Doral's Birthday Party

The plates matched the table cloth. The clumps of balloons and silver tendrils that hung down from them picked up the colours in the other decorations. Old friends (Pam and Rob), neighbours (and their children), and family (Thomas, Kelvin and me) were there.

Dalton had created his Rice Krispie cake with strawberry ice cream.

The candles were grouped on the cake. Four of one colour for the "tens" and 3 of the other colour for the "ones". Doral looked at the cake and said, "Look, 3 on this side and four on that side. I must be 34."

Dalton turned the cake around for him, so Doral could get it right.

Dalton made the phone calls inviting us to come. Ron Treleaven said his phone call went like this. "Hello. This is Dalton. I am calling to invite you to my dad's surprise birthday party. I hope you can come. If you need directions to our place, please call me."

Ron hadn't found a chance to make that call-back.

We hung out for the evening.

When the other guests were gone and just before going home for us, Doral brought out his Appendix N, the bibliography that contains the books used to create the old style Dungeon and Dragon game.

Oh, but Appendix N is not just the bibliography, but it is a brown box full of the books listed in the Appendix.

Zothique and Poseidonis, both by Clark Ashton Smith;

10 Books by E. R. Burroughs, including 4 from the Mars series;

10 Books by Jack Vance, including the complete Dying Earth cycle;

10 H.P. Lovecraft/August Derleth titles; and

9 other books, from William Morris, Joy Chant, Hannes Bok, Ludovico Ariosto, Lord Dunsany, David Lindsay and Lin Carter.

Everyone should have their own Appendix N.

Keeping it in the corrugated cardboard box that contains the 41 books is a great way to make sure no one knows how precious the contents of the box is.

In the conversation that followed Doral said that of the blogs of this kind has moved from 8th to 6th place if importance can be measured by the number of followers that have signed on.

I read his.

I have not signed on, which makes him one short of having yet another follower.

Arta