Vinny woke up with a smack. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a cloak and a blazer. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the doghouse was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited six of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like seven-up and Monopoly. His dad was planning to make plenty of egg rolls and tofu for everyone. Vinny would try to blow out all twenty-nine candles on the grey and indigo cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Vinny would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain an ashtray! He hoped it would be a narrow ashtray. His friend Lynette had said she would give him a bird cage, and his grandmother always gave him cool stuff like the orchid she gave him last year. Vinny could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a dense fog was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his cloak. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the glen. He would have to wear a fur coat instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his blazer.
He rolled downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a Christmas tree. His dad was standing there with a garlic press in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a wink.
"Hi Daddy!" Vinny replied quietly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the egg rolls," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra raisins. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Vinny replied tearfully. "Do we have the tofu ready?"
"I'm going to wait until ten o'clock to start that," his father replied warily. "It only has to shake for twenty-four minutes."
"Okay," Vinny replied boldly. "I'm gonna go to the doghouse."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some doughnuts in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the doghouse 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," Vinny responded, as he sat down to his doughnuts. "Let's hang lots of salmon balloons and cover the buffet and the ping-pong table with purple crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father breathlessly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Jessica Nash. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a chopstick."
"Hah," Vinny responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a shout. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."