31.05.2025 Job done.

 ~o~

  Saturday 31st 54F/12C. Overcast but fairly bright. Dry with sunny periods promised. Light winds. 

 Up at 3.00 when my security camera reported a person at 2.47. Then reported their leaving again 3 minutes later. There was no sign of movement on the very dark image on my phone. Though I could see easily in the semi-twilight it was very dark indoors. I sneaked around looking out of windows but there was nobody to be seen. "They" had probably already left. Because I only got up after the second notification. Then I went back to sleep. 

 I have just bought new lights with movement sensors to replace the existing units. Hopefully the security camera will perform better with more light. Not to mention the shock to wanderers of being suddenly lit up. So much for all the glowing reviews about full colour in pitch darkness on YouTube! I was using wireless connection to my router. So I'll try a network cable connection next. In the hope off better things.

Up at 6.00.  The contractors are due back at 8.00 to hopefully finish the gravel work. I'll have to move my car to the end of the drive. So I don't get trapped in. Nor get in their way. 

 Tomorrow is wet in the morning so the pressure is on to complete. The online jobbing app holds the funds until I confirm completion. So the contractors won't get a penny until I confirm my satisfaction with their work.

 The contractors arrived after 9.00. Things seem to be going smoothly. They are taking pains to ensure I am satisfied with their work.

 13.00 They have left with the job completed to my satisfaction. They spread the last of the gravel and compacted it. Then spread the granite chippings and worked the plate vibrators over that too. I expressed a desire for a fairly flat area where the carport was intended to stand. Just beside the shed but with plenty of spacing. To which the were accommodating. Including extra compaction. It is difficult to see in the image but the soil beyond the gravel has been spread and compacted too. 

 The dry granite is remarkably pale. I had ordered grey mix. Coming back down the drive in the Morris in sunshine it was just like approaching lying snow. There is a white coat of dust adhering to the chippings. Which will be washed away over time. They are already much darker when wet.

 I have never seen the whole area in one view until now. There were two heaps of gravel in the middle of the yard and machines parked until mid morning. Now I get the clear view to the distant tree line. The Morris is parked in the intended carport position in the image. A full turning circle is easily managed. As is reversing. The major obstacles in the yard for so long had given me a false sense of a lack of space. 

 Dinner was salad with everything. Well, not quite. It is so long since I had salad cream that I completely forgot this major, recent investment. I was almost half way through before it surfaced. The absence was soon corrected. Generously of course. Though I have no photographic proof of this. I do have proof that I ate cold sardines from the tin and enjoyed them immensely. 

 

 ~o~

30.05.2025 Smile for the camera!

 ~o~

  Friday 30th 56F/13C [5.45] Overcast and windy with possible drizzle.

 Up at 5.30 after waking numerous times. 

 7.00-7.30 A walk down the road and then a loop of the drives. 

 I forgot to mention that a Lapwing has adopted the front field over the last few days. Usually it just stands about looking nervous., Today it circled over me. Complaining bitterly about trespass and intrusion. 

 I haven't seen a lapwing in years. There used be some on the sloping prairie leading up to the forest. Their haunting call is always distinctive and memorable.

 Today I plan to experiment with granite chippings near the house. To see how it behaves. With and without manual compression from my tamper. There was no warning on the tin. That tree seeds would cause drifts on top of any decorative gravel. 

 I am temporarily using a piece of plywood. For a firm footing and chair support while changing my shoes outside. The doormat is saturated with sand from the self-stabilizing gravel.

 The granite chippings compressed surprisingly easily but with little loss of thickness. A worthwhile step if a plate vibrator is available. This should help to resist rutting from vehicle movements.

 The image shows a scrap piece of aluminium bar 50mm/2" thick. Used to provide a reference for the planned depth. The 8"x8" tamper is on the left. Granite chippings are noticeably heavy. Once a few shovel fulls have been placed in a wheelbarrow. Perhaps I should run a granite path to the drive. To avoid further distribution of unwanted sand. 

 I drove to the village before lunch. Then to town after lunch. I had ordered a smart, but inexpensive security camera. One that can see in colour in the dark. 

In the nick of time too, it seems. Somebody has been messing about in the abandoned shed of the abandoned house next door. If they wander into my drive I shall get a beep, notification and video of the event on my phone.   

 Dinner was cheese on toast with halved, cherry tomatoes. 

 

 

  ~o~

29.05.2025 I do like to be beside the sea.

 ~o~

 Thursday 29th 49F/9.4C [7.15] Bright morning with cloud later.

 Up at 6.30 after a busy night attending to the fire bucket. 

 No immediate plans. Sunshine and light westerly winds suggest a ride. Though it's not particularly warm.

 7.30 A walk in bright sunshine will do me good. Let's start there and work our way up.

 8.15 Back from my walk. A fox lay dead on the blind bend. Were I risk my life every time I walk back home. Somebody had lifted it onto the opposite verge. While I was out walking. No doubt the fox was excited at the odour of the neighbour's chickens. Which are safely locked into the barn overnight. The worry is that it was a female fox and any offspring will die of hunger. 

 The wild birds were in fine voice this morning. With several, unfamiliar warblers chattering away. The traffic was almost non-existent on the way out. A few more cars on the way back. It is a bank holiday. So I might find some shops closed today. Most [but not all] supermarkets will be open. 

 10.15 I am going for a gentle ride down to the coast.  

 13.15 Returned from a 46km ride down to the south coast. All very rural and unspoilt. Undulating with short steep hills. Lots of cyclists out and about. Little traffic. I stopped near a campsite right by the water.  For an organic apple juice and a sub-micro, Corny bar. Variable saddle discomfort throughout the ride.

