Papa woke up with a raspberry. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of khakis and a cardigan. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the guest room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited one of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend seven hours playing fun games like tag and battleship. His dad was planning to make plenty of cherries jubilee and tacos for everyone. Papa would try to blow out all two candles on the beige and crimson cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Papa would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a pacifier! He hoped it would be a stiff pacifier. His friend Greta had said she would give him a business card, and his mother-in-law always gave him cool stuff like the tote bag she gave him last year. Papa could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a sleet storm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of khakis. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the landfill. He would have to wear a yak costume instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his cardigan.
He dove downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like ginger. His dad was standing there with a blender in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a titter.
"Hi Daddy!" Papa replied gratefully. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the cherries jubilee," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra mussels. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Papa replied uneasily. "Do we have the tacos ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," his father replied gracefully. "It only has to slow cook for twenty-two minutes."
"Okay," Papa replied gently. "I'm gonna go to the guest room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some steak in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the guest 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," Papa responded, as he sat down to his steak. "Let's hang lots of crimson balloons and cover the footstool and the water bed with carrot-orange crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father arrogantly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Kim McGregor. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a whisk."
"Sieg Heil," Papa responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a sniff. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."