Joseph woke up with a sniff. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a shirt and a pair of Bermuda shorts. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the conservatory was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited three of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like doctor and red light green light. His mom was planning to make plenty of wienerschnitzel and roast Cornish game hen for everyone. Joseph would try to blow out all thirty-one candles on the golden and ivory cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Joseph would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a pack of gum! He hoped it would be a frilly pack of gum. His friend Jimmy had said he would give him a pumpkin, and his friend always gave him cool stuff like the bowling ball she gave him last year. Joseph could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hurricane was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his shirt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the pasture. He would have to wear a pair of cycling shorts instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of Bermuda shorts.
He loped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like peppermint. His mom was standing there with a paring knife in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a kiss.
"Hi Mommy!" Joseph replied lazily. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the wienerschnitzel," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra pickled peppers. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Joseph replied arrogantly. "Do we have the roast Cornish game hen ready?"
"I'm going to wait until one o'clock to start that," his mother replied menacingly. "It only has to fry for twenty-five minutes."
"Okay," Joseph replied sagely. "I'm gonna go to the conservatory."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some ice cream in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the conservatory first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Joseph responded, as he sat down to his ice cream. "Let's hang lots of sparkly balloons and cover the coat rack and the rug with khaki crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother angrily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Irma Grayheels. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an egg cutter."
"Geez Louise," Joseph responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a clenched fist. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."