The Boonie Bench

We lost my father-in-law two years ago. He was known as Boonie by all of us and his love of outdoor cooking, either on an open fire or with a propane cooker was legendary. He was always looking for a way to be comfortable and have his cooking implements at the correct height. One of the things he'd cobble together was a small bench that allowed him to stand comfortably while frying fish and have enough room for his implements.

I've got to fry fish this afternoon at the church. Every Good Friday, four or five of the men get together and fry fish for the congregation. So, this afternoon about three o'clock, I'm heading to the church. I needed a small bench to help with the cooking so today I took a lesson from my father-in-law and carpented a small bench.

I give you the Boonie Bench.



It's four feet long, eighteen inches tall and about 14 inches wide. I say about, because I didn't measure the width. I didn't use a micrometer when I was building this bench. It's all lumber left over from other projects.

You'll notice the small gap between the two top boards. That gap is there to let you grasp the bench from the middle, to move it with one hand. That's one of Boonie's trademark design features.

The material list is tiny.

1 - 2x4x8
2 - 5/4x6x8 decking boards
1 - plywood scrap, cut diagonally into triangles.

It's screwed together with screws left over from the decking project. Total cost to me is zero, because it's all lumber that was used for other things.

I think the old man would be proud.