I’m concerned that my husband is afraid of me. Here’s why. When we first started talking about building a deck in the backyard I knew I wanted it to be BIG (by the way, we starting making plans for this deck before the house was even completed…almost six years ago.) I wanted it to be big because I wanted family and friends to feel welcome – my house is wonderful for my husband and I but add two more people and the “entertaining” area is down right cramped.
Now when we began revisiting the notion of building a deck early this spring my husband and I stood out in the backyard and he asked “How big do you want it?”
“I want it to run along the whole back of the house”, was my response. This seemed like a logical size to me. I don’t live in a palatial estate. I live in a ranch-style house that only contains 4 dining room chairs so I felt rational while standing in the backyard with my arms stretched wide to indicate the scope of my dream deck.
“How wide do you want it?”
“Wide enough so we can have your whole family over.”
Our completed our deck measures 41 feet long x 19 feet wide. It is bigger than the apartment my husband and I lived in when we were first married.
This spring, summer and fall we were able to complete most of the deck – there is just a bit of “finish work” to be done next spring. It is monstrous. A sane husband would’ve said “You know the size you’re suggesting is a bit large for our yard…and our purposes.” My wonderful husband is clearly petrified of me…he continues to respond to my crack pot ideas with, “Okay.”
