Frolic & Detour

I feel I have to make a formal apology. While I know any blog worth its salt is not only a product of content but also consistency, I've recently been out of town and overextended with peripheral responsibilities that have kept me from blogging. I'm hoping to recoup within the week and break the silence.

Until then...

I was recently in Toronto and have something of an oddity to share. It appears there is a fashion trend growing in the city, something more appropriately identified as an epidemic faux pas. Whoever thought that gathering a curtain and tying it at its center is an acceptable window treatment? A (poor) college student unleashing a burst of creativity while struggling to stay focused on his studies? If you're not sure what I'm talking about, here's a visual:


If you've ever used this budget stratagem to spruce up the old pad, pat yourself on the back for having abandoned it. If you are currently in the throws of this decorating gaffe, please mend your ways. Please. The logical reasoning is this: 1) When you draw your curtain to the center of the window, you block precious daylight; 2) With the curtain in the center of your window, you look at the curtain, not the view - the drapes dominate and become the focal point, and they certainly aren't worth it; and 3) It's hideous.

Look at any condominium or apartment high rise in Toronto and you'll see this phenomenon if not once, then multiple times. Just when I thought it couldn't get worse, I spotted this:

The same meticulously crafted hour-glass shape but with vertical blinds and a binder clip! Classy. Surprisingly, the clip seems to be the most stylish, if not innovative, part of this ensemble.