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.