M8th Blog

Since several people were out of the office this week, we celebrated Jonathan’s birthday last week by engaging in one of the world’s most unique sports, Whirlyball! (check out that blog posting here.)

So, to commemorate Jonathan’s actual birthday on Friday we thought we’d have a nice casual lunch at a local hangout followed by a tasty cake at the office.  Sounds simple, right?  AND THEN THE CAKE ARRIVED.

See, Eric has this special connection at the Publix cake department.  They have previously delivered some pretty amazing cakes.  This time? Total Cake Fail.

Jonathan loves roller coasters and has traveled across this great land to check out the best of them, so Eric thought it would be cool to get a roller coaster cake.  He provided this visual representation of a roller coaster cake to his Publix peeps for their reference:

Aaaaand this is the absolute gem of a cake that walked through our door:

That doesn’t look like a roller coaster!  That looks like a wagon of sadness with deflated tires riding on wonky train tracks leading to a place called Sadville that was airbrushed by two-year-olds.  Meanwhile, what’s with that ring of buttercream parsley around the bottom? Is that supposed to fancy it up?

And what poor animal sacrificed its tongue just so it could poorly represent a roller coaster car?  And when is the last time you rode a roller coaster with just one car?!  Much like the unfortunate animal that gave its tongue for this cake, our team was rendered absolutely speechless by this monstrosity of a confectionary creation. Somebody needs to get the Publix Cake Crew to Six Flags immediately for some roller coaster reconnaissance!

After getting a good laugh out of that dessert disaster, a group of us headed to Lake Lanier’s sweetest sushi shop, Little Tokyo.  You can never go wrong with anything from their tasty menu, and fortunately they never attempt to make anything look like a roller coaster!

Little Tokyo has a very loyal following from its customers, and many of them create messages that adorn the walls of this tiny Asian bistro. This one below was designed by Eric and gets a featured spot on one of their walls.

Once we were back at the office it was time to put this ridiculous roller coaster cake out of its misery.  Just like driving a wooden stake through the heart of a vampire, the only way to finish off a wannabe roller coaster cake is with a butcher knife right through the tongue car! Die cake, die!

Despite this necessary and totally justified cake homicide, it has been a really fun opportunity over the past week to celebrate Jonathan’s birthday!

Happy Birthday, Jonathan!

Today was a very special day at Mighty 8th Media, as we celebrated a milestone birthday for our very own Jonathan Holmes!  We began the festivities at a Mexican joint in Roswell called Twisted Taco. This place is the home of some very tasty south-of-the-border dishes, including a made-to-order guacamole that is out of this world! The queso cheese dip is also one heck of a tasty appetizer.

Meanwhile, the “Twisted” part of their name stems from their method of pouring that heavenly queso cheese over any entree of your choice. EVERYTHING is better with melted cheese dumped all over it.

Now that we all had about two pounds of melted Mexican cheese on our stomachs, it was time to engage in a brand new sport: Whirlyball!  What the heck is Whirlyball? Well, it’s an interesting blend of bumper cars, basketball, and lacrosse.  Are you thoroughly confused?  Well, so were we!

Fortunately, everyone on the team was tall enough to play, even Tammy!  (although it was close)

Meanwhile, my recent neck issues kept me on the sidelines and in a purely journalistic role. Of course, SOMEBODY had to take pictures of this historic event, so it might as well have been me!

After the referee explained the rules, the two teams were ready to hit the Whirlyball court.  Basically, there is a wiffle ball on the court, and two teams try to take that ball and throw it at their goal with a lacrosse-like scoop. Meanwhile, the opposition is battering into them with their cars and trying to steal the ball in order to hurl it at their own goal.  Yeah, this is gonna get cut-throat.

Below you can see the birthday boy’s Red team ready to get some Whirlyball action.

And the Yellow team is ready to defend their honor and steal the birthday boy’s glory!

There were three matches, and Eric is watching on as a shot is hurled at the Yellow team’s goal in the first match.

Meanwhile, Bradley has his eye on making sure the Yellow team pounces on every opportunity.

The Red team starts giving high fives as they pull away in the first match.  In addition to 2-point goals, the Red team gets points every time the Yellow team “slashes” them.  (using your ball catcher to either swat at someone holding the ball or using your hands to touch the ball)  Get it together, Yellow team!

More high fives as the Red team puts the smack down in the first match.

It’s official!  Jonathan’s team wins match number one by a healthy four point margin!

The Red team begins to defend their turf after an initial victory.

Things are looking good in match 2, and Tammy has a classic “oh crap, I actually caught it!” look.

The Yellow team finally decides they have had ENOUGH.  Eric bumps the birthday boy as part of a new Yellow team strategy and it’s all downhill from there.

Meanwhile, Bev and Katina cheer both teams on from the peanut gallery.

As the cheerleaders look on, the Yellow team starts schooling the Red team, Whirlyball-style.  Ben has that ball and he is moving in for the KILL.

Michael, in a “oh-no-you-didn’t” moment, tries to get in a defensive position…

But Ben hones in on his target, and the Yellow team completes a two game sweep to take the series 2-1.

At the end of the day, it’s not about who won (according to the Yellow team, ‘yes it is’), but instead it’s all about who had a great time.  And who was that? EVERYONE!

And every group photo deserves one “wacky” pose, as seen below.

At Mighty 8th Media, we work hard and we play hard.  Thank goodness we have a group where we’re capable of excelling in both.

Happy (early) Birthday, Jonathan!