Kenny woke up with a curtsey. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a nose ring and a pair of Groucho glasses. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the salon was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited thirty of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like pool and Scrabble. His mom was planning to make plenty of wienerschnitzel and pumpkin pie for everyone. Kenny would try to blow out all twenty-seven candles on the indigo and brown cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Kenny would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a bilge pump! He hoped it would be a rare bilge pump. His friend Joshua had said he would give him a pencil, and his grandma always gave him cool stuff like the bugle she gave him last year. Kenny could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a downpour was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his nose ring. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the stream. He would have to wear a beard instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of Groucho glasses.
He inched downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like hamburgers. His mom was standing there with a pair of tongs in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a pound of the chest.
"Hi Mommy!" Kenny replied sheepishly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the wienerschnitzel," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra butter. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Kenny replied resignedly. "Do we have the pumpkin pie ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," his mother replied speedily. "It only has to blend for eighty-seven minutes."
"Okay," Kenny replied courteously. "I'm gonna go to the salon."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some tofu in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the salon 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," Kenny responded, as he sat down to his tofu. "Let's hang lots of violet balloons and cover the futon and the rug with tan crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother deliberately. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Isabella Lord. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a dish cloth."
"Big whoop," Kenny responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a gurgle. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."