Janet woke up with a grunt. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a pair of Groucho glasses and a pair of dentures. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the outhouse was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited three of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like roulette and leapfrog. Her dad was planning to make plenty of pumpkin pie and macaroni and cheese for everyone. Janet would try to blow out all twenty-five candles on the mauve and jade cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Janet would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a Bunsen burner! She hoped it would be a gaudy Bunsen burner. Her friend Tabitha had said she would give her a yardstick, and her mommy always gave her cool stuff like the teddy bear she gave her last year. Janet could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a blanket of mist was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her pair of Groucho glasses. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the countryside. She would have to wear a bandana instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pair of dentures.
She padded downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like rotting meat. Her dad was standing there with a dull knife in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a simper.
"Hi Daddy!" Janet replied cautiously. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the pumpkin pie," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra cinnamon. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Janet replied flightily. "Do we have the macaroni and cheese ready?"
"I'm going to wait until three o'clock to start that," her father replied confidently. "It only has to simmer for seven minutes."
"Okay," Janet replied impatiently. "I'm gonna go to the outhouse."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some brownies in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the outhouse first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Janet responded, as she sat down to her brownies. "Let's hang lots of pink balloons and cover the coffee table and the couch with maroon crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father slowly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Emmeline Brontsky. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a foot."
"Ack," Janet responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a power fist. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."