Marya woke up with a sniff. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a pair of moccasins and a birthday suit. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the oubliette was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eleven of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like tag and hearts. Her dad was planning to make plenty of moo goo gai pan and Froot Loops for everyone. Marya would try to blow out all fourteen candles on the orange and yellow cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Marya would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a Bunsen burner! She hoped it would be a cardboard Bunsen burner. Her friend Cinderella had said she would give her a carrot, and her mother always gave her cool stuff like the flash drive she gave her last year. Marya could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a period of warm weather was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her pair of moccasins. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the hayfield. She would have to wear a pair of moccasins instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her birthday suit.
She proceeded downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like smoked fish. Her dad was standing there with a meat tenderizer in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a snicker.
"Hi Daddy!" Marya replied proudly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the moo goo gai pan," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra eggs. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Marya replied briskly. "Do we have the Froot Loops ready?"
"I'm going to wait until ten o'clock to start that," her father replied impatiently. "It only has to freeze for sixty-three minutes."
"Okay," Marya replied unabashedly. "I'm gonna go to the oubliette."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some sweet potatoes in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the oubliette 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," Marya responded, as she sat down to her sweet potatoes. "Let's hang lots of brilliant orange balloons and cover the canopy bed and the bar stool with purple crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father ferociously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Lois Simon. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an electric mixer."
"Ten-four," Marya responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a raised eyebrow. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."