Ned is grumpy every day except for Friday - the day when his Joybaloo comes to visit him and make him laugh. Fridays are wonderful, but Ned soon wants to see the Joybaloo every day. The Joybaloo tells Ned he can't visit every day, or he will get used up, but Ned won't listen and persists until he gets his way. The Joybaloo gets smaller and less colourful and bouncy, until one day it disappears. After that Ned had no choice but to make his own joy, and it's not as hard as he thought it would be.