Lazyboy Cremation

Recently, I got a big kick when Emily sent this picture of Elliott...

The message said, "he finally got a REAL Lazyboy..."

In 1973, John and I lived in Pine Grove, Pennsylvania and I paid $353 for a brand new Lazyboy. It was orange plaid. I didn't know it then -- but it would go down in Farro Family history as the most comfortable chair we ever owned. Believe me -- there have been A LOT OF CHAIRS since...

That chair was delivered to our first house in Pine Grove, Pennsylvania. When I brought Ross home from the hospital, I rocked him to sleep every night in that Lazyboy.

In July, 1981,  I sat in that chair and cried because Elliott would NOT LET ME rock him to sleep...I was crying, he was crying, and Ross climbed up on my lap and he started crying, too.

In 1996, our 23-year old orange plaid Lazyboy was completely worn out. It listed to one side, and there was a broken spring that would perform unwanted acupuncture on your ass.

We had sat and rocked and reclined every last ounce of comfort out of that beloved Lazyboy. But there was no point in taking it to a thrift store -- nobody would want it. And taking it to the dump seemed like a sad ending for a chair that had been the center of our family life for our first 20 years...

Inspired by my own feelings of patriotism and old episodes of Gunsmoke -- I decided we should burn the chair. Like old Indians and American flags -- it seemed like an honorable end...

I invited my people -- and set up a picnic/wiener roast in the field behind our house. There would be s'mores. In front of a dozen witnesses -- Ross and Elliott were the official pallbearers. They carried the orange plaid Lazyboy across the yard...and gently set it on top the small fire we'd built. After just a few minutes, suddenly a ball of fire exploded into the sky...YIKES...we all stepped back...

THIS Lazyboy was also a sturdy, reliable, comfortable chair for our family.  Originally, it was all harvest gold...

I paid $5 for it at an auction ten years ago...and had it semi-reupholstered -- I loved the multi-colored treatment.

But, since it was probably 25 years old when I BOUGHT IT -- it is worn out.  Lucky for us, I recently found a new Lazyboy (more about that later).

So -- it's time for another Lazyboy Cremation....

John and Ross, paying their last respects...