ON ACCEPTING THE FRENCH IDEA OF GENIUS:

http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2009/11/two-bee-red-allowed.html

Ah, those pesky homophones. How I love them.




Bri M., Stephanie R., & Liz W., ewe shore dew chews grate Wrecks.

- Related Wreckage: I'm This Many

Frankly, I've had a lot to say, but I've been so busy checking in with LJ is the last thing on my mind.

Today I spent a bit of money on new lighting for my apt and did a bit of rearranging and retooling. Unfortunately, I'm not sure I like my new arrangement more than my last one. Hrm. I made a kind of partition with a big bookshelf and now have a bed space and a living space. Only, my living space is really small and awkwardly shaped. I might make it part office, but then I will have places to sleep and work but not really to hang out with other human beings should they choose to visit. I still have some ideas. We shall see. We shall see.

I'm seriously considering a loft, but I feel like a loft is a signal that I have completely given up. I'd go into it, but it's not worth it right now.

Other than that, I've been sick busy, writing, working two jobs and doing okay. That's good.

I had an IKEA adventure with Tina yesterday and remembered how M and I would drive 200 miles to visit the IKEA near Detroit just to buy household goods. We were going to have meatballs, but the line was insane, so we ate even more impractically at a BK down the street, and I'm here to tell you that was the best fast food I ever had in my life.

Now I'm off to update a blog and write some landing pages. Wish me luck.

First iPhone worm discovered

Apple iPhone owners in Australia have reported that their smartphones have been infected by a worm that has changed their wallpaper to an image of 1980s pop crooner Rick Astley. Once in place, the worm appears to attempt to find other iPhones on the mobile phone network that are similarly vulnerable, and installs itself again

On each installation, the worm - written by a hacker calling themselves "ikex" - changes the lock background wallpaper to an image of Rick Astley with the message: "ikee is never going to give you up".

http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2009/11/sunday-sweets-sesame-street.html

Sesame Street is turning 40 this week, so consider these Sweets a few virtual birthday cakes for everyone's favorite Street.






Robyn and her mom made this adorable number for little Miller:


And here's our fondant-free cake of the week:

Well, that's done it. The madness is ended, and the dust has settled. Job interview season is over.

The first year of law school is crazy and competitive. The pressure has broken some men greater than myself like a fistful of dry spaghettini. I remember particularly one guy in the library before the Criminal final that was clean-cut and on top of things all year, having wound up with terrible breath, chocolate stains (I hope) all around his mouth, and a neck beard like a crazy prospector, yelling at me: "Vaillancourt v. The Queen! Stigma and penalty --- are they disjunctive or conjunctive? Which matters more: that you're a murderer, or that you murdered someone?!"

Grizzled Prospector syndrome: put down the casebook and get to pannin'!

Whoa, homeboy. Take it down a notch. Everything is going to be all right.

He didn't think so, though, because of "the system".

( 'The System', continued... )

http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2009/11/on-road-again.html

So, as some of you know, Jen and I have picked up our bootstraps and our IV bags and gone back out to finish the tour. Our first stop was Kansas City, official state motto "The Home of Steak and Tornadoes." We got to meet about 200 awesome fans and a bunch of the folks from Andrews McMeel, our book publishers, came by. We even had a few "Super Fans:"

These three drove all the way from St. Louis, MO to be there. Talk about dedication! And check out those super-cool, custom shirts. They even brought us one. Here's a closeup of the back:

They explained that they made the shirts for the first tour before I got sick so the last few dates are wrong. I think maybe a red sharpie slash through those dates would take care of it in true Cake Wrecks fashion.

Of course, we did the cupcake wreckplica competition and here were our three enthusiastic winners:

Okay, two enthusiastic winners, and Logan who had a terribly itchy nose but was far to polite and gentlemanly to scratch it. Wreck on, my young friend. You're a better man than I am.

The dead rose petal wedding cake was the winner:

Crystal C. made the monkey/frog cake, complete with custom painted paper flotsam:

And Logan made a near perfect copy of the "I'm purrin for you" cupcake cake (ptoiee!)


Honorable mentions go out to Emily Spittler who made some of the most realistic icing poo I have ever seen:


And to Kathy Spittler (I wonder if they're related) who made the snowman from one of my all time favorite posts:


Fantastic, right? Well there's lots more where those came from, so check out the Kansas City Facebook Page for more great entries!

Our next stop was New York City, Official Motto, "Phenomenal Cosmic Powers! Iiitty bitty living space." We were at what is apparently the smallest Barnes and Noble in the world. (Maximum occupancy: 4, as long as they aren't wearing heavy coats.) That said, this was our view of the crowd:

There were actually people sitting on the floor in front of the lady in pink. Let's just say we were "cozy."

