I think I have a birthday party mental block.
For the last probably 10 years,
I have refused to throw myself a birthday party.
And this year was no different.
I just turned 23 and I made the decision
that once again, I was not going to throw myself
a birthday party.
And it is kind of weird because I actually enjoy
birthday parties.
I love going to other people's birthday parties.
Love, like when it comes up on the calendar, I get excited.
Like when someone text me and says,
hey, next week I'm having a birthday party.
I'm elated.
Elated.
I love birthday parties.
I really do.
But my God, do I hate throwing one for myself?
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When I look inward and reflect on why,
I never throw a birthday party for myself.
I think it's because number one,
I fear that it would be an inconvenience in people's schedules,
which makes no sense because I get excited
when somebody's birthday party comes up in the calendar.
It's not a burden to me.
But for some reason, I believe that if I were to throw a birthday party,
it would be a burden to those who are invited.
They'd be like, oh, come on.
Another one, I don't have time for this.
I have shit to do.
I don't want to go out tonight.
Fuck, I don't want to hang out.
No.
What an inconvenience.
Fuck Emma.
She sucks.
Why did you have to throw a birthday party?
Now I have to go to this birthday party and it's a chore.
Okay, so that's reason number one.
Reason number two, I think I'm afraid of being disappointed.
You know, if I put a lot of money in time
into planning a birthday party and everyone was busy
and no one showed up,
I would be very disappointed.
I mean, obviously I would have my closest friends and family there,
but I don't know if I'm throwing a birthday party,
I want the room to be packed.
I want it to be a fucking vibe.
And you know, I always feel bad for people
when they throw a birthday party or some sort of party
and it ends up not being very fun
and people sort of talk shit about it.
And I've seen that happen many times where, you know,
a party didn't really turn out to be very fun
and it sort of reflects on the person who threw the party,
which is sort of unfair because the fate of a party
is in the universe's hands.
It's not in the hands of the person throwing the party.
I guess in some ways it is, but the energy who shows up,
it's all unpredictable.
And it's kind of sad when somebody's party doesn't work out.
The third reason why is because it's a lot of work
and I'll put in work for other people,
but it's harder for me to put in work for myself
unless I'm super passionate about it.
And I'm not necessarily super passionate
about throwing myself a birthday party.
So there's a lack of motivation there.
Number four, there's something inside of me
that feels like throwing a birthday party for myself
is too indulgent.
Like, I'm a really, you think that you're so important
that you should have your own birthday party,
which again is stupid because when other people throw a birthday party
for themselves, I'm like, exactly as you should,
you should have the most phenomenal, beautiful night of your life
with all the people that you love and have the best time ever.
Like, I don't see birthday parties in such a negative light
for other people at all, but for me, I'm like,
you narcissistic pig, you want to fucking throw a birthday party
for yourself, you're a loser and you're a narcissist
and you're toxic.
What makes you think that you deserve a birthday party?
What makes you think that that many people care about you
and will show up?
What a loser.
It's just negative self-talk.
It's almost like a weird imposter syndrome.
Like, I don't feel like I deserve a birthday party.
I don't feel like I've earned a birthday party
for some weird reason that I don't understand.
That's how imposter syndrome is.
It's like telling you in the back of your head
that you don't deserve what you have
or you don't deserve nice things, even though you do.
I definitely still have imposter syndrome
with my birthday for some reason.
Gone rid of it in the work side of my life, I think.
I'm working on it with the relationships,
feeling like an imposter in relationships,
getting better at that.
But I've not addressed my birthday party
in post-series syndrome, so it's still kind of there.
I'm realizing.
And last but not least, number five,
I actually don't really like parties that much.
Like, I would way rather go on a trip
or go out to dinner with five friends, keep it low key.
Like, I kind of prefer that over going to a party.
I don't like parties that much.
They're so rarely fun.
So for all those reasons, I do not throw
birthday parties for myself.
However, I was laying in bed the other day
sort of thinking about what I would do
if I were to throw a birthday party.
And I realized that I have a lot of very strong opinions
about what a good birthday party is to me.
