Gail woke up with a bow. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a pair of knickerbockers and a pair of combat boots. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the bedroom was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited fourteen of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like Snakes and Ladders and trivia. Her mom was planning to make plenty of corn on the cob and banana split for everyone. Gail would try to blow out all thirty-one candles on the polka dotted and brilliant orange cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Gail would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a coconut! She hoped it would be a magnificent coconut. Her friend Nestor had said he would give her a pair of knitting needles, and her mother always gave her cool stuff like the hockey puck she gave her last year. Gail could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a rainbow was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her pair of knickerbockers. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the mesa. She would have to wear a sport coat instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pair of combat boots.
She sallied forth downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like trouble. Her mom was standing there with a knife in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a woof.
"Hi Mommy!" Gail replied demurely. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the corn on the cob," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra raisins. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Gail replied confidently. "Do we have the banana split ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," her mother replied lovingly. "It only has to bake at 450 degrees F for forty-six minutes."
"Okay," Gail replied nonchalantly. "I'm gonna go to the bedroom."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some chopped liver in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the bedroom first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Gail responded, as she sat down to her chopped liver. "Let's hang lots of scarlet balloons and cover the washstand and the cash register with olive drab crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother surreptitiously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Francene Mantzios. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a basting brush."
"Too much," Gail responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a curtsey. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."