All Other Wedding Cakes Pale in Comparison to the Grande Peacock Cake!

You might remember me talking about my friend Nathan a few years ago. He’s the insanely talented guy who whips up amazing snow creatures every time there’s a substantial snowfall in his area. In fact, since I last mentioned him, he’s made a snow griffin, a snow queen based on The Chronicles of Narnia, a howling wolf, a lion, and even the head of Queen Elizabeth II!

For the longest time, Nathan has been making cakes. He’s made them ever since I’ve known him in college. I would find him preparing plans for the next cake for a family member’s birthday or a friend’s wedding, or sometimes I would ask if he wanted to hang out, and he would say, “Sorry, IggyNapster! I’ve got to take someone’s cake to their wedding!” or “I need to make the top tier of this one cake I’m working on!” And that’s okay, especially because he wound up making my wedding cake almost five years ago (and it was beautiful AND delicious!). 🙂

I knew Nathan was talented – anyone with eyes could see that – but every time I see a work of his, his talent just keeps getting more and more honed. His recent endeavor is this magnificent peacock cake that he made for someone’s wedding. When I saw this photo, I had a really hard time believing that the bird was actually made of frosting. I mean, really, do you see how real that looks?! It really looks as if some life is reflected back in those marble-like eyes, like it’s staring at you magnanimously, imparting some long-hidden wisdom onto you, the privileged viewer, before it leaps into the air, spreads its wings, and vanishes.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t think it would be an easy task for me to take a knife to this cake. It’s such a beautiful work of art… but then again, I wouldn’t want it to go to waste, so I would certainly feel compelled to eat it. That and seriously, his cake is THE BEST cake I have ever eaten in my entire life. And I like me some cake.

Anyway, as far as I know from Nathan, his cake-making days are nearing their end. While he enjoys making these gorgeous creations that bring smiles to everyone’s faces and awaken a sense of awe in ourselves, he laments that it is a very stressful endeavor. Knowing how Nathan operates, I could see how it would take a toll on him. He cares that deeply for not only his art but also for the person he has intended it for. It’s nothing but the absolute best for the ones he cares for, and I truly admire him for that.

Whatever Nathan goes on to do, I know it’s going to turn some heads. You just can’t ignore talent like that. If you want to see more about Nathan and his cakes, check out this awesome news clip! And to my “little brother” Nathan, thank you for sharing your talent with the world, and never ever stop!

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Link and Mario’s Greatest Fears

Admit it – you were terrified of these as a kid!

I saw this artwork yesterday and thought it was hilarious, awesome, and very, very well done. I hope you like it, too!

Credit goes solely to HeartStrings XIII for this great work of art. Check it out here!

Also, I’m sorry for being totally obsessed with Zelda at the moment. I promise to talk about other things very, very soon!

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4 Reasons Why Phil Collins Rocks

Today’s Phil Collins’s birthday – he’s 62 years old as of today. In honor of his birthday, I’ve compiled a list of reasons why this singing drummer rocks out loud!

Phil Can Drum and Sing at the Same Time – Seriously. Can you do that? I’ve tried, and I can’t, and I had some training on percussion, too. It’s tough to do! When Phil does it, he just looks like it’s sooooo easy to do! See what I mean here in one of his most famous songs, “In The Air Tonight.”

Phil Knows Some Pretty Sweet Tambourine Tricks –  He makes playing the tambourine look like an absolute art. Back in the day, Phil would always do his tambourine dance routine with the equally awesome band Genesis, whom he drummed (and later sang) for. The scary thing? He can STILL do this routine. Sure, maybe it’s not as deft and crazy, but he can still do it! I know; I witnessed it live in Chicago in October of 2007. 🙂 Here’s his famous dance!

He also likes to keep time with his tambourine by smacking it on poor Mike Rutherford’s head.

Phil Has a Charitable Spirit – He’s known for giving to charity and just in general helping those in need. I remember reading a story once of a girl who wanted to go into dance but her family was super poor, and I think they asked him about it. Sure enough, he gave the girl and her family a heft sum of money to help her realize her dreams. He also founded the Little Dreams Foundation in 2000 to help kids realize their dreams in sports and the arts by providing future prodigies ages 4-16 with financial, material, and mentoring support with the help of experts in various fields. Pretty awesome, huh?

Phil Treats His Fans Pretty Darn Well – This is from personal experience. I have received feedback from him the 2 times I sent things to him. Once was when I was 6 years old, and I wrote a letter to him when I was in a local library’s summer program. We were supposed to write someone we admired, so I chose him! I don’t remember what I wrote… probably just, “I love you. Sussudio is great. I like peanut butter. Bye.” A few months afterwards I found waiting for me in the library an autographed photo of Phil. I was psyched!

Several years later in college, I had the guts to send him some of my artwork I created based on his songs. I didn’t really expect anything back or whatever; I just wanted him to know I exist and that I love his music. A few months later, lo and behold, I got a call from my mom saying that I got mail from London, and when I opened it up, it was a different photo of him at the drums and grinning, and he wrote, “Dear (insert my real name here), Thanks for the drawings! I loved them. Phil.”

I was on Cloud 9! My drumming hero had written me back! And he LOVED my work! 😀

So yeah, that’s why Phil rules. So go celebrate his birthday today! Eat some cake, drum on something, or just listen to his tunes. Or just listen to this amazing drum duet he did with Chester Thompson! Why? Because he’s awesome. That’s why! Happy birthday, Phil! 🙂

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