So today I've prepared for you a full birthday party
at an area that will maybe come to fruition one day,
not this year, but maybe will come to fruition one day.
This is my ideal birthday party.
This is what I think the perfect birthday party would be.
For me, and I have a lot of opinions about why.
Let's start out with the venue.
Okay.
Veneu is very important because it is the foundation
for the vibe, for the energy of the party.
Now, what I don't want is to throw the party at my own house.
Why?
It's going to be the worst sign of my life.
I'm going to be so stressed out about
whether or not my neighbors are upset with me
because there's a lot of noise.
I'm going to be very concerned about
whether or not my guests are rummaging through my things.
I'm going to be very stressed out about my cats
and their well-being, where are my cats going to be
during all this?
They're definitely not going to be out during the party.
Somebody's going to leave a door open,
the cat's going to run out, my life will be ruined.
The music might be loud, they might be upset.
I have to hire a cleaning crew the next day
to clean up my house probably because it will be so messy.
Throwing a party at my own house sounds like a fucking nightmare.
So that is out.
Another thing that I think is out
is throwing a party at a massive venue.
Like renting out, I don't know, like a huge space.
I don't like birthday parties being held at a huge space
because a lot of times it ends up not feeling intimate enough.
Like there's too much space to kind of
do your own thing in the corner.
And so you don't end up mingling.
I think it's better to have a birthday party
in a small, more intimate, homey space
because people tend to bond and hang out and talk more.
And speaking of that, the venue must have reasonable volume.
Okay, I don't want to throw a birthday party
at a club that's so fucking loud and dark
that you can't talk to anyone or hang out with anyone.
That is no fun to me.
Do I think that there should be a dance floor?
Absolutely.
I think dance floors are great.
Is it common that you'll find me on the dance floor at a party?
No, I'm always sitting in the corner, talking to somebody.
I love that.
That's my vibe.
Do I think there should be a dance floor anyway?
Yes, but not like a club vibe.
If the entire party is just a dance floor, it's a dead end.
You get sick of that.
You dance for an hour, unless you're on drugs,
you can only dance for a little bit
and then you have to sit down.
And if it's so loud that you can't talk to anyone,
then you're gonna get bored when you're sitting
and wanna leave.
No, here's the vibe I believe in for my birthday party.
Okay, we have two options that I can think of.
Number one, a house that's not yours.
Okay, a rented house of some sort.
It's cozy, it's intimate.
Some areas can be loud and have a dance floor.
Other areas can be more quiet.
There can be an area to hang out in the backyard.
There's a kitchen in there where people can go in
and make drinks or maybe you could set up a bartender
if you're really feeling crazy.
Well, I guess if I'm feeling crazy,
this is my birthday party,
that's a phenomenal vibe.
Or possibly some sort of vibey bar that isn't too loud.
Like maybe a bar restaurant vibe where you can sit,
you can stand, you can be in a loud dance floor area,
you can be in a quiet or more chill area.
There's a bar area to hang out into.
It's not too big where everyone's all spread out
and nobody's hanging out,
but it's not so small that, you know,
it's like cramped and uncomfortable
and everybody's miserable and can't sit down and stuff.
Perfect balance.
And ideally something too that has a cool aesthetic to it,
like nice decor.
My vibe is not a futuristic club
with like neon dance floor, neon lights everywhere.
It's just not me.
My hypothetical birthday party needs to have nice decor
that matches my aesthetic.
So douchey.
This is a hypothetical birthday party though,
so you can't say,
I'm a you're so douchey for this.
Yeah, it didn't happen.
So leave me alone.
Like let me have my fun for fuck's sake.
Okay, moving on.
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Let's talk about timing.
What are people showing up?
Okay, let me tell you what I don't like.
I don't like when the party starts at 11 p.m.
I do not like that.
By 12.30, I'm getting a little sleepy.
You know, that's a little too late for mommy.
Mommy's getting old.
Nothing too late.
This might be a hot take, but I love a dirty, a day party.
People show up at like, I don't know, 3 p.m.
Hang out, have some drinks.
You know, maybe there's some activities going on.
