Boss cake

Happy Easter, everyone! I've had a very moving Triduum: late-night adoration on Holy Thursday, and a TLM for Good Friday (only it wasn't a TLM but a TLL-- traditional Latin liturgy; since there's no Mass on Good Friday), and the beautiful Easter Vigil at my own parish where the single Paschal candle burned bright in the huge dark church, and Easter Sunday at St. Therese in Alhambra where I heard the most beautiful Mass I've ever heard, the schola chanting unbelievable a capella harmonies. I caught a Tenebrae service as well, Lamentations chanted in Latin by the Norbertines, God bless them. But I'm not going to try to blog about all that. This post is about our boss's birthday party at the lab today.




This was his birthday cake. Someone took a photo of him and got it printed in edible ink on marzipan, to the delight of all. I've always thought it was cool that my boss looks like a mad scientist with his wild grizzled hair. Scary picture notwithstanding, he's been a good boss for lo, these many years. I've enjoyed working in his lab.

There were lots of people at the party and we dug right into the cake, but then an interesting problem developed. Who would dare cut into the boss's face? Who'd chomp on that mustache? Who'd eat a piece of cake with that right eye glaring up from the surface of it?

Nobody, it turns out. This is what remained at the end of the party:



Later on some bold, hungry soul lobotomized the cake, and no doubt became smarter as he ate the boss's brain. But the face remained, and when I entered the break room later in the day, there it was, catching me suddenly in its scary glare. I don't mind telling you I was disconcerted. I promised the cake I'd be getting back to work very soon.