Speaker 1: Every year, millions of kids around the world are affected
by the same devastating words, You're not invited to my
birthday anymore. Scientists have studied it, experts have debated it.
Entire recesses have been lost to it. Well, today's story
solve this global crisis? Almost certainly not. But let's get
into it. Hellol, story time is really not a glory
time ratstanding You'll be fine. Follow the whole storyline. Hellol,
story time, might you have at least one time? No time?
This is the story of something every kid needs to
stop doing now. If you happen to be a kid yourself,
or perhaps you used to be a kid, or maybe
you're a space alien who has no idea what it's
like to be a kid, but you've been doing some research, well,
then you probably already know that sometimes kids say things
that are not always kind. It could be that they
make fun of the way you try to eat a
jumbo five decks her club sandwich, even though seriously, who
doesn't make a big mess when eating one of those things?
And haven't we all been teased by a kid for
wearing clown shoes to school when we couldn't find our
regular shoes. But nothing feels worse than having a petty
argument with your friend because they told you their dad
could lift a car over his head and you were
all like, yeah, right, And then suddenly your friend is
telling you you're not invited to my birthday anymore. Well,
come on, what kind of slimy nonsense is that? But sadly,
this kind of thing happens every day. Maybe it's even
happened to you, And if it has, you could probably
understand why Scarlett did not want it happening to her.
She hadn't even gotten the invitation yet and she was
already stressing about it. Scarlet, why do you even want
to go to Kara's birthday party anyway? Asked her bff Riea,
Like are you two even friends? Scarlet and Caro were
not really friends. I mean they knew each other. Sometimes
they'd say hey, and one time they both wrote on
the same bus, Rhea, haven't you heard that? Kara? His
birthday party is gonna be the event of the summer,
The event of the summer. Ria folded her arms. Oh really,
and what's gonna be so special about it? Scarlet didn't
know where to begin. Well, they're gonna have ponies at
this party, Ria ponies. Ria shrugged with her arms still folded.
So they're gonna have a splash pad style bouncy castle, Ria,
a splash pad style bouncy castle. So Ria said again,
there's gonna be a chocolate fountain, Rhea, a chocolate fountain.
This was the one that unlocked Rihea's folded arms. Oh man, Scarlet,
I love chocolate fountains. You just dip the strawberries right
in it, and it's like, ooh, my mouth is in
its happy place. She was starting to see why her
friend wanted to go to this party. But even still,
this was Kara Frost they were talking about Scarlet. Isn't
Kara the one who made ten kids crying one day
and then broke that record the next stay by making
twelve kids, three adults, and one bird cry in a
single day. Now, Scarlett was the one folding her arms
and shrugging. Okay, so maybe she has a little bit
of trouble being nice sometimes, but don't we all have
those moments. Yesterday I smacked a mosquito and I didn't
even say sorry. But Ria knew it wasn't her place
to judge which parties her best friend went to and
Scarlett was probably right. Nobody is nice all the time.
Scarlett told Riha she had to get going. There was
important business to attend to, like schmoozing with care to
see if she could earn herself a birthday invitation. When
she found Kara, she saw there were other kids who
may have had the same idea. Ah, look at those
kids following her around like puppy dogs. What a bunch
of suck ups. Scarlett could hear the kids trying their
very best. Can I get you anything? Kiara? Would you
like a sip of my milkshake? Kara? How about a
foot massage? Kara? Scarlett scrunched up her face in disgust.
Don't they see how desperate they sound? She then marched over,
pushed her way through the crowd of kids, and tapped
Kara on the shoulder. Hi, Kara, my parents told me
when I turned sixteen, they're gonna buy me a car.
If you want, I can give it to you. So
much for not sounding desperate, do I know you? Asked Kara? Well, uh,
we once rode on the same bus together. No, I'm
like sitting right next to each other or anything, but
definitely not more than five or six rows apart. Kara
spit out her wat of gum she had been showing
and gave it to Scarlet. This gum has lost all
its flavor. Take it away. The other kids scowled at Scarlet. Ooh, okay, yeah,
I can throw this out for you, no problem at all.
And just remember my name is Scarlett and you and
I are really good friends from that one time we
rode on the same bus. Scarlett felt that interaction couldn't
have gone any better throwing away this girl's gum? How
could she not get a birthday party invitation after that?
But no invitation came the next day or the day
after that. Other kids had started receiving their invitations, and
that was starting to make Scarlett feel a bit nervous. Listen, Scarlet,
if you don't get an invitation, you're always welcome to
come hanging at my house, offered Ria. The girls were
swinging side by side and chatting away at the park. Thanks, Ria.
