Ray woke up with a flush. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a midi skirt and a cheerleader's uniform. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the oubliette was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited ten of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like Monopoly and pool. His mom was planning to make plenty of crab rangoon and borscht for everyone. Ray would try to blow out all fourteen candles on the carrot-orange and yellow cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Ray would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a pair of dice! He hoped it would be a rancid pair of dice. His friend Oliver had said he would give him a Band-aid, and his aunt always gave him cool stuff like the cigar she gave him last year. Ray could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a sandstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his midi skirt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the battlefield. He would have to wear a poncho instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his cheerleader's uniform.
He staggered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like enchiladas. His mom was standing there with a dish cloth in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a snicker.
"Hi Mommy!" Ray replied madly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the crab rangoon," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra mustard. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Ray replied roughly. "Do we have the borscht ready?"
"I'm going to wait until five o'clock to start that," his mother replied daringly. "It only has to mix speedily for thirty-two minutes."
"Okay," Ray replied bravely. "I'm gonna go to the oubliette."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some chicken soup in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the oubliette 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," Ray responded, as he sat down to his chicken soup. "Let's hang lots of orange balloons and cover the cushion and the recliner with azure crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother carefully. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Wanda Halperin. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an egg cutter."
"Very interesting," Ray responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a cheer. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."