just stuff...or even - just stuffing..

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Ewan tok a few days off so we hoped to concentrate on straw but the ever unsettled weather made that difficult and somewhat frustrating. Franck and Alison got on with stuffing the wool into the roof while I dashed out between showers to trim and stuff (and trim and restuff and trim and ..... ) the outside of the walls Found it difficult in explaining to Franck that we would keep doing it till we, ie Wendy and I, were satisfied that all the holes that could be filled had been filled. After all - that straw plus a bit of clay and lime will be all that's between us and the winter gales.

Early in the week, the roofers came back to fit the ridge pole and do the last few rows of slates. So now we have a fantastic-looking slate roof - thanks to Ally Baird and his guys.

Thursday and Friday I decided to drop the tarps and go for it despite various threatening clouds. Manged north, and ground floor of gables before rain or threat of rain (it never really materialised) stopped play (lunchtime and early afternoon respectively).

Friday Ewan and Marieke were having a musical soiree with a couple of their music friends (Donald, Andrew and Becka) and naturally the whole of Tombreck turned out and joined in. Another great night ending sitting in our living-
room-to-be till the small hoors.

Saturday - Alan and Margaret arrived to give us a hand. The weather stayed dry so, despite a bit of the day after the night before feeling, we dropped the tarps and with the help of our woofers managed to get most of east gable and south wall stuffed and trimmed. Went to the Lawers hotel for dinner then an early night (11ish)

Sunday was Alison's last day she'll be in NY city Monday afternoon - talk about culture shock. Anyway I drove her to Killin and saw her on the bus to Perth and eventually NY. Thanks Alison and good luck.
Still felt a bit shattered so set off down the road just after lunch taking Silver, a friend of Nicole's who had been up visiting and helping out, down with us (he's catching a train back to Wales tomorrow (Monday).

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Photos

The roof in all its glory
This is the fully slated roof with solar panels and velux installed

East gable and a bit of the north wall
It was sunny and dry, so we uncovered the east gable so that it could be trimmed and stuffed in preparation for the lime plaster

Wool in the rafters
This represents about a sixth of what is to be done...

Wool stuffing cakes
The marshmallows are meant to represent the wool that Alison stuffed between the rafters: my artistic ability requires that I tell people what it's meant to be, because there's no way anyone would ever know otherwise.

Goodbye Alison
Willy and myself with Franck & Alison

Moon over scaffolding
Lovely night and a full moon