Gringos de Marimán

Chile celebrated Mayday on Monday and Tuesday while we reflected on how much we missed the working life. With the short work week and a couple of days of heavy rainshowers (chubascos), we couldn't possibly expect as much progress as last week. Still, at this stage of the construction, a lot can be accomplished in a short period of time. Take this pile of piedras for example. Seeing the pirca wall take shape added a little more excitement to the week.



Thanks to the rain on Wednesday the crew raised a new roof. It was only plastic, but the pinhead couldn't resist taking a celebratory bite out of the maestro as he finished up the framing.

An editorial note: I saw that the Florida Marlins had a special 'Bark at the park' night last week. Fans were allowed to bring their dogs to the game. I can see it now, the pinhead would be out chewing on bats as soon as I turned my head. I'm sure the people sitting next to us would love having hands, shoes, and lord know what else chewed up. I'm beginning to understand why the Marlins have such poor attendance.



With most of the wall framing finished, the closets also started to take shape on Wednesday.



And of course, Juan started laying down the pirca.



Despite the heavy rain on Wendesday & Thursday, the lavadero and baños were framed by Friday afternoon. Naturally, we have a few windows in these rooms as well.



The pirca wall had also grown a couple of levels.



By Saturday the wall had reached four levels of stones. As you can see, concrete is not used, just tierra, between the stones. Next week we'll add a few plants between the stones to provide a little more color.



Here's a ground level view from the carport. It's a little difficult to see, but there's a doorway at the end of the walkway. We think this will be the normal entrance, but only time will tell.



Saturday the sun reappeared and we had another beautiful day. Here's a couple of shots from the back (or front?) side. Most of the framing is done, so next week I think we'll start preparing for the roof.



It's nice seeing the sun, but now that the Yankees have started winning again, we can really enjoy the rain while we watch the MLB channels that we signed up for on Direct-TV. What a great way to spend rainy days in front of the fire. If only we could find some roasted peanuts (in the shell please). Hasta la proxima!!