Carlton woke up with a flush. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a cowboy hat and a pair of shoes. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the salon was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like tennis and marbles. His mom was planning to make plenty of doughnuts and chopped liver for everyone. Carlton would try to blow out all thirty-five candles on the khaki and grey cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Carlton would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a handkerchief! He hoped it would be an ordinary handkerchief. His friend Mao had said he would give him a Hostess Ding Dong, and his girlfriend always gave him cool stuff like the baton she gave him last year. Carlton could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a humid day was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his cowboy hat. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the gulch. He would have to wear a pair of tights instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of shoes.
He rolled downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like moth balls. His mom was standing there with an ice pick in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a wink.
"Hi Mommy!" Carlton replied noisily. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the doughnuts," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra mint leaves. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Carlton replied courageously. "Do we have the chopped liver ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," his mother replied urgently. "It only has to melt for seventy-five minutes."
"Okay," Carlton replied vacantly. "I'm gonna go to the salon."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some biscuits and gravy in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the salon 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," Carlton responded, as he sat down to his biscuits and gravy. "Let's hang lots of pea green balloons and cover the desk and the catbird seat with fuchsia crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother positively. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Pamela Palca. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an electric paint mixer."
"Hold that thought," Carlton responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a finger gun. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."