Derek woke up with a stiff upper lip. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a tailcoat and a pair of earrings. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the conservatory was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-one of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like treasure hunt and chess. His mom was planning to make plenty of tofu and lamb curry for everyone. Derek would try to blow out all thirty-four candles on the green and orange cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Derek would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a Rubik's cube! He hoped it would be a huge Rubik's cube. His friend Stan had said he would give him a pigeon, and his main squeeze always gave him cool stuff like the feather she gave him last year. Derek could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a dust storm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his tailcoat. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the buffalo wallow. He would have to wear a midi skirt instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of earrings.
He sped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a stagnant pond. His mom was standing there with a mixing spoon in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a sniffle.
"Hi Mommy!" Derek replied curiously. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the tofu," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra orange juice. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Derek replied repeatedly. "Do we have the lamb curry ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," his mother replied primly. "It only has to fry for thirty-eight minutes."
"Okay," Derek replied crossly. "I'm gonna go to the conservatory."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some pancakes 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 mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Derek responded, as he sat down to his pancakes. "Let's hang lots of black balloons and cover the bunk bed and the canopy bed with terra cotta crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother flightily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Konstanze Grayheels. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an electric mixer."
"I'll drink to that," Derek responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a snicker. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."