We'll get into that later, but I kind of like an all day party.
During the summer in my backyard,
I love to have a few friends over.
In my backyard, we start at like 2 or 3 p.m.
And we go into like eight.
And then everybody has dinner.
Sometimes we all have dinner together.
Sometimes we separate for dinner, go out to a restaurant
or something.
You know, everybody goes and does their own thing.
And then you're in bed by 10.
It's phenomenal.
But you get also more time to hang out, more time to party
because you start early.
Feels like a full day experience.
It's so fun.
And you end up bonding with everyone who's at the party
because you spend so much time together and it's daylight.
And you can talk because it's during the day.
Like at night, it's when things get dark and loud.
But during the day, things are lighter and brighter.
And I don't know, like the daytime invites a less intense
vibe, more conducive for hanging out.
And you can still party.
You know, you can still have drinks.
You can still dance and stuff.
But I don't know.
I love a dirty.
So start at like 3 p.m.
Or the other option is starting at like 7.
Now recently I went to a birthday party that started
at like 7 and I was like, wow, that's early.
Like I'm shocked in LA.
You know, usually party started at 9, 10, 11 p.m.
And so seeing a party started at 7, I was like,
this is fascinating.
What's happening?
It was also very delightful.
You know, you don't get the whole day experience,
which I really enjoy.
But when you start at 7, people can come and go
throughout the evening.
Same thing with the day party.
People can come and go throughout the day.
But I don't know.
When it starts early in the evening, people sort of trickle
in over the course of the evening.
And there's options to eat dinner there
and all of these things.
And it's more of a well-rounded evening,
instead of showing up to the party at like 11 p.m.
and half the people being exhausted and wanting to go home
like 30 minutes after arriving.
Next let's discuss activities.
Now let me tell you what I don't like.
Two polar opposites, okay.
I don't like when the only activity
is just getting drunk and dancing and clubbing.
I don't like that.
Because again, that gets boring for me.
It's too loud, it's too overwhelming.
I like to sit and hang out.
And so when the only activity is getting drunk
and dancing, it's like, you're not even spending
quality time with anyone.
You're not even gonna remember it.
Like it feels pointless to me.
And I feel like people end up leaving that environment sooner.
Like if there's nothing to grasp onto, socially,
people just leave.
Obviously there are some people who love to dance
and get drunk and do that all night.
That's maybe 50% of party goers.
A lot of people are like, God, I'd love to just be able
to sit and talk and hang out or do a less exhausting activity.
I can't dance all night.
It's just not enjoyable.
So when that's the only activity,
I think people just get discouraged and leave.
Not everyone but a decent portion.
But then on the other hand,
I don't want the activities to be overly planned either.
It's not very fun when you show up to a party
and there's strict rules on what's happening.
Like everyone has to sit in a circle
and play this card game.
Or everyone needs to go outside and play beer pong
right now.
Or everybody needs to go grab a frisbee
because we're playing frisbee.
Or everybody needs to get on the dance floor
because we're all dancing.
Like things should not be overly organized.
There should be things around that are optional,
but it should be low key,
which leads us to the activities that I do enjoy.
I will say I enjoy games.
I think, I think like drinking games are fun.
Having a little card game out,
like a drinking card game, so fun.
Beer pong, sorry, call me basic.
That's fun to me.
I actually enjoy that.
And there's a way to make it classy
in a way to make it cute, you know?
You can buy cuter cups to spice it up or something.
Ping pong, fucking badminton,
a tattoo artist, a piercing person,
fortune teller, bouncy house, like I don't care.
Having little optional activities around is kind of nice.
Even like arcade games could be fun.
Actually, maybe a birthday party at an arcade could be fun.
Like I love the arcade game where you throw the basketballs
into the little hoop, it's basically basketball.
I fucking love that arcade game.
If there's just a room filled with those,
that would be the best birthday of my life.
But yeah, like stuff like that's fun.
Maybe there's a pool, maybe it's a pool party.
It's just nice to have something to do,
but it's nice to have it be optional.
Next, let's discuss decorations.
Now this might be a hot take.
I don't love when everything is overly detailed.
