Leadership: Get'em Back!

Get'em Back

A CONUNDRUM

You're are a youth leader. You are intelligent. You are wise. You are respected. You are loved. You are covered with shaving cream. You should have known better than to try to and sleep on a youth retreat (and here I thought you were wise). So here in the early morning hours you awake to hear students giggling with glee and schick shaving gel on your face betrayed by your own hand. It's an old gag but what can you do? Sleep deprivation? Suffer the humility? or get revenge?

CLASSIC SUCKER GAG

Get yourself a glass of water and a straight pin. Tell your victim (the smarty pants little guy who has never shaved a day in his life but ALWAYS brings shaving cream on youth trips) that you can pin that glass to the wall. He will obviously object saying that it would be impossible for you to push that pin through the glass and then the wall.

So you make a big show of very carefully and precisely placing the glass at just the right spot on the wall. Then, as you get ready to push the pin through it... Oops... you drop the pin. Well you've got your glass in just the right the spot and you don't want to have to move it so politely ask shaving cream boy to pick up the pin for you. When he bends over you "accidentally" dump the glass of water on his head. Oops again!

RETREAT PRANK FOR ALL

Most of the plumbing at retreat centers is very primitive so you should be able to get this one to work. If the toilet is similar to your basic residential type with the tank in back then remove the top. You should find a vertical plastic tube about 1 inch in diameter. Coming off the top of that tube is a smaller plastic tube. Pull that smaller tube around so that tip points out of the tank toward the bowl. Then, replace the lid to the tank so your tube is barely visible.

The next person to use that particular tiolet will get squirted with (clean) water when they flush. If you can catch that youth on exit they may play along and not say anything so that they won't be be the only hit.

PRETTY DISGUSTING

This one is hard to hit an exact person you want to get back at unless you have a precise shower schedule on your trip. I'll list it here anyway becuase it's good if you can make it work

1) Remove the shower head
2) Dump a pack of Kool-Aid inside the shower head
3) Replace the shower head
4) You are the man. NO ONE messes with you!

VERY DISGUSTING

If they really want to get to nasty try this one...

Get yourself an egg and paint it black. You can dip it in a mixture of water and india ink, or just just color it with a big black magic marker. Slip it into the youngster's Nikes while he sleeps or is swimming in the pool. You can use a rotten egg but you'll probably have to replace the shoes if you do. Of course if their natural foot odor is worse than that of a rotten egg maybe not.

THERE'S ONE BORN EVERY MINUTE

This one takes just a little bit of practice to perfect but it's worth the time investment. You should have some sort of beverage for yourself when you set up the gag.

Take a sheet of posterboard or an old magazine and roll it into a cone. Issue the challenge. Tell the group that you can shove the cone into your pants, place a coin on your forehead, and drop that coin from your head into your pants with your eyes closed. Well, they'll want to see that so you demonstrate. This will likely set off more than one of your students to prove that they can do that as well. Let them put the cone down the front of their pants and when they close their eyes you dump your drink in the cone. Ice water produces a dramatic response and is easy to clean up.

DID SOMEBODY SAY MCDONALD'S?

Offer to get the straws for the group. Peel the paper off of one of the straws and slip a small piece of the wrapper into the straw. Keep that straw seperate from the rest. As you bring the straws over to the group continue to helpfully unwrap the straws for everyone. Make sure your victim gets the one with the slip of paper of paper inside. It's a pretty tough set up to pull off but the expression on your kid's face when an unidentified chunk of something slips down their throat is unforgettable.

MEANWHILE BACK AT THE HOTEL

You'll need some masking tape, a newspaper, and box of those styrofoam "peanuts" used for shipping.

Get up before everyone else and tape the newspaper over the door to your student's room. Tape all along the frame and the floor, and between each sheet but leave yourself about a 3 inch gap at the top. Pour your packing peanuts through the gap until the space between the paper and the door itself is full. Go back to your room to make your wake-up calls. When the unsuspecting kid opens his door the suction created by opening the door will creating a rush of air that will the send the peanuts spinning into the room.

Note: You don't want there to be too much time between the set up and the door opening or room service may come by and mess up your fun.

Are you the Prankmaster?

If you have a good (relatively clean) prank, that you've tried and you know it works, then send it to me. If I use it, I'll be sure to give you credit and everyone will know that you are a master of stealthy strategic revenge operations.