Tex woke up with a guffaw. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in an earring and a pair of pajamas. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the outhouse was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited sixteen of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like hide and seek and Parcheesi. His dad was planning to make plenty of chicken gumbo and candy for everyone. Tex would try to blow out all twenty-six candles on the brilliant orange and chartreuse cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Tex would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a dog biscuit! He hoped it would be a heavy dog biscuit. His friend Sierra had said she would give him an accordion, and his grandmother always gave him cool stuff like the vase she gave him last year. Tex could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a windstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his earring. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the briar patch. He would have to wear a jogging suit instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of pajamas.
He stalked downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like spearmint. His dad was standing there with a cookie cutter in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a glare.
"Hi Daddy!" Tex replied daringly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the chicken gumbo," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra cod fillets. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Tex replied glumly. "Do we have the candy ready?"
"I'm going to wait until three o'clock to start that," his father replied courageously. "It only has to heat for eighteen minutes."
"Okay," Tex replied courageously. "I'm gonna go to the outhouse."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some burritos in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the outhouse 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," Tex responded, as he sat down to his burritos. "Let's hang lots of crimson balloons and cover the cushion and the counter with pea green crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father queerly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Penny Van Hook. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an egg cutter."
"Blecch," Tex responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a death glare. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."