An Ode to Cupcakes

Cupcakes!!

Why had I not discovered this marvel when I last visited USA?

Google describes a cupcake as 'A small cake baked in a paper container shaped like a cup, often with icing on top'. Interestingly enough, this term is also used for 'an attractive young woman' :)

The definition is an understatement. This cake inspires thoughts in me that no man ever could!!

I am especially crazy about the messy butter-cream icing on top.

I first heard cupcakes mentioned in 'Wizards of Waverly Place' - a popular soap on Disney Channel. But, it took the birthday of one of the auditors here to make me realize that this American cupcake is not anything like it's dull Indian brother.

This lady brought over a posse of cupcakes. I whimsically picked up a white one. Little did I anticipate the culinary storm which would sweep me off my feet. The taste was beyond any other confection I had ever tasted. The cake had multicoloured beads in it and had a vanilla icing. I remember having prowled around in the kitchen area looking for leftover cake! Anybody who knows me can vouchsafe the fact that I am not fond of cakes in general.

On my birthday this month, my friend S asked me what I wanted as a gift. I asked her to get me cupcakes. Eventually, I could not procure cupcakes on my birthday. But, we fished out a gourmet cupcake boutique in the downtown area. We walked to the store on a weekend. There were only about 10 or so cupcakes left in the shop. We bought two of vanilla and two of 'fleur de sel'[see picture]. The latter was simply out of the ordinary with a typical salty-sweet flavour and a creamy texture.

Looking forward to many more cupcakes during my stay here!

Office Office

It's now the 5th month that I am spending in this office.
I think it deserves a mention in my blog.

Today is what the project manager calls a 'Hawaian Shirt Friday'. The multitude is supposed to turn out in colourful Hawaian shirts. Whoever does so gets to have a cookie/doughnut before the others. It is jolly fun. And I appreciate the goodwill for purchasing these goodies to bring a smile to everyone's lips - end of each week. This is what building employee morale is all about. Our home country firm should take a leaf out of this book.

I was pretty charged up yesterday after having a feedback session with my module lead where he remarked that I was doing quite well for myself. I worked doubly hard yesterday. The meeting left me so optimistic that I closed a Priority 1 defect, did some troubleshooting on TFS for a team member, completed my Independence training and picked up another Priority 2 bug. I spoke to everyone around me pleasantly and overall had a good day in office.

I have to try to keep my 'pecker' up. There is simply no other way that time would pass more quickly here. I wish to take away something other than dollars from here.

One more striking feature of this office is that it is multi-ethnic.
One of the 3 module leaders is American, one is Indian and the other Chinese. This is the uniqueness of America. No other country in the world can boast of mixing so many cultures in the workplace. And for this reason America still continues to be 'the land of dreams'.