Summer Friday: The Birthday Cake

Every Friday between Memorial Day and Labor Day I'm going to be featuring "guest bloggers" as a part of my "Summer Fridays" series. This week's entry comes from graphic designer and all-around bad ass guy Rob, who I met through this blog. He shares his nerve-wracking tale of celebrity confections.

I debated whether or not I wanted to tell this story. But after watching multiple episodes of Ace of Cakes, I can't help but wonder what kind of cake I would have made for David LaChapelle and Lady Gaga's surprise joint birthday party. You read that right. Perhaps, I should start somewhere in the beginning-a short version without cumbersome details (I'll save those for the memoir).

Earlier this spring, I flew to Los Angeles to do an internship with one of my pop art idols. It hadn't even been 48 hours after I landed that I was asked to order an extravagant designer cake for a top secret celebrity surprise birthday party. I was to acquire the cake in a very short amount of time, had no clue where or how I could find a celebrity cake designer at 9pm, and was given zero dollars to fulfill the order.

My previous 2 days as an intern were incredibly overwhelming and I was failing miserably at nearly every task I was given. I did the best I could, but I felt like I was being eaten up alive in LA. My confidence was so low and I was so frazzled that when I was asked to get the cake, I initially saw it was a chance to redeem myself. A cake - that should be easy enough. I mean, it's just a good ol' fancy cake, right? I quickly discovered that no specialty cake shop would be open at 9pm. And to ask for an extravagant cake to be ready for 12 Noon the next day would be next to impossible.

"They're total bitches," someone said to me when describing cake designers, "they'll probably just give you a plain white cake, if you're even lucky to get a cake. And you'll have to take it. Go in the morning, wait at their front doors until they come to open shop and BEG like crazy."

I was going to go and beg for a plain cake like my life depended on it (which it was). And there was no telling that I'd even get a cake. I probably would have stolen one and ran out the door. Who knows what I would have done. I was in this crazy, desperate state of mind. You bettah watch yo'self around crazy-desperate interns.

Unfortunately, this is where the exciting story ends. After I had a bit of a meltdown in a secluded corner, a generous and kind fashion designer and a makeup artist came to my aid and helped me find a beautiful cake for the party with their connections. But suppose they hadn't come to my rescue?

I imagine that I would have bought some regular cakes, picked up swarovski gems and gold leaf from Michael's, taken them back to my hotel room, scraped off the icing decorations and re-sculpted it into my own avant-garde creation (yes... that's what we'll call it - avant-garde).

I keep thinking about this and it's driving me crazy. So the only thing I can do to stop my cake obsession is to return to LA, recreate the situation and come out on top with my own designer cake. After all, when I'm not a super secret celebrity surprise birthday party organizer, I'm a graphic designer by trade, and I decorate doughnuts and cheesecakes at a coffee shop on weekends. I could totally do it, right?

And sure enough, the cake we got certainly had gold sparkly leaves and Swarovski crystals all around it. We were told not to eat them, though. Shucks! Can somebody just invent edible Swarovski crystals already?

You can view more of Rob's amazing designs and musings on his blog Some Kinda Blog... And if you'd like to write about something just email me and you might be the next Summer Friday blogger!

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The Economics of Ticketmaster

Was running through the latest issue of RollingStone magazine and found this really interesting and slightly-infuriating article titled "Inside Ticketmaster's Empire" by Steve Knopper. It explains how the ticket giant operates and how they manage to gouge you for every concert you attend. The article explained a lot (read the full thing in Issue 1082-83) but the most interesting piece was the flow chart of just who collects the money from all those miscellaneous fees and charges. Click the pic for a larger version...

In high school and into college I worked at a video store that had a Ticketmaster inside. I really liked helping people find good seats to see their favorite shows, but people often got outrageously angry at the ridiculous service charges that are tacked on to the price of admission. They always assumed that I was somehow pocketing part of that. If only I had this chart to hand out... would have saved everyone a lot of grief!

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'So You Think You Can Dance' Season 5 Top 12 Performance Recap

So You Think You Can Dance was back for another week as the top 12 dancers took to the stage to perform two routines each. Choreographer Tyce Diorio filled the third judges spot this week. Check the vlog for our recap and review of the show, plus get the info on each performance below!

