Michelle woke up with a squint. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a pair of Reeboks and a fedora. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the hall was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited fourteen of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like musical chairs and dominos. Her mom was planning to make plenty of macaroni and corn on the cob for everyone. Michelle would try to blow out all twenty-nine candles on the carrot-orange and peach cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Michelle would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a clock! She hoped it would be a primitive clock. Her friend Fred had said he would give her a calculator, and her mother-in-law always gave her cool stuff like the spool of thread she gave her last year. Michelle could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a sandstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her pair of Reeboks. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the island. She would have to wear a pair of cargo pants instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her fedora.
She barrelled downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like whiskey. Her mom was standing there with a mixing spoon in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a flush.
"Hi Mommy!" Michelle replied hopefully. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the macaroni," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra flour. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Michelle replied boldly. "Do we have the corn on the cob ready?"
"I'm going to wait until twelve o'clock to start that," her mother replied fondly. "It only has to deep fry for sixty-three minutes."
"Okay," Michelle replied wryly. "I'm gonna go to the hall."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some lime sherbet in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the hall first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Michelle responded, as she sat down to her lime sherbet. "Let's hang lots of navy blue balloons and cover the hatstand and the computer with azure crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother arrogantly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Callie Gong. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a grater."
"Gee whiz," Michelle 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."