I appreciate the art of it though.
Don't get me wrong.
If you Google birthday party decoration,
inspiration on Pinterest, you'll see what I'm saying.
People will throw a birthday parties
and make the most detailed decorations.
Everything is on theme, every single napkin,
every single balloon, every single tablecloth
is all perfectly matching.
And super on a theme.
I don't think that that's necessary.
I think it's so much work and so much effort.
And I don't think it's worth it for me.
When someone else does it for their birthday party,
I think that's gorgeous.
But I, if I was throwing my own birthday party,
would not spend the money on that.
I just don't think it's necessary.
I think you can do subtle decor,
that's chic and cheap and just keep it at that.
Like you could get a few really cool balloons
and maybe put like a cute little sign on the door,
call it a day.
That's all.
It's cost so much money to decorate things
in that Pinterest level of detail
that I just wouldn't do it.
Unless it's a super intense weird niche theme
that's kind of funny.
Like if somebody threw me an Napoleon Dynamite themed birthday
party or like a core line themed birthday party
in every single play it was core line and everything,
that's kind of funny.
Like I kind of love that.
If somebody were to surprise me with it, maybe I wouldn't do
it myself, but that would be kind of iconic.
So like that would be kind of funny.
Like if the food served at the Napoleon Dynamite birthday party
was like tater tots, you know, it's like super on theme.
It's actually kind of a good idea.
Maybe I'll do Napoleon Dynamite themed birthday party next year.
So maybe I do like super detailed decorations.
I guess I do, but only when it's kind of silly.
I think if it's for aesthetic purposes, I don't need that.
You know, I can pass on that.
If it's for funny amusing purposes, yes, I can get behind that.
Okay, next, let's discuss the guest list.
So I'd be shocking to some of you,
what I'm about to say.
I kind of believe in an open door policy.
Like I don't like when there's a party
and plus ones are not allowed.
It's like no, only you are invited.
You cannot bring a friend.
You can't bring anyone or like you're only allowed
to bring one friend.
I don't like that because I don't know.
It just complicates things socially.
Like let's say for example, I invite one of my friends
to my birthday party and I say you're only allowed
to bring one friend and they actually were planning
to hang out with two friends that night.
Now there's an uncomfortable situation.
I always respect somebody's rules when they're throwing a party.
If they're like, don't bring anyone with you,
I'm like, done.
I'm not bringing anyone.
I always respect other people's rules.
I totally get it.
Everyone has their preference.
But I kind of like meeting new people when I'm at a party.
That's kind of the whole point for me.
So even if it's my own birthday party
and it's kind of weird that people I don't really know
that well are going to be there, I would prefer that
over being super controlling over the guest list
and not potentially unlocking fun new personalities.
Because that is ultimately what I enjoy about a party
is a mix of a bunch of different personalities.
That's when it's the best.
That's when it's the most exciting.
Obviously there are times when a bad apple can come in.
But for the most part, if you're inviting people
that you know and love and they're bringing other people,
if you like the person that you invited,
chances are they're not going to invite anyone
who's that horrible.
You know, I don't know.
I kind of like the idea of being like,
if you know someone who's coming, come on in.
Let's make new friends, let's have fun.
I actually do that again.
I do that during the summer in the backyard.
I'll just like have people over that I barely know.
I'll tell my friends, hey, invite whoever.
And sometimes I'll invite people over
that I don't really know that well.
But that's what makes it so fun.
That's what makes it feel all the more exciting
is when you have a big mix of people.
Most of the time I prefer a small group
over a super large group when it comes to hanging out
and doing stuff.
But I do that already so much
that if I'm throwing a birthday party,
I'm gonna go big, bring whoever.
If anyone misbehaves, they get kicked out.
No problem, you know?
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Next, let's discuss the dress code.
Let me tell you what I do not like.
I do not like black tie fancy.
No.
I don't enjoy myself when I'm in a really uncomfortable
fancy outfit.
I end up wanting to go home sooner.
I get tired sooner.
So I would never put my guests through that.
Do I love playing dress up?
Absolutely.
