The Adirondack chair, ubiquitous along the shores of Lake Champlain — and, for that matter, all around the world wherever leisure and lounging are on the menu — has become a universal metaphor for lakeside lolling. 
With its signature slanted back and wide armrests, the recognizable profile of this outdoor recliner has become a trademark of summer in America. — Hilary Greenbaum, “Who Made That Adirondack Chair?” (Source: NYTimes.com, June 28, 2012 via Adirondack Chairs Revisited | Rosslyn Redux)
And while some American icons are destined to stay at home, this is one that has traveled far. And not altogether unlike the hammock, this laid back outdoor lounger, has become shorthand for letting go and unwinding. On the Adirondack Coast where it was invented, and far beyond.
The photographs in today’s post were taken exactly 10 years ago. Sepia tinged black-and-whites, they could be 100 years old. And yet they would feel just as familiar to us.
Lakeside lolling. 100 years ago. 10 years ago. Today. 
These chairs on our waterfront are usually occupied. Friends and family lolling lakeside after swimming, waterskiing, windsurfing, Wakesurfing, rowing, or sailing. Other times these Adirondack chairs are filled with soggy towels or quickly discarded clothing. Arms spread with drinks and snacks. S’mores ingredients within close range of a bonfire…
So much living, lazing, laughter, and so much lakeside lolling still evident in these timeless images. Even uninhabited…
Lakeside Lolling
Empty chairs remember
yesterdays’ wet towels,
unabbreviated swims,
tennis balls tossed
and retrieved and lost,
armrests still sticky
from s’mores browned
and s’mores burned,
spilled lemonade and
splashy sunrises,
alpen glow mirrored,
echos of laughter
dancing like fireflies
or sparks bonfired into
the inky darkness,
ripples lapping on
on the beach.
What do you think?