Sunday, July 25, 2004

Lawn Chairs

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© Michael Harvey 2004. http://digerati.shutterpoint.com

I am so happy.  I have gotten permission to use some wonderful photos in my journal.  I love this one.  It's called "Lawn Chairs".  It reminds me of when I was a little kid, back.....


We had chairs like these.  Paint would be chipping but no one really cared.  A little rust?  No big deal.  These chairs were like armored tanks--built to last.

When I was little people would go "visit".  You would just be sitting around with nothing to do and decide to go visit someone.  No calling ahead, you would just drop in.  And it was ok to just drop in.  If it was warm someone would fix everyone a glass of iced tea and you would sit outside until the bugs ran you in -- and more often than not that was the "sign" it was time to leave.

Grown ups sitting and talking, the kids running around like crazy stopping only to run up to mom/dad and down have their tea before playing more.  It was a great time to be little.  People didn't have to work a million jobs, kids weren't shuffled off to dance, soccer or what ever you could actually be a kid.


Sometimes you would sit on the porch and play games.  One of my dad's friends would come by and we would sit and play monoply for hours, and hours.  It would last until dad or his friend would be cheating so bad that mom would threaten them.  H (dad's friend) had a habit of putting the propery cards in his shirt pocket.  Mom would run him off because it was late or whatever and he would leave with the cards in his pocket.  We had to buy the game several times because of missing cards.

Yep, those were the good old days.  No one visits anymore.  Kids are too busy to play outside.  And no one has those metal lawn chairs anymore.

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

To be young again when life was simple!  I remember those days well!!

Jan

Anonymous said...

Are you sure you didn't live around the corner from me? SOunds just about right, except you omitted the watermelon cooling somewhere nearby. Or is that just a Southern thang?

Thanks for the memories.

Andi

Anonymous said...

I remember those chairs too, they were comfortable and fun to rock yourself back in.  The space shuttle could be made from these chairs, it takes practically a million years to rust out!
Love, Penny

Anonymous said...

I remember those chairs now they all seem to be plastic. Lori

Anonymous said...

Great entry as usual!
http://journals.aol.co.uk/sdrogerson/SpecimenDays

Anonymous said...

{{{{{ Kathy }}}}} I remember those good old days too and these chairs and we had a porch colorful porch swing too..a glider I guess....wow nice trip down memory lane...thank you!

Vivian

Anonymous said...

Kathy,
My mom had two of those chairs on her back porch!
They are probably 30 years old!  They traveled with
us from our move to Alabama from Iowa!  She also
has an old metal glider!
Love that picture!
-Connie

Anonymous said...

Hi Kathy: great entry, both the picture you chose and your reminiscences... I remember days like that from summers when I was a kid, except I would get so bored I wouldn't appreciate them.  Now I would enjoy that lazy socializing!  --Albert

Anonymous said...

I loved this entry! Thank you for sharing! :):):) judi

Anonymous said...

I remember. I loved those chairs. They would get so hot!!! We would spray them with water and sit in them. I had so much fun with them.
Celeste

Anonymous said...

My grandfather had those on his proch.  He would sit there and whittle a piece of wood with a pocket knife.  He made rolling pins, baseball bats and much more.   john

Anonymous said...

I remember these old chairs from somewhere in my life.  I think I might have been one of those kids running around playing though, and never sat in them!  

Anonymous said...

Those were the good old days.  Actually, I didn't grow up like this.  My mother is something of a recluse.  She didn't go visit and she didn't like people to show up unexpectedly.  But this is how it always was when we stayed with our grandma.  People would just show up to check in, sit with us, visit.  Granny always had some lemon cake and tea on hand and we would all sit out on the back porch.  I loved those times.  Your entry has been a great reminder of that.  ::smile::

Anonymous said...

I had a childhood that was a lot of fun in a lot of ways too.  I remember sitting around playing board games (especially Monopoly).  That is way too funny about your Dad's friend hiding some of the cards in his pocket! -Krissy
http://journals.aol.com/fisherkristina/SometimesIThink

Anonymous said...

life was so much fun when we were little. We didn't have chairs like that but the neighbors had hamocks. four of us would climb in a hamock and watch the clouds and make pictures out of them. So much fun.

Anonymous said...

:-) This entry made my evening! Thank you!  I have been on a hunt all summer for some of these old lawn chairs! Reminds me of sitting in my grandmothers front yard under the trees.

Cheryl

Anonymous said...

Hey, I remember those old chairs! Seems like everyone had a set of green ones. LOL As sturdy as those things were, I can't believe I don't still see them today. Great Entry!


Anonymous said...

what a great entry....let's visit.


Anonymous said...

My Nana had these kinds of chairs in her front yard under the big Oak Tree.  We sat outside on Sunday afternoons and talked, she loved sitting outside more than inside.  Thanks for bringing back beautiful memories for me.

Derek

Anonymous said...

Love the picture.  Great entry

Anonymous said...

Hello Kathy, I just wanted to say that I liked your story. It really took me back to when I was a child, and it made me realize that those were the BEST years of my life and I also had chairs like those .

Anonymous said...

Popping in to catch up. Actually, those chairs are making a come-back. They are considered retro now. But, yeah, people don't do much dropping in any more. Heck, they better not drop in on me. I'd have a fit. ;-) ---Robbie