Another room completed

Once again I'm on schedule for my update, though I'm a little later starting to type this than I normally like. I've just finished a very lovely fish and chips dinner with some superb salad on the side and I'm feeling quite full so we'll see how well this typing thing goes. It's been a good few days with lots of progress, and no respite in sight either, so here goes.

Thelma smiles in her sleep

I'll open with a photograph taken of Thelma just after I published the last update. She was wrapped up in the blanket on the sofa in Room 13 and was sleeping with a little smile on her face. It was so cute that I had to get a picture. Those two puppies are adorable.

Orange sky in the morning

Thelma and Louise enjoying the sunshine

Rambo is loving it also

Bekir fitting the drainage pipes off the balcony

Another door is hung on the reservoirs

Tiles going down fast now

Wednesday dawned clear and bright but with no frost which was good as my scraper had broken somehow. Once again I headed out to get the men, the routine of me collecting them when A is working is proving successful. When I got back I found the puppies and Rambo enjoying the warmth of the sun and it was starting to take effect already; it was going to be a warm one. There was a lot for the men to be getting on with and Bekir continued working on the pipes bringing water off the balcony while Sally put the finishing touches on the door he was working on and Youlhan set to on the tiling for the twin guest room floor.

The approach to Buckleberry Ferry takes shape

Bekir testing the drains; and it works

Cow manure ready for spreading

Two men up two ladders

Tiles looking really good in the twin room

I was having a bit of a modelling start to the day as I attempt to clear my desk once more so I can pick up the next scenery build; this kept me inside for a while and when I went out I found Bekir was testing the drainage by running water up onto the balcony with a hose and making sure it all drains. I had a long conversation with him about the remedial work that is needed on that balcony as the builder didn't do a good job before and we agreed to look at it later in the year, should I get a job and be able to afford it that is. Anyway I was off with my wheelbarrow down to the village manure dump and brought back several loads which I dumped next to the new spuds for A to spread later. By this time Bekir had moved round from working on the balcony drainage and was started on the downpipe near the lounge. He had Yulhan helping out as he reattached some pipes to get the drop that we need. That huge ladder was proving very useful indeed. Yulhan had cracked on very well in the twin room and was on target to finish that day.

Sally lays out the final door frame

Bekir bringing the pipes together towards the reservoir

The swinging chair having been hosed clean

Yulhan approaches the end of this task

Sally had finished the second door and was onto setting out and making a frame for the final one. He was making good use of the flat area on the driveway for this task which was very sensible. Bekir, meanwhile, had worked the pipe, with a few mis-positions, around underneath the balcony overhang and was guiding it towards the reservoir. I had another job on my list, to clean the swinging chair for use over summer, so I brushed it all off and then got the hosepipe and made it nice and lovely and clean. There's just the final few stitches to put in the cushion and it'll be ready for me to sleep in once again. The twin room had its tiling well onto the final stretch and it would be finished for sure by the end of the day.

Yulhan cleaning up the finished tiles

Sally got the final door hung

Lots of pipes (that will eventually be boxed off)

The other pipes starting to be fitted

Me waiting for dinner on the roof terrace

Lovely home made burgers, home grown salad

A huge bird circles above

The sun catches on its wings

And so we got to the end of the day. Yulhan did finish the tiling, and swept the floor ready for grouting in the morning. Sally got the final door in place and hung so he could pick up a new task in the morning as well. Bekir had finished joining everything together above the reservoir and was now onto the next stage which is the pipes around the back of the balcony. A had managed to get outside and cover over the spuds that the Little Lady had provided us, though our own she didn't cover as an experiment. It was a glorious afternoon and evening and so we decided on a BBQ (but without using the BBQ) and when I got home from dropping the men everything was set out on the roof terrace so I sat up there, enjoyed the views, and chilled while A finished off preparations. The food was superb, and there was a large bird of prey flying around that I got some nice pictures of, and then it was time to go inside, feed the animals, and relax.

Final reservoir poised to be put in its home

Yulhan cuts up tiles to use for skirting in the twin room

Sally grinning widely while on the Green Building roof

That skirting is flying around the twin room

Bekir is back to his pipe work

Sally clearing the roof and putting better waterproofing in place

Thursday morning came round too soon once more and I was up and out to get the men as usual. The first task for the men was to bring the final reservoir out of the garage to its housing. I think this prompted Bekir to his next task but more on that shortly. We didn't have the correct grout for Yulhan first thing but he wasn't ready for it anyway; he was getting ready to put the edging around the room so was cutting up tiles in preparation. Having got his shopping list together Bekir took me down to town to pick up some supplies and while I was leaving I saw that Sally was on top of the Green Building and was making a start at repairing the roof. At the shop we picked everything up and also got some mesh to put over the drains to prevent leaves getting into our water storage and blocking the pipes. I got back to find that Yulhan had done half of the edging already and was flying round the room. Bekir clearly wanted to finish off the pipework he'd begun the evening before and so went back round the balcony and carried on there. Sally, meanwhile, was making good progress clearing the old repair attempts out of the way so a good fix could be put in place.

The plum tree Sally saved is blossoming

The first flowers in A's little garden

The roof in here has been badly damaged

Empty apart from a big pile of good coal for the neighbours

Sally doing a very horrible job of flattening these gutters

The first wheel is removed

With my shopping trip with Bekir out of the way I had my next chore lined up immediately but before I headed off to get Thomas' tyres changed from winter tyres I took a short stroll around to capture some more growing things, and to look inside the coal shed (which may end up being the rabbitry. Maybe). This needs some work doing to it and it may be that Bekir and Sally pick this up next week before they finish with us. It needs to be made safe at least. For now Sally had a very nasty job flattening out the old metal guttering which we hadn't thrown away to be used to strengthen the roof. Anyway my visit to the garage was slightly long but very pleasant as the sun was out and it was baking; I sat in the sun reading until I got too hot then I sat in the shade and soon enough I was heading home for my lunch.

