Bed head

When Brett and I met nearly 15 years ago he had an antique bed.  It must have been queen size, but looking back it seems smaller.  The only thing I remember for sure through the haze of our new love was that it was a bitch to change sheets (maybe the bed was full and the mattress was queen) and that while I loved shacking at his house, that mattress killed my back.

I spent 800 bucks (a fortune in 1991) on a mattress when I moved to Lawrence for school, so when Brett and I decided to live together my mattress became ours and his was relegated to the guest room. When we moved to the condo it was either sold or donated, I don't remember which.

Which brings us to the present.  There is something to be said for not skimping on a mattress because we are STILL using the same one.  Its not a bit saggy and is still very comfortable, but with the schnauzers (who expand to doberman size when they sleep) its just too small and frankly has been for years.

We've talked and even occasionally looked at new ones, but the array of styles, materials and prices are insane.  And we're lazy, so we've stuck with what we have and wake up clinging to the edges while the boys stretch out between us. Until now.

My friend Dan has been moving into a new house and through a series of events ended up with an extra headboard, which you can see here.  (our master has not been touched, please ignore the pink damask wallpaper and unfinished floor)  He needed it gone and nobody would buy it at his yard sale, so he gave it to me for free!

It's 62 inches high which is a little taller than I had in mind, but other than that its exactly what Brett and I planned on getting when it was time for a new bed.   Sears (yes, really) was having their Mattress Spectacular! for Independence Day, so we went to look.  We came home with a new grill, but found a mattress we really liked as well. Saturday was the last day of the sale so we went and bought it.  KING SIZE!


Today I stopped at Kansas City Upholstery to see about having the headboard recovered, which turned out to be totally reasonable, so when I got home I ordered four yards of this:

Its Double Feature by Holly Hunt in the "Silver Screen" colorway, from my favorite online fabric discounter, Modern Fabrics.  Kind of a thick, oversized ribbed texture.  I had a swatch and loved it, I just wasn't sure where I could use it.  And then the headboard appeared.


The new mattress comes Thursday, and once the fabric arrives it and the headboard are off to the shop.  And I'm looking forward to a handsome, and bigger bed.

Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts

I posted some website shots of the Kauffman center when it opened this past fall. We went to a concert tonight and I took a few phone shots of my own and thought I'd share. You enter the building and then take stairs or an elevator up to the main level where this was taken. Yes, the front wall and ceiling are glass. And yes, its stunning.

There are two performance halls, the Muriel Kauffman theater, and Helzberg Hall, both serviced by this lobby. Multiple bars make grabbing a pre-show drink a breeze, and Chris the cute bartender made it a pleasure.
We had super seats in the orchestra, third row center, which you actually walk down to from the lobby. Since we had a little time we took our drinks up a level and walked the length of the building. Its beautiful from pretty much any vantage point.

This shot is inside the theatre, and its a little bit deceptive. Those panels that front the balcony and boxes are indeed reflective, but far less harsh in person. They don't reflect so yellow in person either, the way they do here and in every photograph I've seen. When I first saw pictures I thought it might be a little bit garish but its really not. There is a lot of color in the seats, carpets, and wall panels, so its not subdued, but its nothing crazy either.

We saw An evening with Patti Lupone and Mandy Patinkin. I enjoyed the show, but it made me realize the one way in which I'm a bad gay: I have almost no knowledge of, or love for, musical theatre. Brett has a little more knowledge and thanks to him I now know Patti Lupone was the definitive Evita.

We turned around for one last shot as we walked a couple blocks to the car in the bone-chilling night air. I think the symphony will be our next ticket and I'm really looking forward to going back.

And its not even Christmas yet

Its been a really good week. I won the Patch NYC candle giveaway from Hello Gorgeous and Boxwood Home in Rehoboth Beach! I happened to be home yesterday afternoon when the UPS man pulled up and I couldn't wait to open my package. Its the triple wick stag candle, and it smells fantastic, piney and clean. I even got extra matches, which I really dig. I have a Zippo candle lighter, but there's just something about using a book of matches that feels good.

You should take a look at Boxwood Home's website for candles or anything else you might need to spruce up your place. I literally don't see anything I wouldn't want to own.

One of these days I hope to visit Rehoboth Beach (its a world gay heritage site you know) and when I do this will be my first stop. Unless I manage to track down the address for HG's beach house, then I'm stopping there first to demand gin and tonic, then a ride to Boxwood Home on the back of her Vespa. Thank you to HG and Boxwood Home!

Boxwood Home

39 Baltimore Avenue

Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971

The other cool thing that happened was my company's holiday lunch. We're privately held, and as such we're treated really well. So well in fact, that in the year you hit your ten year anniversary, which I did in September, you get recognized at the holiday lunch with a gift.

Rather than a catalog of stuff you really can't get excited about (like my 10 year pocket multi-tool I got when I worked at Sprint), we get to make an appointment with Kansas City's old-guard jeweler, Tivol, to pick out a watch.


Before you think it's all crazy and limitless, it's not. But what the company pays is truly generous, and we're welcome to add to it ourselves to get the timepiece we really want. I banked my tax refund this year in anticipation and for not even all of that ended up with something I really love, my steel Rolex GMT-Master II.

Inscribed with our company logo, a 10 year anniversary notation and my initials, I put it back in the box to take a picture. Even the box and paperwork are beautiful. And other than when I'm asleep that's the longest it's been off my wrist since noon on Wednesday.

I know just how incredibly lucky I am to work where I do, where we're treated so generously and graciously, and it really is an organization I'm happy to be a part of.

Its an Airstream with a tortilla press

Food trucks aren't a new phenomenon, but they are kind of new for Kansas City. I follow a few on the Facebook and Twitter, which is how most of them let everyone know where they'll be.

Tonight we tried Port Fonda, which was parked downtown doing their mexican street food.

Local and organic and handmade, from a vintage Airstream. I was kind of far down the street when I took this, you can't see Brett there in line asking if they had dessert (they didn't tonight).

Brett had the carnitas, I had the chicken livers and pipian rojo, all on handmade tortilla, washed down with Mexican Cokes. We both liked our dinner a lot and I'm already looking forward to going back. Its in the 50s tonight so we ate in the car. When it's warm enough to eat out on the sidewalk I bet its even better.

The other cool thing is that the Airstream has a chef's table. By reservation, groups of six can hang out in the trailer, watch the cooking as well as whatever's going on out on the street, have some drinks (byob) and fill up on a family style taco spread. We're trying to figure out the perfect occasion to give that a try.

What Emmy winners do the next morning

Relax in the back yard with the dog of course...