Friday, November 26, 2004
Spud bashing
Tomorrow there a large repas at the local village hall run by the parent teachers association (APE des Champs Geraux). There will be over 240 people (77 children!) attending. Caroline spent the afternoon peeling and chopping vegetables with her friends for the soup tomorrow night. If you ever need to make soup for 240 people you will need, 30 kg Potatoes, 15 kg Carrots, 15 kg Onions and 30 kg Leeks. Carolines hands looked a little sore this evening. The main course is Moules Frites, and for that they need 200 kg of Moules and 2.5kg of garlic !
This year Caroline has volunteered to help serve and I have volunteered to help with the washing up. Why ?
This afternoon I have been wielding my chainsaw copicing a very large hazel for firewood next year. As a little extra the builders left me three wooden pallets for firewood. So I had to smash them up into fire sized pieces. It all sounds very romantic and cosy having a real fire, but it's hard work and having a pile of old building waste stacked up next to the fireplace does take the edge of the romance.
| 7:54:27 PM
Spud bashing
Scaffolding removed
The maçons tell me they will be finished on Monday lunchtime apart from pouring the concrete for the kitchen floor on Tuesday morning once I've tied in the electric cabling for the kitchen. Most of the afternoon was spent tidying up and removing scaffolding etc. They do work fast. We've had four blokes for the last couple of days, and the kitchen is finished. They only put in the foundations two days ago !
You can see from the picture the outside is almost finished. Some slate roofing on the kitchen (far left) and the two new lucarnes (same as the middle one), a bit of blockwork in the central opening to make two windows then some cream coloured enduit on the blockwork for the kitchen and in the middle.
It's difficult to see but under each window sill they have deliberately left out stonework from the center. There is just a void. The head maçon told me it was to stop the stone breaking if the supporting stone at each end dried at an uneven rate. For example if the right hand side sunk very slightly any central stonework could act as a fulcrum on a lever causing the stone to be bent and break. Once dry and any danger of settling has passed they plug the hole.
I've been very impressed with our French builders. We've used English builders in England, English builders in France and obviously French builders here. Our best experience has been with the local French builders. They are a little more expensive but the work is guaranteed for 10 years and because they specialise (there is a strict demarkation of trades) the quality of their work is superb.
| 7:54:01 PM Scaffolding removed
