Gerald woke up with a squint. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of ear muffs and a corsage. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the auditorium was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited thirty of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like cribbage and musical chairs. His mom was planning to make plenty of chopped liver and Froot Loops for everyone. Gerald would try to blow out all seven candles on the ivory and peach cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Gerald would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a bowl! He hoped it would be a well worn bowl. His friend Wilbur had said he would give him a fishing pole, and his main squeeze always gave him cool stuff like the advertisement she gave him last year. Gerald could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a drought was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of ear muffs. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the ridge. He would have to wear a set of pink foam curlers instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his corsage.
He stalked downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like popcorn. His mom was standing there with a pair of tongs in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a pucker.
"Hi Mommy!" Gerald replied vacantly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the chopped liver," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra ground beef. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Gerald replied tearfully. "Do we have the Froot Loops ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," his mother replied sharply. "It only has to microwave for seventy-four minutes."
"Okay," Gerald replied languidly. "I'm gonna go to the auditorium."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some cherries jubilee in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the auditorium 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," Gerald responded, as he sat down to his cherries jubilee. "Let's hang lots of maroon balloons and cover the pillow and the cushion with camouflage crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother positively. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Bubbles Perkins. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a candy thermometer."
"You bet," Gerald responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a honk. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."