Real Life

  Sometimes, I tell people about my job.

 It's kind of hard to explain.

And when I try, sometimes people get confused. Because it sounds weird: I have a bakery, but you can't just stop by and buy a cupcake. It's open by appointment only. It's more of a cake studio than a traditional bakery, really. And I make cakes... mostly weird ones that light up or have swear words on them.

I'm a cake.

And there are these princesses... and other characters... that host parties and things at the bakery.

 So sometimes, there are five or six freshly washed princess wigs drying on the bakery porch.

Maybe my life sounds weird because it is weird.

I can't really offer a good explanation for this picture. Sorry.

I was telling someone about this stuff when they said, "You live in a fantasy world, don't you?" I thought this was the strangest notion. What in the ever-loving heck? Weren't you listening? I make light up cakes and set princess wigs and help kids build proton packs out of cake boxes and boards.

That's not... huh. OK, I can see how that would sound like I live in a fantasy world.

But I don't. Not really. And it makes sense if you think about it.

Yes, I can make you a tea party with the Mad Hatter or set you up with the opportunity to decorate cupcakes with your favorite princess. But that puts you in the fantasy world, not me. Actually, I'm the one who deals with that pesky thing called reality so that you don't have to.

I'm like... a reality liaison. I create the opportunity for people to abandon the real world for a little while. And, while the whimsy is spinning, I'm the one watching the clock, setting the wigs, preparing the food... it's a pretty neat gig.

But that's just my job. I have a pretty normal home life. There's a brown dog:

And a husband (11 years and counting!)

And then there are the kids.

I sometimes worry about their real life. I mean, they're growing up in an unusual environment.

But then again, they're growing up pretty great. I mean, they're learning to make and repair all kinds of things- from cakes to costumes. They're learning to clean all kinds of things, too! They help prep parties which gives them the chance to do things for others- the way the birthday boy or girl wants it done, not the way they would want it done.

It's a good thing.

In a way, helping set up parties and "supervising" the creation of cakes for others has empowered my kids to be who they are. They help other kids celebrate their love of Spiderman or Paw Patrol and then feel more at ease about celebrating what they like. This is how we found ourselves at Magic City Con this weekend with two little monsters dressed as Ash and Misty from Pokemon.

What, you may be wondering, does it look like when kids go to a con?

For the boy, it looks like Ash Ketchum trying to shoot stormtroopers.

For the girl, it looks like Misty chatting up Sailor Moon in the hallway.

Magic City Con was a pretty good distraction. See... Friday was cancer day at UAB. The doctor didn't feel anything weird in my neck exam (I HATE the neck exam) and my TSH and free T4 were fine. My thyroglobulin got sent to the lab on Friday. That means I'm in the 10-14 day waiting period for the results to come back. That's the test that lets us know if the cancer is back. Ten to fourteen days of waiting. It sucks. There's no other word for it.

Now the whimsy of MCC is over. Time to find more distractions while I wait...