Just a Few Misadventures

My husband Samuel's birthday was the 20th!!  (HAPPY 24th BIRTHDAY SHOUT OUT TO THE BEST HUSBAND!)

Knowing that a birthday cake was in order, I found a recipe for wacky cake that my mom gave me for my bridal shower and decided to give it a go.  It's SUPPOSED to make a very delicious and moist (almost wet) cake.  My mother was shocked at my misfortune, for this recipe has been well received for generations.  Here is what it is supposed to look like, which actually looks almost just like what it actually  turned out to be.  But it is NOT what I bet this cake tasted like...

To my dismay, the cake was not moist at all, not even a little bit!  It actually tasted bitter (after eating one of his bites Sam even asked, "did you forget the sugar?").  I don't know what happened!  My only hunch is that when the recipe says "vinegar," I should assume "white vinegar."  Not apple cider vinegar.  But who knew!!!!!  Poor sammy.

In other news, I work at the hospital two blocks away from my apartment.  I walk to work (thank the Lord for His many blessings and provisions!) and spend my time either in the nutrition office or delivering patient's food trays to them (it's a work out, for reals.)  The other night I was working as a tray passer.  After delivering all of the trays, I have to go back and pick them up when the patients are done eating.  Towing my huge metal cart encasing the numerous food trays tucked safely inside the cart's closed door, I walked into the elevator to travel 5 floors to the basement to finally drop off to the kitchen the last of my carts for the day.  When the elevator reached the lower level, the doors opened and I exited...that is, I almost did until the cart's front wheels got wedged within the elevator door tracks.  In horror I lunged my body forward to grasp the cart firmly before it would have opportunity to either crash on the floor or onto me.  Success, except, the lone food tray sitting atop the cart resulted in failure.  In a blink of an eye the whole tray flew through the air and landed feet away from a doctor (innocently awaiting an elevator ride).  Plates broken.  Vanilla pudding all over the walls.  Cleaning crews.  Embarrassment.

(cart. empty, unlike mine)

The next little story I want to tell you all involves a very important lesson to be learned about COFFEE!  (The water of the North).  Let me just premise my experience by saying that I was fasting this day, or at least attempting to, for a family request that still needs prayer.  (If you want to lift this need up for a few seconds right now I would appreciate it :)  So anyway, Sam and I decided that caffeine headaches are NOT a good thing to experience all day while classes and jobs had to happen all day.  So we innocently each had some coffee in the morning just to get our caffeine fix so we could wake up and live.  The whole day went well...but fast forward to 5:00.  Sitting in my Media with a Christian Worldview class, I suddenly felt nauseated.  I WILL spare you any more detailing except that 4 hours later, I had by then suffered violent vomiting totaling of 5 separate times.  I guess that if you have coffee on an empty stomach, it's pretty harmful.  Yeah, case in point, my tummy.  But my loving hubby was spared of all sickness and disease and bought me gatorade and tums.  By the next morning, I was healed.  However, my feelings for coffee have been a tad soiled these past few days of post-illness.

May the peace of God be with you!  Seek His face, not His hand!  He wants to get to know you, yes, He wants fellowship with you!  Follow after peace.

Cake recipe!  If any of you try to make this, please tell me how it turns out for you!  (Hopefully better than mine...)

Wacky Cake:
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, 2 cups sugar, 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa, 2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 2 tsp vanilla extract, 1 1/2 tbsp vinegar, 1/2 cup vegetable oil, 2 cups cold water

Preheat the oven to 350F. In a large mixing bowl, mix flour, sugar, cocoa, soda and salt. Make three wells in the flour mixture. In one put vanilla; in another the vinegar, and in the third the oil. Pour the water over the mixture. Stir until smooth. Divide evenly into cake pan.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Cool in pan on wire racks for 15 minutes.