Zeke woke up with a twitch. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a black belt and a gun belt. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the attic was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-seven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like checkers and hearts. His mom was planning to make plenty of sauerkraut and chopped liver for everyone. Zeke would try to blow out all twenty-three candles on the rose and navy blue cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Zeke would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a coconut! He hoped it would be a well worn coconut. His friend Austin had said he would give him a telephone, and his mommy always gave him cool stuff like the diagram she gave him last year. Zeke could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a flood was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his black belt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the oasis. He would have to wear a sarong instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his gun belt.
He skipped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like boiled cabbage. His mom was standing there with a slotted spoon in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a snuffle.
"Hi Mommy!" Zeke replied gently. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the sauerkraut," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra salmon filets. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Zeke replied boisterously. "Do we have the chopped liver ready?"
"I'm going to wait until five o'clock to start that," his mother replied madly. "It only has to broil for thirty-three minutes."
"Okay," Zeke replied hungrily. "I'm gonna go to the attic."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some egg drop soup in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the attic 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," Zeke responded, as he sat down to his egg drop soup. "Let's hang lots of navy blue balloons and cover the umbrella stand and the file cabinet with forest green crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother uselessly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Lakshmi Looper. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a bare foot."
"Crackers," Zeke responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a sneer. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."