Newton woke up with a raspberry. 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 pair of heels. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the garage was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-seven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like croquet and Russian roulette. His dad was planning to make plenty of fried okra and tofu for everyone. Newton would try to blow out all fifteen candles on the aqua and aquamarine cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Newton would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a top! He hoped it would be a golden top. His friend Martha had said she would give him a microscope, and his dad always gave him cool stuff like the thumb drive she gave him last year. Newton could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a lightning storm 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 treetop. He would have to wear a pair of boxing gloves instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of heels.
He sallied forth downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like rotten eggs. His dad was standing there with a food processor in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a hug.
"Hi Daddy!" Newton replied vacantly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the fried okra," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra mint leaves. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Newton replied crossly. "Do we have the tofu ready?"
"I'm going to wait until six o'clock to start that," his father replied automatically. "It only has to mix arrogantly for fifty-five minutes."
"Okay," Newton replied numbly. "I'm gonna go to the garage."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some oatmeal in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the garage 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," Newton responded, as he sat down to his oatmeal. "Let's hang lots of golden balloons and cover the desk and the rocking chair with black crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father nervously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Evelyn Mondegreen. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a dull knife."
"Kaboom," Newton responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a blush. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."