Baldwin 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 pair of panties and a blazer. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the dungeon was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-seven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like golf and solitaire. His dad was planning to make plenty of ravioli and corn on the cob for everyone. Baldwin would try to blow out all twelve candles on the orange and jet black cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Baldwin would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a bugle! He hoped it would be an amazing bugle. His friend Virginia had said she would give him a key, and his dad always gave him cool stuff like the mushroom she gave him last year. Baldwin could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a downpour was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of panties. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the housing development. He would have to wear a sweatshirt instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his blazer.
He slid downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like rotten eggs. His dad was standing there with a meat thermometer in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a grunt.
"Hi Daddy!" Baldwin replied fearlessly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the ravioli," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra chopped celery. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Baldwin replied viciously. "Do we have the corn on the cob ready?"
"I'm going to wait until two o'clock to start that," his father replied pityingly. "It only has to arrange for eighty-seven minutes."
"Okay," Baldwin replied daintily. "I'm gonna go to the dungeon."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some dirty rice in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the dungeon 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," Baldwin responded, as he sat down to his dirty rice. "Let's hang lots of indigo balloons and cover the casket and the counter with maroon crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father roughly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Ursula Parker. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an ice pick."
"Hello," Baldwin responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a tear. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."