New Online Survey Investigates U.S. Food Blog Usage

You can’t always get what you want. You can’t always get what you want…

Oh sure, it's all fun and games now...

I am a surf goddess. At least, that is what I want you to think when you see this picture. I think I pull off the look quite well. But as I have learned many times in Australia, luck can be a fickle mistress, sometimes bestowing you with treasures beyond your wildest dreams, and at other times, getting your hopes up only to let you down at the last minute. In my two experiences surfing, my luck has mainly fallen in the latter category.

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The first time, it wasn’t so bad. I could catch a wave and body surf quite well, and it was thrilling to feel my body lifted up and soaring through the water. My instructor ensured me plenty of people have trouble standing up the first time, as I watched my two friends stand up and catch a wave with ease. No worries, I told myself. I’m sure the instructor forces everyone to come out of the water to be taught a second time how to stand up on their board. I’m totally cool.

The second time, I was worse. Now I couldn’t even catch a wave to save my life, let alone stand, but it didn’t stop me from trying time and time again. When my instructor pointed out that my older friend who had never surfed before had no problems standing up like I did, well, it’s a good thing that wave drowned out my response to her. Salt water makes me bitchy.

Covered in sand, hair a mess, wet suit cutting off my circulation...yup. A Surf goddess indeed.

When I did catch a wave, I couldn’t balance myself and would consistently nose dive down the board, scraping my chin, flipping into the water and getting hit upside the head with my board as I came up for air. This happened over and over again. The ocean was Ike Turner, and I was poor, beautiful Tina, getting slapped around.

For those who don’t know, I have been writing a dissertation that researches the impact food blogs are having on food journalism for the past six months. I can honestly say I have never worked more hard in my entire life on a single project, and that is saying a lot---I’m from the MTV generation. I can barely pay attention to anything for more than ten minutes, and I want instant gratification with minimal effort. Trying to get this paper done on time was like waking up to nails on a chalkboard every morning. It was like trying to surf. But I kept trying.

Even when my teacher assured me no one finishes on time, I knew I could. While all my friends frittered away their days drinking wine or going to the beach, I was solid as a rock, pushing myself towards that finish line. And now, for reasons beyond my control, the finish line has been pushed back further. Someone else dropped the ball, and as a result, I will have to work on my paper in Chicago and graduate later. Oh, it will get done and not terribly far off from the original date. But sometimes, even when you do everything you were supposed to do to prevent it, the world can still hit you upside the head with the surf board.

And so you deal. You swallow another mouthful of salt water. You wipe the blood off your chin and you paddle out again, still wary of the ocean bitch slapping you, but ready because it has already occurred once before. And you’ll be damned if you let it happen again.

But if you try sometimes, you find…you get what you need.

The first steps toward coping with a major disappointment: salted caramel frosting.

I like to think there is a recipe for everything that ails you. This is the recipe that is slowly bringing me back to myself: dark chocolate cupcakes with salted caramel icing from Cupcake Bakeshop, the great cupcake blog ever. The frosting is cream cheese-based, and I was shocked at how well it supported the salted caramel without overpowering it. This was probably the best cupcake I have tasted. It may prevent me from standing up on the surf board, but it sure eases the pain of my paper setback.

The insides of my new best friend.

~LTG