But if I'm throwing a birthday party,
I want people to want to hang out all day, all night.
So I don't want to put people in fancy outfit.
And then now they're uncomfortable
in their feed hurt and they want to go home early
because I don't know, I even think about that
with my wedding.
If I end up having a wedding one day,
kind of want it to be casual vibes
that people can just enjoy themselves.
It's not so formal that everyone's just excited to go home
because they don't want to stand in their heels anymore
or in their dress shoes.
I don't know.
I also don't like parties that feel like a hot competition.
You know when somebody's throwing a party
and it's at a club or it's at a house,
but the invite gives this vibe of like,
oh no, we're dressing hot tonight.
I don't know how to explain it,
but you can tell on a party invite what the vibe is.
Like if it's kind of a cool edgy invite,
you know, oh shit, we're dressing hot tonight.
Whereas if it's more of a fun, playful invite,
then you're like, oh, I can be chill, you know?
I don't like the hot competition
for my own birthday party.
I like it sometimes.
It's kind of fun to almost dress to theme
and you know, wear your cute little tight pants
or you know, your cute little top
or do like a bitchy like makeup look.
Like that's a vibe sometimes.
Don't get me wrong.
It can be fun, but I don't want that energy
for my hypothetical birthday party.
I just don't want that.
I'd rather people come really casual
in clothes that they can wear all day or all night.
People should want to feel cute,
but it doesn't need to be a hot competition.
It could also be fun to do a pajama party.
In fact, that is kind of my dream.
Oh my God, that'd be so fun.
Pajama party would be really fun.
Or a super niche theme.
Like, okay, we're doing an Napoleon Dynamite
birthday party.
Everybody has to dress up as somebody
from Napoleon Dynamite.
The only thing I don't like about that
is that that does create a task
for the people attending that's kind of tedious,
which is kind of not ideal.
You don't want to, I don't know, create a chore
for the people going to the party,
but it could also be kind of funny.
I don't know.
I think mega casual or pajama party is ideal for me.
Oh my God, you know, it'd be so fun actually.
Pajama party at like a bar,
because it's kind of opposites.
That could be fun.
Being able to wear pajamas
where you don't normally get to wear pajamas
is possibly one of my favorite things in the entire world.
And to have a birthday party with that in mind,
I mean, yeah, that's kind of a vibe.
Okay, let's talk about the bar slash drink situation.
Okay, I will say an open bar is critical.
An open bar that's prepaid by me,
by, you know, whoever's selling the party, me, I guess.
I really feel like I've won the lottery.
Every time I go to a party and there's an open bar
and I don't have to pay.
I know it sounds stupid because it's like,
how much is it?
It's like, who cares?
Like pay for your drink.
Of course, but there is something so fun about being able
to just go up to the bar and grab something in and out.
You don't have to get your card out.
It's free.
You know, you feel taken care of.
It's a fucking vibe.
So if I were to throw a birthday party for myself,
definitely open bar.
I thought about it kind of being cool to have like,
a bunch of wine, like doing like a wine party,
but I very quickly realized, no, that's never fun.
Everybody has such unique alcohol preferences
and like what works with their body
and what they enjoy the most.
Some people don't like alcohol at all,
but for people who do drink alcohol,
everyone has their own preference.
Like for the most part, I like it to kill us out of with wine.
When I'm drinking or a glass of wine,
when I go to a party and there's just beer,
I'm like, fuck, I don't drink beer.
No, you know, like the options are helpful
so that everyone can participate if they want.
So I think it's open bar
and I think it's all types of liquor.
You know, if people misbehave, they get kicked out.
That's mommy's rule.
Okay, I already been through this.
So if anyone's abusing the open bar,
they're out and it's as easy as that.
Yeah, that leads me to my next one.
Do I have a security guard or not?
Yes.
So that I can say, take this person out.
Now they're causing a scene, they're causing a ruckus.
Get them out.
No, I'm kidding.
I did not write that down on my nose.
Next, let's discuss food.
I thought about this a lot
and it's clear to me what I don't like.
I don't like when it's all junk food.
Don't get me wrong.
