Damn you Mulli! You beat me to it.
Swiddles, I noticed you mentioned you have a bad back. Listen closely: Don’t be cheap! Spend the extra money for something firm and comfortable. Remember, you’ll probably have this for a long time, long enough so that even a couple hundred bucks becomes negligible (sp?). Your back will thank you for it.
I have a bad back too, and was wise enough to get a firm high quality matress. If you want to come over and check it out…
At least all of you can fit on a king sized bed. Swiddles, just be sure to get one without a footboard. I don’t want to be cramped.
Mully, I’m crushed to discover that you don’t savor each and every word of my deathless posts.
Scroll back six, chum, and remember classy broads like Swiddles don’t go for guys who speed-read.
So Swiddles is going back to school, and her first major investment is a new bed. I’d say her priorities are in order!
Any suggestions on other equipment she needs to facilitate her (ahem) studies?
What type of psychology was that you intend to study my dear?
I, for one, sleep on a lawnchair and it’s damned comfortable. I have it flat, about six inches or so off the floor.
Magdalene, you forgot about all the females who lust after Swiddles with the fiery passion of a thousand white-hot suns. Really, you did 
<<Any suggestions on other equipment she needs to facilitate her (ahem) studies? >>
Well, I’ll be older than the other students, so I figure I need to be “friends” with the professors. This has other obvious acedemic advantages, as well.
See, the problem with the futon is that there is a Swiddle sized dent in the middle. I flip the mattress often, it’s just worn out. And I have already had a friend offer to fill that dent, which I respectfully declined.
Back to hunt through the jungle of mattresses…
When you find one you like, I’ll be glad to help break it in
I bought a bed in the little kids department at Ikea last year. I figured I could use it as a sofa when I had a real life.
Ikea has a bunch of nice stuff for good prices - check it out if you live near one, SRiddles.
Dangit Uke, I read it but didn’t really read it. Looks like I have accidentally grabbed onto your coattails. I rescind my previous post and direct all readers back to the subtle brilliance of Mr. Ike’s posting.
Think nothing of it, old bean.
Often, when I’ve finished reading one of your genius posts, full plumb to the gunwales with sparkling wit and incisive synecdoche, I’ve caught myself thinking “Golly, I wish I’d said that!” I’m delighted to see that the feeling is mutual.
(“No, no, I insist, my dear Gaston, after you by all means!”)
Ah, hell. You two can have the bed.
What size was the dent?
Swiddle sized.
Ahhh - Swiddle sized. My favorite size for a dent.
<Inspired by Eeyore’s Birthday - and we won’t touch the part about usefulness in terms of putting things in and taking them out!>
You’re not a fan of the waterbed, I take it, Swiddles?
I really dig mine. It’s 80% waveless, so it doesn’t keep jiggling after you roll over. The 90-100% waveless models are a bit too firm for me, because, as a big dude, I sink into them, the waveless stuff surrounds me on either side, and I have to wage a small war to roll over.
One great thing about waterbeds: temperature control. Mmmm, toasty warm in winter. Mmmm, deliciously cool in summer. And they’ve learned a few things about waterbed sheets since the 80s, so they actually stay tucked in these days.
Anyway, something to consider. Although, if your bedroom is on a second floor or something, you’ll need to verify that the floor/ceiling can support a ton or so of water.
Oh and Swiddles, might I suggest you get a king size without a footboard, so I don’t get cramped. 
Alright, because it has been so widely debated, I am getting a full. Sorry, guys. A Queen is $70 more, and at this point, that’s a $70 wager that I’m not willing to take. And a king is right out, as I’d sort of enjoy eating food sometime next month.
Max, I like waterbeds, but it’s in my lease that I’m not allowed to have them. I live above my landlords’ house, and I tend to forget I have sharp hair doohickeys in my pocket, and I think the combination is just too dangerous.
Off to play another round of GoliSwiddles with Spring Air mattresses.
I changed from a futon to a bed about three years ago. Right after I had back surgery, my (very nice) futon became NOT COMFORTABLE. I took the hint and got a bed.
But… I already had a nice frame that my futon sat in. So, I only bought a mattress, not a box spring. It’s kind of the best of both worlds. Much cheaper than a mattress and box spring, the slats that supported my futon provide more support than most boxsprings, and I still feel more “alternative” than “mainstream” - always important to us futon people.
P.S. We got the mattress from Ikea. Very comfortable, they delivered.
Ummm, Swiddles, a matress and box spring made by one of the manufacturers Mully recommended above usually are guaranteed for long periods of time, like 15 years, give or take.
I’d wager that, sometime in the next decade or so, you’ll find someone you want to share your bed with on a regular basis, and at that time, you’ll be pissed at yourself for not paying the extra $70 for a queen, unless you’re both very small people.
That’s easy: I give great back-rubs. 
How’re your feet?
A full will do nicely. That’s what I have. It works out just fine for two people and a cat to sleep in comfort. She’s a small cat, mind you, but she does like to sprawl across great expanses of mattress real estate.
Why am I telling you this?
A full is just dandy.
When all of my friends were going through this stage a couple of years ago, we used to call anything above a twin mattress a Hopeful Mattress.
If you don’t have a footboard what do you attach the ankle restraints to?