16.00 I have been pottering about outside. Raking and moving stuff about. The sheer scale makes it impossible for me to do anything very useful. The area in front of the entrance door is slightly low. So a puddle would collect there and has. The gravel just needs to be a couple of inches/cm higher against the steps. I invested in a manual tamper. A flat steel plate with a sturdy shaft. I have always wanted one and now I have. I can use it to compress the gravel close to the house and sheds. Without the risk of damage when using a machine. Which I don't own anyway. It can be used after raking to mend any local thinning or looseness.

 They used the plate vibrator around the steps. Though they were struggling with the height of the underlying concrete slab. Which was left in place. The shed and steps are built on top of it. So it is best left well alone. We discussed the risk of slippage but the gravel is deep enough to be stable. With the granite chippings on top again to lock it all together. 

 I will be glad when the job is finished. So I don't carry the sand everywhere on my shoes. The crusher dust on the granite chippings will probably take a little time to be washed away by the rain too. 

 Dinner was a salmon pasty with peas, pasta and tinned tomatoes. I didn't sieve the tomatoes this time. 

 

  ~o~

28.05.2025 Go north young man.

 ~o~

  Wednesday 28th 48F/9C. Overcast and raining.

 Up at 6.15 after a moderate night with weird dreams.

 A rather damp day is promised. Which limits my options. Or adds discomfort to planned outside work. I want to get rid of the felled oaks. The branches are in heavily leaf. So are bulky and look very untidy now that they are drying out. The trunks are just holding things down and can go on the woodpile. 

 Are multiple trips to the village garden waste yard really sensible? 10km per round trip. Load and unload at each end. I could just drag the branches into no-man's land on the NW border. Completely out of sight and would provide a natural habitat for umpteen creatures as it all breaks down. Only a few meters away from the present heap. 

 7.30 Walkies! 

 8.00 It was no fun, at all, being road sprayed by every passing vehicle. So I looped around the drives and straight back home again. It wasn't really raining but everything was very wet. The birds didn't seem to mind. There were blackbirds singing all over the place.

 11.30 Back from the shops. A distant cuckoo is calling.  

 16.30  I have spent most of my time on YouTube. Researching a specific subject. After which I went outside to rake some of the sand/gravel around. When I started moving branches I became very breathless. So had to stop after a while. I made a good dent in the heap but there is about half left. They had used the digger to push the heap over backwards.

 Once I recovered I measured up for the carport. On the rough ground beside the wooden shed. To get a feel for size and suitable clearances. This area will will also be graveled, leveled and compacted. To provide a suitable base for parked vehicles. 

 It seems logical to make the front of the carport match the shed's projection. For a more uniform appearance. Also a reasonable distance must be allowed between the shed and the carport. So that those exiting a large vehicle in the carport. Will have plenty of room to remove and carry large objects freely. Without being hindered in their progress. Nor damaging anything. 

 The remaining oak trees can stand just beyond the carport. Without causing any obvious problems. There is more than enough clearance for growth and mild swaying in storms. The oaks are incredibly stiff. I know this because I tried to pull one back with a rope. When it was very close to the observatory dome. I ended up pruning the errant branches. When the trunk would not bend.

 Dinner was poached eggs on toast. 

  

  

 ~o~

27.05.2025 Carport plotting.

 ~o~

  Tuesday 27th 52F/11C. Cool grey, windy and wet. But not yet. A huge area of rain is moving across Denmark. With Chez Hovel just on the southerly fringes.

 Up at 5.50 after a middling night. I plan to drive over to see my English friend later. As it is not raining yet I shall have a tootle along the drives. 

 Chez Hovel from across the neighbour's paddock.

 7.10 Already back from my walk. Cool and windy but dry so far. I am having to be careful with my footwear. Not to carry the beach sand indoors.

 I have been marking out potential carport positions. I rather favour a carport parallel with the house and reasonably close to it. This would place its end in line with the western wall of the house and lean-to workshop. My logic being a reduction in distance between the car and entrance door. Which is on the back of the house. As is the parking space [or yard] of course. The shortest possible walking/carrying distance seems best at first glance. Not only in bad weather but while carrying heavy shopping.  

 The downside is the increased risk of hitting the wooden shed in the NE corner while reversing back out of the carport. To eventually leave in a forward direction via the drive. Which has its exit/entrance in the SE corner of the back yard. Passing close by the eastern wall of the house and heading south. 

 Placing the carport on the new ground extension to the north provides plenty of room. Reversing in an arc towards the SW [red arrows] does not have the same risk of collision with a building as before. A raised ground bar can easily stop the car from literally going over the bank. To end up, probably quite safely, on the lower, western lawn.

 I am going outside at intervals to measure up and gradually refining the dimensions to make them true to scale on the drawing.

 This northern carport position adds to the walking distances to and from the house. Particularly while carrying heavy shopping in wet and windy weather. However, this more distant carport position would be visually more relaxed. Seemingly quite logical due to the empty space utilization. The distances involved are hardly huge. The open space around the house is more relaxing too. Without the carport filling the view in the foreground.

 In fact there is room for two or more carports to the north. Though reversing out of some positions is much more of an issue. Reversing with obscured mirrors and poor rear window visibility in winter. Is the main problem I foresee. Despite the apparent increase in ground area there is not remotely enough room for turning full circles. So reversing clearly dominates my carport position choices.

 "The beach" shrinks quite unbelievably. Once the carport dimensions are marked out full size on the present sand. [Self-compacting gravel without its chippings overcoat] The carport is nominally 5x3m. I was shocked when I saw the true extent of my scratches in the sand. 

