All done!!

At the risk of boring you all senseless, here is a final video clip of the fence all finished! You have no idea what a mammoth job that was for one old aged pensioner to do on his own. Thank goodness it is all over. The whole job was made worse due to the fact that the garden is on quite a slope! Now he said he intends to take a week off to potter, then start on the transformation of the dressing room into another guest bedroom. He has until Christmas to get that finished, so can take his time if he wants to, but knowing Lennie, he will go at it until it is finished!

Moving on!

Thank goodness for a break in this nasty weather! It has been pouring down, and making everything very muddy, and uncomfortable to work in. Lennie has managed to work outside all day today, and things are moving on.

Thankfully, our next door neighbours have gone to France for a week, so we do not have to worry about intruding on their privacy. Pickles is being very good, and has not attempted to go into their garden once, so that is one less worry.

I must admit I am going a bit 'stir crazy' because we usually manage to get out once a day, even if it is to visit my daughter Sindie. She and her family have gone to Kent for a few days to attend the funeral of her father-in-law. I don't like driving, especially by myself, and we live in such a hilly place that I am sure I would have a heart attack if I decided to go walking round here! And of course, Lennie has no time to go off jaunting about!

He is working so hard, as I have probably said before, but hopefully things will ease up a bit now, as he is on the shorter concrete posts, which only weigh 84lbs, whereas the others weighed 126lb! Still very heavy as they are such a dead weight, but a little easier on the arms and back. He is also moving on to earth as opposed to concrete, so the digging will be easier as well.

I have attached a video to show you how he is getting on.

More news as it happens:0)

Getting there!

Lennie is gradually getting the fence up, weather permitting! He had to have a day off yesterday due to back strain, but he is back out there today, dodging the showers! The posts and gravel boards weigh over 9 stone each, and that is a lot of dead weight to keep shifting about! As you can see, some of the posts are in, but we are waiting for Gary, our son in law to come and help put the panels in, as they are very large and have to be lifted above head height to get them in the grooves. I did one with Lennie, but my daughter Sindie was not happy about it! Here are a couple of pictures taken between showers.










Once Lennie gets past the patio and on to the grass, things will become a lot easier and faster for him. At the moment he is having to dig very deep holes through rocks and concrete to set the posts in, but once on the grass it will be mainly earth. He thinks the digging of the holes on his knees was the main cause of his back problem.

The weather for tomorrow seems a little more promising, so we shall have to see how much he can get done then.

Injury!

This is what happened to Lennies arms shifting just one concrete post. At this rate he will be in shreds when he has shifted all 20 of them!!

More as it happens:0)

Our New Project

Those of you who know us, are aware that we live on a very windy corner, and are always having trouble with our fences blowing over and crushing our neighbours plants and solar lights! After a couple of embarrassing years, tying the fence to the other side of the garden using bright blue towing ropes to try and hold the fence up during gales, we decided enough was enough, and we would have to lay out for new fencing. This is what the fence looks like now.

As you can see, it rests directly on the grass and if one part gets blown over it takes a lot more with it!

The fence is 90 feet long, and we have decided to buy the sort of fence that has panels seperated by concrete posts, so that if there is any damage, we just have to slide the broken panel out and replace it with another, rather than dig up the huge wooden posts and replace them as well. The fence will rest on concrete gravel posts, all of which have been delivered now, and deposited in various parts of the garden by Len and my son Chris. It was thought that while he was here visiting for a while, he would help Len put them close to where they will be needed, as they are extremely heavy, and Len is no spring chicken!

Work started this morning, digging the hole for the first post. As this is the one that is adjacent to next doors gate, it was the one most worrying Lennie. He says once this is sorted out he should be able to get on with the rest of it okay.

Thank goodness this will see an end to poor Lennie, on his hands and knees in icy, windy conditions, digging holes and mixing cement to replace broken fence posts!

I will update this project as it moves on.

As usual, one post in and rain stopped play!!!!

Dear Old Tom

I was sitting thinking of years gone by, when my late father-in-law, Tom, came to mind. He was a lovely chap, and was always smiling. His wife totally and absolutely spoilt him, and all he ever did in the house, apart from DIY, was wiping up and making a pot of tea! Of course, when his dear wife died, he couldn't realistically look after himself, and as we owned a retirement home in Kent, he came to live with us there. We lived on the top floor for a while, and on Tom's request, we gave him his own room amongst the residents. He loved looking in on them to say goodnight, and thoroughly enjoyed the weekly parties we held for them all. He adored the homes dog, Pickles, and they were inseperable. He also had his girlfriend, Doris, a resident. He was very much loved by residents and staff alike, and had his little jobs that he liked to do to help the staff, like helping the gardener, and seeing that all the kitchen waste was securely tied up etc.,.



After he had lived with us for 5 years, he sadly got prostate cancer and died. This is a poem that I made up and gave out to the staff.



TOM



He always had a smile for you,

He always had a joke,

Happy in his own small world,

With his home, his wife and 'smoke'.



For miles around they knew him,

That kind and helpful man,

He'd clean their windows, mend their things,

And often an errand ran.



He always helped the old folk,

The helpless and the poor,

He had his wife and children,

And would never ask for more.



As years passed by he slowly aged,

But was a familiar sight,

Carrying peoples bags for them,

(But now his hair was white!).



His world it fell apart one day,

When he lost his treasured wife,

Suddenly she wasn't there,

He'd lost part of his life.



He needed looking after,

So came to live with us,

And tried to settle down here,

With the minimum of fuss.



The tables began turning,

He was 'useful' once again,

As he helped the ladies and the staff,

In his own little domain.



He had his faithful Pickles,

Doris, and the staff,

His garden and his rubbish bags,

He always liked a laugh.



You made him feel so needed,

You made him feel so proud,

As he helped you in the kitchen,

And joined in with 'the crowd'.



At parties he would hold the mike,

And sing with all his heart,

I think he was his happiest,

When he heard the music start.



But sadly Tom became unwell,

And illness took it's toll,

He couldn't help us any more,

He couldn't play 'his role'.



His garden patch grew weedy,

The rubbish piled up high,

His strength it fast was fading,

To see him made us cry.



But Tom was totally unaware,

Of what lay in store for him,

He relished all the love you gave,

And returned it with a grin.



Tom didn't suffer any pain,

You gave him so much care,

And when time came for him to leave,

Again, you all were there.



Our lives are all the richer,

For knowing dear old Tom,

And we owe so much to all of you,

For making him 'belong'.



I know he's not too far away,

I feel him everywhere,

And when next we have our party,

Don't be fooled, 'cos he'll be there!



And in all our future summers,

If you would like a treat,

I'm sure you'll feel him sitting,

In his 'personal' garden seat.



You show love and understanding,

In everything you do,

So from Lennie, Sandie and Pickles,

Our heartfelt thanks to you.



This is a picture of Tom and his lovely wife Flo.

Garden visitor

Just thought I would show you this photograph of one of our regular garden visitors:0) This squirrel is now being joined on it's forages by a baby. They are digging little holes all over the lawn and burying the peanuts! Click photo's to enlarge.