"you have tight quads"

So, with our new Gym Membership at the Sweat Shop, Philip and I have been attending occasional Spinning and Yoga classes. So... yoga is not easy... or not easy for me. My Yoga instructor informed me in both classes that I have tight quads and that my positions are "good for me" because I am tall and have tight quads. I'm glad she is so nice!
My first Spinning Class was hard, for one climb, then the rest was good.. so I thought to myself that I can totally do this. Yesterday, I went to my second class, but this time with JD... and not the female instructor who I had the first time. He was FIT and has an obsession with climbing and with not sitting in your seat. I must have sweat away like 20 lbs alone in that hour. But atleast the view was good!

Happy Hour

Not the drinking kind, but the new TV show on Fox. This is actually only the second time that I've seen it, but on tonight's show there have been several cameos from Pottery Barn Merchandise. The show is set in Chicago, but I doubt they actually shoot here, so they probably are not shopping at one of the local stores :(. Anyway, within the first 5 minutes of the show I've spotted 1. one red wool jacquard pillow, 2. two red quilted pillows, 3. two taylor silk stripe pillows, 4. one silk stripe lamp shade, 5. one lg rustic pillar holder w/amber river rocks and a 4x8 unscented pillar, 6. I'll be on the lookout for more next time...

In other news, I actually did some work on my thesis proposal today. Who would think?

Funniness. Period.

Check out this hilariousness...

shitjob.gay.mennonite.ephrata,pa.

Rocking it out

Yesterday, Apple announced the release of its new iPods and iTunes. Check out www.apple.com to check them out.
Sadly, my generation three iPod and my generation one shuffle do not stand up to the great quality of these new ones. How clever these Appleites are in constantly releasing these new beautiful things...grrrr!

Ode to Goshen

Philip, Ross, Allison, and I jumped into Ross' Mazda 3 last Saturday morning and made the 2.5 hr journey to the land of Goshen. The very land where I went to college for two years and then got sucked into working at the college for two more years, the very land where Ross and I became great friends and the land where Philip and I met. Allison had no connection to this land until she recently began dating a boy from there. The journey was short and very fun full of gossip, talking, and laughter.

We attended our first wedding of the weekend: Luke and Christian... great times, almost tears, and delish food... yet no wedding cake. These Millers!

Ross, Philip and I made our way to Rubber House, where I used to live and where my friend Hannah now lives. Something was terribly wrong as we entered. The place was clean, clean, clean. I've never seen the place so clean. It was unbelievable. Hannah chatted it up with us and then took us on a tour of Goshen's new Apartment Buildings into random people's units to check them out.

Philip and I stayed at one of his old Music Professor's house which I thoroughly enjoyed simply because they had 1 dog and 2 cats that kept me entertained and allowed Philip more "real time" with a dog that he could fall in love with.

That evening Allison, Philip, and I walked to downtown Goshen to try out the new hip bar in town, "Constant Spring". It was... nice for Goshen... clean, and fun, but nothing entirely exciting. The night got better when the students began to arrive, many of whom we knew and hadn't seen for years!

Sunday started off nicely with a yummy breakfast and a powerful Hymn Sing at Assembly Mennonite Church. However, it would not be complete without a potluck lunch free of charge! Oh the memories that flowed in of the days when we were students. The weekend ended nicely with another wedding and for me to get to see old co-workers from the college. Ross, Philip, and I trekked home in Ross' car... Ross driving, Philip sleeping in the back, and me trying so hard to not fall asleep. Good times!

two faced kitty

A two faced kitten was born this week and is currently alive, but may not make it. So weird. It literally has two faces. Four eyes, four ears, two noses, and two mouths.. but only one kitten body. I can't find the pic of it, but will keep looking. STOP the inbreeding. GAWSH.

Air conditioner

Happiness has arrived. She arrived this past Sunday, all 9950 BTU's of her, thanks to Philip's parents who generously brought us an air conditioner. I installed it this past Wednesday just in time as a small heat wave hits Chicago for the next few days. I can only hope that the A.C. at work is working well enough to keep us all cooled. Now all I need is a portable air conditioner to keep me cool on my walk to the train :)

Silk dupioni

Such a struggle it has been these past few weeks. Philip and I have finally decided on what drapes we wanted for all three rooms. We successfully bought white sheers (below pictured in stem)

for the Dining Room windows and found a deal of a deal with some Stem colored Silk Dupioni Drapes (pictured in saffron)

for our bedroom, all from West Elm. They now gracefully hang on Bronze colored drapery rods in each room. Sadly we were trying to be budget conscious when we bought these drapes and decided to wait on our living room drapes for another time. So, when we decided to dig deep into our pockets for the most beautiful Saffron colored silk drapes from West Elm, we were excited... however they were out of stock. THEN, like an act of God they appeared to be available again. 4 in stock said the associate on the phone as well as my computer at work... the exact number we needed. We went for it and ordered them and a bunch of rod thingys, but when our order was processed they contacted us, by email, and said the drapes were permanently out of stock. Tears and sadness overcame the Taylor Kendall Household. As we sit in our living room now without those drapes I wonder, What would our lives be like with them?

