The Race Is On, But Can We Keep Up With Gary?

When Gary came to organise the work for us, 

little did we know that he was a "slave driver".

 We heard too late!

Well we like being Gary's slaves most of the time and life has become a round of sport, particularly for his apprentice Jenny, who I must say gives him an awful lot of back chat!

They have wheelbarrow races with the rubble, 

looks who's got the pink wheelbarrow!

Cassie waits for someone to throw her ball...for hours sometimes.

This lintel broke into rotten pieces as it came out,

 there are a few like that.

The plaster dust is everywhere...always!

Cassie tries waiting in the sand.

We have moved things so many times, but this is the last time Nick will move his workshop before the house is finished...we hope.

Bob, Gary and Nick as we took Gary out for the first time.

Looking at a seal looking at us

Sea Gooseberry.

Bob tries out the new toilet, no cistern yet, so a bucket will do!

Back at the house the race is on...

Jenny  putting in screws.

Moving wood...

Gary and Nick moving insulation...again!

Bob and Mark start to cover the new store room Gary and the others built last week.

Ben hands up floor boards...

                               

                                Bob and Mark receive them

                             Nick scribes skirting boards.

Gary "The Boss" finishing the plastering in our upstairs.

 An amazing result!

Mikey and swan

Nick takes Ollie on an adventure on the high seas... 

Laying and glueing the floorboards

Our 3rd woodburner was very heavy!

At Topsy's

Mark watches Lottie work!

Bob de-nailing wood to re-use at a later date.

Watertight store room.

Dry lining in Sandy and Tom's half

Gary teaches Jenny to build the 2nd store room

Everyone comes out to watch Michael unload a premature batch of plasterboard...

and we thought we were leaving early that day!

Time for a beach fire.

Nick with his FatMax!

Adam and Gary move plasterboard around the house as it always seems to be in the way!

Even Martin, the electrician gets roped in.

Cassie offers them a glove.

Before the plasterboard the Visquine/vapour barrier goes on.

As Gary cuts and fits the plasterboard 1000s of screws have to go in 6 inches apart. Jenny has probably done 5,000, but we have all had a go at this and nearly always Gary spots some that we have missed.

At last we have the electricity on as Martin finishes the first quarter of the house.

Light is good, no more torches to see your way to the loo, hoping a rat doesn't jump out!

Ben reaches to put the final bulb in without a ladder.

...and I cook the first cakes and roast chicken in the oven.

Tom, Sandy and Adam come up for a week to see the progress and help with some shifting of wood and rubble.

Ben, Jenny and Adam go out to seek seals and otters.

We made Sandy and Tom a bed out of Xtratherm insulation and it was comfortable, so they said.

Back to work.

Back to sleep!

Back to plaster dust and the race to finish first goes on!!!!

Beneath a very wet wall we find the source of all the rot!

We are treating all the walls and the woodwork 

with 2 types of rot treatment for masonry and wood.

Ben and Nick moving the door to a safe place.

Thanks to Gary we may have a house to live in before we thought possible...we may also need a year to recover, but I think it may be worth it. How one man can motivate others in such a way that they all race around trying to please him I don't know, but Gary does it exceptionally well and the workmanship...well you'll have to come and see for yourselves next year!!

Gary has put a disclaimer on some of my photos as the walls look crooked...I blame the camera!

Mary-Ann