It's cake graduation time!

I've now completed my first four-week class in Wilton cake decorating, and I'm happy to say it's not as hard as it looks. I've learned the basics, and practice will help me improve my techniques in time. I am now fully qualified to create a rose from a paste made of Crisco and powdered sugar. It's an accomplishment, of sorts. I even got a certificate that's hanging proudly on my refrigerator.

It's hard to tell the colors, because I didn't have very good lighting and I couldn't use the flash without washing out the cake, but the roses and dots all over the cake are ivory. I wigged out the other soccer moms in my class by mixing green, yellow, and purple to color my leaves. They don't see what's wrong with using the bottle marked "leaf green," but I dare you to show me a leaf the color of that bottle. "Purple???" they asked? Yes. Here is a color wheel. Let me explain it to you ladies, using small words. Just kidding. I said, "Yes, it looks better," and moved on with my cake decorating.

Oooh, artsy shot that makes you feel like you're an inch tall and standing on the cake! So cool!

So what with holidays and all that, I can't take the next course until January. I'm really looking forward to it, mostly because I'll need another breather from planning this obnoxious wedding by then.

JoeFlakes!

Our company has adopted a clutch of Marines in Iraq. (I'm not sure if "clutch" is the group noun for Marines -- perhaps a "grunt" of Marines, a "stink" of Marines, or a "collective group of questionable life decisions but hey, in these guys' cases, it's probably for the best" might be more appropriate) In the past months, we've sent them clothes and other gifts.



The latest drive was set up as a Christmas ornament competition, in which employees were asked to buy, make, or personalize ornaments to decorate the Marines' little Christmas tree. Funundrum thought about it for a few days, then had an epiphany that turned out to be... JoeFlakes™. I'm not really sure where the idea came from, but I glued toy army men together to make snowflakes, then spray painted them white. Behold, JoeFlakes™.

And I totally won first prize, which was an iPod Nano. It's one of the sad, old tiny ones, so we're going to use it as our travel iPod. This way, if it gets lost or stolen, the thief will have to listen to the same 240 songs over and over, and REVENGE WILL BE OURS!!!

I wish I had been able to take pictures of these against a higher-contrast background, but I was at work, so my only choice was Mindless Laborer Beige.

Second Wilton cake

This cake was completed a couple weeks ago, partly in response to the sad fact that I never got a slice of the Pac-Man cake. I figured if I made this cake huge and covered in chocolate, I would try harder to get in on the action.

The decorating didn't take that long, but everyone was pleased with the color contrast of the blue flowers and chocolate icing. I'd like to do another one like this, but with WAY more flowers on it.

PS -- the Asian-owned computer store guys aren't to thank for the technological miracle of me being able to blog from home. Our stupid-ass PC just decided to start working again. I guess we forgot to keep up to date with the required infant offerings to Microsoft. CAN WE GET A MAC YET???

Technical difficulties update

Chris is currently working very hard with a crack team of Asian-owned electronics stores, located throughout the greater Denver metropolitan area, to find a part for our computer that will make it go. Unfortunately, that part is not a shiny new iMac. Not yet.

For now, I will try to blog a couple of things from here at work, just so everyone doesn't totally abandon ship (I think it might be too late for some of you.) Thanks for hanging in there.

Not for lack of trying...

I have a list of stuff to put up on here, but our PC died at home. I will not forget.