London son comes for an... erm... holiday
London son arrived for a long weekend, and had promised, somewhat stupidly, that he would be up for some physical labour, as his career as a musician means he doesn't spend much time out in the open air, or get much physical exercise. This, as could be imagined, was not the right thing to say...
Firstly, I shall say that it was really great to have you here, and you are welcome anytime. I'll have the shovel waiting for you at the train station. Unfortunately, it rained a lot that weekend, so our excursions were somewhat limited. We did however make it to the top of Puijo tower, which is a 75 metre high viewing point, and also 224 metres above Kallavesi lake. This is the view over the town, in the general direction of where we live.
The view in pretty every other direction is lakes and trees!
It was quite windy up there.
Having been let loose on a brief tour of Kuopio, London son was dressed in the Psychologist's old drinking overall (don't ask, it was a long time ago), and various of his elder brothers cast-offs, and dug like a madman. Here he is with a well deserved prize - this massive stone was moved all of 1 metre, and then buried again, and hard work it was!
Once the site was cleared and levelled, the next step was to work out how much earth we needed. We ordered seven cubic metres of high quality, pre-fertilised earth, which, as is always according to Sod's law, was delivered on the last day of his visit. The next day, I too would be leaving to sing for a week with the Klemetti college chamber choir (of which, more later). So, in accordance with Sod's other law, we ended up moving 7 tons of earth with a wheelbarrow, in a hurry, on the wettest day of the year so far!
Some actions shots - they're a bit blurred, 'cos he wouldn't stand still... (actually, it was wet, cold and my hands were shaking.)
We ended up working solidly for about 5 hours. I had old wet weather gear, but was quite concerned about London son's lithe frame and the onset of hypothermia, but he stayed the course to the bitter end, leaving the area looking like this by 10 pm, when we retired to a much needed sauna.
The picture quality has taken a dive - I was in a hurry! One other problem was that the route round the side of the house was on a reverse camber, and needed some control not to lose a full barrow load. We managed it, just. Gratitude in spades to his Majesty for doing such sterling work. It seems to be a habit (witness Mr. & Mrs. NW's previous playhouse building weekend!). Hope you returned safe and sound to the big city!
Firstly, I shall say that it was really great to have you here, and you are welcome anytime. I'll have the shovel waiting for you at the train station. Unfortunately, it rained a lot that weekend, so our excursions were somewhat limited. We did however make it to the top of Puijo tower, which is a 75 metre high viewing point, and also 224 metres above Kallavesi lake. This is the view over the town, in the general direction of where we live.
The view in pretty every other direction is lakes and trees!
It was quite windy up there.Having been let loose on a brief tour of Kuopio, London son was dressed in the Psychologist's old drinking overall (don't ask, it was a long time ago), and various of his elder brothers cast-offs, and dug like a madman. Here he is with a well deserved prize - this massive stone was moved all of 1 metre, and then buried again, and hard work it was!
Once the site was cleared and levelled, the next step was to work out how much earth we needed. We ordered seven cubic metres of high quality, pre-fertilised earth, which, as is always according to Sod's law, was delivered on the last day of his visit. The next day, I too would be leaving to sing for a week with the Klemetti college chamber choir (of which, more later). So, in accordance with Sod's other law, we ended up moving 7 tons of earth with a wheelbarrow, in a hurry, on the wettest day of the year so far!
Some actions shots - they're a bit blurred, 'cos he wouldn't stand still... (actually, it was wet, cold and my hands were shaking.)
We ended up working solidly for about 5 hours. I had old wet weather gear, but was quite concerned about London son's lithe frame and the onset of hypothermia, but he stayed the course to the bitter end, leaving the area looking like this by 10 pm, when we retired to a much needed sauna.
The picture quality has taken a dive - I was in a hurry! One other problem was that the route round the side of the house was on a reverse camber, and needed some control not to lose a full barrow load. We managed it, just. Gratitude in spades to his Majesty for doing such sterling work. It seems to be a habit (witness Mr. & Mrs. NW's previous playhouse building weekend!). Hope you returned safe and sound to the big city!
posted by the other cold one at 8:09 pm
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