Tenebrae Factae Sunt

Is it merely cloud cover blowing in across the bay?
Is it the symbolic chill and shadow of Good Friday?
Is it a real chill and shadow?

Kitsuke heresies

I have a fancy dress party tomorrow night to celebrate a friend's birthday - it's supposed to be either formalwear or non-SCA costume. I am using this as an excuse to wear a modern shibori kimono I acquired last year. It's all pastels in green, blue, tangerine and red with a bamboo leaf motif and if one goes by conventional rules, it's too "young" for a woman my age. However, I had to buy it if one goes by conventional kitsuke rules, but I had to buy it because it actually had a sleeve-to-sleeve width of 54"!

(A) I'm torn between the red checked obi and the solid purple satin one. The red one is in a weave that's specifically for summer, but I like the idea of juxtaposing the soft edged pastels with a geometric pattern. The purple is safe. Except this kimono is not safe on a 40-mumble woman in the first place.

(B) I'm not in love with the taiko musubi, especially given that it requires extra props to make the thing keep its shape and is therefore more complicated to tie. I'm dithering between these two more casual knots....
http://www.rindo.com/105/kimono/obi-img/bunko-0.gif
http://www.somesho.com/kitsuke/10_Yukata/1010_Movie/kainokuchi.jpg

(C) I don't have the correct modern kimono underwear. My period stuff is proportioned incorrectly (too wide, sleeves too short) so nothing would lie right. I am reduced to eri-sugata safety pinned to sports bra, boxers (no panty lines) and half slip. (Crap. Where is my half slip? I know I own one.....)

(C) And to top it all off, I can't FIND the bargain bag of objijime I bought ANYWHERE!