While this was done a while back, it originated as my idea and I felt that it was worth posting. It's a deliciously orange thing to do!
In college I had a bit of a reputation for pranks. One of my most notorious was completely cleaning out all of the books and awards out of the office of one of my professors. I collected about 10 of my friends and had them help as we cleared the entire office. I typed a ransom note on the computer screen and then took the keyboard too. He still laughs about it.
Of course, learning to be a prankster also means knowing and choosing your confederates carefully. In my senior year in college I enlisted a freshman to help me turn the director of development's office into the office for the ambassador to Africa. We moved the desk, got some paraphernalia from one of our professors from Ghana, and then wrote a note from then-Secretary of State Hilary Clinton telling him of his new position and posted it to the door. It was brilliant! The only problem was that the freshman was nervous. We set everything up the night before, but it turned out that the freshman changed everything back early the next morning before the director came into work.
Note to all pranksters: choose your associates wisely.
Philosophy of Pranking: Never prank anyone who cannot take it or doesn't like it. Never give a prank unless you can take one in return.
I have had people retaliate.
For example, after cleaning out his office, we gave our professor a "survival kit" at the end of the year with alarms, duct tape, etc. Later the following week as I was checking into my student office, I unlocked the door only to find that he had put the alarms on my office door and scared the freakin' mess out of me. A very nice bit of re-pranking.
Being rather nostalgic for those days, I decided that since it was my colleague Matt's birthday one weekend, I would try a certain prank I had been wanting to try for a long time!
My confederate this time: Ali.
She and I went to the dollar store and bought about 200 balloons. The idea was to fill up Matt's office with them so that he wouldn't be able to get in.
Another hint for pranking: make sure it's within your limits.
Ali blew up a large chunk of the balloons since I had been out of the office at trainings, but she came over the night before and we blew up about 15 garbage bags full of balloons. By the time we were done, we had nearly 200! She loaded her car full of them and then she and our office secretary, Chrissy, dumped them into the room.
I loaded the rest into my car and drove them to work.
PROBLEM: As I was driving up, I saw Matt pulling up too! I called the office and told them.
SOLUTION: In a brilliant work of distraction, our office's administrative assistant, Cheryl, met Matt in the office kitchen and had him help her put some things away from a program the week before. I met Chrissy and Ali at the front of the building and they got the rest of the balloons from my car and dumped them in.
I went into the kitchen to find that Matt and Cheryl were still putting things away and that there was plenty of time to put my things down and wait for him to go into his office.
NEW PROBLEM: Matt suspected us when he saw that the door was closed and that we were all at the front room. He decided to see if he could make us more irritated by delaying to open the door to his office.
SOLUTION: Wait him out.
Some times there's no alternative but to be patient. A good prank is always worth it!
So we all waited…
And waited…
And waited…
FINALLY:
Knowing he had to get to work sometime, Matt decided to open the door.
And this is what he saw:
I wish there was a better picture. What you can't see as well was the depth of the balloons or how big his office it. Let's just say that there were plenty of them!
It turned out that this was the prank that kept on giving, because we pulled it on several other people in the office. Then it was pulled back on me. (I still say that was lame. After the third office was filled with balloons, I expected something more creative in retaliation.)
With brilliant confederates, a fun prank I hope it's not the last.
After all, I have a reputation to maintain!
I hope you enjoyed!
Live Orange!
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