Baldwin 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 an 'I'm with Stupid' shirt and a jumpsuit. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the parlor was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eight of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like cribbage and hearts. His dad was planning to make plenty of cornbread and duck a l'orange for everyone. Baldwin would try to blow out all fifteen candles on the olive green and maroon cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Baldwin would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a watering can! He hoped it would be a grubby watering can. His friend Susanna had said she would give him a ball, and his mentor always gave him cool stuff like the can of sardines she gave him last year. Baldwin could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that an earthquake was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his 'I'm with Stupid' shirt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the moonscape. He would have to wear a pair of shin guards instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his jumpsuit.
He made a beeline downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a feed lot. His dad was standing there with a wooden spoon in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a giggle.
"Hi Daddy!" Baldwin replied positively. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the cornbread," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra sauerkraut. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Baldwin replied nervously. "Do we have the duck a l'orange ready?"
"I'm going to wait until seven o'clock to start that," his father replied silently. "It only has to place on serving dish for seventy-two minutes."
"Okay," Baldwin replied cruelly. "I'm gonna go to the parlor."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some crab rangoon in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the parlor 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," Baldwin responded, as he sat down to his crab rangoon. "Let's hang lots of fuchsia balloons and cover the hammock and the wardrobe with blue crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father dolorously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Nelda Hoffa. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a pastry blender."
"Son of a gun," Baldwin responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a wag of the finger. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."