Though we only had six entries, we managed to find three champions:


The winner's cake was the nauseated basketball:


And then there was Cookie Monster (appropriate for this week's Sesame Street celebration):


And an also seasonally-appropriate Thanksgiving turkey, shaped like a football:

We actually had two bakers for the show. (Score!) The first was Perfect Endings Bakery and their cake was a Cake Wrecks Wreckerator Wrecker (Woo! Wreck-alicious!):

Complete with side panel signage misspelling:

And we also had Jacy Cakes who provided an awesome gluten-free book cake, which (appropriately) was dropped mid-transit, resulting in a Wreck Wreck. Despite the few bumps and scrapes, however, it still looked pretty sweet:

I thought it was cool that they even managed to nail the Andrews McMeel "U" Logo on the book spine:

And that's about it for the first two shows of Cake Wrecks - The "World" Tour, Part 2! You can check out more pics from the New York Facebook Page. Stay tuned for a wrap-up of Bethesda, Boston and Atlanta!

Bay Area Vampirism, Energy-work, and Otherkin Society (San Francisco, CA)

The Vampirism, Energy-work and Otherkin Society (VEOS) is a loosely-organized San Francisco based group. This group is open those identifying as vampire (sang or psy), donor, otherkin, and to those who wish to learn more about such topics. Other energy-workers are also welcome, so long as you have no problem with the vampiric side of energy work.

This group is NOT open to role-players, recruiters of any type, or those seeking to promote any form of religion (discussion about religion is OK, preaching is not).

My Grandma just friended me on Facebook. Good thing my Facebook persona is already rated G, since my friends list includes ultra-Orthodox Jews, fundamentalist Christians, children, and other people who actually don't know, and don't want to know, anything about the real me.

Next thing you know, my nephews (ages 2 and 4) will be refusing my friend requests. Because I am old, you know.

http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2009/11/bird-is-word.html

Poor Big Bird. He's a beloved childhood icon, he's turning 40 next week, and he gets no respect in the baking world.

It's one thing to rip the poor guy's beak off, but then to sign your name (illegibly) in its place? For shame, Halko! Or maybe Nillo...Mouo? Dang, this Wreckerator must have written code for the NSA in a former life; I have no idea what that says.

Guys, it's a sad, sad day on Cake Wrecks when a dreaded CCC is the "best" of the bunch:

Although I don't recall his beak being quite that...Popsicle-y. Hang on, lemme go grab a reference photo. [furious clickety-clicking]

Ah, here we go:

Um...is this Big Bird, or a blonde Elmo? I'm confused.

From the look of that beak/mouth combo, though, at least I know I'm not the only one.


And lastly, if you've ever wondered what would happen if Oscar the Grouch and Big Bird had a lovechild...

• 23:36 @jonslewis Amen to that. All the Yankees' winning does is point out how broken MLB is. #
• 23:41 Phone interview tomorrow at LAX while I wait for my flight. Shit's coming at us from all angles. Fingers crossed for good news for once. #

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http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2009/11/sporty-spice-cakes.html

Here at Anything Goes Bakery, we specialize in cakes that have all of the appeal of your favorite sports activities.

Baseball:


Soccer:


Boxing:

Whatever this is:


And of course, Epcot:



Nicole N., Rachel L., Maryann G., Charlene, Dyanna, & Sarah C., it's almost like I don't know Spaceship Earth when I see it, huh?

- Related Wreckage: Introducing a Good Sport

DNA Lounge update, wherein it's spoooooky.

• 08:48 @christopher_j_r Uh-oh, now I'm torn on AoA... #
• 13:54 @christopher_j_r Save me one -- I'm stuck at work until 5:30. #

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http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2009/11/new-discoveries-in-animal-kingdom.html

I believe that all new scientific discoveries should be announced via cake, don't you?

[pushing back glasses and consulting clipboard] Ladies and gentlemen, I'm proud to present...


We're still working on the scientific name for this one:





Thanks to Kelly D., Kit R., Caitlin B., Jordan J. and Donald L., who are all, er, majestic.

- Related Wreckage: Sideshow Slideshow

Healthcare provision seeks to embrace prayer treatments

Backed by some of the most powerful members of the Senate, a little-noticed provision in the healthcare overhaul bill would require insurers to consider covering Christian Science prayer treatments as medical expenses.

The provision was inserted by Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah) with the support of Democratic Sens. John F. Kerry and the late Edward M. Kennedy, both of Massachusetts, home to the headquarters of the Church of Christ, Scientist.

The measure would put Christian Science prayer treatments -- which substitute for or supplement medical treatments -- on the same footing as clinical medicine. While not mentioning the church by name, it would prohibit discrimination against "religious and spiritual healthcare." [...]

About 90 years ago, private insurance companies began paying for Christian Science prayer treatments, but more recently, managed-care insurers declined reimbursements, insisting on paying for care that produced proven medical results.

The Internal Revenue Service allows the cost of the prayer sessions to be counted among itemized medical expenses for income tax purposes -- one of the only religious treatments explicitly identified as deductible by the IRS. Some federal medical insurance programs, including those for military families, also reimburse for prayer treatment. [...]

Dr. Norman Fost, a pediatrician and medical ethicist at the University of Wisconsin, said the measure went against the goal of reducing healthcare costs by improving evidence-based medical practices. "They want a special exception for people who use unproved treatments, and they also want to get paid for it," he said. "They want people who use prayer to have it just automatically accepted as a legitimate therapy."