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Converted from paper version of the Broad Ripple Gazette (v08n19)
Right in my Own Backyard - Sitting in the Great Outdoors - by Brandt Carter
posted: Sept. 16, 2011

Right in my Own Backyard header

Sitting in the Great Outdoors

Remembering times in my backyard and the great outdoors does not evoke recollections of exercise, games, or activities. No, today I'd like to share with you the memories of sitting in chairs of many forms. I have always adored porches and yards, neither of which was ever complete without places to park for a spell.
Looking back on my childhood, rocking on the front porch glider or wooden swing and visiting with guests seated in the shell-back metal chairs would fill an evening or Sunday summer afternoon. Visiting was an important part of our weekly family life. How well I remember when we graduated from the heavy 1950s metal chairs to aluminum chairs with vinyl webbing. The aluminum chairs were revolutionary because they were not only lightweight but also portable, folding with ease. How well I remember my dad trying to repair one of these, muttering to himself as he tried to figure out the weaving process while the kit instructions professed ease and quickness of repairs. The webbed lounger was the bomb!
I also sat in many an Adirondack chair at Lake Wawasee, watching summer sunsets. My high school days saw lots of wrought iron patio and porch furniture as more houses had three-season rooms. Later, when I lived in my first rented college quarters, canvas director chairs were the rage. They could be serviceable indoors or outside. On a budget, I had a set of four that were continually being moved back and forth.
The past few years, chairs have changed again. Sometimes retro has been the trend; Adirondacks and shellback or tulip chairs are back as well. Rattan chairs have been ultra popular for porches and patios while molded plastic chairs dominated the affordable retail market ― white being favored until consumers realized they were impossible to keep clean for long. Maybe the best feature of these chairs has been their stackability. Meanwhile "Outdoor Living" furniture seems to be gaining popularity. These all-weather (except the cushions) styles look more like family room furniture than patio chairs of the past. One more morph of the yard chair is the canvas chair-in-a-bag, some even coming with a pop-up canopy ― what a great invention for tailgaters and concert goers.
So, whether you sit in chairs, chaise lounges, gliders, swings or under umbrella tables with solar twinkling night lights, take note of what you are sitting in today because it will probably not look the same in 50 years!



Brandt Carter, artist, herbalist, and naturalist, owns Backyard Birds at 2374 E. 54th Street. Visit her web site www.feedbackyardbirds.com. Email your bird questions to Brandt@BroadRippleGazette.com




brandt@broadripplegazette.com
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