Post #419065 by boutiki on Fri, Nov 14, 2008 8:06 PM

Thanks for the kind words bout our place. We did move out of Chicago. Sorta. We searched for over three years for our dream house. From North (as far as Gurnee, Racine and Milwaukee), to West (all the way to Aurora) to East (Michigan City, IN and even Kalamazoo, MI) to South. We looked a a lot of vintage modern houses in South suburbs like Homewood, Flosmoor and Olympia Fields before we discovered the hidden treasures in Northwest Indiana. Just over the state line, a mere 25 miles from downtown Chicago lies a community of wonderful people living in a variety of houses including an enclave of modern homes. Some designed by important architects like Keck + Keck (among our personal favorites). The schools are rated blue ribbon, the taxes are very reasonable (and thanks to a new cap, getting cheaper if you can believe that!) and the home prices are far more affordable than any of the other 'burbs that we looked at.

I could tell you we now live in Indiana, but that is not entirely correct. We live in PARADISE in the middle of the country. There are times when I have to stop, pinch myself, and say "my life is too cool". Like when I was working in our yard this summer and our 70 year old neighbor came walking over with her terry-cloth wrap over her bikini, her beehive hairdo atop her cats-eye sunglasses and perpetual Chesterfield cigarette with not one, but two cocktails in her hands asking if we wanted to join her and her 82 year old husband in their pool. They took a vacation the following month and gave us the keys to their place saying "remember to clean the skimmer and have a party". Their house is twice the size of ours and was done by the same architect. Or just tonight when we went out with our little guy to a pizza parlor housed in an old silent movie theater where they installed an antique pipe organ complete with all these crazy percussion and novelty instruments around the proscenium that light up when they are played. They have a organ player perform live every Tues. and Friday night and he takes requests. We put in our request, and just as our pizza arrived we heard the first strains of Quiet Village. Hot pizza, cold beer, and live Exotica (complete with bird calls) all in an old theater on the Illinois/ Indiana border. Does it get any better? OK– well, Arthur Lyman live at the New Otani hotel with a mai-tai in hand is hard to top, but for blissed-out experiences, this is pretty good for an average Friday night out with the family!

Our area is basically a bedroom community for Chicago so we still are a part of "Chicagoland". My business and a number of Amy's clients are still in Chicago and I am in town usually 3 or 4 days a week. My studio is still there as are a lot of friends and family– so we do stuff like go to the opening of the group show I was in last weekend and hang with friends at the Chef. We just have to drive a tad farther to get home at the end of the night.

I've said it before, and I really think it's true. The Midwest NEEDS Tiki more than the West coast or Florida. With winter setting in now, you can bet we'll be hanging out downstairs in the Tabu Tiki Lounge sipping rums, dreaming of swaying palms, saving up those airline miles for that trip to the big island to escape the cold and waiting until the weather turns and we can again open up our sliding glass doors and let in those warm summer breezes.

Meanwhile we'll be lounging downstairs.

If you are in the area, give us a shout.

Aloha,
-Duke

Check out Tiki Quest at http://www.pegboardchicago.com/TCintro.html
Tiki Central members get a discount and a special premium!

[ Edited by: boutiki 2008-11-14 20:58 ]