Shamus woke up with a grunt. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of booties and a doggie costume. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the dungeon was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited six of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like croquet and duck duck goose. His dad was planning to make plenty of squash blossom soup and jambalaya for everyone. Shamus would try to blow out all thirty candles on the salmon and hot pink cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Shamus would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a Van Gogh! He hoped it would be a cotton Van Gogh. His friend Magnolia had said she would give him an ice cream cone, and his fiancée always gave him cool stuff like the whoopee cushion she gave him last year. Shamus could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a tornado was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of booties. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the landfill. He would have to wear a feather boa instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his doggie costume.
He stormed downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like asparagus. His dad was standing there with a potato masher in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a sniff.
"Hi Daddy!" Shamus replied hysterically. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the squash blossom soup," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra mustard. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Shamus replied neatly. "Do we have the jambalaya ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," his father replied resignedly. "It only has to spread into container for two minutes."
"Okay," Shamus replied despondently. "I'm gonna go to the dungeon."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some steak in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the dungeon 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," Shamus responded, as he sat down to his steak. "Let's hang lots of pink balloons and cover the bench and the couch with magenta crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father dubiously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Eleanor Welles. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a mixing spoon."
"Alleluia," Shamus 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."