Kurt woke up with a snuffle. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a cummerbund and a big grin. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the ballroom was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited nineteen of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend seven hours playing fun games like pool and Parcheesi. His dad was planning to make plenty of oatmeal and lobster bisque for everyone. Kurt would try to blow out all thirty-five candles on the periwinkle and maroon cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Kurt would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a thumb drive! He hoped it would be a valuable thumb drive. His friend Xaviera had said she would give him an accordion, and his main squeeze always gave him cool stuff like the piece of candy she gave him last year. Kurt could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a rainstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his cummerbund. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the meadow. He would have to wear a moustache instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his big grin.
He pranced downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like mushrooms. His dad was standing there with a Sham-Wow! in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a smack.
"Hi Daddy!" Kurt replied gleefully. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the oatmeal," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra kiwis. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Kurt replied tearfully. "Do we have the lobster bisque ready?"
"I'm going to wait until twelve o'clock to start that," his father replied immediately. "It only has to deep fry for seventy-three minutes."
"Okay," Kurt replied delicately. "I'm gonna go to the ballroom."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some popcorn in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the ballroom 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," Kurt responded, as he sat down to his popcorn. "Let's hang lots of emerald green balloons and cover the dining table and the fainting couch with teal crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father diligently. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Stormy Al-Ghareeb. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a sharp knife."
"Beats me," Kurt responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a flush. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."