Abe woke up with a woof. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a locket and a bandana. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the front porch was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-six of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like Russian roulette and seven-up. His mom was planning to make plenty of hamburgers and potatoes and gravy for everyone. Abe would try to blow out all fifteen candles on the crimson and emerald green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Abe would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a basket! He hoped it would be a ruined basket. His friend Grover had said he would give him a horseshoe, and his grandfather always gave him cool stuff like the piece of chalk she gave him last year. Abe could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a typhoon was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his locket. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the seashore. He would have to wear a pair of overalls instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his bandana.
He strode downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like bananas. His mom was standing there with a wooden spoon in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a squint.
"Hi Mommy!" Abe replied wearily. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the hamburgers," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra apple cider. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Abe replied cunningly. "Do we have the potatoes and gravy ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," his mother replied proudly. "It only has to grill for fifty-eight minutes."
"Okay," Abe replied uneasily. "I'm gonna go to the front porch."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some tacos in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the front porch 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," Abe responded, as he sat down to his tacos. "Let's hang lots of beige balloons and cover the sofa and the wardrobe with camouflage crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother furiously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Valentina Spooner. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a cheesecloth."
"Never mind," Abe responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a sniff. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."