A couple months or so ago, my closest neighbors up the valley (a delightful couple named Jesse and Josh) had their close of service and returned stateside.
They gave me dibs on their papasan chair and I would have been a fool to not pounce on the opportunity to own such a comfortable piece of furniture.
There was one problem though: how to move a papasan chair from their house to mine? You see, as the john-crow flies, our houses are perhaps two miles apart. The trail is very steep singletrack at the beginning and end, but the bulk of the journey is a pleasant amble on (deeply pocked) doubletrack road. It is maybe an hour walk without a papasan chair strapped to your back. My thinking on this matter slowly became more and more clear.
Taxis do not run between our communities. I could have taken two taxis home, but this would have been expensive, would not have saved any time, and would be vastly less hilarious than simply walking with the chair strapped to my back.
Fortunately i have here in my possession a frame backpack, lots of line, zip ties, and Irish straps. I am also a sailor and if there is one thing that sailors are good at (besides lying, drinking, and swearing) it is coming up with ridiculous hacks that involve tying knots and lashing things together. I was in luck!
The day was sunny and I felt invincible. The time had come to make history, and I was the one to make it.
First I wrapped up the cushion and shoved it in the bag.
Then I attached the base of the papasan chair, and then the bowl on top of the base.
Everything secure, it was time for this kludgy solution to see the light of day.
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I was extremely pleased with myself.
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And thusly I proceeded home.
On the way I had to cross a very narrow pedestrian suspension bridge and this proved a bit of a challenge. I also met a farmer who found my situation so hilariously delightful that he gave me a pineapple. Farther down the road I found a man who was willing to rent me his donkey for the remainder of the journey, but I was perfectly happy with everything on my back. Farther still I met some youth and we took cover from a rainstorm and talked about music. Finally I arrived at my site and my community had a great laugh at my return. Not only did humping the chair two miles between towns save me time and money, but it turned into a moment of cultural integration too! What a splendid day! I even had a comfortable place to sit at the end of my endeavor.
Great story Raz! Really enjoyed this one. Thx!
This story is great! That chair is comfortable too! I wanted to buy it for future use, but I heard you purchased it before I could. Anyway, the story reminds me of the many times I would haul by foot or taxi a shovel, machete and fork. I would get a lot of “integration” on those days as well, but they are fond memories!