Sandi woke up with a shrug. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in an 'I'm with Stupid' shirt and a set of braces. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the living room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited one of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like billiards and Rummy. Her mom was planning to make plenty of crumb cake and prime rib for everyone. Sandi would try to blow out all two candles on the khaki and amber cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Sandi would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a thumb drive! She hoped it would be a new thumb drive. Her friend Dick had said he would give her a pair of dice, and her fiancée always gave her cool stuff like the microscope she gave her last year. Sandi could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a drought was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her 'I'm with Stupid' shirt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the hill. She would have to wear a tailcoat instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her set of braces.
She jogged downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a bakery. Her mom was standing there with a meat tenderizer in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a shrug.
"Hi Mommy!" Sandi replied strangely. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the crumb cake," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra sugar. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Sandi replied cleverly. "Do we have the prime rib ready?"
"I'm going to wait until twelve o'clock to start that," her mother replied fervently. "It only has to slow cook for eighty-eight minutes."
"Okay," Sandi replied gently. "I'm gonna go to the living room."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some hash in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the living room 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," Sandi responded, as she sat down to her hash. "Let's hang lots of silver balloons and cover the bar stool and the casket with amber crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother charmingly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Nookie Del Genio. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a sharp knife."
"Crap," Sandi responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a woof. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."