Deck furniture has not normally been of much amusement to me.  The one time I undertook the subject seriously it proved to be far more than I had anticipated in either cost or production.  To my horror the fine print included “some assembly required” which was an understatement! Thankfully all ended well – after considerable recalculation and waiting – and I recall vividly with delight the three or four times we actually used the furniture.  Yet on balance outdoor furniture is not something to which I aspire.  My outdoor activity is limited to cycling, whether in Canada or along the Atlantic Ocean.  Mine is a modest existence. In such circumstance I never carry a chair with me. I am not a gardener or a landscaper; and, when it comes time in the late afternoon for “two-fingers” in the crystal tumbler, I’m content to remain indoors, away from the flies, listening to my music and reading Jane Austen, regarding the shrubbery and blossoms from a distance.

It was therefore odd this afternoon that I was suddenly enlivened to the prospect of deck chairs on the patio off the bedroom. The simple truth is that today was magnificent weather, sunny and 18°C.  As is my custom I ventured abroad in my vehicle after an uplifting bicycle ride along Country Street this morning and a subsequent gratifying breakfast featuring my favourite ripened cheese and double-thick bacon. Once underway and after having put the car through a wash it was the work of a moment to cascade open all four windows and set back the landau roof.  The southerly wind buffeted as I traveled north through Renfrew County, passing in a dream-like state by the awakening rivers and streams in the open fields upon which the distant hued horizon descended. So stimulating was the overall effect of the heat and wind (reminiscent of an intoxicating open-air sailing excursion we had taken across the Gulf of Mexico to Key West) that I was inspired to profit by the proximity of Antrim Truck Stop wherein is secreted the world’s most sacramental version of carrot cake with cream cheese icing. The indulgence is an addiction which admittedly has seduced me more often than I now care to recall; however, given the favourable weather and the shortness of life and all that business, I succumbed. In addition to the cake – which by the way I spotted in an instant in the glass counter – there were lemon squares and date cookies to be added to the package to fight off and quell the expected objection at home! In matters such as these, calculated diplomacy is de rigueur!

Upon returning home – after having masterfully dealt with the anticipated ambassadorial issue – we together engaged in an enquiry into the inscrutable matter of folding deck chairs. Once again the summit of the topic was astonishing.  The first challenge was to select an outlet from which to purchase the product. I had it in my mind from the start that the chairs must be of good quality.  At 230 pounds I had no intention of adjusting myself to a diminutive chair likely to collapse beneath my weight – an outcome which would do very little indeed to enlarge upon the projected mystery of the setting sun. Not surprisingly the initial on-line search brought up the well known retailers like Wayfair, Amazon and Home Depot. We briefly considered the local New Oak Tree Furniture Store but as expected they didn’t deal in outdoor furnishings. There was another company I thought of, one from which I had lately purchased a very agreeable wooden bench for the piano, but by that time I had adapted to the reasonableness of dealing with the customary warehouse and on-line retailers. The subsequent examination of product detail – and a recurrence of those dreadful words involving assembly – succeeded to defeat entirely my erstwhile ambition.  We settled upon reasoning that there was no purpose buying goods we’d use rarely and not know where to store in the winter when there were already convenient chairs on the outdoor patio.

The animation nonetheless illustrates the gusto attributable to a fine spring day! Not every enterprise meets with immediate success. Though economy is normally not one of my priorities I am pleased to have diminished whatever springtime urge was arising within me. Considering my lacklustre interest in patio furnishings, I am satisfied instead to nurture my appetite and springtime motive with carrot cake and cream cheese icing!