Seth woke up with an evil eye. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of khakis and a poncho. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the rec room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited five of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like charades and chess. His dad was planning to make plenty of strawberry shortcake and pizza for everyone. Seth would try to blow out all thirteen candles on the violet and maroon cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Seth would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a shovel! He hoped it would be a handy shovel. His friend Petunia had said she would give him a pair of scissors, and his grandmother always gave him cool stuff like the coconut she gave him last year. Seth could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a bit of precipitation was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of khakis. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the oasis. He would have to wear a coonskin hat instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his poncho.
He danced downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like garlic. His dad was standing there with a dish cloth in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a guffaw.
"Hi Daddy!" Seth replied lovingly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the strawberry shortcake," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra fava beans. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Seth replied sharply. "Do we have the pizza ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," his father replied bitterly. "It only has to arrange for eighty minutes."
"Okay," Seth replied grandly. "I'm gonna go to the rec room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some ravioli in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the rec 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," Seth responded, as he sat down to his ravioli. "Let's hang lots of purple balloons and cover the wardrobe and the bookcase with orange crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father clumsily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Bethany Melville. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a food processor."
"Doggone," Seth responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a frown. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."