 The full parking space now measures 18m N-S and 13m E-W. With the house forming the hard, southerly boundary to this rectangle. Hedges and arbitrary banks provide soft east and west boundaries. Gaining another meter is easily possible but seems irrelevant to turning circles. Another two-three meters of soil is already added to the north. Beyond the existing gravel. Though not, as yet, leveled, compacted and graveled. 

 In this drawing I have removed the westerly carport to make things clearer. The car could be driven to the west to unload shopping and/or passengers. Then reversed into the northerly carport along the same arc afterwards. Or, reversed to the eastern boundary before being driven into the carport.

 Unfortunately there are still two large heaps of gravel and chippings right in the middle of the yard. Which make practice turns and reversing presently impossible. They also prevent my marking out potential carport sites to the north. This is unlikely to change until next weekend. When the contractor returns and completes the job. [Hopefully!]

 During my extensive search for arched top carports. I saw many quite valuable properties with miserable parking facilities compared to mine. Being jammed, cheek by jowl, into the suburbs is not always beneficial. With many having to reverse out onto the road. Or to reverse into their confined driveways between passing traffic.

 While, in theory, my hovel has an embarrassment of available space. Only now, after all these years, has it finally become useful. In a different universe I would have built the large wooden shed somewhere else. Back then the levels were all very different and I had no perfect hindsight.

 When we moved here almost three decades ago. The existing "carport" was made of tree branches and scrap wood. Loosely covered in perforated asbestos plates on the walls. A hopelessly disintegrating, lightweight tarpaulin, well beyond its "Use by" date  clung to the collapsed roof. 

 Only a low sports car would have fit easily. Without hitting the rudimentary and badly sagging roof supports. It was not long before I hastily demolished it.  The image is a phone photo of a film print of a picture I took back in 1996. The open view has long been stolen by soaring trees.

 13.20 Back from my visit and shopping on the way home. My friend and I discussed the carport positioning problem. Amongst many other things of course. Perhaps the carport really should be sited at the far [northern] end of the rectangle. It makes most sense.

 16.30-17.15 I have been borrowing the 90F/32C warmth from the greenhouse after the sun came out. Currently 68F/20C in the room. 

 Dinner was an enormous heap of chicken and mushroom curry. I used a whole jar of Ben's Medium Curry.

 ~o~

26.05.2025 A double, wasted journey.

 ~o~

  Monday 26th 47F/8.3C [6.00] Bright with a sunny day possible. The chart shows sun symbols. The text paints a more miserable picture. As the only dry day in the forecast I should be seriously considering a ride. 

 Up at 5am. I was already awake. I couldn't stay awake yesterday. Dozing is for old farts. Age does not define decrepitude.

 6.00 I'll go for an early walk. No, not along "the beach." The tide is out again.

 6.40 Back again. It was quite chilly on my hands. I shared the neighbour's drives with the recycling lorry in bright sunshine. More cloudy now. 

 7.15 Brighter again. I measured the fall over the 18m to the far end of the gravel. 14cm. That's a fall of only 1%. Though the lateral incline does continue right to the end. So there is an increased incline on the diagonal. The new gravel surface suddenly looks remarkable inclined relative to the house. When I look back towards it. It never seemed like that when I made it into a parking lawn. With its rough concrete patio probably level with the house.

 I can't make up my mind where to go on my bike. I have been everywhere so many times over the years. There is nothing in particular to hook my interest today. More distant goals are more easily reached in the car. Which can be achieved regardless of the weather. Then there is the matter of the strong SW wind. Gusting to 12m/s today. With the risk of heavy showers including thunderstorms. I decided to be sensible.

 15.00 Back from a completely wasted double journey totaling 220km. I went to fetch a rather nice, vintage display cabinet I had seen in Svendborg. It proved far too big to go in the car. So I paid for it and drove back home for my trailer. Returning as promptly as I could manage. 

 In my absence two men had moved the cabinet outside. Ready for my collection. In doing so they had leaned the cabinet forwards. So that an irreplaceable, curved glass door had fallen out and smashed. I tried to remain calm and simply demanded my money back. Then drove home yet again. 

 There was torrential rain and a bright flash of lightening during my first, return journey. Followed by a loud rumble. It was windy all day. The week ahead promises a whole month's worth of rain. 45mm in total. With 22mm, almost an inch of rain, forecast for next Sunday alone. 

 How will this affect "the beach?" I have absolutely no idea. Should I cover it with cheap tarpaulins? I have several large examples. No longer waterproof but still able to withstand the impact of the heaviest downpour. Strong gusts of wind are forecast too. So I would need to weigh them down well. There is no shortage of timber and plywood.

 17.00 I have had the greenhouse door open to boost the indoor temperature. It has reached 69F from an earlier 66F. A worthwhile gain. 19-20C. It is currently 96F/35.6C out there. With all the windows closed.

 Dinner was mackerel in tomato sauce on toast with tomatoes.

  ~o~

25.05.2025 I didn't ask for a beach.

 ~o~

  Sunday 25th 53F/11.7C. Wet and windy. Expected to continue all day. About 9mm of rainfall altogether.

 Up at 6.30 after a reasonable night.

 Even my little Morris leaves tracks in the supposedly compressed gravel. All the effort and huge expense has only given me a sand covered parking space. I didn't ask for a wider beach. I needed it to be driven on by a variety of vehicles. 

 The gravel lorry struggled to pull away as it just dug itself deeper. Despite being unloaded. That was after three passes with the plate vibrator. Where do I go from here?    

 The workers arrived at 8.00. Ironically, my brother rang just at that moment. To suggest damp [rain] was good and a vibrating roller essential. They came instead with a hopping stamper. Jackhammer? With a plate about a 15"x18" and guaranteed solidity. Or so they said. 