Will there be any ponies at your house? No? How
about a bouncy castle? No chocolate fountain? Rio was about
to say no, but paused. I can melt a chocolate
bar in the microwave. Does that count. Scarlett continued swinging. No,
a little girl went skipping past them in the park, singing,
I got the last invitation, I got the last invitation.
It felt like a real gut punch. How could Kara
not have thought to invite the one girl she sat
kind of close to on the bus one time? Sorry,
Scarlet said Ria. I really thought you too had formed
a genuine connection. Scarlett tried to look on the bright side. Yeah,
but I suppose melting chocolate bars in the microwave probably
isn't the worst way to spend an afternoon. Rhea was
squinting her eyes, trying to get a better look at
something on the other side of the park. Is that
Kara Frost I'm seeing over there? Looks like she's in
some sort of trouble. Scarlet and Ria hopped off their
swings and ran across the park to see what was
going on. Kara was down on the ground in pain,
but smiled when she saw the girls running over scarmpit.
It's you, Thank goodness, Actually it's Scarlet, But what happened
to you? Kara motioned to her lower half. It's my legs.
They're too tired to walk anymore. I was literally handing
out birthday party invitations all day long. No, Lie, I'm
pretty sure I invited every single person to this party.
I seriously can't think of one person I didn't invite.
Scarlet and Ria looked at each other. Well, I'm sure
I could think of one person you didn't invite, said Scarlet.
Maybe two, added Ria, can one? If you just help
me get to my house. I have to get home
to tell my parents that they need to find a
pop star to come sing at my party. Ria suggested
they just call Kara's parents, but Scarlett knew there had
to be a better way. She helped Kara to her
feet and then slung the girl over her shoulder. Come on, Ria,
we're gonna help carry this poor girl home. Riya was
already jogging back to the Swings. Not we you. I
don't even know her that well, must never have ridden
on the same bus together. Well, Scarlett didn't need her
friend's help. Kara's friendship gave her all the strength and
power she needed. She just had to ignore all the
demands Kara kept making, telling her to walk faster. Well, Kara, here,
we hurt your house, and now that I feel like
my back will never be the same. I'm gonna put
you down and see if I can still hobble back
to my house. Scarlett wasn't terribly surprised when Kara didn't
thank her, but she was surprised when Kara handed her
a birthday invitation. You should come to my party, scarm pit.
I had to uninvite someone today because they wouldn't share
one of their pretzels with me, So you should come.
It'll be fun. Everyone's gonna be there. Scarlett tried to
play it cool. Oh sure, yeah, that sounds all right.
Suppose I could swing by and check it out. But
as soon as Kara had gone and side and closed
the door, Scarlett began dancing all over the place. Party time,
Party Time, Party Time. She kept chanting it all the
way back to her house. She chanted it all throughout dinner,
despite repeated reminders to chew with her mouth closed, and
she somehow kept the chant going while brushing her teeth
before bed. At that point, it sounded less like party
time and more like pulmos home. Perhaps only a dentist
could have understood what she was saying. At school the
next day, Scarlett briefly considered making an announcement over the
school's PA system, just in case everyone wanted to know
that she had been invited to Kara's party. All right,
Scarlet began, Rhea out with it already, your entire body
is vibrating. You got invited to Kara's party, didn't you?
Scarlet scratched her head. Birthday party. Birthday party, all right,
the party with the ponies. Yeah, I believe I did
get an invitation. I think it's okay, Scarlet. I'm not jealous.
I'm not even friends with the girl. It'd be a
little weird for me to go to the party of
someone I barely know. Scarlett wanted to remind her friend
that she knew Kara very well. Well, Kara and I
go way back. If you like, maybe I could put
in a good word for you. Ria declined the offer.
After all, this wasn't a party she cared about. She
had microwaveable chocolate waiting for her at home. But even
without Scarlett's help, Ria got invited to the party. Later
that day, Ria tell me everything, demanded Scarlett. Did you
carry her backpack, share your lunch, scrub her armpits. Ria
insisted she hadn't done anything. Kara had simply found herself
with an extra in invitation after uninviting another guest. It
was the third person that day the girls had heard
about losing their invitation. Scarlet got thinking what if that
were to happen to her. She did the math. Four
days until the party. That was only ninety six hours
of completely avoiding Kara easy. She just hadn't considered the
scientific law that states the harder you try to avoid someone,
the more you'll run into them. Scarlett had to go
through a lot of trouble to avoid being seen, things
like diving into the janitor's closet, pretending to be a
potted plant in the middle of the hallway, grabbing some
poor kid's yogurt cup and smearing it all over her
face as camouflage. It was like every time she turned
a corner, Kara was there. That's it, You're not invited
to my birthday party. Scarlett froze in the middle of
the school hallway. She had been so close to slipping
into her classroom. She slowly spun around to face Kara,
but Kara wasn't even there. Just two little boys. What
do you mean I'm not invited, one boy said to
the other, The slightly taller kid said, it means I'm
mad at you and you're not coming to my birthday.
