Joseph woke up with a beam. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a motorcycle helmet and a pair of khakis. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the living room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited seven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like battleship and Scrabble. His mom was planning to make plenty of omelet and pancakes for everyone. Joseph would try to blow out all twenty-seven candles on the olive drab and forest green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Joseph would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a candy cane! He hoped it would be an overgrown candy cane. His friend Lorenzo had said he would give him a stick of gum, and his grandma always gave him cool stuff like the twig she gave him last year. Joseph could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hot day was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his motorcycle helmet. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the mesa. He would have to wear a pair of earmuffs instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of khakis.
He capered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like peppermint. His mom was standing there with a strainer in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a smack.
"Hi Mommy!" Joseph replied mysteriously. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the omelet," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra white wine. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Joseph replied mysteriously. "Do we have the pancakes ready?"
"I'm going to wait until six o'clock to start that," his mother replied trustingly. "It only has to sauté for seventy-three minutes."
"Okay," Joseph replied languidly. "I'm gonna go to the living room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some jambalaya in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the living room 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," Joseph responded, as he sat down to his jambalaya. "Let's hang lots of jade balloons and cover the catbird seat and the pedestal with indigo crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother daringly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Andie Skye. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a pair of tongs."
"Teehee," Joseph responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a gurgle. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."