Well, you’ll be pleased to know that the slight (unbruised) bump on my forehead was overshadowed in my photo by sadly limp hair on one side and ‘Shazzam!-that-shampoo-bar-is-giving-your-tresses-unlimited-volume’ hair on the other side. Good times.
So, Quiana, I’m really sorry that you went to Japan and saw a real kotatsu table in action, because this post is going to be really, really embarrassing.
We all know I like to dabble, right? That I like to experience things in the fastest, cheapest, least-effort-expended way possible, right? Well, last winter I came across articles about kotatsu tables, low Japanese tables heated from underneath (by coals or an electrical source), then covered by a comforter to keep the heat in. Apparently central heating is iffy in Japan (really?), so this would be where families would gather during chilly evenings, their legs bathed in cozy warmth.
I am all about that! Chilly evenings are Experiment Central around here! Lloyd nixed the coal idea (some ‘safety’ issue), and I knew that using a heat lamp would just result in cut-up knees for me, so that left using a heat panel. Cozy Winters makes one, but it’s too pricey for something to just goof around with.
Enter the surplus auction from a couple of weeks ago. Woo-hoo!! They had one, and Lloyd got it for two bucks!!! On Monday night I had a free half hour between sitcoms (Yay for new television being on!), so I cobbled together a terrible table out of some particle board, three pieces of closet rod,a piece of stair railing and four almost-too-short screws. (Why do I have a piece of stair railing? Anyone? Anyone?)
It is wobbly, dangerous, and deliciously warm. Bring on the cold!