Fiiiiire pittttt!! I would love that. There was one on the deck facing a river at the Bed & Breakfast Colin and I stayed at. It was so romantic, and strangely nostalgic.

I would totally throw down some elbow grease if it would help to get this thing erected.

FIREPIT. we are obsessed with out chiminea (I don't know the spelling on that) so I 100% vote for one. we just sat out there the other night for like 3 hours with a bottle of wine...I love it. since I'm a loser and read backyard living, I saw an issue maybe last summer or so with a couple that built one right into their deck. you should do that! there might be some sort of code about keeping it off the deck but if you do it right you probably don't have to worry about burning the house down. http://cdesigns-home.com/ext_gallery.html this one is built on top so it's probably safer. the one I saw was like a giant old tin bathtub or SOMETHING that they set right in flush with the deck. kind of like this http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/deck-ideas-51.jpg but still not. I'll look for the magazine (there's a three year stack at my parents house) and see if I can find it.

Haha - the other day Jeremy said "chiminea" and I said "I think you mean CHIMNEY" - haha! I had never heard the word chiminea before...

Thanks for the links! I'll check those out. I like the idea of using some of our yard for a fire pit and keeping the deck reserved for patio furniture and the grill. Our yard is huge and kind of wasted space for now. Maybe we can get a chiminea for our deck now to hold us over until next year.

We have a cast iron chimenea and absolutely love it. During the winter we often find ourselves using it for cooking at least twice a week. Roasting sweet corn, potatoes, hobo dinners, s'mores...we've even boiled noodles in a pot on its little stovepipe.

Firepits are definitely badass, but I would go for a chimenea simply because it would be easier, faster, and cheaper to go from 'not having one' to 'having one' Instant gratification!

I had one similar to the third picture just after college. The wind was never calm enough to actually enjoy it - someone always had smoke in their face.

Yes! Jake and I are going to be house shopping shortly after he graduates in December, and a firepit is on my list of "awesome DIY yard projects". So cozy and wonderful!

Amy - are you and Jake staying in Norman?

I think building a firepit will be relatively easy... I'm still putting it off until next fall though.

Yes, we're staying. We had talked seriously about moving to Seattle, but after looking at house prices and such we decided to stick around. Norman is not so bad. ;)

Burning wood is a lame idea as most of you know by now. Might just land you in a court room.
Natural gas would be a better and safer choice. The best decision to avoid trouble down the road? Fire pits is nice option to save fire and home. Do some research if you don't understand things. http://www.firepits.me.uk