sub-burbs

Friday, I took the day off and accompanied my friend Jim to the International Mister Leather market.  IML is a gigantic gay leatherfest that is held every year in Chicago and people from all over the world come to town for the event.  In addition to the seminars, contests, and parties, IML also hosts a huge vendor market of BDSM gear.

I spent a few hours touring the place with Jim scouting the place for MJ.  She had given me a list of items to find so I could guide her to the booths that contain stuff she was looking for.  When I discovered that market stretched over four ballrooms at the Palmer House, I realized that a few hours wouldn’t cut it.

Once we had gotten an overview, Jim and I went over to Bennigan’s for drinks and a snack.  He then went to join his friends and get ready for the parties that night while I waited for MJ to get off of work.

MJ joined me at the hotel at just after 6 p.m., one hour before the market closed.  She quickly realized that we both needed more time to enjoy the atmosphere (the hundreds of barely dressed hot guys got MJ’s attention pretty quickly) and to shop, so we decided to come back on Saturday.

We ended spending way too much at the market, but got a ton of great stuff including a leather harness for me, some amazing floggers, and a new set of wrist and ankle cuffs.

Here are some pics of our "haul":

On Sunday, we realized we needed a place to keep all of our stuff.

Before I continue, I should mention that I have a knack for insane projects.  For instance, rather than just put an action figure on my desk at work, I actually build detailed "playsets" for my toys.  One of the things I love about MJ is her equal love of these crazed, over-the-top undertakings.  (She wanted to make a few modifications to our new house, starting with removing the entire staircase.)

So, what do two people who love crazy projects do when they need a toy chest?  They go to IKEA and build an 8-foot tall cabinet into their closet!

Yeah - I told you we’re nuts.

We brought all the pieces home Sunday afternoon and I spent the better part of 11 hours installing the cabinet.  The result is a very goth looking cabinet with drawers for all our goodies, shelves for books and toy bags, and a pull out rack to hang floggers and other implements.

In order to make it fit in the closet, I had to remove all of my clothes and take down the shelf that was mine.  I am the boy after all and when it comes down to storage for MJ’s toys or closet space for my stuff, I lose by default.  (Actually, I gladly gave up the space, partly because it was the only way this would work correctly and I really wanted this awesome cabinet to shine, but also because it was something so subservient and I loved the feeling of MJ taking another little piece of control over me.)

Here is the finished product in all its insane glory:

If I didn’t think that MJ was taking our new roles seriously, this would certainly have changed my mind!

That night, we actually got a chance to play, but that’s a story for another post.