Wood is Maintenance

Folks, this picture is actually a microcosm of a larger issue. 

Yes, I used the word microcosm. 

After two years, we are already re-staining part of the house due to sun exposure. This same issue has brought us to a halt on starting our outdoor plan. (Get ready for the larger issue.) The outdoor plan calls for a poured concrete pad for the deck, which is low maintenance. It would require a cement truck and dollar bills we don't have.  So, we decided to do a traditional wood deck, but seeing how much maintenance the wood siding requires makes me NOT want to use wood. I want to be lounging on the deck, not coating it with stain. 

This has brought us to gridlock (i.e. unable to move forward). What will our cheap & low maintenance deck material be?

I spied this "flooring" at Riverfront Park this weekend, and it's my new push for the deck material. It's both sturdy and soft...

...and complicated to install ...and where do you buy it?  Maybe we should just do lawn grass. I don't know.

So, until we figure out the deck floor, we can't move forward with anything else, including the gabian walls. The pile of material will just have to continue to sit here until we make a decision.