Cake:no one ever makes a pastry chef a cake. I suppose the intimidation could factor into this, but still....birthdays need cake. This year, after almost a decade of no cake on my birthday, the trend was broken. Box mix, frosting from the store, and I wouldn't have had it any other way. One of the best cakes I've had to date. (and the piping was not half bad) xops

I #hate flowers and presents: well that is a bit of a lie, I love flowers but never get them so I have started just hating them :) I love presents but I always feel guilty getting them. Love giving them, don't handle getting them very well.  This year, on my birthday, the afore mentioned Pete gave me both....well not flowers but flours. Lots of flours. The perfect present, to make my celebrating 32 years of life, fun and simple. It's like it came from a movie! (it totally did) xops

Portobello Melt: Have you ever done something that is wrong on all levels, and if someone saw you would be mortified, but because you are alone you do it anyway? Great! And if you said, “No”, you are lying.

I was out of town for work, 3am start time was too early for the hotel's continental breakfast so I ran to work sans food. When 10 hour training shift ended I crawled back to the car and smelled portobello! I had my half sandwich from last night's dinner still in the car! The car temp was about 100°F so I figured it was out of the temperature danger zone, and I ate it. The once cold "veggie wedgie" from Oregano's in Scottsdale, was now a melty warm eggplant sub, that hit the spot. I half wondered if it would make me sick....as luck would have it, my iron stomach handled it just fine. 

It is mass generated, plastered all over glittery signs, quote, that quite often invokes my gag reflex. The quote your friend sends you when you have a bad day, the instagram that pops up when a friend has had a bad date. It is not new or revolutionary, it is the theme to every Nicholas Sparks-ian book/movie goosh.  It makes you want to slap a baby (not that I ever have or would, it's just something I've said once...or twice):

"Someday, someone is going to hug you so tight that all of your broken pieces will stick back together."

I hate this quote! And yet I find myself also loving it. All my pieces are pretty glued into place, I've steri-stripped the broken, like a boss, I have crazy glue on hand to mend the unexpected quick breaks, but I like the idea that mending isn't a sole venture.