it's like 90 degrees

As of late the mercury has been on the rise, as is normal for Chicago summertime weather, however even though this is somewhat the norm, I am not taking it with ease. If you ask any of my friends they will tell you that I am not a fan of warm/hot weather. Odd indeed, one may think since I grew up in Belize where during the coolest months of the year the high temperatures often linger in the mid 80's and much warmer in the summer. However, I have adapted to the north Midwestern climate where it is too cold in the winter and too hot in the summer. So what's my point here? I'm not sure. I fear that each and every day I spend in our heat haven apartment will be one of discomfort and annoyance. I am trying to convince Phil that an air conditioner, even a small one for our bedroom is a great investment. Oh yeah... and the first day of summer has not even arrived yet.

I Want A Dog

I love animals very much. I love dogs and really want one. I even used to want to be a vet so I could play with animals all day. Right now, I have a cat whom I share with my partner Philip whom we both like very much. I really want to get a puppy... I mean I can't get one right now because supposedly our building doesn't allow it. I say supposedly because on many occasions I have seen the same dog leaving the same apartment in our courtyard and NO, I do not think he is visiting. Nonetheless, I am operating on the idea that we can't have one here. I still want a puppy and as of late, I have been torturing myself with images of the cutest little puppies in the world, or at least the cutest ones I can find on google images. Here are a few of the cutest:


Puggle Puppy


Two young Pugs


French Bulldog Puppy



Puggle Puppy


Puggle Puppy


French Bulldog Puppies



English Bulldog Puppies


French Bulldog Puppy


Pug Puppies

cleaning mania

Tonight phil and I were rushed to do last minute cleaning to prep the apartment for our little party tomorrow night. mopping the kitchen, cleaning the bathroom, hanging last minute photo frames, and vacuuming the rug...3 times. You see, the joy of having a wool shag rug

is balanced out and maybe weighed down by the maintanence. Everytime we vacuum this beautiful rug our little vacuum is worn out and stuffed full of wool time and time again. One good friend of ours suggested collecting all the wool and having it spun into yarn. That was a great idea, however I am not sure that I would be down with wearing a wool/cat hair sweater, so for now that idea is on the back burner. Back to cleaning!

urban bunnies?

As I was walking east on Brompton Avenue today among the grass lined streets I saw the cutest little wild bunny just like this one

hopping through the low lying bushes. And then I began to wonder (in a totally Sex and the City kind of way) where does this cute little creature live and why isn't he/she in one of our beautiful parks. My moment of pondering came to an end as he/she disappeared from my site and I decided I didn't really give. But seriously, I have seen numerous wild rabbits in the city since moving here...big ones, tiny babies, and medium rabbits always hopping in someone's yard or along the sidewalk petrified at human sight. Where do they come from and who suckered them out of migrating to the burbs or Michigan?

free snacks

I arrived at work today at 1:00 pm for the closing shift (not my favorite) and went down to my department to start my shift. Soon after I noticed a plastic shopping bag stuffed into the cabinet space under our register. I leant down to pick it up and throw it away rather annoyed that someone had left their trash for me to deal with. But to my surprise, the bag was not filled with trash but three mini bags of snacks. Two of the bags had animal crackers and the other had mini peanut butter crackers. I was overjoyed and excited that I now had my own stash of treats to get me through the afternoon. All thanks to some young Lincoln Park child now without his or her treat :)

Pink is my new obsession...

On June 25th the CTA introduces its new Pink Line route which connects the will be former 54th/Cermak branch of the blue line directly into the green line route which feeds into the loop track system. The Pink Line shall be an exciting new addition to Chicago's transit system, yet we are all still waiting for faster service and maybe more rail lines that connect other parts of the city.

Pink Line Route.


CTA 'EL' Train Route Map.

We are excited to see what new things the CTA will produce in the coming years. Possibly new train cars and buses and hopefully more transit routes. I has always felt positive about our public transportation until visiting Berlin this past Spring which has an amazing transit system, far more advanced and reliable than the CTA and yes, Berlin is about the same population as the City of Chicago.

Berlin Train Transit Map.

an inconvenient truth

Philip and I went to see an inconvenient truth yesterday at Landmark Century Cinema on Clark St. and it was so good. So good, infact that it was saddening, depressing, and amazing. It is amazing that something that is so scientifically stated which has been proven over and over again is able to be ignored by so many people, not just people but governments filled with red tape and ulterior motives. Why is it that our country which is one of the most powerful in the world and the one which might be to blame the most for global warming is ignoring the facts and pretending that nothing is happening. In our own generation we are seeing and will continue to see that negative effects of global warming on our earth. Is it that we think that as the intelligent beings on this planet we have the right to live as we see fit, when infact, our intelligence only goes so far.


