Matt woke up with a caress. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of briefs and an 'I'm with Stupid' shirt. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the lounge was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited seven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like doctor and croquet. His mom was planning to make plenty of pecan pie and mashed potatoes for everyone. Matt would try to blow out all twenty-three candles on the jet black and chocolate brown cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Matt would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain an egg shell! He hoped it would be a torn egg shell. His friend Roger had said he would give him a playing card, and his sister always gave him cool stuff like the abacus she gave him last year. Matt could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a pall of doom was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of briefs. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the field. He would have to wear a gladiator helmet instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his 'I'm with Stupid' shirt.
He skipped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like pencil shavings. His mom was standing there with a basting brush in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a wince.
"Hi Mommy!" Matt replied excitedly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the pecan pie," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra lime Jell-O. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Matt replied suavely. "Do we have the mashed potatoes ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," his mother replied unabashedly. "It only has to sear for eighty-one minutes."
"Okay," Matt replied sorrowfully. "I'm gonna go to the lounge."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some tortillas in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the lounge 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," Matt responded, as he sat down to his tortillas. "Let's hang lots of green balloons and cover the cash register and the footstool with purple crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother quietly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Olga James. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a potato masher."
"Drat," Matt responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a flutter. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."