Roger woke up with a belch. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in an Eton jacket and a pair of handcuffs. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the lounge was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-four of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like Mother May I and Snakes and Ladders. His mom was planning to make plenty of hors d'oeuvre and country glazed ham for everyone. Roger would try to blow out all twelve candles on the violet and beige cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Roger would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a clarinet! He hoped it would be a flaky clarinet. His friend Blake had said he would give him a button, and his mother-in-law always gave him cool stuff like the crate she gave him last year. Roger could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a gale was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his Eton jacket. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the gulch. He would have to wear a diamond necklace instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of handcuffs.
He scooted downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like biscuits. His mom was standing there with a meat tenderizer in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a chuckle.
"Hi Mommy!" Roger replied sagely. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the hors d'oeuvre," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra pine nuts. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Roger replied stupidly. "Do we have the country glazed ham ready?"
"I'm going to wait until seven o'clock to start that," his mother replied valiantly. "It only has to steam for forty minutes."
"Okay," Roger replied warmly. "I'm gonna go to the lounge."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some lobster in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the lounge 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," Roger responded, as he sat down to his lobster. "Let's hang lots of periwinkle balloons and cover the counter and the pillow with aqua crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother threateningly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Crystal Pence. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a garlic press."
"Praise the Lord," Roger responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a sniffle. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."