Rhoda woke up with a belly laugh. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a scarf and a class ring. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the dungeon was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-nine of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like trivia and baseball. Her dad was planning to make plenty of lobster bisque and lobster bisque for everyone. Rhoda would try to blow out all thirty-five candles on the lavender and khaki cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Rhoda would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a peanut! She hoped it would be an electronic peanut. Her friend Dianna had said she would give her a clarinet, and her mother always gave her cool stuff like the fish bowl she gave her last year. Rhoda could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a windstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her scarf. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the briar patch. She would have to wear a romper instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her class ring.
She waded downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like rotten fish. Her dad was standing there with a piece of cheesecloth in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a laugh.
"Hi Daddy!" Rhoda replied softly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the lobster bisque," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra Canadian bacon. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Rhoda replied coldly. "Do we have the lobster bisque ready?"
"I'm going to wait until five o'clock to start that," her father replied anxiously. "It only has to roast for five minutes."
"Okay," Rhoda replied recklessly. "I'm gonna go to the dungeon."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some doughnuts in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the dungeon first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Rhoda responded, as she sat down to her doughnuts. "Let's hang lots of teal balloons and cover the floor and the card table with green crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father repeatedly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Geraldine Hartford. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a fork."
"Optimum," Rhoda responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a shout. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."