King Cake, tropical islands and mutant monkeys

So I experienced King Cake last night at work for the first time in my life.  I had to ask what it was.  Apparently Mardi Gras is a big deal here. "It's a sweet dough with cream cheese and cinnamon filling with a baby hidden in it" I was told.  Sold.  You had me at cream cheese and baby.  It was most excellent and I think I am going to carry on the tradition of the King Cake every year, no matter where I am.  The company that made the particular King Cake that I tasted had a trillion different flavors and sends them all over the country for any occasion.  See here for their website.  Yum.  If you find the baby that is cooked into it you are insured good luck and well-being for the remainder of the year, and are also responsible for supplying the cake next year.  I didn't find the baby.

Right now I am obsessed with the Bonin Islands.  I think I would like to be stranded on the Bonin Islands with a good looking guy who knows his way around a rainforest and we could drink water out of coconuts and get tan and discover hidden inlets and grill fish on a spit and live in a bamboo hut.  Apparently they are very remote and mosty untouched by humans.  Cool.  I imagine we would look something like a Michael Kors ad, or like dirty mutant monkeys.

PS - Speaking of mutant monkeys, a friend promised me that we could take her boat out this summer so I could lay eyes on the mysterious Monkey Island...an island off the coast here that is owned by the US government where monkeys run wild and are routinely captured and taken for medical/pharmaceutical testing.  Right now I am imagining those monkeys from The Wizard of Oz with bigger fangs and genetic mutations.  I am assured that that is not the case however.  It is deliciously horrifying though, to imagine those mutant monkeys swimming across to the main land and wreaking havoc on the citizens of the islands....Apparently if anyone goes near the island by boat, the monkeys freak out and head for the heart of the island.  I can just imagine them sitting around the campfire at night explaining to the little ones, "Avoid the boats and the men with nets, because if they catch you, you leave the island and never come back."  I don't know why I am getting such a kick out of this, it is actually kind of disturbing.  Oh well, I will think about more King Cake before I fall asleep to insure sweet dreams ; ).  See below for a candid shot of me on one of the Bonin Islands with my guide aka the Michael Kors ad.  Pretty accurate, right?  Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha aha ha ha ha .