Go see the movie . It will hopefully inspire you.

an urge

a sudden urge came over me tonight while watching SNL. an idea from Philip's blog conversation earlier in the week. an urge to start anew and refresh everything. blogging david is back, well... i think he is. bedtime is now, but stay tuned.

School's out for a week (to the tune of school's out for the summer) of course!

I turned in my final paper yesterday for my LGBT Politics class making an official end to my last concrete graduate school class. Nevermind, I still have a huge thesis project to do which will probably take until the end of this year, but no more deadlines or class sessions to attend!
Currently I am sitting in my friend's condo at Birchwood and Seeley. Yes, that is in Roger's Park way way way up north, only a block from the Evanston city limits. I must not forget to mention why Philip and I are living here for a week. 2 dogs: 1 crazy, 1 lazy. Lucy the almost 2 yr old chocolate lab who requires constant attention and Missy the 11 yr old overweight beagle mix who just kinda hang around. It's been good so far, except for one event. One night I left the living room for about 10 or less minutes and when I returned, I found my cell phone on the floor and almost devoured by Lucy. Apparently, she was lonely or mad or something and she took it out on my phone. The end result: my screen on the front doesn't work, the inside screen only half works and has cracks, the vibrate function does not work, and there are about 20 holes... deep holes throughout the phone!
Do I still want a dog someday?

What a day

Today was my day off from work and I had this big list of activities to get done. This was my plan:
1. Wake up
2. Eat yummy cereal while watching a little TV
3. Write my paper which is due tonight
4. Watch a little Martha
5. Eat Lunch
6. Work a little on my thesis proposal
7. Shower
8. Get haircut
9. Go to DePaul Library and get journal articles
10. Drop off paper in professor's office

So, what did I do... Well, I am still sitting in my living room in my shorts and a t-shirt. I did work a little on my thesis and write my paper, but instead of being organized and getting tons done, I dilly dallied around and baked, made dinner, watched TV and randomly walked around in search of snacks of which we had none. I think it is time to go grocery shopping. Anyway. Sadly, my day wasted away which seems to happen quite often on my days off. I wonder how I will ever focus enough to write my thesis.

Super Bowl?

So apparently, this is Super Bowl week. The week leading up to many many football fans most important day of the year: The super Bowl. I am so excited and thrilled to have the day off from work when it is one of the most requested off days of the new year. My manager called me and made a comment about requesting Super Bowl Sunday off and I was like, "Oh, I didn't know it was the super bowl..blah blah blah blah blah" and she made it sound like it would be hard to get off. At one point I asked her, jokingly who was more important, and she said "people who would enjoy the super bowl" Well geez louise pete and grandma. I kinda laughed, but was then kind of annoyed. I get the day off regardless, so all is well. Apparently we (non super bowl fanatics) are supposed to work on days like that so we can have Pride day off. Pa pa pa lease.
Now don't get me wrong. I don't hate the SuperBowl, I just kind of hate football. I mean it is simply an organization that is built on male power, masculinity, and testosterone, and overpaid players and those things never lead to anything good. I do however enjoy watching the commercials, solely because everyone talks about them and I feel the need to be up on the latest hype, so here we go marching into super bowl Sunday, and I really couldn't give an umpph.

Long overdue

It's been forever since my last post. I have been busy working at the barn and with my class schedule. I have begun working on my Thesis proposal, and by begun I mean that I've only come up with the title and started doing a little research. I keep emailing my program advisor to find out exactly what I need to do to choose my panel and so on, but yet am waiting for his reply. I may soon have to take matters into my own hand. Things are same at work. Working lots and being tired a lot. Thursdays are the worst when I work all day then go to class till 9 pm. My class is also filled with 99% undergraduate students. Normally for a gender studies class that works out well, because they are talkative and have tons of knowledge to share. My class is full of many still under 21 :( and many who are political science majors. Nonetheless the class is not all I thought it was going to be. However, it's my last class before my thesis and the information is useful, so I'll ride it out. Everyone is friendly, but we are so far from each other in many ways. Such is life. Philip and I are having fun planning for our ceremony. Last night we registered at Target in the South Loop and today we registered at Crate & Barrel and Pottery Barn. Oh what fun those scanners are! Ok.. off to other things.

HOT gifts

When the Holiday Season comes near the end of the year, so too come various gifts. Have you been good all year, cause if you haven't you may get a crappy gift. WELL, I must have been a very good boy cause I got 'wunderbar' gifts. As I have not the time to talk about all my great gifts in detail I will highlight some of the exciting ones. I got a TIVO from Phil, creme brulee cups from Greta, Good ole cash from my parents, a paper shredder from my sister and family, and a cool manicure kit from my lil brother.
But out of all the gifts, I wanted to share Ross' gift with everyone. Ross gave out themed gifts and my themed gift was HOT. I got hot sauce, hot popcorn, hot salsa, hot peanuts, and cool pasta. All are pictured below:

but also, something that I've wanted for a long time...a microwave egg poacher!!!


Now, most importantly you must notice the names of the hot sauces. HOT STUFF!