This day could've been better.

I started my day by getting up early and going over to the Kaiser in Oakland to expose my breasts....(wait for it)....to electromagnetic radiation. (Rim shot).  No breakfast, no tea, just in case I was due for routine blood work as well and could get them to do that on the same trip.
The lady at the front desk was sweet. The tech was a nice enough lady, but rather slam, bang about the procedure. Seriously? If some guy had been that rough with The Girls, I'd have been reciprocally rough with his junk and had him up on assault charges, but because it's preventive medicine, it's supposed to be OK.  Then they stuck me with a pair of gardening gloves, a packet of zinnia seeds and some Kaiser Permanente hand lotion in a horrible plastic carrier-cum-gift-bag thing that damn well better be recyclable. My health care premiums should be paying for my health care, thank you, not gifts I don't need. I'm not five years old, I don't need a lolly pop.

So I scan the printout they gave me and think WTF? I'm overdue for a pap (I'll call Monday and get that scheduled) and need to send back the stool sample kit I got in the mail this week for colorectal cancer screening, but they don't want to check my cholesterol until 2012?  Have I mentioned that there is almost no cancer history in my family except one uncle who is in remission from prostate cancer at the age of 82 and my late grandmother who had a couple uterine fibroids?  Stroke, heart disease and diabetes are risk factors I have to watch for, right? Oh, and BTW, I am obese.

However, they were also doing flu shots upstairs, so got that done as well. THAT nurse knows how to give a shot, I've learned that if I don't look, I can stay relaxed and not fight the needle going in. I barely felt it. I'll probably take some Advil before bed as a preventive as there's a teeny bit of sensitivity in that bicep right now.

Went up the street to the Peets' on Piedmont and thought,"At least I can have a chai now." It was  - disappointing. I can only guess the young man with the multiple facial piercings got the proportions wrong because the chai was drowned out by the latte. 

Picked up a desk lamp at IKEA as the one I have is just not cutting it, then up to the Caning Shop in Berkeley for supplies as I want to revamp my basket lantern design yet again. This time I was served by the proprietor. When I told him what I wanted it for, he was fascinated and told me he was trying to document various types of caning applications. I told him about the Muromachi flower basket in the Asian Art Museum and he insisted on giving me (free!) a copy of a book they had on caning as it had a picture of a 3000 year old bit of clay from a Chinese find that had the imprint of what appears to be a section of a caned seat or basket on it. I just emailed him with the link to my web page on the lantern project.

Looked at some cotton duck at the fabric outlet as I was in the neighborhood, but didn't buy as I hadn't measured the three season sleeping bag. Might be fun to do some simple shibori on my "futon" cover. Still very much in the thinking stage on this. Honestly don't have any information about extant period bedding examples, but it doesn't seem implausible that they wouldn't have been decorated in some way.  At some point people were simply sleeping under their own robes as covers, because there's something called a yogi that is a kimono-form quilt, complete with sleeves to put one's arms through. Interestingly, the examples of these that I've found on Teh Interwebz are all from the Edo period or later. Look, ma, more homework!

Came home and had a nap because I was starting to get headachy. LONG nap. Completely blew my afternoon.

Sent off an email to JAF with a quote on some "undershirt" kosode, knee length and sleeveless, which is what he wants, though I think have convinced him he should have at least one nice one with sleeves. I have zero proof of sleeveless kosode in period, though I have seen taiko costumes without sleeves and it makes enough sense to me that it's not pushing my 'that's just wrong!" buttons. If anything, it's got me going, "Why didn't I ever think of that?"  Plain cotton solids mean I can keep the price reasonable for him too.
He mentioned that his lady really liked what I was wearing at the sake tasting (the Tosenin over the orange ombre kosode), so if she takes the plunge, I could have another customer.