 I told them I wasn't going to waste thousands on a soft surface. I think they got the message. I pointed out that even my little Morris left its tire prints. Even after running over where the massive lorry had left its own deep ruts.

 I was adamant that the granite chippings are not to go down until the ground [compacted gravel] was rock solid. 

 The granite looks quite beautiful now it is wet. Almost bluish to my eyes but clearly grey to the camera. I went with the next to smallest size at 8-11mm. I had considered this carefully and decided it would be the best option for a safe riding surface on my bike. Pea gravel is lethal on a bike. It rolls and moves sideways effortlessly when ridden upon. Which is [perhaps] fine on a trike. Not on two wheels. 

 To support my brother's expertise I am continuing to study online advice and videos on driveways. In a perfect world I would have laid weed fabric and a cellular matt first. The cost would likely have doubled.

 Today's helper is much older. Obviously far more experienced than the lad who came yesterday. Speaks English well enough too. Which makes communication rather easier. I don't have all the correct Danish terms in my limited car park surfacing vocabulary. Which would make me sound like an idiot to some. Though I will not criticize the young man who came yesterday for his youth. He did a solid day's work, had a good work ethic and handled all the machines effortlessly.

 8.30 It is only 63F/17C indoors. I had better light the stove. Since I can't be sitting outside all day watching them work. Because of the rain. Fortunately the vibrators are not too unpleasant indoors. Much like a helicopter landing on the roof! They are using the stamper on the newly laid gravel. Out in the middle. Where they ran out of gravel yesterday. 

 9.45 Already a toasty 68º/20C in the room. Further discussion ensued as the rain has temporarily stopped. There is clearly an effect from using the jackhammer first. Then raking and going over it with further crisscrossing with the plate vibrator. The rain is helping the compaction too. 

 They are suggesting no more than 50mm or 2" of granite chippings be laid. Otherwise it may rut to car movements. The small size I chose may stick in car tire treads allegedly. It is recommended to compact the chippings by the big bag delivery companies. They also suggest using only 50mm of chippings.

 11.20 57F/14C. The contractors have just left with their machines and will be back next weekend. The extra compaction, aided and abetted by the rain, has resulted in a much more solid surface. The 2.5 ton diggers were now leaving little sign of having passed over the surface. Only in the middle, where the new gravel was laid, were there clear tracks. Even here the indentations are radically reduced. By several inches or centimeters. Compared to yesterday when it was dry. When deep furrows were left. This central area had been well compacted this morning but had little chance to absorb any rain.

 The plate vibrator was bringing water to the surface elsewhere and sticking fast due to suction. It no longer moved forwards on its own. So it was decided that any more work today would damage what had been achieved. While I am not particularly worried about the further delay there is a lot of stuff left out in the rain. Whether it has any real value is quite another matter. Most of it was from the structure or contents of the observatory.

 12.20 59F/15C. Still raining steadily. Now a very cosy 72F/22C in the room. I'll let the stove die down now. 

 I just looked out and the gravel surface is fairly evenly covered in small puddles. More visible from being dappled by the rain. This is despite the entire area having an obvious and deliberate fall towards the west. Which is the way the ground naturally slopes. The incline has been visually exaggerated by the huge increase in clear area. 

 The contractor suggested he aimed for a 2-2.5% incline. I'll check this [out of curiosity] for myself when it stops raining. 

 Curiosity got the better of me and I risked the rain. It is warm and dry indoors. So I set up my laser level on a brick. 6cm thick. The laser's horizontal light source is 10cm above the base. I stacked blocks 18m away until the reflection of the laser's horizontal beam just grazed the top. Checked in daylight by a frameless, handheld mirror. The required stack was 47cm high. Simple subtraction shows the difference in level is 31cm. So the incline is 1.72%. Or about 1 degree. Or a 1 in 58 fall. Close enough and it probably varies slightly over the entire area.

 Granite chippings might tend to allow water to flow more readily downhill. Due to its more porous nature than the underlying surface. Assuming there was a hard, uniform and impermeable surface on which it rested. Unlikely given its power to depresses that surface locally. There is bound to be some mixing at the interface. That said, the chippings might allow more rain to collect before it was visible as puddles on its surface. 

  The chippings are currently coated in a powdery deposit. Presumably from the crusher. They might change in appearance over time as they are cleaned by the rain. I wonder whether this dust might act as finings for increased compaction?

 A pair of magpies has arrived to inspect the graveled area. Perhaps they were just curious. A single Magpie has been visiting the lawn over the last week.

 17.00 It finally stopped raining. So I dragged two recycling bins uphill across "the beach." Then along the drive to the collection point. The "sand" now seems very firm. Though shallow footprints and wheel tracks still persist.

 8.30 Still 70F/21C in the room. Dinner was chicken, mushrooms and chips with Bisto gravy. 😋

  ~o~

24.05.2025 The big [long] day!

 ~o~

  Saturday 24th 45F/7.2C[6.45] Overcast after light overnight rain. A mixed forecast.

  Up at 5.10 after another busy night. My usual, morning back pain. Hands aching from overwork. The chest pain did not return. Despite working until nearly ten last night on lopping and sawing the felled oaks.

 I have moved the car back to its remote location. Just in case I need it. 

 There aren't many felled trees left to reduce to manageable proportions. The front loader will be able to work without hindrance. By the time it arrives. My wife's gooseberry bushes are about to be buried. They have thrived and spread in the deep shade. I don't remember being offered any fruit.

