And they're off!

It could actually be happening...

It's amazing how after over two years of waiting it still comes as shock when this morning Gary, Dave, Gareth and JJ started shifting the sawn logs still sitting on the ground from the chainsaw massacre only a few weeks ago ... ok the laylandi trees (?) were taken down.

Lots happening including most importantly the QS is meeting up with us (Harry and I) on Thursday which the wrong way around as it was supposed to be done with the greatest of urgency but there you go we've started.  I've decided that the first part of any building project is the best (finishing is great but time luckily softens the enviable pinch points) as we all feel good and excited about staring without having to write a large cheque for that pleasure!

Polly & Isla on the top soil mound

Digger taking out the old foundations

Week 1 – Ground breaking with diggers!  It was great to finally get started changing the garden to our building plot.  Garry, Dave, Gareth and JJ worked hard and enthusiastically.  We decided or I persuaded Flora that if we were going to ever have a cellar then this was the time.  I think about the German houses most of which have cellars and well frankly they’re a more pragmatic nation that we will ever be.  I looked up fences, portaloos and steel containers for hours on the internet but luckily we were saved probably quite a bit of money just getting accepting that the Gary / Dave combination was going to get a better price!  Not a problem John Griffen and Sons transported the large amount of soil and stones into two piles in the old archery field.

Start date - Monday 14th 2012

We all met up yesterday on a cold damp May afternoon at the Ropewalk a far cry from the sunshine and warmth of that week in March. Monday 14th May there will finally be builders at The Ropewalk. Still it's been agreed that Garry and Dave are going to project managed up until the shell has been built where Andrew will take over. Very soon I may actually have some interesting images to post rather than ones of a tatty garden. Depending on the weather this bank holiday weekend we may try and burn the huge pile of branches in the first real attempt to clear the site. Things to do include talking to Celtic Solar - after lots of debate we're going to have a cheaper back boiler rather than a gasifier which will be connected to the thermal store which in turn will be also connected to solar thermal panels. I'll see about PV panels. I think it makes sense to use the one recommended companyI just hope they can come up this far. Talk to farmer John Griffen to book him to move any soil into the old archery field at Mill on the Brue.