), as well as events like my high school's formal dances and a particularly dazzling Vegas-themed casino night at my college (go Loggers!). The summer between my freshman and sophomore years I was hired to shill balloon bouquets and paper plates at the party supply store I had been frequenting since my fetal days, Partytime (R.I.P.). Over the next ten years I worked there on and off, creating jaw-dropping window displays, becoming an inventory queen, reveling in stocking the store with old school candy like Pop Rocks and Ring Pops, and endlessly organizing greeting card displays. I truly loved giving customers advice about how to decorate for their soirees and giving them the low-down on which toys were most appealing to the ankle-biting set. Nowadays I don't get many opportunities to plan parties, but, Jason, if you are ever in need of some guidance around matching floral napkins to plastic cutlery or are dying to know how to create a well-balanced balloon grouping that won't tangle or pop in your car, I will gladly swoop in to save the day. And if for some reason I'm not around, just remember that there is no such thing as too much crepe paper streamers (and that the mylar ones scare away birds).