Chad woke up with a shiver. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a tam o'shanter and a bulletproof vest. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the boiler room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-three of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like billiards and red rover. His dad was planning to make plenty of ramen noodles and pot roast for everyone. Chad would try to blow out all thirty-five candles on the purple and maroon cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Chad would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a roll of toilet paper! He hoped it would be a frilly roll of toilet paper. His friend Kelly had said she would give him a fishing rod, and his aunt always gave him cool stuff like the teddy bear she gave him last year. Chad could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hurricane was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his tam o'shanter. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the river. He would have to wear a pair of suspenders instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his bulletproof vest.
He trekked downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like anise. His dad was standing there with a corkscrew in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a caress.
"Hi Daddy!" Chad replied blissfully. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the ramen noodles," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra pitted cherries. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Chad replied caustically. "Do we have the pot roast ready?"
"I'm going to wait until two o'clock to start that," his father replied timidly. "It only has to mix suspiciously for thirty-two minutes."
"Okay," Chad replied impatiently. "I'm gonna go to the boiler room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some oatmeal in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the boiler room first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Chad responded, as he sat down to his oatmeal. "Let's hang lots of azure balloons and cover the bench and the washing machine with camouflage crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father courageously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Brooke Espinoza. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a dish cloth."
"Drop dead," Chad responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a wink. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."