Shelly woke up with a caress. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a nightgown and a heavy layer of makeup. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the basement was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited six of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like Parcheesi and battleship. Her mom was planning to make plenty of lobster bisque and macaroni for everyone. Shelly would try to blow out all thirty-four candles on the forest green and chartreuse cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Shelly would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a vase! She hoped it would be a waxy vase. Her friend Quincy had said he would give her a package, and her mother always gave her cool stuff like the pigeon she gave her last year. Shelly could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a humid day was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her nightgown. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the oasis. She would have to wear a big grin instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her heavy layer of makeup.
She blundered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like incense. Her mom was standing there with a ladle in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a cringe.
"Hi Mommy!" Shelly replied solemnly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the lobster bisque," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra cracker crumbs. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Shelly replied sleepily. "Do we have the macaroni ready?"
"I'm going to wait until twelve o'clock to start that," her mother replied dreamily. "It only has to spoon into container for five minutes."
"Okay," Shelly replied needlessly. "I'm gonna go to the basement."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some smoked salmon in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the basement 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," Shelly responded, as she sat down to her smoked salmon. "Let's hang lots of fuchsia balloons and cover the water bed and the counter with brown crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother admiringly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Ava Walker. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a paring knife."
"Oops," Shelly responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a squint. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."