Like yum and there better be some fun foods
even if they are junk foods
and give you a stomach ache or whatever.
For me specifically, give me a stomach ache,
whatever, that must be included.
However, if it's all junk food,
everyone's gonna get a tummy ache.
Everyone's gonna be sluggish.
You know, there has to be a good balance of options, right?
Some fresh stuff, some fun stuff, like a mix of everything.
All junk food, everyone's just gonna have diarrhea
and have a stomach ache.
You know what I mean?
Like that's not good for morale.
Also, I don't love when there's a big table filled with food
and it's just sitting there
and kind of like rotting for too long.
That feels like a food safety issue to me
every single time I see it.
Like every time I go to a party
and there's just food that's been out on the table
for literally eight hours
and all of it is perishable.
I'm like, I feel like this is not safe.
Also, the food gets gross really quickly.
There's certain foods that are totally fine.
Like, we've chips out all day, who gives a fuck?
You know, we've fruit out, that's fine.
There's certain foods where it's fine.
Like snack foods, all good.
But like, I don't know, like having like a bowl of pasta out.
Feels like a food safety issue to me.
Anyway, so I think the food should be made to order.
Maybe there's a food truck outside.
Maybe there's, I don't know, some sort of like restaurant
involved in the party, whether they're catering
or something and they're like managing it.
I don't, I don't throw parties.
So I don't know how the shit works.
But having the food sort of made order
or have it be maintained by a third party
or just have there only be snacks out
that can be out all day and nobody's
worrying about food poisoning.
Am I the only one that is very concerned about food poisoning?
Maybe, but my God, I am not,
there's no good time to get food poisoning.
So I'm always avoiding it.
I think some foods that I would love to have
at my birthday party would be definitely
some sort of tater tot situation.
I just love tater tots.
I know earlier I mentioned my Napoleon Dynamite theme.
This is actually regardless of theme.
I just love tater tots.
Tater tots are a good option.
Honestly, I feel like Italian food is always a hit.
Like, I went to a birthday party a few months ago
that had full Italian vibes going like really good
Caesar salad, really good spicy rigatoni,
like all the things, really good pizza.
There was like a fried zucchini.
Like it was a balance of light and yummy,
but also like fun.
Like it was balanced and well done.
So maybe that's the vibe,
but also like a falafel truck could be so good.
Like falafel wrap, hummus.
That would be pretty good.
I always need a hummus involved whenever I'm having a party.
Every party needs a little fucking play to hummus.
God damn it.
I believe that.
I believe that with every fiber of my being,
that's just necessary.
So consider that on the snack table.
There is, I guess, a difference between the snack table
and the main food, you know what I mean?
The snack table is far less important, I would argue.
The main food is what's really important.
Like what are you doing?
Ooh, honestly a Mexican food truck
would be kind of amazing as well.
Like burritos, tacos, customizable options,
you know, people can get what they want.
That would be really good.
With a salsa bar, must have a salsa bar.
That would be iconic.
Wow, that's great.
I love that.
That might be my favorite.
There's options.
There's options.
Let's discuss gifts.
I really don't need any gifts.
So I would make a no gift policy for my birthday.
And number one, I don't need anything.
Number two, I get very uncomfortable with gift giving
and gift receiving, like the whole thing.
I don't like it because I don't like receiving gifts
and I get uncomfortable with it.
I assume that other people are like that.
So I don't like giving gifts
because I don't like making other people uncomfortable.
But that's ridiculous because many people enjoy
receiving gifts.
In fact, it's many people's love language.
So I need to get over that.
I actually like, I love giving people gifts,
but I don't like being there when they receive it.
Like I'd rather mail people a gift
and they can just react to it however they want
and they can just shoot me a text
and say thank you for the gift.
Like they don't have to be like,
am I love it?
And it's like no you don't and it's fine.
But let's move on.
So no gift policy for my birthday.
And last but not least, let's discuss cake flavor and design.
I want something naughty, okay?
I want something like a chocolate peanut butter cake.
I want something like a classic fun fettie vanilla
with thick butter cream.
Like I want something sweet.
I want something with absolutely no elegance.