 I can fell further trees to left and right if need be. It all depends how much waste soil is produced. By the excavation work on the original parking space. The already graveled area needs no excavation. Since I was responsible for adding the gravel myself.  

 My Heinz salad cream order is arriving around lunch time. With Bisto on the same shelf in my [IKEA] pantry cupboard. Nobody could ever accuse me of going native. 

 6.30 Time to get the chainsaw out. A battery powered DeWalt. Not some screaming, infernal combustion object. With [usually] no silencer and audible from several villages away. As some psychopathically selfish barsteward saws logs. Day after day after day. Year and decade round.

 7.00 Dripping with sweat.  Back in for a rest and to cool off. I have cleared the felled oak trees into a heap. What am I to do with them all? Keep the trunks for future firewood. Recycle the twigs and branches. They are out of the way for the moment. That's all that matters.

 9.30 Sunny periods. The contractor arrived just after 8.00 and started digging. His mate arrived 20 minutes later with a wheeled front loader. About a 1/3 of the original parking space is now about 20cm or 8" lower.  

 With the soil being tipped and compressed on the low area. Where I cut the trees down. Beyond the gravel as planned. Both are obviously well practiced in machine operating skills.

 At the present rate of progress the excavation should be completed in under five hours. With a useful gain in garden area in the north. Hopefully at the same level as the finished gravel. They have now both gone off to collect something. I am tired and would like a nap to catch up. Though I didn't. I fetched a picnic chair and sat and watched. I made them coffee at 12.00.

14.00 The job is going well. Over 3/4 of the area is now covered in self-stabilizing gravel. Lots of it compressed with a plate vibrator. There is also lots of driving on the surface with a 2½ ton loader with a full bucket. 

 I felled another oak tree to allow the loader to reach further along the bank with waste soil. The huge mound of gravel has really gone down quite quickly. The gravel man turned up to have a look. To see when they wanted the granite chippings delivered tomorrow.

 17.00 Still at it. They have run out of gravel. So we'll need to get some more. At my expense.

 18.15 A huge lorry load of light grey, granite chippings are here. The driver has gone back for another 5m^3 of self stabilizing gravel. He'll be back soon but the workers have just left. The ruts were [deeply] disappointing after the gravel had been compressed three times! They assured me the lorry wouldn't damage the surface. Now they were talking about bringing a larger, plate vibrator. Tomorrow's forecast rain is a likely problem. 

 19.00 The extra gravel as been delivered. I had to cover it against the rain. I should be having dinner by now. 

 

  ~o~

23.05.2025 Do not be alarmed!

 ~o~

   Friday 23rd 44F/6.7C. Bright sunshine. It could become more cloudy with rain later.

 Up at 6.45 due to a noisy gravel lorry. Tipping another load while I was fast asleep. I'd had a busy night at the fire bucket. Again, this was following salad for dinner. My back aches and I am tilted forwards like an old fart. My hands and wrists hurt too. From overload.

 A new picture taken from upstairs. The lighter summit of yesterday's load is just visible behind the new peak. The foothill on the left was last year's DIY effort. Before I had my heart attack. The contractor will remove the steel post with the excavator.

 The sand and gravel man will be back with a third load later. Could I fit in a short walk to fix my back?

  Meanwhile, I have to fell more trees. Then saw them into useful logs for burning. They all have to be cleared before the contractor arrives tomorrow. Because he will be pushing excavated dirt off the bank into the trees. Which is precisely where they are currently lying. 

 8.00 The third load has been just delivered. I should be looking at 24m^3 of self-stabilizing gravel. He will be holding the granite chippings in his lorry until the weekend. There is nowhere sensible to dump them yet.

 The treeline looks more transparent with sunshine on the pasture beyond. Anybody who starts humming "I'm a lumberjack" will be in detention! 

 8.35 Back from a modest walk. Along the road and then the loop around the parallel drives. I wanted to see how my tree felling looked from across the pasture. I could certainly see my roof far more easily through my binoculars. The view is mostly blocked by the wildly overgrown, plum trees. The dark silhouettes in the background of today's images.

   8.50 I had better have morning coffee. Before I start all over again. It is lucky I finally bought a new bar and chain for my DeWalt chainsaw. The old chain would fall off as soon as it was used. The chains were fine. The bar was the the original, worn out and years old. I do not recommend a bayonet saw for tree felling. Or or anything else if you do not have strong hands. The vibrations are awful! Yes, I do know how to use one.

 10.15 Dripping with sweat. Another lot of trees felled. Some trunks shortened to manageable weights. The new chain and bar go through the green oak like butter. I am getting chest pains again. I'll have to ease up a bit. No point in dropping dead. Not before I enjoy the benefits of all the effort and expense.  

 12.00 Back from town. A few more chest pains. Dull, not fierce. I am supposed to call an ambulance if I get chest pains but hate to waste their time. I should just stop pretending I am still an invulnerable teenager. BP 108/73 77bpm. +5m 98/61 69. + 5 min 94/70 69. Low, but nothing too dramatic.

 

A phone call from the contractor. He is coming this afternoon with a machine. Presumably the excavator. What should I do with the car? I don't want to be trapped in the garden. In case I need to get out in a hurry. I had better park it in front of the abandoned property next door.

  16.15 It has suddenly become very dark and breezy. I have parked the car out of the way as planned. The site is now cleared for excavation. Though the felled trees are still on the graveled area. I am loathe to work too hard until I stop getting these chest pains. 

 Dragging heavy trees around is not light work for anybody. Least of all myself at my age. Not with my present symptoms. The last thing I want is to be sitting in hospital under observation. While all this is going on at home. 

 Dinner was poached eggs on toast. Unbroken. 6 minutes. Including immersion in a Pyrex cup in the boiling water.

