Douglas woke up with a coo. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of safety glasses and a pair of earrings. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the atrium was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited three of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like roulette and Candy Land. His mom was planning to make plenty of cabbage rolls and oatmeal for everyone. Douglas would try to blow out all fifteen candles on the white and camouflage cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Douglas would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a mushroom! He hoped it would be a rancid mushroom. His friend Kurt had said he would give him a coat hanger, and his cousin always gave him cool stuff like the pair of dice she gave him last year. Douglas could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hurricane was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of safety glasses. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the briar patch. He would have to wear a Panama hat instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of earrings.
He zoomed downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like something died. His mom was standing there with a whisk in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a twitch.
"Hi Mommy!" Douglas replied frenetically. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the cabbage rolls," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra trout. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Douglas replied ignobly. "Do we have the oatmeal ready?"
"I'm going to wait until twelve o'clock to start that," his mother replied properly. "It only has to sear for eighty-one minutes."
"Okay," Douglas replied dubiously. "I'm gonna go to the atrium."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some ceviche in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the atrium 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," Douglas responded, as he sat down to his ceviche. "Let's hang lots of magenta balloons and cover the cupboard and the catbird seat with purple crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother vacantly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Sandi Bratt. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a pair of chopsticks."
"Bingo," Douglas responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a frown. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."