Jimmy woke up with a cackle. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a toupee and a pair of bell-bottoms. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the living room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eleven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like jump rope and backgammon. His dad was planning to make plenty of blueberry pie and fried eggs for everyone. Jimmy would try to blow out all thirty-four candles on the orange and burgundy cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Jimmy would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a comb! He hoped it would be a well worn comb. His friend Emmeline had said she would give him a broom, and his sister-in-law always gave him cool stuff like the sack she gave him last year. Jimmy could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a rainstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his toupee. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the housing development. He would have to wear a pair of glasses instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of bell-bottoms.
He trekked downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a laundry. His dad was standing there with a corkscrew in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a shrug.
"Hi Daddy!" Jimmy replied irritably. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the blueberry pie," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra anchovy. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Jimmy replied curiously. "Do we have the fried eggs ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," his father replied innocently. "It only has to scramble for four minutes."
"Okay," Jimmy replied woodenly. "I'm gonna go to the living room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some chicken soup in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the living room 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," Jimmy responded, as he sat down to his chicken soup. "Let's hang lots of rose balloons and cover the crib and the hope chest with jade crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father hysterically. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Bernadette Wozniak. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a whisk."
"Holy moley," Jimmy responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a clenched fist. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."