You know what I mean?
Like when I think of an elegant cake,
I think of like a lavender Earl Grey cake
with beautiful cream cheese frosting or carrot cake
with cream cheese frosting or like lemon cake.
I actually love lemon cake,
but not on my birthday.
Oh, I would love it, but I'd prefer
fucking chocolate peanut butter, brownie chocolate chip,
cookie dough, like fucking pack that shit full
with every goddamn dessert you can think of.
Like I want that shit to be just sickly sweet.
I want fun fettie.
Like that's what I want.
I want to feel like a little kid
when I'm eating my stupid birthday cake.
That is the type of flavor I want.
I do not want lavender rose water,
fairy dust birthday cake.
I want sticky fingers fun fettie.
That's what I fucking want from a birthday.
And I will say I'm a sucker for a funny cake.
A few years ago my friends got me a huge cake
that was shaped like a penis and it was funny
because at the time I was the one in the group
who had a boyfriend and it was like,
oh my god, Emma loves, like, what you get there?
It was like I was the girl in the group who, you know what I'm saying?
And so it was funny at the time because it was like,
ooh, Emma loves weener, you know what I mean?
Here's a weener cake.
It was funny, it was personal with the group.
I love that.
I thought it was funny.
I took a selfie with my penis cake.
My dad was in town.
He saw it.
He was mortified.
It was a nightmare, but it was funny.
And I do love that.
So a funny cake that's sort of like an inside joke.
I love that.
On the other hand, I do love just a beautifully made cake
by a really passionate cake artist.
I think that that's phenomenal.
There are so many amazing cake artists
like I am constantly watching their videos
on Instagram Reels.
Even though I'm back on TikTok,
I still don't watch TikTok.
I only watch Reels, but you get the idea.
Like that could be really cool.
Like just letting a cake artist do their thing.
The one thing I don't like is when there's too much fondant.
I hate fondant.
I think it tastes horrible.
And I think cake, you know,
I get you need to use fondant to decorate a cake,
but it shouldn't have too much.
It shouldn't be like the whole cake is fucking fondant.
And it should be always peeled off, in my opinion.
So that's my ideal birthday party.
It's kind of all over the place.
It seems like it's a day party.
It's a party.
It seems like there's food trucks.
It seems like this birthday party's gonna cost
a lot of fucking money.
My hypothetical birthday party is like fucking 20 grand.
He's, no, this is like insane.
Like I feel like maybe this is why I haven't
thrown a birthday party is because subconsciously,
I'm like, Emma, you have two grand of ideas like cool down.
I almost enjoyed talking about birthday parties
in a pretentious, picky way.
More than I enjoy actually having one.
Like I love this discussion and I feel almost full.
Like I don't need to have a birthday party
for another at least 10 years.
Like I feel satisfied.
So you know, we're gonna leave it at that.
I hope that you enjoyed this episode.
Please let me know what your ideal birthday party looks like.
You can shoot a DM to at anything goes on Instagram.
Let me know I'm so curious.
If you disagree with me on some things,
if you agree with me on some things,
as always, please let me know new episodes
of anything goes every Thursday and Sunday.
You can listen anywhere you stream podcasts,
but video is exclusively on Spotify.
You can check me out at Emma Chamberlain on Instagram,
Emma Chamberlain on YouTube.
Pretty much at Emma Chamberlain everywhere.
You can check out my coffee company.
We're probably in a store near you,
if you live in the United States,
use our store locator on Chamberlaincoffee.com
to see if we're in a store near you.
Go pick up some fun or you can order Chamberlain coffee
straight to your door.
I hope that you all are having a beautiful day.
And if you're not,
I hope that you have a beautiful day soon.
And I love you all and appreciate you all.
And thank you all for listening to me rant
about a hypothetical birthday party that will not happen.
You learn nothing,
but maybe it was good background noise
while you folded laundry or something.
Well, that's all I could ask for,
because some of my favorite content is background noise
while I'm folding my laundry.
You know what I'm saying?
So we're all in this together.
I love you all.
Thank you all for listening.
And I will talk to you so soon.
Bye.