Sally cleaning across the roof

Yulhan sweeping again, having completed the skirting

Sally sweeping off the roof, still

Inventive clips to secure the insulation to the wooden frame

Bekir skims the insulation

The items saved from the school safely in the roof again

After a lovely lunch sat with A in the sun on the patio I went to see what the men were up to. Sally was back on the roof and working along fast; this wasn't looking like it'd take that long at all. Yulhan, meanwhile, had completed the skirting and was sweeping ready to begin grouting. A bit later in the afternoon I found Sally sweeping the roof to get it totally clean of all the detritus from over the years that has built up there while Bekir was round at the front putting insulation in where the reservoir will go as once that is in place this wall will be inaccessible. They do plan ahead well. I particularly liked the inventiveness displayed in the little nail clips which Bekir fashion to secure the insulation in place. He then went ahead and mixed up some plaster and sealed it all in place. I was far from idle during the afternoon as we had decided to get Yulhan to stay on after finishing the twin room and work on the lab and Sassy's room to seal the floor and do some finishing off to prevent dust creation. This meant I had to rush to clear out the lab, having just put some stuff in there for storage, and I lifted all the items that were saved from the school which will eventually form our little museum downstairs and I carried them into the roof space.

The beautiful view from our roof terrace

Thelma sitting in the sun

Puppy cuddles while they look at the view

Yulhan finishes for the day

A getting ready to burn the chicken (she didn't)

Clouds blowing in bringing the threatened rain

The sun appears below the cloud

Hidden again, a beautiful show

Sunbeams stream from behind the clouds

Very good girls waiting for us to finish eating

An awesome little machine of our neighbour's

I think this is a bee eater

Our plan was for another BBQ for dinner so A went onto the roof terrace to get ready to light it while I took the men. They weren't quite ready for leaving however so we spent a little time up there enjoying it and playing with the puppies; the forecast was for rain later and we weren't even sure if we'd get the BBQ done. I headed downstairs to check on the men and found Yulhan just cleaning the floor having completed all the grouting and shortly after that we headed off. I got back to find the BBQ well lit but the clouds rolling in. It was, once again, a superb meal and the weather held for us, even giving a wonderful sunset, long enough that we could eat and not rush inside. The puppies showed once more just how well behaved they are as they sat and waited for us to finish. Our neighbours were out and about pulling hay inside showing that the threat of rain was real. I had an important phone call in the evening so A went to watch some CSI and while I was waiting I got some modelling done and also watched a bee eater that was sat in the tea tree outside the window. The call was successful, I think, and not long after it was time for bed as we were both pretty tired from the day.

Reservoir in place; all the rain from last night drained out here as well

Our new worker

Chainsaw (shelving unit) massacre

And so, finally (and quite late) we come to today. This has been a long update already as so much has happened and even more went on today. First of all Nejo is back onsite to finish the Men's Room and the little room next to it, which will be our gym/exercise room eventually. He arrived dead on time at 8am, bringing a helper whose name I do not yet know. A had collected Bekir and the men this morning so I was able to get Nejo sorted out. The first task for Bekir and Yulhan was to lift the reservoir inside its housing which was done early and then Yulhan went into the lab to start in there. He is going to be moving the huge shelving units around so he can fix the floor, finishing around the windows, putting a skim on the walls and doing the same in Sassy's Room. One of the bookshelves was damaged (it had been knocked over when the original window blew out of its frame) so I was planning on getting rid of that one, but using the salvageable parts to fix up the other damaged shelves in the room. He understood this requirement and came up with a quick and easy solution; he got the chainsaw and cut the shelves out. I had to video it so there it is.

Sally getting cement dust blown in his face

Bekir being safe as usual

Scraping the walls of the Men's Room

Sally was straight out to work on the Green Building roof and had his machine working to make cement to put a really good seal on the ridge. Bekir, meanwhile, had been intercepted from going outside to work on the drainage and was in the twin room to do the final touches like put the curtain rail up and attach the plug sockets. As soon as he had calculated the length of cord needed to extend the pulley to within reach of a normal person, however, we headed out to the shop and spent the entirety of the rest of the morning visiting various places picking up supplies. A was also in town doing our weekly shop and we waved to each other as I drove past the market and then later on drove together towards town. When we got back I snapped a few pictures of Nejo working away in the Men's Room, the little room had already been done and painted with primer, and then it was lunch time for everyone.

Pat has no wheels

Sally finishing off this section of the roof

Bekir says this should be good for five years

The beds are in the twin room

Thelma never gets tired of playing

A had a task today, having done the shopping, which was to take Pat to get her tyres changed over and I joiner her briefly as the carpenter was in his workshop and had sawdust for us. When I got back and unloaded I snapped a few pictures, including braving the home made ladder to get some shots of Sally on the roof, and the excellent job he's doing up there, before heading back inside. I had expected today to be a really stressful day with two teams of builders onsite however it turned out to be OK and I got a lot of painting done of miniatures which was relaxing and just what I needed. A was exhausted after her tough week working so she had a much deserved rest through the afternoon. The end of the day was reached with Yulhan having finished the edges of the windows and the two single beds being carried into the twin room. What a win! Dinner was (as already mentioned) very nice and since then I've sat here and typed this while A has played with the puppies and then read her book. Just now we can hear our owls calling outside, flying past the windows really close chasing insects attracted to our lights, and once this is published I'm going to have a quick shower and then bed; no rest for us this weekend as Nejo is back at 8am to continue his work.

Thanks for reading; sorry it is so long it's just that so much has happened!