Scarlet's heart broke for the shorter of the two boys.
He looked crushed fellas fellas fellas. What could possibly be
so bad that you would uninvite your friend like that?
The taller boy explained a Scarlet that his friend had
told him he had a dog in a school bag,
but wouldn't let him look. Scarlett had a hard time
believing that. She grabbed the bag and looked for herself.
Nothing but a half eaten sandwich with an old band
aid stuck to it. All right, So, first of all,
it wasn't cool that your friend made something up. But
we also don't need to be holding party invitations over
our friends to get them to do what we want.
That's not cool either. If he doesn't want to show
you what's in his bag, he shouldn't have to, and
trust me, you do not want to look in that bag. Anyways.
It felt good helping these kids out, but it felt
even better knowing it hadn't been care saying that to her.
Three other times that day, Scarlett heard those words again,
I'm not inviting you to my birthday. One little guy's birthday,
she found out, wasn't even for another ten months. Was
he really gonna hold onto a grudge that long just
because his friend had refused to stop making some annoying
buzzing sounds bzap, bzap, bzap. But then there was little
miss fardy pants who purposely kept trying to fart on
her friend. Scarlett didn't even blame the one girl for
wanting to uninvite her. She wouldn't have wanted someone like
that stinging up her birthday party either. What a relief
it was when Friday finally rolled around. It was the
last day of school before the party, Scarlett just had
to avoid seeing Kara one last scarmpit. I finally found you.
You're a hard one to find. You know that I
saw a potted plant that looked like you, and the
other day there was a broom in the janitor's closet
with the same face as yours. But I don't think
i've seen you once. Scarlett rapidly blinked her eyes a
bunch of times. Well, yeah, how strange that we've never
crossed paths. She really wanted to get this conversation over with,
Hopefully Kara was just checking in to see if she
was still coming to her party, so scampit. Scarlett clenched
her jaw. You're not invited to the party anymore, is
what I need you to tell your friend Ria. For me,
I do it myself. But I just don't want to, Scarlett.
I had not expected this. Wait, I can't do that
to her. She's my best friend. And that's when Kara
doubled down on the sliminess. Well, if you're not gonna
tell her, then I guess you're not coming to my
party either. In that moment, three things simultaneously flashed through
Scarlett's head, ponies, chocolate fountains, and splash pad style bouncy castles.
What didn't come to mind were Riha's feelings. Okay, fine,
I'll tell her. I'll tell her. I'm sorry, man, I'll
tell her. That's what I thought, said Kara, spinning around
and walking see you at the party tomorrow, Tata. Scarlet
didn't move from her spot for nearly ten minutes. Moving
mean she was gonna have to do something about this.
She tried, weighing her options. The first option was to
just walk up to Rhea and say it, so, hey, Ria,
there's this funny thing I've got to tell you. The
second option was to say nothing and hope that Kara
hadn't been keeping very good track of who she had
already uninvited. For reasons that only made sense to Scarlet
at the time, she decided to go with the second option.
At two in the afternoon the next day, she arrived
at Ria's house so they could walk to the party together.
When she saw her friend come to the door, her
stomach started doing that uncomfortable thing it does when it
somehow knows you've made the wrong decision even when your
brain doesn't. Scarlet, do you think I look over dressed
for this party? What's a kid supposed to wear to
go pony riding and splash pad style bouncy castle bouncing
while also not wanting to worry about getting chocolate on
their outfit? Without thinking, Option one spewed out of Scarlet's mouth.
You're not coming. I mean I want you to come,
but Kara said you can't come, And I'm so sorry Ria.
Ria's faced the thing where you try to act like
you're not upset when really everyone can totally tell that
you are. Oh well, remember how I didn't really want
to go to the party anyway. This actually works out
better now we can make our own fun here. Scarlet
wasn't liking that Ria had just said our own fun. Well, Ria,
I'll actually still be making a brief appearance at this party,
just a real quick drop in to give Kara a
piece of my mind. She needs to know that this
is not okay, and I won't be staying there for
a minute longer than two hours and fifty nine minutes.
