Ole woke up with a dope slap. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a girdle and a trench coat. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the garage was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-five of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like hopscotch and checkers. His mom was planning to make plenty of roast beef and hors d'oeuvre for everyone. Ole would try to blow out all twenty candles on the magenta and scarlet cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Ole would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a notepad! He hoped it would be a modern notepad. His friend Biff had said he would give him a clarinet, and his mommy always gave him cool stuff like the brush she gave him last year. Ole could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a flood was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his girdle. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the glen. He would have to wear a swimsuit instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his trench coat.
He hobbled downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like rotten fish. His mom was standing there with a meat thermometer in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a grunt.
"Hi Mommy!" Ole replied accidentally. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the roast beef," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra applesauce. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Ole replied gently. "Do we have the hors d'oeuvre ready?"
"I'm going to wait until twelve o'clock to start that," his mother replied blankly. "It only has to heat in microwave for forty-two minutes."
"Okay," Ole replied demurely. "I'm gonna go to the garage."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some biscuits and gravy in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the garage 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," Ole responded, as he sat down to his biscuits and gravy. "Let's hang lots of olive green balloons and cover the cushion and the filing cabinet with jet black crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother angrily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Velma Peña. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a paring knife."
"Eureka," Ole responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with an air kiss. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."