Funfetti Cake

Literally the best cake mix in a box. The concept is simple: vanilla cake mix with sprinkles in the batter.

Personally, I like to just eat the cake batter.
Taking the time to actually cook it requires patience, none of which I have. The sprinkles are crunchy, the gooey batter- delicious. Complete with raw eggs- salmonella is the last thing I am worried about... Sitting down with a spoon and a bowl full of funfetti cake batter can complete any Saturday afternoon.


However, on the rare occasion when I do take the time to actually bake the batter, the outcome is glorious. The fluffiest and most delicious looking delicacy on the face of the planet. Topped with frosting, this cake can cure any disease, malady, or horrid mood. It's a journey back to childhood coupled with an explosion of flavors, a symphony of taste in your mouth.

So, on those days like today ,when the clouds roll in and the rain cascades down from the heavens, blanketing everything in the soggy moistness of water, bust out the Funfetti and Mulan. Your day will turn around in no time...

Burt's Bees

While on my plane ride back from the depths of time, I forgot to put my lip balm in my carry-on bag. That journey = longest plane ride of my entire life.
Anyone who uses lip balm religiously knows that your lips get the driest when you know you don't have any accessible stick of chap. Your lack of soothing wax taunts you, torments you until you become desperate enough to ask a companion for a swipe of their choice brand.
(I never, ever do this. I would rather feel like my lips have been scorched by desert's sandy winds and the sun's persistent rays than use another person's chapstick.)
I've experienced the Bonnebell plethora of flavors, the Chapstick chapstick, and generic balms, but none have compared to the minty simplicity that is Burt's Bees Beeswax Lip Balm.
All natural, no animal testing, and, according to my tube, 30% post-industrial content.
Good for my lips, good for the Earth.

Baby Mammals

Let's be quite honest. Small things are extremely cute. Furry things are extremely cute. And everyone loves new things.

Mix these three together, and you get baby mammals. I was going to say baby animals, but human babies are too adorable to leave out of the classification. (And I feel bad calling babies 'animals' in the same way I feel bad for referring to a baby as 'it.')

There is a modern fetish of obsessing over cute things, and I am completely prepared to buy into it right now.

If you are prone to cavities, you should stop reading here.
If you have a super-sweet tooth, continue on, dear reader.

Baby hedgehogs are quite possibly one of the cutest species of baby mammal. I love the big floppy ears next to his little face and impossibly tiny nose. He looks ready to snuffle, which is both the sound hedgehogs make and also an adorable action of the baby hedgehog.

The universal appeal, though, may lie in the contrast between the spiny back and the impossibly soft little tummy.

Yes, I said tummy. So sue me.

Yes, there is a little baby mammal in this photo. It's like the "Where's Waldo?" of cuteness.

See it? See it? Adorable.

Too bad most cats really don't like me very much.

Puppies, on the other hand, puppies love me. These puppies are snowy, too, which adds an entirely new dimension of heartwarming love to this photo.

Can't you just imagine them frolicking in the snow under fir trees, chasing snowballs that disappear when they hit the ground and being confused? Eating the snow, maybe? Rolling around, nibbling each other's ears with their sharp but harmless milk teeth?

Have you noticed how much I love puppies?

This is my protegee/goddaughter. Check out those cheeks. And that pout. And her eyes. And her eyelashes - sorry, you can't really see them here. She's a snuggly little joy of a toddler.

"Aristocats," anyone? This one is about the tiny paws and the fact that the kitten's fur is all over the place.

Farm animals can also be extremely cute. These particular lambs were at The Farm in Door County. If you know what I'm referring to, you understand that The Farm is where cute reaches extreme levels that are slightly overwhelming to amateurs (i.e. people who weren't desensitized to the cuteness by going to The Farm every summer since they themselves could be classed as baby mammals).

The appreciation of cuteness in baby mammals by other baby mammals may be the purest and highest form of cuteness in baby mammals. This photograph may have more love in it than any other in the world. And also more cuteness.

(Disclaimer: I took some of these pictures from various websites, stole one from an acquaintances facebook and one from my dad's Shutterfly, and took a few of them myself.)

ETA: A very cute song for all of you to download. Be Gentle With Me - The Boy Least Likely To.

