Vinny woke up with a kiss. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in an armband and a maxi skirt. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the porch was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-seven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like follow the leader and hopscotch. His dad was planning to make plenty of falafel and fried okra for everyone. Vinny would try to blow out all sixteen candles on the periwinkle and rose cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Vinny would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a protest sign! He hoped it would be an unusual protest sign. His friend Carol had said she would give him a pacifier, and his aunt always gave him cool stuff like the pair of pliers she gave him last year. Vinny could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a driving rain was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his armband. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the gully. He would have to wear a pair of Bermuda shorts instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his maxi skirt.
He pranced downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like tar. His dad was standing there with a food processor in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a flutter.
"Hi Daddy!" Vinny replied woodenly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the falafel," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra minced onion. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Vinny replied gently. "Do we have the fried okra ready?"
"I'm going to wait until five o'clock to start that," his father replied daintily. "It only has to whirl for eighty-five minutes."
"Okay," Vinny replied irritably. "I'm gonna go to the porch."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some applesauce in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the porch 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," Vinny responded, as he sat down to his applesauce. "Let's hang lots of camouflage balloons and cover the mattress and the dishwasher with orange crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father dubiously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Kelly McDermott. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a corkscrew."
"Get out," Vinny responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a hug. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."