Those would be the names of my new cats here in Chicago. A long-haired black male and a short-haired tortoise-shell female. Both incredibly playful. Both incredibly adorable. I spent most of last Friday evening ‘catproofing’ the apartment to get ready for their arrival on Saturday. Tying up cables, moving breakables higher up, cleaning everything, and just making sure my apartment in general would be a safe environment for them.

Since they’ve gotten here I’ve been tripping over cat toys (and cats, too), sweeping up litter non-stop from remote corners of the apartment, and chasing them around to keep them from eating my plants. I absolutely love it.

It’s been a while since I last had kittens around and I definitely forgot how much fun and just how destructive they are at the same time. They’ve already done quite a number on my sitting chairs. Regardless, I’ve been having a ton of fun playing with them and having them around the apartment.

The wanton destruction is truly a small price to pay for having a cat sleep on your lap while you update your blog.

Last night I ate at Charlie’s Ale House up in Andersonville. The food was pretty alright, but what really impressed me was the atmosphere and uniqueness of the space. Everything from the woodwork in the bar down to the individual booths had a very awesome vintage feel to it. I’m sure I’ll be back some time.

I keep spending more and more time up on Chicago’s north side and I’m beginning to think that when my lease expires in Logan Square I’m going to move into the Andersonville/Edgewater area. The area is fairly clean and there are a lot of great shops and restaurants up there (especially right off of Clark Street). I’d also be closer to the red/brown line which would make my daily commute shorter and put me closer to some of my friends that live on the north side.

I really love the place I have now, but I can usually count on it taking at least an hour to get anywhere in the city since its about a 10 to 15 minute walk to the train and then however long from there. It’s not terrible, just a slight inconvenience.

Of course, there is still plenty of time before my lease is up (September 1st, I believe), so I’ll just have to wait and see.