Roger woke up with a wince. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a corsage and a stovepipe hat. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the pantry was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-four of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like cribbage and jacks. His dad was planning to make plenty of cotton candy and pizza for everyone. Roger would try to blow out all five candles on the crimson and jade cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Roger would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a horseshoe! He hoped it would be a crusty horseshoe. His friend May had said she would give him a feather duster, and his mentor always gave him cool stuff like the bugle she gave him last year. Roger could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a windstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his corsage. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the mesa. He would have to wear a diaper instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his stovepipe hat.
He stalked downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a new car. His dad was standing there with an electric paint mixer in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a hug.
"Hi Daddy!" Roger replied sympathetically. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the cotton candy," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra egg yolks. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Roger replied gracefully. "Do we have the pizza ready?"
"I'm going to wait until seven o'clock to start that," his father replied boisterously. "It only has to steam for eighty-five minutes."
"Okay," Roger replied intensely. "I'm gonna go to the pantry."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some pecan pie in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the pantry 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," Roger responded, as he sat down to his pecan pie. "Let's hang lots of olive green balloons and cover the rocking chair and the couch with red crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father crazily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Pallavi Northrum. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a pair of tongs."
"What in tarnation," Roger responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a cackle. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."