Raspberry chocolate cake, champagne and a sweet dose of community

“Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.”
-- Henry David Thoreau
(via hello, romantic)

More than I love champagne and chocolate cake swirled with sticky raspberries (shared recently at a late-summer triple date night), I love our friends, our L.A. "family," the backbone of my growth and support and encouragement for the past few years (and, I predict with great hopes and humble assurance, for many years into the future).

I see those relationships as true "success," a much truer and deeper success than any promotion or accolade or great day. I cherish the amazing blessing that those people stick with us and run after us even -- especially -- when life's difficulties are scattered throughout like in a minefield. And I rejoice that they don't/won't let us slip through the cracks even when we are "too busy" to look for them.

So a hearty "cheers" to you, dear friends.

(And doesn't that cake look delicious? It tasted even better than it looks.)

Photo credits: Kelsey Ramos, all taken on an iPhone 4G.

Why I've been busy

Even when I have big un-food-related news to share, you can bet your bottom dollar that I can tell the story with food-filled photos.

Once upon a time, Boy met Girl.




Boy went to Girl's church his first week in L.A. Girl didn't notice Boy, only heard other girls talking about "that new Boy."

Boy was invited to lunch by another boy in the same community group as Girl. Boy and Girl sat across from each other at lunch. They talked about barefoot running.



Boy quickly became a member of community group and a friend. Boy and Girl went on hikes together with others, cooked delicious food with others, talked about life and love and what's good and hard in this world, with others.

On a trip to the Grand Canyon with his sister, Boy realized it might be fun to do those things with just Girl. He went to a library to find Internet, sent an email, and asked Girl to coffee.

The rest, as they say, is history.



Or, as Beyonce might put it: Andy liked it so he went and put a ring on it.


Photos (from top): Monkey and Jasmine tea from Tanners Coffee Co. (Culver City); chilaquiles at Snug Harbor (Los Angeles); homemade spiced cake for our engagement -- with our name mashup, "KAndy." Credits: Kelsey Ramos, all on an iPhone 4G.