Dirk 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 ski mask and a winter coat. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the conservatory was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eight of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like trivia and hearts. His mom was planning to make plenty of cabbage rolls and smoked salmon for everyone. Dirk would try to blow out all fifteen candles on the pink and mauve cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Dirk would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a can of shaving cream! He hoped it would be an ornate can of shaving cream. His friend Knuckles had said he would give him a basketball, and his fiancée always gave him cool stuff like the crystal ball she gave him last year. Dirk could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a sandstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his ski mask. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the park. He would have to wear a pair of sandals instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his winter coat.
He sauntered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like natural gas. His mom was standing there with a melon baller in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a titter.
"Hi Mommy!" Dirk replied urgently. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the cabbage rolls," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra corn flakes. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Dirk replied grudgingly. "Do we have the smoked salmon ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," his mother replied fervently. "It only has to freeze for fifteen minutes."
"Okay," Dirk replied smoothly. "I'm gonna go to the conservatory."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some bread and butter 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," Dirk responded, as he sat down to his bread and butter. "Let's hang lots of azure balloons and cover the file cabinet and the bench with amber crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother firmly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Lindsay Schlick. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a fork."
"Yowee," Dirk responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a smirk. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."