If it's Monday, someone wants a hat.

Once again, someone is searching for a decent Japanese hat. Once again, the link to the nice people in Japan who sell very nice re-enactor and festival hats has been posted, to the wails of "But that's too expensive!" $60 for a hat with the correct harness inside, plus shipping from Japan (I'd have to guess around $40 EMS, somewhat less for the slower SAL shipment), which, while pricy, will assure that the hat is packed with loving care and shipped speedily. How do I know? I bought one from them a couple years back.

I have posted contact information to Soko Hardware in San Francisco on several occasions, suggesting people call or write and see if they will sell their hats direct and ship out of town. No one has ever posted to indicate that they have bothered to try this and what Soko's answer might have been.

So, thinking on this conundrum and remembering the Great Estrella Gasa Drive of last year, I inquired what people would be willing to pay - and my first respondent said "$20-$40." Honey, for that you get the craptastic rice picker special from AsianIdeas.com and a rubber band to hold it on your head. I'm the one who's going to have to go get the things (gas, bridge toll, and quite possibly parking), pay retail price and sales tax, find appropriately sized boxes and packing materials to ship them with and fight with the mercenary bitch behind the counter at the PO who likes to pretend that Parcel Post doesn't exist, because these bad boys will be too big for the automated shipping kiosk.

I think I'm gonna have to be "mean" and do this on eBay - if I do it at all. There's being nice and there's being screwed.

Say what?

Collegium-Con?

Of course, it's on the same weekend as the Free Artillerie Company muster at Woodland. 

Volunteer to teach stuff nobody wants to hear about and pony up for a hotel room at an event where evidently the chief attraction is that "we will have the Club in the hotel to ourselves Saturday night for partying and
dancing. (Yes, there will be a bartender.) Woo hoo!"

Or educate the general public about Royalist Scots during the English Civil war right down to our spiffy reproduction firearms, jam with Dale and maybe pick up some lemonade money busking, PLUS share a potluck with re-enactors from all over the timeline (Hadrian's Wall to Viet Nam)? 

Where's my wool petticote?