Apology Cake

Dear readers, I apologize for not writing for so long. There has been a lot of soul sucking going on lately. Fortunately things seem to be looking up, and I will hopefully be back to posting on a regular basis once my brain kicks back in. In the meantime, here are some pretty pictures of birthday cake made for the handsome fella:

It is vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream frosting. The strawberries were very fresh and local and soaked in Cointreau and vanilla, which is why they are leaking all over the icing. Oh and there is a layer of frosting and homemade strawberry preserves in the middle. It was quite good, if I do say so myself. I am still adjusting to non-vegan cakes, and haven’t quite got the hang of it, but at least this one didn’t fall. It didn’t really rise, either, but it’s a step in the right direction.

It’s so hard to be inspired right now, even though the weather is steadily improving and the temperature is steadily rising. It occurred to me, while I was morosely washing dishes, that this is fairly normal. I get so incredibly burned out at the end of another year (college schedule, of course), and I kind of forget what my own life is about. Usually at this time of year I escape to Germany to be reinspired by the incredible clickclackgorrila. Only this year I’m not going. I’m stuck here. I didn’t realize how much I was relying on that trip to remind me what life is actually about, but I can distinctly recall, possibly on this very day last year, walking along in Mainz and discussing how easy it is to fall into the trap of working a job and thinking that’s all there is. I need to find a way out: I need to find something here to inspire myself. I’m not even cooking anymore. But I am so used to depending on external events to inspire my sense of adventure- I’m not sure how to find it myself.

Any suggestions?