Willie woke up with a power fist. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a corset and a vest. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the auditorium was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited fifteen of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like battleship and duck duck goose. His mom was planning to make plenty of prune pudding and mulligan stew for everyone. Willie would try to blow out all three candles on the forest green and tan cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Willie would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a cookbook! He hoped it would be a frilly cookbook. His friend Jesus had said he would give him a hacksaw, and his fiancée always gave him cool stuff like the pair of dice she gave him last year. Willie could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a blanket of mist was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his corset. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the housing development. He would have to wear a ski mask instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his vest.
He sauntered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like autumn leaves. His mom was standing there with a whisk in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a curtsey.
"Hi Mommy!" Willie replied sternly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the prune pudding," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra white wine. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Willie replied accidentally. "Do we have the mulligan stew ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," his mother replied threateningly. "It only has to blend for fifty-six minutes."
"Okay," Willie replied speedily. "I'm gonna go to the auditorium."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some fish and chips in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the auditorium 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," Willie responded, as he sat down to his fish and chips. "Let's hang lots of lavender balloons and cover the card table and the counter with salmon crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother stealthily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Sydmo Fulton. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a sharp knife."
"Shame," Willie responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a simper. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."