It comes in 4/4 stock, and is kiln dried- so there should be no
problems with waiting for it to dry out. While I can't say that money
is no object, I'm not terribly concerned about the price of a set of
deck chairs and a little table. I think this stuff is about $2-3/bf.
I can't afford to hunt down Teak or Honduran mahogany or anything like
that, but cedar should be appropriate to the application in any case.
My second choice is Redwood from the lumberyard a little ways down the
road. Also not a bank-breaker, but it doesn't have as much character
as the cedar.

Aromatic or eastern red. One of the driest in the log of domestic woods,
with the heartwood barely above the fiber saturation point. Also one of the
toughest to get a finish to stick to. Shellac is what I've had luck with.
Lot of oil and resin in the stuff.

For outside, let 'er go naked. Lots of hillbillies did.

Nope, I've gotta have a finish on it now. If I want to see hillbilly
stuff, I'll go visit my parents! That, and I want to keep the color.
Thanks to you folks that responded- I'm going to make sure to look
into that arm-r-seal stuff, and see how it goes.
Aut inveniam viam aut faciam