I’ve made many references to loving being outside on our newer (can’t say new anymore) patio. The weather is such that I can go out again, with no layers and no blankets, to read, to write, to cuddle, and to contemplate.
This year we added two chairs and a little table to the space. When these items were first added, it made the patio feel smaller and crowded. Which, because there were new items, that feeling made sense. I didn’t like it, so I did a little rearranging yesterday.
Cleaning the patio had already been on my mind. It was once I got started, I really decided it was time to do something about how the furniture was placed.
Some items, like the grill and the dog house are pretty much set where they need to be due to their respective sizes. The rug also needed to stay where it is too as it helps define the space a little more. We also have a little storage chest of gardening tools on the patio as well. It can serve as extra seating in a pinch if needed.
This left the five piece patio sectional, two chairs we got a Lowe’s this spring, and the table, which is a table top set on the fire pit legs. The table top surprisingly was a perfect fit and is made for the outdoors.
As I was cleaning, I started pushing stuff out of the way to vacuum the rug and sweep the winter’s accumulation of “stuff” off the rest. I didn’t want to put the table back where it had been as it was taking up a whole lot of room.
By happenstance, I pushed it to the other side of the rug while vacuuming. As I slid it into place, it felt better on that side of the patio. My brain then started processing how a living room sometimes has an end table as a connector between a couch and a love seat. Although it was the patio, the new table could be used in the same way.
I moved one of the seat sections in front of the dog house at an angle, to hide it from view, but still accessible should our dog ever deem herself in need of it. Pushed the table beside the seat and put two seat sections on the other side. After a little adjustment here, and a little push there, it looked pretty good. The other two sections stayed in their original spots, and the two new chairs also stayed where they had originally been placed.
That one small move made it all much inviting, conversation conducive, and made the patio feel quite large. The mum pot on the table, and the scattering of other mosquito repealing plants around the patio also added to the inviting feeling. And, it got the hubby stamp of approval.
Tomorrow will be the big test. I’m on our HOA transition committee, which will be meeting on our patio right after work. Hopefully the ambiance will be such that our disagreements are few, and our compromises worthy, as we work through design guidelines that walk the fine line of allowing homeowners to be individuals, and keep the neighborhood looking well.
Later this week we get the last patio renovations. We are having electricity added. We’ll have some receptacles for lights and a box from which to hang a fan. The only thing still outstanding is possibly a new rug to add some color.
Now I think I’m just going to sit a bit to wind down from the day, listening to the fountain and the frogs croaking off in the distance. Maybe the lightning bugs will be back soon. Then it will be even more heavenly.
Personal Reflections of a Middle-Aged Man 