Armand woke up with a squint. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a beret and a sweater. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the salon was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-one of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like shuffleboard and solitaire. His dad was planning to make plenty of hot dogs and squash blossom soup for everyone. Armand would try to blow out all thirty-two candles on the tan and terra cotta cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Armand would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a dictionary! He hoped it would be a chic dictionary. His friend Alice had said she would give him a baton, and his fiancée always gave him cool stuff like the pearl she gave him last year. Armand could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a drizzle was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his beret. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the wasteland. He would have to wear a beret instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his sweater.
He loped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like asparagus. His dad was standing there with a corkscrew in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a smile.
"Hi Daddy!" Armand replied cruelly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the hot dogs," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra pâté de foie gras. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Armand replied confidently. "Do we have the squash blossom soup ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," his father replied angrily. "It only has to roast for fourteen minutes."
"Okay," Armand replied grimly. "I'm gonna go to the salon."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some fried okra in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the salon 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," Armand responded, as he sat down to his fried okra. "Let's hang lots of emerald green balloons and cover the overstuffed chair and the wooden crate with camouflage crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father stupidly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Shandra Sterling. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a spoon."
"Sieg Heil," Armand responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a crow. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."