 The contractor arrived at 20.30 with the excavator on a trailer. He will be coming tomorrow with a skid steer bucket loader.

 21.45 Back in from cutting up the felled trees and making a huge stack. Sweating buckets. No chest pain but my hands are aching. 

 I retrieved the car. He had blocked the drive with the excavator & trailer next to the house. I didn't want my car being visible from the road overnight. I'll move it back again in the morning. Before he arrives with the other machine.

 ~o~

22.05.2025 Well, that was a surprise! 😊

 ~o~

  Thursday 22nd 43F/6C. Overcast and breezy.

 Up at 6.15 after a quiet night, early wakening and clock watching at 4am. 

 Well, that was a surprise! I had just finished breakfast when it went very dark at my nearest window. There was a rushing noise I couldn't explain. I wasn't wearing my hearing ads. 

 The sand and gravel man had arrived [unexpectedly] in his huge green lorry. Carrying a load of self stabilizing gravel. He was supposed to come tomorrow. 

 By sheer luck I had left enough space for him to dump the load beside my shed. Where it won't affect excavation. After a lifetime of driving big trucks his skills at reversing are utterly amazing.

 This leaves me with a rushed bit of tidying. There is nothing of value but it has to be removed. There were loads of jars for small item storage on shelves in the observatory. They were just left on the ground as I demolished all around them. I don't want broken glass scattered throughout my parking space. I had better drop my cooking class and get busy with a wheelbarrow. He is coming back with another load after lunch!

 8.00 Still no rain. Off we go to tidy up the last bit around the shed. I may need a trip to the recycling yard. Or save a trip and fill the recycling bins.

 9.00 Back in for a rest and to cool down. Morning coffee. 

 11.20 Back from town. It rained lightly going both way but remained dry at home.

 14.30 The sky has turned very dark and it is hailing. Back in from clearing the space beside the wooden shed. Followed by felling some of the fastigiate, red oaks. Using the bayonet saw. To make room for a skid steer front loader. Which will push the excavated material into the low area beyond the gravel. 

 There is a large area to fill. Probably 30m long x 5m wide x up to 1m deep. The area is in perpetual darkness from all the trees. Though it doesn't stop the thorny fruit bushes from growing viciously. I'll go out and fell some more oaks. When it stops doing whatever it is doing. 

14.50 It is already brightening up again.

 15.15 Another half dozen felled. New blade but the DeWalt battery went flat. I intend to keep the largest oak trees. They are about 120mm or 5" in diameter at the base. These will provide an intermediary stop for the eye. As it is drawn into the distance. Through the thinned out trees. 

 All were raised from acorns gathered by my wife. The mounds of her worm farms are still back there. I removed the inverted rainwater butts, to let the worms escape, after she died. That was over three years ago.

 16.10 Back in, after lopping the thinner branches from the felled trees. Until I had chest pains again. The trees I have left standing are more like 20cm/8" across at the base. 

 The room had dropped down to 64F/17.8C due to a lack of sun,. lower temperatures and the wind. So I lit the stove. It is now a toasty 69F/20.6C.

 Dinner was salad. I boiled the potatoes. Without really considering how much room they would take up on the plate. So I added butter and brown sauce to the saucepan after draining off the water. I could then add the potatoes around the perimeter with a spoon. It worked well and made the salad much more interesting. I still miss the Heinz salad cream.

 

 ~o~

21.05.2025 One step forwards..

 ~o~

  Wednesday 21st 51F/11C. Overcast and rather windy from the west. Sunshine expected by 8am.

 Up at 6.00 after a very quiet night. My back aches.

 The contractor keeps changing the dates for the gravel work to be done.   

 7.40 Back from a walk around the fields. It was bone dry. So I took advantage of the likely last chance for a while. It is really quite windy. The drought should finally be broken tomorrow. Though the quantity of rain expected keeps being adjusted downwards. What was forecast to be 9mm a couple days ago is now only 2mm. 

 10.20 57F/14C. Sunny and windy. I have continued clearing up. After threatening to cancel our agreement he is coming today at 11am. To mark up the depths and levels. Also to calculate how much gravel I need to order. With the work possibly being done at the weekend. Or sooner. Who knows? 

 I was firm with him about our existing agreement. For the work to be carried out yesterday and today. I hate time wasters! Do they suppose their clients have no other plans for the unforeseeable future? Do they think they are doing the client a favour for doing the work at all? Despite being paid for it.

 13.00 The contractor arrived at 11.00 to measure up the site. Laying out posts and strings at the boundaries. After measuring and making some notes on dimensions he has just left. He will be in touch to share his calculations on the amount of gravel I'll need to order. The work itself will be carried out at the weekend. He was apologetic over the delays.

 I cleared a lot of crap metal which had accumulated over the years. The local recycling centre is absolutely hopeless. Customer satisfaction? Customer service? What about customer torture? A steep climb up a stepladder to place scrap in a very tall container. Just as it is for several other very tall containers. Most of the people you see at the recycling yard are old farts like me. Many of them can barely walk!

 So I drove the extra 20km to the next village. Where the scrap container is behind a low wall. Where old farts, like me, can just drop heavy items straight in. Doing so repeatedly without the least effort. Until a full trailer is empty. Compared with breathlessly climbing a steep stepladder for every single item. At the local yard. 

 Dinner was beans on toast. 

 I have been having chest pains over my heart all evening. I haven't been overdoing it today. So I can't blame muscle pain. I just had a spray of nitroglycerine under my tongue and that helped. The pain has already gone. I have just remembered: I was throwing heavy scrap metal into the trailer and recycling container. Manually dragging the trailer up the grass ramp? That might not have been very wise. I don't do wise and it's a bit late to learn about it now.