Here are the details on all of the night's routines, in the order they appeared:

DANCERS: Melissa & Ade
STYLE: Disco
CHOREOGRAPHER: Dorianna Sanchez
SONG: "Move On Up" by Destination

DANCERS: Kayla & Kupono
STYLE: Contemporary
CHOREOGRAPHER: Mia Michaels
SONG: "Gravity" by Sara Bareilles

DANCERS: Caitlin & Jason
STYLE: Fox Trot
CHOREOGRAPHER: Tony Meredith
SONG: "Minnie The Moocher" by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy

DANCERS: Jeanine & Phillip
STYLE: Russian Folk Dance
CHOREOGRAPHER: Youri Nelzine & Lilia Babenko
SONG: "Kalinka" by Barynya

DANCERS: Randi & Evan
STYLE: Hip Hop
CHOREOGRAPHER: Tabatha & Napoleon
SONG: "Halo" by Beyonce

DANCERS: Janette & Brandon
STYLE: Argentine Tango
CHOREOGRAPHER: Leonardo Barrionuveo & Miriam Larici
SONG: "Libertango" from Forever Tango

DANCERS: Melissa & Ade
STYLE: Waltz
CHOREOGRAPHER: Ron Montez
SONG: "(You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman" by Mary J. Blige

DANCERS: Kayla & Kupono
STYLE: Broadway
CHOREOGRAPHER: Joey Dowling
SONG: "The Dance At The Gym" from West Side Story

DANCERS: Caitlin & Jason
STYLE: Lyrical Jazz
CHOREOGRAPHER: Mandy Moore
SONG: "Show Me Heaven" by Maria McKee

DANCERS: Jeanine & Phillip
STYLE: Jive
CHOREOGRAPHER: Tony Meredith
SONG: "Stuff Like That There" by Bette Midler

DANCERS: Randi & Evan
STYLE: Samba
CHOREOGRAPHER: Pascha & Anya
SONG: "Ritmo De Bom Bom" by Jubaba

DANCERS: Janette & Brandon
STYLE: Jazz
CHOREOGRAPHER: Wade Robson
SONG: "Ruby Blue" Roisin Murphy

What did you think of tonight's performances? Who do you think did the best? Who's going home tomorrow night? Leave your predictions below!

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This Has Entertained Me All Day

I can't even remember why we did it in the first place, but my coworker, Jacki, and I wrote "yuck" on a Post-It Note with an arrow and stuck it on our TV. Consider it a contemporary take on the "I'm With Stupid" t-shirts.

It's been providing us with endless laughs all day. Every time a new person comes on the screen it's a new, unique reason to chuckle. Jacki took some pix from The View this morning...

If you're ever feeling down just slap a Post-It with a rude saying on your TV and enjoy!

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"My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands" by Chelsea Handler

After many recommendations from friends and readers I decided to pick up Chelsea Handler's book "My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands" for my trip to the beach last week. Everyone said it is a fun, easy read and they were absolutely right. I finished the whole thing in just a few days and found my self chuckling and cringing along the way.

The basic plot line is this: Chelsea Handler was/is an drunk slut. I mean... let's not sugarcoat it. Each personal essay relives a funny, awkward or unbelievable sexual experience Handler had at some point in her life. From her sister daring her to photograph her parents having sex when she was 7 to waking up in a hotel room with a little person, Handler shares even the most embarrassingly intimate details of her hook ups all while being hilarious and somehow endearing at the same time. Chapter titles like "Dumb and Dumber," "Shrinky Dink" and "Skid Mark" should give you some indication of what you'll be reading.

I give Chelsea massive props for sharing these stories with the world and embarrassing her friends and family along the way. The book was quick, funny and made me feel just a little bit better about myself and my regrettable actions of the past.

Have you read "My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands?" What did you think? Should I pick up her next book "Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea?" Let me know!

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Streaming Coverage of the Michael Jackson Memorial

If you care and can't get to a TV you can watch the full coverage of the Michael Jackson memorial thanks to MSNBC.com

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

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Bad Paintings of Barack Obama

Sometimes people's talent cannot be held back and they must share their creativity with the world. Other times people who can paint decide to paint weird portraits of our current President. Behold the cool, interesting and often bizarre works of BadPaintingsofBarackObama.com.

Caricature portrait


I wonder if his fundamentals make up for lack of dunk?


Is Mr. Obama passing out tighty whities?


Make sure to pick up his album when it drops

So patriotic.

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