5 things i love right now

1. this adorable dog, floppy bear

when i thought that dogs didn't get any more adorable than boo, i was so wrong. meet floppy bear, the cute-as-a-button samoyed with a terrible name that has improved my instagram feed by at least 150% this week. doesn't hurt that shaun white's apparently a fan, too.

2. mat devine doing dramatic readings of stuff

i've written about the multi-talented mr. devine's blog posts before, but i recently discovered that he also does deadpan youtube readings of various things, from restaurant menus to hip-hop songs. my personal favorite is one of the latter: "buy you a drink" by t-pain. pure gold; there are few things better than a pasty white musician saying "damn, shawty."



3. this twitter account, @raplikelilwayne

why didn't i think of this? you see, weezy follows a pretty simple formula for his lyrics. someone has capitalized on this, and it's the gift that keeps on giving:

"Stole a fat guy's wallet, call that Robin Thicke"
"Answer no on a test, call it Quiznos"
"Pushed Tyra Banks down a hill, call that a role model"
"Took my old girlfriend out to dinner, call that Fed-Ex"

4. kitschy movie stuff from etsy

adding all of these to my christmas list right now.

dazed and confused

don't tell mom the babysitter's dead

empire records

5. amber riley's freestyle routine on the dancing with the stars finale

i don't watch DWTS, but my mom's obsessed, and made me watch this when i came home for thanksgiving. all i have to say is "YOU GO, GIRL." probably one of the best dance routines i've ever seen performed on TV. though i didn't follow this season, this performance alone convinced me that she deserved to win.

a recipe for the best cake in the whole friggin' world.

sorry to say, but i've been holding out on you guys. i actually have this recipe for the most delicious, out-of-control amazing cake you've ever tasted in your life. and i've had it for a couple years now. it's top-secret stuff, but i figured that i would share it since we're heading into the season of giving and goodwill and all that jazz.

okay, i'm totally kidding about it being top secret (i snagged this baby off of pinterest). i was NOT kidding, however, about it being the best cake on the planet. it takes some time to make, as all good things do, but OMG -- when you taste it, you'll understand and everything will make sense. oh, i should mention that it's a banana cake, in case you're allergic or hate bananas. whip it up next week for thanksgiving, or at any time for anything, and you'll be everyone's new favorite person. swear. 

CAKE: 

3/4 cup butter
2 1/8 cups white sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk

2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas

FROSTING:

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese,
softened
3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan. In a small bowl, mix mashed bananas with lemon juice, set aside. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream 3/4 cup butter and 2 1/8 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in 2 teaspoons vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Stir in banana mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and place directly into freezer for 45 minutes. This will make the cake very moist. (DON'T SKIP THIS STEP!)
4. For the frosting: In a large bowl, cream 1/2 cup butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in 1 teaspoon vanilla. Add confectioners sugar and beat on low speed until combined, then on high until frosting is smooth. Spread on cooled cake.

enjoy!

sunday funnies

i've been on a youtube comedy binge this week for some reason, so i decided to rediscover some of my favorite clips. i pretty much just wanted to post all of qaadir howard's videos because i have tears streaming down my face during every one, but the powers that be at youtube won't let me embed them. here are the rest of my favorites!


chris d'elia

chris d'elia's vine videos are great, but his stand-up is also hilarious. the fact that this bit has to do with drake makes it even better. actually, the fact that he laughs like a hyena at his own jokes as he improvs is probably the best part.


sinbad 

my old roommate texted me the other day to tell me that "first kid" was on and she thought of me. this is because of my unwavering and random love for sinbad. but seriously, the dude is SO FUNNY and underrated. my dad and i used to watch his "afros and bellbottoms" HBO special on sundays when i was in high school and laugh 'til our stomachs hurt, and i ended up buying him tickets a few christmases ago to go see him live. he's just as funny like 20 years later.

jared logan


you may have seen this guy on "best week ever" or "last comic standing." he has a great style, and just seems like a cool dude. i keep coming back to this clip in particular, even though he hates on oprah in it.