 

 ~o~

20.05.2025 You call this a rest?

 ~o~

  Tuesday 20th 50F/10C. Bright sunshine expected to continue all day. A westerly wind instead of northerly. It could reach 20C as the world cruises towards another temperature record to match last year's. 

 Up at 6.30 after a very quiet night. I plan to ride over to see my English friend. It is some time since I enjoyed the ride through beautiful countryside. Much of it on peaceful lanes and roads. I have several route options. 

 8.00 Back from my walk. Just a loop along the parallel drives. Already too warm. Lots of birdsong. Including warblers, blackbirds and chaffinches. 

 13.30 70F/21C. Full sun. 56km round trip. Back from my visit. With shopping on the way home. Straight into a headwind on the way back. I chose my route for protection by hedge and woods. I was suffering from saddle discomfort on the last leg. A break to do some grocery shopping cured the problem. 

 I was cleaning the glass in the aquarium. When I realised that the goldfish had eaten almost all of the plants. So I brought in the small tank. Which had started me back on fish keeping. I placed it in good light from the south facing window. Then half filled it, added a smidgen of potting compost and dropped in the last remaining bits of plant. To see if they can recover. At around £5 each these plants are certainly not cheap. Too expensive to be considered a vegetable supplement to the fishes' diet.   

 Dinner was organic sausage, two fried eggs, two tomatoes and mashed potato.

 ~o~

19.05.2025 Thursday rain will stop play.

 ~o~

  Monday 19th 54F/12C. Bright, with wall to wall sunshine promised. Reaching 19C/66F. A lighter northerly breeze. It could be very wet on Thursday. 

 Up at 6.15 after an unusually quiet night. I think the dustbin lorry woke me at 5.15.

 The contractor, who bid on the gravel work, is calling between 11 and 12am.  I'll have a short walk to loosen up and then finish off tidying the graveled area. My hands and wrists are aching from all the hard work.

 8.00 57F/14C. Back again. Sunny and warmer than the last few days. I didn't even notice the wind. I will start clearing right away and have coffee when I come back in for a rest.

 9.00 Back in for a rest, to cool off and morning coffee. I have cleared 95% of the wood from the graveled area.  

 9.20 Off we go again. It won't get itself tidied!

 10.30 60F/15.6C. Veiled sunshine. Back in again. Hot, tired and thirsty. I have been digging up granite boulders. They were used to mark the edge of the observatory's gravel platform. Which my wife and I laid from a lorry load of gravel dumped outside the gate. Now the same rocks are rolled off the rear bank. To help to stabilize another area. Most of the observatory contents has gone down the garden in wheelbarrows. To rest on another pallet. There were two more concrete anchors hidden under that! More work.   

 12.00 The contractor has just left. We discussed the gravel depth and area to be covered. Heavy rain on Thursday will make it difficult to excavate. So he has delayed the work until next week. That gives me more time to clear the site but is disappointing. The stacks will all have to be covered with tarpaulins before the rain comes. What will happen if it rains every day as forecast? He didn't say. This is a bit of an anticlimax after working so hard in the fine weather.

 I have lifted both anchors and they have joined the rest on the bank. To make a total of 24. The mass of garden tools has gone around the corner. As I clear the space in front of the workshop. This shed roof has a massive overhang. Which is all too tempting to use for storage.

 I might be tempted to cut it back to make a normal overhang. Before it rains! This will make excavation work much easier. As well as providing a wider turning space for vehicles. Plus a wider and gentler ramp down to the western lawn. I never thought about this until now. Because all my wife's gardening items gravitated to the shelter provided. Which I dared not touch. I just hope the gutter fixing screws will undo. It was a struggle. Cross-head screws. I brought out the electric, torque screwdriver.

 16.00 I have continued my labours. Removing the front row of plates from the workshop roof. I had to remove the gutter as well. Then cut away the rafters and battens. Now I just have to re-fix the gutter brackets and clip the gutter back up. The door had to be rehung higher too. Having removed the timber crosspiece above. To gain more headroom. 

 I may have to cut a strip off the bottom of the door while I am at it. To ensure clearance from the new gravel level. It has been dragging on the existing gravel for 20 years. I moved the door to the front of the building. Then blocked up the original doorway. Which faced the wind and the rain. It was after that I added the gravel. Which flowed downhill to cause the clearance problem.

 I dug out some photographic prints from early on. There were two tiny widows to the shed. I fitted a large cast iron window with multi-panes when I moved the door. The bathroom window was a small horizontal rectangle. I replaced that with a normal window too. Wooden framed, double glazed. It all seems so long ago I can hardly remember it now.

 I have been shortening the shed door. It has gained almost 200mm [8"] of ground clearance altogether. Shortening the roof overhang has gained me 90cm [3']. Well worth doing. 

 Dinner was organic sausages, baked beans and chips. I washed up while it cooked.

 

  ~o~

18.05.2025 He's at it again!

 ~o~

  Sunday 18th 50F/10C. Bright overcast with a more cloudy day promised. Northerly wind again.

 Up at 6.00 after a busy night attending to the fire bucket. I was drinking lots of water to combat the effects of sweating due to the near constant, heavy exercise. The salad can't have helped.

  My efforts to clear the site must continue apace. There is still much to do. The contractor is coming tomorrow to examine the site in person.

 7.15 Time for my walk. 

 7.50 Back again. Full sunshine. Lots of birdsong. I met two of my neighbours and a very small guard dog. 

 8.00 54F/12C Time to get back to work. Priorities? Clearing the space outside the house. Deciding the most efficient way of removing the pile of recyclable timber at the back of the gravel area. There are lots of long lengths. Which would need individual handling. Carrying them any distance would eat up the available time I have left. I'll have morning coffee on my first rest.

