The Cupcake Diva Lives!

If you haven’t noticed, I’m kinda big on cupcakes. Like, if I was Picasso, my canvases would be all cupcake-y and messed up and DELICIOUS. I work in the medium of cupcakes. I’m known to friends as the Cupcake Diva…ok, this is getting a little self-absorbed. Moving on…

The following is a story of cupcake anticipation, heartbreak, and redemption. Seriously, people, there could be an Oscar-winning movie from this tale. …or, at least, a very entertaining sub-plot on a sitcom…or, maybe an hour-long dramedy, like The O.C.

My fiance, Jim, comes from a very musically talented family. His mother used to sing in a country group that consisted of her younger siblings and father, and eventually she made her act a solo one. She now tours the local Country Jamborees in northern Ontario, singing for a few shows during the summer months. These jamborees are usually weekend events, and draw a very loyal fanbase. The people that go to these shows religiously all know each other, and become like a second family in some cases. It’s a very down-to-earth, relaxing, and fun way to spend a weekend.

One of the big weekends is the CCMR Jamboree, and Jim’s mom was one of the acts at the show. She and her husband bring the RV up to each show, and had asked Jim and me to join them if we could for the weekend. It was also the weekend that a friend of theirs was having a wedding anniversary – they’d been married at the CCMR Jamboree a few years ago, so there was a little party to be planned for that day. We were asked to maybe make some cupcakes, or at least bring a dessert to contribute to the potluck meal.

This is the point in my head where I think “Future-in-laws + my cupcake skills = more love for MEEE!!” (I was already in well with my future-in-laws, but I always like to do my best with/for those I love.) Extra brownie (cupcake?) points never hurt.

I set to work making lovely, country music-themed cupcakes. See, pictures!

Gorgeous, no?

I figured that the cupcakes would be eaten by the next day that we arrived, so I wasn’t too concerned about them holding up. I have a cupcake carrier that safely stores 24 of the treats, and I thought if I left them in the RV, they wouldn’t get too soft and gooey. (The fridge in the RV was way too small to hold the container, and I didn’t feel like putting 24 cupcakes into a million smaller Tupperware containers.)

I also had brought a cute little stand for the cupcakes – this was gonna be awesome! “Wow, that Jenn is so good with cupcakes – she truly is the Cupcake Diva!” they would all cry out.

Well, it turns out we didn’t need the cupcakes until the third day there. I should have asked if there was a large fridge somewhere, but didn’t think to – a lot goes on at these Jamborees and I get distracted easily. Ask anyone that knows me. It’s like jingling keys in front of an infant at times…Hey! My Kleenex box is blue with butterflies on it! Cool!

I went to check on my sugary creations the day of the Anniversary Party – they were starting to melt a wee bit, but were still ok, as long as they were consumed in the next while. I figured, just to be safe, I really should store them in a fridge if possible. I asked Jim’s mom if there was a fridge available, and she went and checked – there was. I didn’t want other people finding my cupcakes and eating them, so I asked if we could put a label of some kind on the container. Jim’s mom decided that it’d be best to put two grocery bags over the container, and write her name on the bags. Perfect!

Gingerly, she slid one side into the grocery bag, no problems. Getting the second bag on was a little tricky, and I was working around it…

…at this point, the lady whose anniversary party was starting soon came in the RV to help set up things. She noticed my struggle, and offered to help. “Sure!”

This is where everything goes in slow-motion.

Instead of guiding the container into the second grocery bag, she turned the entire thing on its side, and shook, shook, SHOOK the container into the second bag. I gasped, but stifled any more cries, as I didn’t want to have a childish outburst. Thank goodness for Jim’s mom – she saw the whole thing and knew right away what had happened. “Here, I’ll go take these to the fridge” she said, gently taking the container away from the Cupcake Killer.

“Umm, I can take them!” I meekly offered.

“No no, dear, you stay here, I’ll be right back, ok?”

“Ok.”

I walked like a robot towards Jim, who took one look at my face. “Oh no, honey, are you ok?”

I couldn’t take it – I was hot, tired, thirsty, and my cupcakes were ruined – I couldn’t have saved them! I burst into tears, and attempted to explain my sudden change of emotion in between sobbing gasps. I finally got the story out, and Jim did his best to comfort me.

Well, I was having none of it. When the cupcakes returned, they looked AWFUL. Just atrocious. I was sent into another fit, claiming that these cupcakes could NOT be served to the public, despite everyone telling me it didn’t matter – they would still taste amazing!

I didn’t care what they tasted like! Do you people not realize how long it takes me to make my cupcakes?! These are like my children!!

I spent the next few hours pouting, but being socially polite. I eventually had to take an angry nap to feel a bit better. My fiance was very supportive through all this, and his mother was equally nice about it. While I appreciated the kindness, I vowed never to make cupcakes again – the Cupcake Diva had retired.

Over the next few months, people would ask me, “When are you making more cupcakes?” “Are you making Christmas cupcakes?” “Why are you crying over a Google search of ‘cupcakes?’” I would recount my tale of woe, of cupcakes lovingly hand-crafted, then destroyed in one swift motion. Finally, one of my friends had had enough of my frosting-covered self-pity.

“Listen, do you think NASA quit when Apollo 13 happened? No! They kept on making spaceships! …you should totally make spaceship cupcakes.”

While that didn’t set a fire under my butt to rush out and make spaceship cupcakes, it certainly stuck in my brain – I had grieved my cupcake-y loss long enough. When the time was right, I would know – it’s time to bring the Cupcake Diva back.

Fast-forward a few months, and it’s my fiance's birthday. There was a change in the air – the time was right. The time was right…for cupcakes.

I made him a batch of Star Wars cupcakes. I was pleased at how they turned out, after my absence from cupcake-making.

I was hoping that I’d be able to share them with our friends, but the weekend we spent celebrating his birthday got very busy, so they remained untouched. I didn’t mind – he had seen them, and loved them, and I was happy. After I posted the pictures online, one of my friends sent me a message – “You really should have your own bakery. Seriously.” Another friend told me her daughters loved my Facebook cover picture - a close-up of some colourful cupcakes I'd made awhile back.

As a perfect ending to the tale, we had returned to Jim's place at the end of the weekend. I was grabbing things out of my car to take into the house, and I had my cupcake container in one hand. I can’t remember how it happened, but all of a sudden, I lost my grip, and the container ended up sideways. I quickly righted the container, and looked at my cupcakes – still pretty okay looking, but a few had seen better days.

“Oh no,” I moaned, “I CCMR’d your birthday cupcakes!”

And then, I laughed. I laughed at my silly joke, and laughed that I didn’t care they didn’t look so great.

I know I should end this post all enlightened, knowing there's more to life than cupcakes, that I should be able to be chill when adversity strikes! To be honest, I can't say conclusively that I won't have another tragedy, cupcake-wise and not freak out. At the very least, I've learned to only produce cupcakes a) when I can devote/find the time, and b) when I KNOW they'll be appreciated. I spent so much time last year making cupcakes for every reason, once I reached Christmas, I was burned out. Like they say, it's not always quantity, but quality - that's what I'm focusing on right now! My next task - conquer cake pops!

(And, woohoo, I already have a request in September for a friend's birthday cupcake design! That gives me enough time to think, plan, then create!)