It’s summer now, everyone. Do you know how I know that? It’s actually a hilarious story. You’re going to really get a kick out of this, stranger.
So I was sitting in my apartment, in the financial district of Manhattan, minding my own derpness, when Jack and I notice some strange sounds coming from outside. Strange as in, small explosions in quick succession. Let’s keep in mind that my apartment is a stone’s throw from ground zero, and I’m already pretty skiddish when it comes to things that threaten my safety. Like tiny spiders in the bathtub. And food processors. And those pillsbury cinnamon rolls that come in the vacuum-packed tube, the only means of opening being to pull the tab and just like, wait for it to explode in your hand I mean how effed is that.
So I was already on acceptance, grief-stage-wise, when Jack suggested, hey, maybe let’s go outside and see what’s going on. Turns out it was fireworks on Governor’s Island in celebration of the summer solstice. I felt silly, and oddly uplifted, as if I had cheated death. So brave.
Anyway, the point is – it’s summer. That was my point. Originally.
Roommate/Friend Joe had a gathering at his house one beautiful weekend, and I took this opportunity to make two separate cakes. The first one, the friendship cake, is for Friend Greg’s birthday. When asked what he wanted most for his 24th birthday, he responded “friendship.” Little did he know that he could have said “a bear fighting a unicorn on the death star” and I would have had to somehow make that into a cake.
I made the rainbow stripes uneven intentionally. I was going for a little-kid-project feel, but in the end it just looked sloppy. It looks like a third grader made it, but not in a cute, referential way. In like, a literal way.
The Harvard cake was for Friend Lauren, who just recently began a year-long graduate program in education at Harvard. She went to UConn with me, undergrad, and she gets all embarrassed when people gush over her recent academic achievements. So naturally, as her close friend of 14 years, I exploited this vulnerability in cake form. You might not be able to see, but on the side of the cake, I wrote “OH YOU FANCY, HUH.”
Cut to the gathering at Joe’s. It was a beautiful day. Starting at high noonish, someone suggested that we get things going with a game of Stump. What’s Stump, you say? I am ecstatic that you have just asked me that question.
Stump was thrilling. I am a better person for having known this game.
The evening wore on, and pretty soon it was time to bring out the cakes. For whatever reason, Greg was forced to blow out his candles twice.
As for Laurens cake – we sang “Happy Harvard To You,” she was mortified, then she tucked the cake away and I didn’t get any more photos of it. Overall, a success.
The rest of the evening was a delight. One highlight was Grill Master Willie and his most delicious invention:
And then I killed it with fire
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