My hobby is rocking chairs. She knew it was special when he wanted to do it too.

“Invasion of personal space. Smelled like old urine. Not a single redemption feature here.”

These sound like the worst first date results in the world, but that’s actually the explanation I gave for a particularly nasty chair.

You see, some date scenes might give the opposite sex 10 out of 10, but I’d rather reserve that decision for a public place (and if you’re wondering, the chairs mentioned above are 1/10 lower just because of the existing ones).

I’ve been running the @ratethisbench social media account for 3 years and I think I’ve rated over 260 banks during that time.

It all started in June 2019 with a walk with some universal friends in Caswell Bay. We stopped at a particularly nice bench (wooden seats, blue cushions, and stunning views) and immediately lyrically waxed it. This is a clue that Gentle Mick got from my peers.

One of them suggested to sit on a chair, take a picture of me and start evaluating my Instagram account.

‘Why not?’ I laughed, I accepted the challenge. That day, I shot a few more benches and @ratethisbench was born. But what started as a joke quickly gained momentum – people were really into it and I got a lot of positive feedback and got more of 15,000 followers on the way.

Over time, I find that the more chairs I sit on, the more something that seems very mundane can become truly special. The chair reminds us to sit, breathe and think about life.

He was so into it that I added him to my Bumble dating profile and said “I thank the president” for potential love interests. It turned out to be the trigger for a small conversation.

One girl, Sophie Bailey, 25, was dead wrong. We were exchanging a few jokes and I told her that she appreciated guest ratings on my page.

Next thing I knew, he sent me… his own rating!

“Good boy, 5/5, really set the standard.”

I had to laugh in bed. The girl was clearly laughing, so I suggested a trip to the arcade myself.

When I caught up with the 2p post in November 2019, I told Sophie a bit more about my seat qualification. I think some women thought it was a little weird, but it was very interesting.

I like to rate each chair on a scale of 10 and explained that it is quite a complex rating system.

Check the view three times. Concrete base to keep feet clean from rain, curved seat marks, back marks, material marks (I like it) Putting wood on metal is more comfortable to sit on (because it’s usually dry), armrest marks and plate o dedication marks.

“So what about the tenth mark?” Sophie asked.

Our date was on 10/10, but I was shy and couldn’t tell, so I told her that the 10th sign she was looking for was a big factor.

Of course, you can also deduct the mark on the chair. You will be fined for graffiti, vandalism, resting your back, or being too close to the bottle. This can make the experience a bit smelly.

What I dislike the most are the so-called “hostile seats”, usually located in the city center parliament with separate seat dividers.

They prevent people from going to bed and sleeping violently, but they also make it difficult for them to relax and hug their partners. They go against the spirit of what the bench should be: a welcoming space to breathe.

It was our fourth date before we sat on the bench together. We attended a drug show in Bristol and sat on a bench in Millennium Square.

“Let me take your photo for Instagram,” Sophie suggested, going through my page and correcting my normal formatting.

We agreed it was a good chair – it had a solar panel so you could charge your phone from a USB port, which is very unusual.

A few days later, I was out for a cup of tea and I was sitting on a bench by the lake, so I officially asked her to be my girlfriend.

The rocking chair turned out to be a great way out. We spent the weekend reviewing stage chairs with suggestions from my account followers.

We were able to get to know each other while taking in the scenery with coffee and ice cream. The chairs are neutral and sit next to each other, making it a great place to chat.

And when the pandemic hit, with various restrictions, the chair became one of the few places where friends could still gather openly. He was angry to see that some authorities took them away.

Now Sophie is the woman behind my Instagram camera. She sits next to me as I sit in a chair and take photos that seem thoughtful, and then we brainstorm how we rate it.

We generally agree, he usually maintains my standards and helps me find a new chair. A good view is the most important feature for Sophie: what she likes the most is the sea view. In fact, we joke that a good ocean view can be a really bad chair.

My favorite bench to date is a fairly standard wooden bench in the courtyard of Old Sodobury’s Church of St John the Baptist.

To review this chair, we had to wait a turn behind another dear couple who were enjoying the beautiful scenery, but it was worth it-9/10.

I got a tattoo on my leg last month. I am a life councilor of the Inns of Court. Fortunately, Sophie loved it.

Still looking for that essential 10/10 chair, but definitely found my 10/10 girl.

As Jade Beecroft told me