Eileen woke up with a blush. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a big grin and an 'I'm with Stupid' shirt. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the porch was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited ten of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like jump rope and dominos. Her dad was planning to make plenty of corn on the cob and blueberry pie for everyone. Eileen would try to blow out all six candles on the scarlet and amber cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Eileen would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a cookie! She hoped it would be a soft cookie. Her friend Sissy had said she would give her a candy bar, and her cousin always gave her cool stuff like the church key she gave her last year. Eileen could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a gale was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her big grin. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the plateau. She would have to wear a vest instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her 'I'm with Stupid' shirt.
She blundered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like burning rubber. Her dad was standing there with a piece of cheesecloth in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a kiss.
"Hi Daddy!" Eileen replied bravely. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the corn on the cob," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra thinly sliced radishes. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Eileen replied sweetly. "Do we have the blueberry pie ready?"
"I'm going to wait until three o'clock to start that," her father replied gleefully. "It only has to fry quietly in unusual skillet for twenty-two minutes."
"Okay," Eileen replied calmly. "I'm gonna go to the porch."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some smoked salmon in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the porch first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Eileen responded, as she sat down to her smoked salmon. "Let's hang lots of burgundy balloons and cover the pedestal and the dining table with crimson crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father glibly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Antoinette Elwood. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a dull knife."
"Touché," Eileen responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a yawn. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."