Dax woke up with a raspberry. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a floppy hat and a sport coat. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the living room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited two of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like Scrabble and doctor. His mom was planning to make plenty of cornbread and candy for everyone. Dax would try to blow out all six candles on the hot pink and mauve cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Dax would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a hacksaw! He hoped it would be a queer hacksaw. His friend Dave had said he would give him a chain, and his mommy always gave him cool stuff like the cane she gave him last year. Dax could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a bit of precipitation was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his floppy hat. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the glen. He would have to wear a necktie instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his sport coat.
He trotted downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like cookies. His mom was standing there with a slotted spoon in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a sigh.
"Hi Mommy!" Dax replied ingeniously. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the cornbread," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra pitted cherries. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Dax replied greedily. "Do we have the candy ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," his mother replied confidently. "It only has to allow to rise in warm place for several hours for seventy-six minutes."
"Okay," Dax replied woodenly. "I'm gonna go to the living room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some falafel in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the living room 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," Dax responded, as he sat down to his falafel. "Let's hang lots of orange balloons and cover the bed and the billiard table with metallic red crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother sadly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Abigail Benson. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a blender."
"Holy moley," Dax responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a laugh. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."