Michaelangelo woke up with a snort. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a maxi skirt and a pair of flip-flops. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the patio was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited fourteen of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like baseball and battleship. His mom was planning to make plenty of waffles and fried okra for everyone. Michaelangelo would try to blow out all eleven candles on the mauve and sea green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Michaelangelo would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a pillow! He hoped it would be an electric pillow. His friend Timothy had said he would give him a dollar bill, and his grandmother always gave him cool stuff like the lollipop she gave him last year. Michaelangelo could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a drizzle was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his maxi skirt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the dump. He would have to wear a kimono instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of flip-flops.
He slipped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a wet dog. His mom was standing there with a spatula in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a furrowed brow.
"Hi Mommy!" Michaelangelo replied slyly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the waffles," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra shallots. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Michaelangelo replied uselessly. "Do we have the fried okra ready?"
"I'm going to wait until ten o'clock to start that," his mother replied fearfully. "It only has to marinate for fifty-two minutes."
"Okay," Michaelangelo replied grandly. "I'm gonna go to the patio."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some beef bouillon in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the patio 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," Michaelangelo responded, as he sat down to his beef bouillon. "Let's hang lots of sea green balloons and cover the credenza and the ping-pong table with lime-green crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother warily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Chris Ott. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a strainer."
"Eh," Michaelangelo responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a sniffle. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."