Her Morning Elegance

There is something about this video and song combination by Oren Lavie that just gets me.

The song is honest and poetic in my favorite way - the most is said between the lines, in what gets left unsaid. This is sounding super pretentious, especially because it's not some ground breaking musical or lyrical work. It's just a good song with an intriguing video.

The video, which is really the reason for this post, is striking and simple, complementing the song and actually adding quite a bit to it.

I'm not articulating within this post very well, but hey, I've been pretty verbose in the last few, so I will just leave you with a link to full details on the video from Oren Lavie's MySpace. I read them for you first, and I would say they are worth your 5 minutes.

Then be like me and spend a significant amount of time watching the video.
Again.
And again.
And again.

Here's the song: Her Morning Elegance - Oren Lavie.

After Dinner Mints

After a delicious meal out on the town, I am always craving that little something extra. And luckily, the high caliber restaurants that I frequent know exactly what I desire- an after dinner mint. Now, we're not talking the standard after dinner mint which I do occasionally enjoy: the pastel and fluffy delicacies with their light and airy mint flavour. Sometimes, however, the situation calls for a real mint. Straight up.


So many varieties, so many options.

Depending on the level of class your chosen restaurant possess, your mint options can range from the quotidian miniature peppermints all the way to the ever elegant chocolate mint. Don't get me wrong, the delectable melt-in-you-mouth velvety sensation of the chocolate mint is hard to outshine, but sometimes the good ol' down to earth peppermint is just what I am craving.

It is at these moments where I find myself incredibly grateful for these little packaged wonders so graciously bestowed upon us, the customers. Basking in the after-dinner glow, the time is right where a minty sensation can only perfect the essence of an already excellent meal.

It is therefore fitting to conclude that the after dinner mint is one of nature's most precious and glorious gifts; to be enjoyed to the fullest extents of our human powers and to be savoured in the majesty and magnificence it deserves.

The Boys

There is this crew of boys who tend to just be around. I'm not quite sure how I fell in with a group of such hooligans, but I guess they're okay.

William, Intensity, and Sam are classy dudes. Except Sam, who looked like the lovechild of Juno and a hoodrat today.

Will got a tattoo of the NMH aeroplane today. If you needed proof that he's a legitimate person to hang out with, that should be enough. Kid is legit. Also, he likes my sister's hamster. I also like my sister's hamster.

Sam had a long, interesting day today. I don't think I'm quite at liberty to tell the tale. Otherwise I would, since it describes Sam really well. We also sit together in our Physician in History lecture. I don't think either of us are totally sure what's going on in there at any point in time.

J. Ash really is classy. He was really sleepy since he stayed up incredibly late for no real reason yesterday with Intensity and I. John is really good at school, I think. Also, he was part of the monster truck fiasco, which makes him markedly cooler than many other people.


Pictured above is Brandon, aka Intensity. Intensity has really good taste in music and also wears some pretty sweet Chucks on a regular basis. Intensity is also our most dedicated blog reader, so big ups for that one, kid.

Thumbs up to these three and also Todd, who wasn't here this afternoon and so didn't get in the body of this post. Kid is cool, though, and I like him, too.

Passion Pit - Sleepyhead

Over winter break, not only did I reach absolute zero, I also journeyed to the center of the Earth. No, I don't have photographic evidence because technology gets funky in those sorts of conditions.

I had to decide on where I want to go for spring break (read: SPRING BREAK 2009 WOOOHOOO!). Space exploration was out of the question because I'm not of age to get rental vehicles. Out of body experiences are so 1950s Twilight Zone/Contact. And I've already been to Hogwarts like a gazillion times.

So, what's a girl to do?

Clearly, I have to time travel. Since the future is right now and now and now and now, I figure going into the past would be the best option.

And yes, I'm going solely to frolic with dinosaurs. That's it. Why else would anyone time travel?
Before I hop into my DeLorean and get my Jurassic Park on for the next week, I leave you with not one, but two presents to hold you over until my return, faithful readers (read: Intensity).

Passion Pit - Sleepy Head
Passion Pit - Sleepyhead (Wallpaper. Dio Remix)
Such a good song. Such a good remix.

Get busy to it, commoners. I'm off to ride a Gigantosaurus!