The Beatles got it wrong

Sorry Paul, John, George, & Ringo- Love isn't all you need. Apparently, you need laughter, too.

It's been the autumn from hell around here. Actually it hasn't really been that bad, but you know what they say. When it rains, it pours.

Tomorrow is the Make It, Bake It, Grow It Auction for the SOWC. I signed up to bake stuff. No problem- I bake all the time, and everything usually turns out well. I decided to make an italian chocolate cake and my mom's chocolate dipped cookies. I went to the commissary today and picked up some things I needed to make them. My back was killing me, and LB was whining just about the whole time. And, I ran into the RADM's wife, looking all lousy and without makeup. Just great. Not that she cares what I look like, but it's just... you know.

Anyway, I came home and Puppy had jumped on the kitchen table and ate half a loaf of blueberry bread that a friend of mine had brought over. I'm sure he would have eaten the entire thing, if I had been gone longer. So my back-up bake stuff was destroyed. I then got to work on the chocolate cake. I've made this several times, and always had good reviews, so I thought it was a "safety". The top came out all cracked (first time ever that's happened), and when I inverted it, some of it stuck to the bottom of the pan. Plus, it seemed a little moist (okay, it seemed a little undercooked, really).

At that moment, LB overturned Puppy's bowls, spilling water and dog food all over the floor. And that's the moment that I completely gave up. LB's shorts were drenched, but I didn't care. He seemed to be happy, and I was losing it, so the only thing I could do was laugh out loud. I couldn't remember the last time I laughed at nothing funny in particular!

I haven't even started on the cookies. They're not really hard at all (only 5 ingredients- Mom, you rock!), but just the thought of screwing up another baking dish is driving me nuts. Just to increase my odds of success at something cooking-related, I started making a raisin-cinnamon-walnut bread in my bread machine. Seriously, I'm not involved at all, the machine does all the work. So hopefully it won't suck, and I'll have something presentable to bring tomorrow!