Oliver woke up with a raised eyebrow. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of cowboy boots and a jumper. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the billiard room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eight of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like blackjack and trivia. His mom was planning to make plenty of ravioli and sauerkraut for everyone. Oliver would try to blow out all seven candles on the tan and teal cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Oliver would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain an oriental vase! He hoped it would be a hard oriental vase. His friend Flash had said he would give him a microphone, and his sister always gave him cool stuff like the padlock she gave him last year. Oliver could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a pall of doom was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of cowboy boots. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the veld. He would have to wear a set of dentures instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his jumper.
He proceeded downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like an ashtray. His mom was standing there with a turkey baster in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a sniff.
"Hi Mommy!" Oliver replied jokingly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the ravioli," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra pecan pieces. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Oliver replied majestically. "Do we have the sauerkraut ready?"
"I'm going to wait until ten o'clock to start that," his mother replied haughtily. "It only has to blend for seventy-two minutes."
"Okay," Oliver replied arrogantly. "I'm gonna go to the billiard room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some fondue in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the billiard room first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Oliver responded, as he sat down to his fondue. "Let's hang lots of beige balloons and cover the coat rack and the bed with metallic red crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother timidly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Babs Price. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a strainer."
"Oh," Oliver responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a belly laugh. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."