You are allowed to put down the armor. You are allowed to admit that you’re tired. The softness you’ve been searching for in other people’s approval has always been your own, waiting to welcome you back. Come in. You’re safe here.
A 16 year old in Melbourne, Australia posted a message on MySpace in January 2008 that read “Parents away, tell yr m8s, u don’t want to miss it.” Over 500 people showed up to a quiet suburban street. Police called for backup with dogs and a helicopter. A police car was damaged. The neighbours’ properties were trashed. And the kid who threw it refused to apologise on national television.
His name is Corey Worthington. His parents were on holiday at the Gold Coast when he sent out the invitation via MySpace, MSN Messenger and text message. Within hours a crowd of hundreds had overwhelmed the small street in Narre Warren, a suburb in Melbourne’s outer south east. Two days later the Australian current affairs programme A Current Affair sat him down for an interview. He arrived shirtless, in a fluffy jacket and a pair of yellow sunglasses that would become the most talked about accessory in the country. When journalist Leila McKinnon asked him to take off his sunglasses and say sorry, he said: “I’ll say sorry, but I’m not taking off my glasses.” When asked if he would do it again he said yes. When asked if he had a message for anyone he said: “Get me to organise your party.”
Within days he was hired as a professional party promoter. He sold his sunglasses to a magazine for $2,000, but bought an identical pair for $20 beforehand and kept the originals. He appeared on Big Brother Australia, competed on Australian Ninja Warrior, and released a cover of the Beastie Boys’ “You Gotta Fight For Your Right to Party.” The 2012 Hollywood film Project X, about a house party that spirals out of control, was widely rumoured to be based on his story. It grossed over 102 million dollars worldwide. He named his company Not Sorry Entertainment and had the words “Not Sorry” tattooed across his fingers. He is now in his early 30s and barely recognisable from the teenager in the yellow sunglasses.