Parson woke up with a cackle. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of panties and a heavy layer of makeup. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the conservatory was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-six of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like follow the leader and Candy Land. His dad was planning to make plenty of squash blossom soup and ice cream for everyone. Parson would try to blow out all nine candles on the forest green and indigo cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Parson would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a mirror! He hoped it would be a filthy mirror. His friend Valerie had said she would give him a battery, and his friend always gave him cool stuff like the pickle she gave him last year. Parson could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a driving rain was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of panties. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the path. He would have to wear a flour sack instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his heavy layer of makeup.
He careened downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like beer. His dad was standing there with a cookie cutter in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a smile.
"Hi Daddy!" Parson replied clumsily. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the squash blossom soup," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra chicken. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Parson replied stupidly. "Do we have the ice cream ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," his father replied gently. "It only has to fry bravely in fabulous skillet for twelve minutes."
"Okay," Parson replied haughtily. "I'm gonna go to the conservatory."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some bread and butter in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the conservatory first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Parson responded, as he sat down to his bread and butter. "Let's hang lots of brown balloons and cover the desk and the bath mat with white crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father despondently. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Pallavi Palomino. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a blender."
"Uh-huh," Parson responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a backward glance. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."