Ria looked at her side eyed, So basically our staying
until one minute before the party ends. Look, it's okay
if you still want to go, Scarlet, don't worry about me.
I'll be fine here on my own. Scarlet hugged your
friend and thank you. It wasn't more than a ten
minute walk from Ria's house to Karas, but Scarlet still
tried to hurry. Maybe she'd get to be the first
in line to ride on a pony. Along the way,
she kept passing other kids she knew from school. Many
of them had long faces and were just moping along.
When she stopped to ask, they all told her the
same thing. They had been uninvited from the birthday party
and weren't sure what to do with themselves. Now, well,
that's too bad. But if you're looking for something fun
to do, head on over to Ria's house. She's melting
chocolate bars in the microwave. She kept mentioning this to
everyone she passed. You don't need ponies or chocolate fountains.
I'm sure you'll be able to make your own fun
just fine. Kara's house had so many birthday balloons out
front you couldn't possibly mistake it for anything other than
a party or maybe a clown's house. Kara answered the
door before Scarlett had finished knocking. She was holding a
strawberry that had clearly been dipped in a chocolate fountain.
Looks so good, Scarlet had to push her tongue back
into her mouth. Thanks for coming, Scarmpit. The ponies are
out back. You can be the first one to take
one for a ride. Scarlett had been dreaming about this
for weeks. Through one of the windows, she could even
see the splash pad style bouncy castle. It was even
bouncier and splashier than she had imagined. Kara, she started out,
I am I'm sorry, but I think I'm on inviting
myself to your party. She then wondered if she should
have used the tone of voice everyone uses when they
say it. Let me try that again. I'm uninviting myself
to your party. Scarlett walked back down the front steps
without saying another word. When she got back to Rhea's house,
there seemed to be quite a crowd gathered inside. Scarlett
hadn't realized how many people she had told inside. Music
was playing, and most people's faces were covered in melted chocolate.
There weren't any ponies or bouncy castles, but there was
a lot of laughter and silliness and signs of people
having fun. After some time, one of the guests stopped
the music and announced that Kara was approaching the house.
Everyone watched to see what Rio was going to do.
Was she locked the door and tell everyone to hide. Nope,
she let Kara come right in. Maybe she wanted to
see if Kara had learned a lesson and was here
to apologize. Kara did say sorry, but maybe not the
right kind of sorry. Hey everyone, So it turns out
I kind of uninvited everyone, and now the only people
at my party are my parents, and they're not exactly
the pony riding bouncy castle type, So all of you
are reinvited to my party. Sorry that you got stuck
at this lousy party. What is that anyway? Microwaveable chocolate?
So who's coming with me? Scarlett was the only one
who stood up, and then immediately tried to play it
off like she was stretching before quickly sitting back down.
None of you want to come to my party? Well?
Should I just bring the ponies over here? Then a
bunch of kids cheered for that idea. One of them said,
you can bring the ponies, but you're not invited to stay. Ria,
who was the host of the party, corrected him. We
don't need any ponies or bouncy castles. We were having
plenty of fun without that stuff. Kara turned around to leave,
But you're welcome to stay. Kara continued, Rhea. We won't
uninvite you because you didn't tie someone's shoelaces for them,
or because you told someone you had a dog in
your school bag when actually it was just a sandwich
with a band aid stuck to it. And we won't
uninvite you because you still have loss to learn about
being a good friend. You can just come here because
today everyone's welcome here. Scarlett could not resist making one
important amendment to that. But we mightn't invite you if
you're purposely going around farting on people that can really
stink a party up. But Kara hadn't heard what Scarlett
had said. She was already busy stuffing her face with
microwave chocolate. The end. That's the story, And here is
your question of the week. Other than microwave chocolate bars,
what do you enjoy seeing at birthday parties? Thanks to Scarlet,
Rhea and Kara, and shout out to Otus and Oliver
from Wallingbar, Australia, Zoe Case and Jemma McKay from Wyuku,
New Zealand, along with their pet cat mother Shabooboo, Maye
Rose and Mariam from Ottawa, Canada, Adam from Illinois in
the USA, Catherine, Roxana, Alexia and Scarlet from Pasadena, Maryland,
Audrey Elliott, Violet and Monty from Australia, Avery and her
cat Nugget from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Olivia Rose from Buckeye, Arizona,
Leonard from Maine, and Aiden Page and Jamie with their
two cats, Tyson and Mittens from Kitchener Ontario, thanks for
listening and I'll catch you on the next one.