Animals and People

Monday 1 October 2012

Megachuck is looking for another nesting site - and for a while, seemed to be seriously considering the cat house.

When the chickens are let out in the morning they trot quickly up to the decking to see if the cats still have any cat food.  The cats back off and let them take it, so I tried double-decker feeding:

Linda and Ian fancied a day out, so we took the car up to Nikopolis near Preveza to explore the ruins, admire the mosaics and have an ice-cream in the sunshine.

Woodworking

Saturday 29 September

Shocking!  They even work on Saturdays!  More frame, and the first floor ring beam - requiring some extreme chainsawing from Yiannis the woodworker.  He's being surprisingly accurate and deft with a chainsaw.  It may not be the traditional tools, but the structure is in the old style.

These are the olive-wood corners

Going Up

Friday 28 September 2012

0800 the following morning, the workforce arrived as we crawled blearily out of bed, and within 30 mins we had our first upright as the flatpacked house started to unfold. 

Constantine arrived with our RealArchitects t-shirts, which we put on immediately as it meant we didn’t have to think about what to wear.

This is the back, proving they are of-fish-ial t-shirts!

Then we went into Nidri to wave Rob off on his travels.

We were back on the land at one-ish, and this much structure had appeared.  The workers left around two, so Dave and I marked in the critical locations for uprights through the middle of the house, and then Dave got on with drainage trench digging.  Not bad for a rockstar with a hangover.

Rob's Farewell Gig

Thursday 27 September 2012

Rob was leaving on Friday, so Thursday night was the last gig - possibly for quite some time, Dave fears - so the band played their hearts out.  Dave's sister and husband, Linda and Ian came to party, and Rob kept going until 2am, closing with some karaoke with Vicky only just keeping up.

Some pics if you're interested:

The new rat pack ...

Flat-packed frame

Thursday 27 September 2012

On Thursday we slept late, after all this wild behaviour, and in preparation for the final farewell gig tonight.  I staggered out to feed the livestock, while Dave enjoyed his Rock God lifestyle.

Megachuck rethinking her laying strategy: 

 'No cameras!'

Chickens examining the pond in our defunct dinghy.

As we were mildly curious why there had been no progress with the wood frame since last Saturday, I sent a text to Constantine, wondering if we were waiting for a wood delivery.  He answered yes, and it would arrive 'very very soon'.  Well, you don't take something like that too seriously round here, so I made tea and went back to bed.

A thundering down the track heralded a massive delivery lorry, only ten minutes later, so we flung on some clothes and went out to move the cars to let him through.  While watching the unloading, I text again, to say 'Wow!  THAT soon.'  He said he and Yianni would be back on site from tomorrow.  I said we would be out at the final gig tonight, and asked if they'd work quietly in the morning.  'We are always very shy at work', replied K.

Looking at the wood, we reckon everything we need is now here, including a massive long roof beam, ready-made t-bar supports and rough olive-wood corners.  Hurrah!  

 

 

 

Non-stop music

23 - 27 September 2012

Rob has decided to go back to the UK, and picked up a flight at short notice for Friday 28 Sept, so suddenly we are dropped into a whirlwind of farewell activity.

On Sunday the band were asked to play in the Roadhouse Rock Club.  Also on Sunday, Dave's sister and brother in law, Linda and Ian arrived for a two-week holiday on a late flight.  They made it in to the gig, for a short time.  We didn't leave till after 3 am.

On Monday it was lovely Mike's 70th birthday, still not looking a day over 55, and overwhelmed by the number of people who turned up to wish him well.  (Sue wouldn't turn round for the photo!)  Mike had asked the band to play, so we didn't get home till 2 ish.

On Tuesday brother Pete announced he had found a very short notice flight to go home for the car and the dog before Edna arrived later in October, and would we drive him to Igoumenitsa. We were home after dark, with eyelids pinned open.

On Wednesday we all got together for a farewell family and friends dinner for Rob, followed by a visit to the Tree Bar for Rob to see his best mate Vicky.

 

The Hodge boys doing their best to look really miserable ...










... but it didn't last long! 
I couldn't bear to break this up too early, so another late night crept up on us.

Exciting developments

Saturday 22 September 2012

We were back in Nidri for Friday.  Dave's brother Pete, the one who survived the tornado last September 20th, has bought a boat to live on, with his wife Edna, and was bringing it back from France over the last couple of weeks.  He arrived on Regatta Thursday, the anniversary of the storm, and the only day we were too busy to go and meet him and escort him home from the lighthouse.

So on Friday we met up and had a meal and didn't get home until after dark.  So we were most surprised to be woken on Saturday morning by the arrival of Constantine with Yianni the woodworker, and to find that we had received a delivery of wood while away, that we hadn't noticed in the dark.

Yianni and Constantine leapt into action, while Dave and I drifted about rather aimlessly, unable to get on with our ditch or wall for fear of getting in the way. 

The wood was for the top of the plinth, and is screwed down with threaded bar, which is inserted into drilled holes with epoxy resin dribbled into them.  Not very eco, but necessary to meet the earthquake safety regs.  This then had to be left to go off before any more frame can be built.

The photo above and second below show the wood spanning the rounded corners of concrete.  We had a choice here whether to cut short pieces to make a better fit, or go with the cut corner, and make the frame open so that the room will extend through it into the rounded corner, like an alcove.  We decided on the latter - hope it was the right choice.

The top of this base layer of wood will be the internal floor level.

 

When the morning shift had departed, Dave got on with the drainage ditch, drilling holes in the pipe, and measuring it for cutting.

Relaxing Regatta

18 - 21 September 2012

Regatta is on Thursday 20th, but we've spent so little time in the boat so far this year that we didn't feel up to the intensity of racing.  Instead we pottered down to Sivota on Tuesday to help set up the stage - arriving fashionably late and not finding anything left to do.  We stayed the night, after a few beers with the band and assorted helpers, then took off early the next morning - after first bagsing a space on the quay close to the stage:

We had a lovely quiet day and night in our favourite 'one-yacht' bay, watching the goats and swimming, then darted back early to Sivota to experience the side of Regatta we never usually see ...

 Around 4 ish Robbie's Committee Boat arrived, amid handheld flares and Land of Hope and Glory blasted through loudspeakers.

 It listed its way ashore, and the party started in earnest.

Most of the band, lined up and ready to go.

 

Dave in full flow

The band in action.  Towards the end of the night, I had constituted myself Stage Security, as various random drunks wanted to wander up and talk to the band members.  So I sat on the ramp and barred the way.  Then Rob invited up some friends of mine up to dance on the stage, and they dragged me with them, protesting all the way that there were too many leads and things lying around.  And I promptly stepped on Dave's guitar lead and cut him off abruptly.  Oops, not good.  Rob laughed his socks off.