Ian woke up with a twitch. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of sweatpants and a gunny sack. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the study was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eleven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like croquet and Simon Says. His dad was planning to make plenty of roast turkey and roast turkey for everyone. Ian would try to blow out all two candles on the silver and jade cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Ian would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a spoon! He hoped it would be a big spoon. His friend Ida had said she would give him a pop bottle, and his dad always gave him cool stuff like the bowl she gave him last year. Ian 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 pair of sweatpants. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the seashore. He would have to wear a coat of mail instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his gunny sack.
He traipsed downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like burning trash. His dad was standing there with a candy thermometer in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a squint.
"Hi Daddy!" Ian replied clumsily. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the roast turkey," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra butter. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Ian replied hungrily. "Do we have the roast turkey ready?"
"I'm going to wait until two o'clock to start that," his father replied breathlessly. "It only has to age for nine minutes."
"Okay," Ian replied dreamily. "I'm gonna go to the study."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some catfish stew in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the study 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," Ian responded, as he sat down to his catfish stew. "Let's hang lots of magenta balloons and cover the ottoman and the stairway with golden crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father crazily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Jessi Simons. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a turkey baster."
"@#%#^@%$@!," Ian responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a belch. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."