cupcakes in For The Win!

so yesterday was a day of failure. i was actually failing at life. things just did not go my way. 

1. my flash drive with all my digital files of my photography decided to die. 

2. cvs 'never received' my images for print= no prints for photography class.

3. late to both classes... reasons 1 and 2 are to blame. 

so why is this on my food blog? well my photography class had an assignment of 'left over still life' i didn't eat anything worth taking pictures of, or in my artistic and food porn obsessed self decided i didn't not find anything i was eating the weekend visually good for a still life set up. so on Monday night i decided to set something up. i decided to bake some mini red velvet cupcakes. i figured if i was going to take some images of a 'left over' it should be real. so i baked. i took some nice pictures of my kitchen aid stand mixer with egg shells, butter wrappers, William Sonoma red melamine mixing bowl and a recipe card. figured that would be good for the still life. then i iced the mini cupcakes with different color frosting since it would be cheerful and they're small so super cute. as a result of baking the cupcakes for the photography project i had tons of cupcakes. so here's how they save my life... 

1. show up to drawing-late. have cupcakes, professor says they are cute and somehow is not bothered that I'm late. we even have a wonderful conversation about the new alkaline diet that she is on to help with her arthritis. we discuss my passion of food and my exploration of different cooking styles and recipes for special diets and needs of my clients. * i used to cook for a family. 

2. show up to photography-late. out of breath from power walking through downtown Pittsburgh to pick up some prints for class. (thankfully i had two different locations print my photos so i did show up to class with 3 prints) i tell my professor that i am failing at life due to the A) dead flash drive where i cannot turn in digital files of the assignment B) for being late and C) for not having the additional prints he wanted in our visual presentation due that day. but it goes like this

Professor:  "Monique, what is that you're holding?" (he's curious as i'm holding a long pyrex covered container) 

Me: "mini red velvet cupcakes, results of my photo shoot." 

P: "now class, this is how you make me feel better when I'm grading you. Cupcakes makes everything better especially while i think about the grades i'll be giving you."

Me: "yes they do make life better, look" (opens lid)

P: "wow they are colored so brightly, so happy." 

and so that is how mini red velvet cupcakes saved my life yesterday at school. instead of being the late student without any work, i was the late student with cupcakes to share for the whole class. its amazing how baked goods can cheer people up and make things just a bit sweeter. i actually bring baked goods to all types of functions. i find it that it helps people let go of themselves and be nicer. our world is filled with so many negative things and i think by baking something small and fresh and from scratch that people will remember that life isn't so hard and mean. food can have that type of magic on our lives. 

eat extraordinary everyday.