 8.50 Back in again. Dripping with sweat and already tired. Too windy to go without a jumper. Too hot to wear one. It is beginning to seem like a world's strongest man competition. I have moved the heavy carport components, the recycling bins and assorted other stuff. Which had no reason to be there anyway. 

 It has all gone down the garden. Onto the sloping western lawn. Tidily and within reach but safely clear of any likely excavation and earth moving activities. Time for morning coffee. So I can regain my strength. Perhaps I should change my t-shirts after every stint out there.

 10.00 The area outside the the house is completely clear and strimmed of grass and weeds. The carport's, polycarbonate, roof sheeting has gone into the greenhouse.

 11.00 I am breaking up the "patio." A very loose term for splashes of concrete thrown over rough ground. Covering the area just to the north of the house. Laid probably half a century ago. Without the least preparation or leveling. The resulting mess varies between an inch and four inches of crazed concrete. 

 Which meant an hour of swinging a pick and sledgehammer. Then trundling the broken concrete off to the far end of the gravel area in the wheelbarrow. To dump the rubble over the edge. At least as much to do again. Am I having fun yet?

 If I can get this area leveled and graveled to a suitable depth. To match the whole parking space. Then I will gain enough height to lose a full step going indoors. This is still well below the non-existent damp proof course. Probably 20cm below the indoor floor level. 

 12.00 Another 40 minutes of pick, sledgehammer and wheelbarrow. My back is aching. I need a rest. The image shows the small stuff I haven't dumped yet.

 15.40 I had a nap and lunch then went back out again. To complete breaking up the concrete as far as the step. Only about 6m x 1-2m wide. I used the DeWalt hammer drill on the last bit next to the step. To avoid undermining it. The drill is not very powerful on thick concrete. Only managing to flake off the surface. 

 I found three different runs of concrete drainpipes under the concrete. Which I didn't know I owned. Nor cared about after their demolition. I haven't seen this area clear since we moved in all those years ago. The concrete was always hideously ugly, dark with damp and crazed. Though my wife managed to cover the entire area with her plants.

 18.15 Back in again after clearing wood, rubble and rocks. I decided to stack the wood beside the gravel area. Where there is a drop to the original garden level. This meant I did not have to walk backwards and forwards. It's not pretty but will serve for now. It's been a very hard day! I am not sure I want to make a Sunday dinner. 

 Dinner was cheese of toast with mackerel in tomato sauce. I gave the mackerel five minutes on top of the cheese and the corners of the toast were burnt.

 

  ~o~

17.05.2025 It's never ending!

 ~o~

  Saturday 17th 52F/11C [7.30] Bright sunshine. It could be cloudy at times. Windy from the north again.

 Up at 6.50 after another quiet night. It must be all the exhausting exercise. Not remotely finished. I have to tidy up the concrete anchors. Move all the plywood and then start on the loose stack of timber at the back.

 First I need a walk to ease my back pain. 

 8.15 Problem solved within a few hundred meters. I was only gone for 25 minutes. It has clouded over as the DMI suggested it might. The spirea hedges are in flower. The post in the foreground is the Danish equivalent of a cat's eye. Historically Denmark has had deep snow during most winters. Which made cat's-eyes rather pointless. 

 9.00 I have finished moving the plywood down to the bottom of the garden. I leaned the incredibly heavy, wet stuff against the tree stump. The dry, laid flat on a pallet and stack of larch boards. Yet again I am dripping with sweat and tired. Morning coffee is indicated. Having a rest. To recover for the next stage. All that wood! I'll try layering it at right angles. A long stack doesn't work. 

 9.30-11.00 I moved more wood down the garden. I can't win. No jumper and I freeze in the wind. I put a jumper on and sweat profusely. I began to remove the steelwork from the concrete anchors. It usually required a tap, or three, with a hammer on the spanner. Just to break the rust bond. 

 They all unscrewed in the end. After which I used the sack truck to move the bare anchors to the bank. Not easy with the lumpy gravel and loosely filled holes. There are three more anchors buried at the back. Perhaps more. Under the stack of the remaining timber. It is all exhausting work. So I need another rest! 

 12.30 It is never ending! I have been lifting and dismantling more anchors. I can see at least five more. Waiting to be lifted. My original observatory had six sides. The enlarged one had fourteen. With four more anchors needed for the pier. Now I have had to remove the clothes airer. To make enough room for the blocks. Time for another rest. I am dripping again! 

 12.45  I haven't been shopping. So there are no rolls left for lunch. I'll just have to have toast.

 15.30 Back in for a rest. I am knackered again! 22 anchors lifted. Metalwork removed and blocks moved to the bank. There is one more anchor hidden under a pallet. Which is loaded with heavy stuff. It will all have to go but I can't face moving that lot today. 

 Meanwhile, back at the hovel, I have been trying to raise the temperature indoors using the greenhouse. Heat exchange is poor without forced circulation. I managed a couple of extra degrees to 67F/19.4C in the room. The four skylights are open in the greenhouse but not the end doors. There has been quite a bit of cloud today. Highest temperature in the greenhouse was 100F/38C before I opened the skylights. It has since dropped to 90F/32C out there.

16.20 I had better go shopping. In the car. I am too tired to ride the bike. My hands and wrists are aching.

 17.15 I had to visit both supermarkets due to a lack of standard stock in the first. Only to find the second had no stock either. 

 Dinner was salad. With heart lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes, carrots and hard boiled tweggs.

 

  ~o~