Sunday, April 4, 2021

Homage to a chair

It’s common while I’m in the van for Lou to sit outside in my chair. Sometimes he’ll just sit in it to take in the sun and scenery. And he likes to sit in it when he plays guitar.

“This is the most comfortable chair,” he proclaimed the other day. I agree.

Most nomads have some type of fabric-and-aluminum folding chair. My molded-plastic-and-steel chair is the oddball around the campfire. It’s as out of place as wingtips. 

But it’s comfortable. Its shape is anatomically correct. The perforated seat and back act like springs. 

“The front edge of your chair doesn’t dig into the back of my thighs like mine does,” Lou explained. I briefly had a camp chair that did that, plus the top of the backrest dug into my spine. What’s more, my chair doesn’t make me feel like I’m sitting in a hole.

My chair is also rugged. No fabric to be destroyed by sun rot, no seams to come unstitched. If the pivot points ever wear out, I can replace them with bolts. 

It’s heavier than nearly every other camp chair, but the weight and perforations mean it won’t blow away in desert winds. It did tip over once, but it didn’t end up a quarter mile away. Impaled on a cactus. With a bent strut.

So hurray for my chair! Long live my chair!

5 comments:

  1. Thank you very much for posting this! You just save me from foolishly spending $259 for a "deluxe" camp chair that would have made me feel like I was sitting in a hole. 😀

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  2. I have a canvas and aluminum chair but I tried out a lot of them before I found one that doesn't dig into the backs of my legs. Another thing I like about yours it is easier to wipe any dew or rain off--mine has to have time to dry.

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  3. That's a good looking chair. The rake on the backrest looks good.

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  4. Yes, I almost bought that chair when I tested it at Home Depot or Lowe's. It DOESN'T make you feel like you are in a hole, as you said, and virtually all camp chairs do.

    If it had had arms I would have bought it. Maybe I should just overlook that.

    So it holds up to the southwestern sun? Most plastics disintegrate unless they are full of ultraviolet stabilizers. Since this chair was meant (?) for indoor use, I didn't think it would have those stabilizers.

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    Replies
    1. The way I use it, it's not outside all day, every day, and it's usually in the shade. But after almost eight years it's still strong.

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