For the Love of Justice

Welps, it's Monday...again...The only saving grace for me today is that I have a fantasmic event to blog about!  I had the pleasure (honor, really) of attending a super fun fundraising event (with a bunch of cool people in attendance) in Los Angeles this past Saturday.  This event, "For the Love of Justice" was hosted at the APALC office (Asian Pacific American Legal Center) and it was their third year running this specific event.  The key to this event was to open people's eyes about social injustice and fighting injustice through love.  There was one quote that stuck to me and pretty much sums up the event:  Social justice is showing love publicly (so sorry I'm not giving credit to the author...I didn't take notes Saturday and can't remember whether I read it on the walls, or heard it through someone's recital!)  But hmm, what a concept, right??  And what a fitting time to have such an event, what with a Hallmark holiday right around the corner!  So, although I have been exposed to these kinds of issues and subjects, being a social science major and taking a lot of fun classes that deal with society and people, this was still a reminder to me of the injustices of the world and that I, too, can play a part in making justice "just."  So, indirectly for the cause, I donated my time and baking skills and had set up a dessert table for those in attendance.

This time around, I made chocolate cupcakes, vanilla popcorn balls, fortune cookies, vanilla sugar cookies, rice krispy treats, brownies, strawberry cake pops and German chocolate cake pops, meringue cookies, and VEGAN items!  Ok, so there were only two vegan items, but hey, better than none right?? I stuck in a vanilla vegan cupcake and vegan oatmeal cranberry cookies.  I must say though, that those vegan oatmeal cookies were really yummy.  I almost wished I left more at home so that I have some to munch on!  I am really happy to say that by the end of the night, a lot of the desserts were gone and there really wasn't that much left over!  I also cannot express the amazement and gratitude I was in that night, as everyone was overflowing with complements and praise!  The delightful MCs were touting my desserts all night and it really filled my heart with gratitude and pride as people came up for desserts over and over throughout the entire night!  Nothing can express what I felt as people drew me aside and asked in wonderment if I had created this table.   Of course, my other other half Christina was a great help that day.  I completely forgot about the time it takes to set up and break down tables!  I surely would have been much more exhausted had I not had her to help me carry things to and from the car...which was upstairs...SO, we definitely had a mini workout that night!  

Riku, caught, red-handed!

I had also made a cupcake bouquet for the silent auction that was also going on.  It was a brilliant idea, and the bouquet was so pretty the morning I put it together.  But thanks to a very moist chocolate cake and the crappy, bumpy freeway (the 10 freeway mostly), gravity did its part and undid my beautiful bouquet...well, a portion of it anyways.  I had extra cupcakes to tack back on, because I'm one of those "just in case" kind of gal..but alas, the bouquet did not want to cooperate with me!   So, I made do with what I had and in the end, the cupcake bouquet was raffled off.  Thank goodness the winner didn't try to give that prize back!  

Overall, I had the most amazing time with the most amazing people!  They were all super fun and very welcoming! 

Mr. Stewart Kwoh (President and executive director) and Riku (one of the very engaging MCs for the evening)

Aakash and Chrissy, getting silly after one too many cake pops! 

Christina, my other other half, and me

There was even dancing after the program.  It was seriously a lot of fun!  The DJ played a fantastic music selection all night long.  The local duet sang and played music from every single genre possible!   The poetry and memoirs recited were memorable.  It was one fantasmic night!  Thank you APALC for letting me be a part of your event! 

Cheers!

I