CUPCAKE STORY
This year, for some reason, I was overcome with the urge to make cupcakes for Valentine's Day. I'd never made them before--crazy, right?--nor do I really care for sweets (bring on the salt) but there I was on February 13th making cupcake after cupcake with my NEON food coloring. Each time I would make a new color of batter or frosting, I'd run into the living room where Sean was watching The Wire on his laptop and present my new hue. Usually the presentation involved prancing and giggles. Anyway, the result:
So perhaps the best story to emerge from my creation and distribution of 46 magically colored cupcakes is as follows: On Valentine's Day, my co-worker and I had a meeting out in the district and didn't get back downtown until around 11:00 a.m. We parked in a lot behind our office building and fought our way through the parking lot in the cold air, each balancing a tray or two of cupcakes.
"Let's stop and give him one," I said to my co-worker, cocking my head towards the parking attendant. Neither of us knew him as we never parked in that lot before. This was a pure goodwill kind of thing.
"Ok," and we walked over to the little heated hut where the attendant sat bundled up and expressionless.
"Cupcake?" I asked.
He looked at me with a little suspicion and eyed the tray.
I urged him further, "Go ahead, take one--free!"
Silently, he reviewed the cupcakes with what seemed to be disinterest. He lifted his eyes and spoke for the first time, "I can take any one I want?"
I nodded, "Yes, any one you want."
He reached into the tray took the biggest, prettiest, most succulent cupcake of the bunch. He set it on his little table, "Thanks."
This stranger thrills me.
So perhaps the best story to emerge from my creation and distribution of 46 magically colored cupcakes is as follows: On Valentine's Day, my co-worker and I had a meeting out in the district and didn't get back downtown until around 11:00 a.m. We parked in a lot behind our office building and fought our way through the parking lot in the cold air, each balancing a tray or two of cupcakes.
"Let's stop and give him one," I said to my co-worker, cocking my head towards the parking attendant. Neither of us knew him as we never parked in that lot before. This was a pure goodwill kind of thing.
"Ok," and we walked over to the little heated hut where the attendant sat bundled up and expressionless.
"Cupcake?" I asked.
He looked at me with a little suspicion and eyed the tray.
I urged him further, "Go ahead, take one--free!"
Silently, he reviewed the cupcakes with what seemed to be disinterest. He lifted his eyes and spoke for the first time, "I can take any one I want?"
I nodded, "Yes, any one you want."
He reached into the tray took the biggest, prettiest, most succulent cupcake of the bunch. He set it on his little table, "Thanks."
This stranger thrills me.