Raúl woke up with a guffaw. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a diamond bracelet and a straitjacket. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the pantry was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-seven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like marbles and seven-up. His mom was planning to make plenty of blueberry pie and crab rangoon for everyone. Raúl would try to blow out all five candles on the terra cotta and maroon cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Raúl would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a fishing pole! He hoped it would be an expensive fishing pole. His friend Phineas had said he would give him a stuffed kitten, and his fiancée always gave him cool stuff like the billiard ball she gave him last year. Raúl could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a lightning storm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his diamond bracelet. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the garden. He would have to wear a blazer instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his straitjacket.
He scurried downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like meatloaf. His mom was standing there with an electric mixer in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a wince.
"Hi Mommy!" Raúl replied resignedly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the blueberry pie," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra roast beef. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Raúl replied again. "Do we have the crab rangoon ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," his mother replied boldly. "It only has to refrigerate overnight for eighty-seven minutes."
"Okay," Raúl replied sadly. "I'm gonna go to the pantry."
"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 pantry 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," Raúl responded, as he sat down to his ceviche. "Let's hang lots of magenta balloons and cover the china cabinet and the end table with mauve crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother victoriously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Martina Carter. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a grater."
"Okay," Raúl responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a grin. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."