Week 6 - Aliens, Sun and Water

The week started with a very wet day, and we were reliably informed that you should not lay a concrete slab in the rain as it weakens the surface, so we had a chilled morning, procrastinating with coffees while planning other activities to get on with.

It was a horrific start as we had to remove our wooden shuttering which was concreted in. I really didn’t think we would do it, as we had left it too long. It took us almost a whole day to remove 1 stupid piece of wood - but eventually we succeeded. Pheweee.

The rest of the day was spent doing other chores, including mending the gate and preparing for more cement laying - the joys! With the debacle of the malfunctioning tractor and pan mixer we are continuing to use the small electric mixer which only produces 1 wheelbarrow of concrete. Keith and I are slowly improving, and with each pour the results are better...we have still to decide where to put our hand prints (and Tsala's paw print).

Since Tuesday we have been blessed with fabulous sunny days, probably not the best for concrete laying (as it dries too quickly and can crack), but great for us spending all day outside. We finished the concreting of the back section of the shed which includes a drain and various conduits for pipes and wires.

The concreting continued with long and exhausting manual labour days, but by the end of the week we had done 2/3rds of the garage/boat shed. When you start each section it takes forever to feel that you are making a dent in it, and 6-8 hours is the average time each section has taken us! It looks a bit like a patchwork quilt currently (as we are doing it in stages), but once clear and painted I am sure it will look ok. At least we know its level and the correct size! And a further benefit is that Lennie (the car) can power the mixer, and it hardly seems to use any electricity.

We only had one issue with the final section of concreting we did this week and that was that we ran out of water! OMG what were we to do? Keith's quick thinking got him heading off down to the burn with our water butt in the boot of the Mazda. 30 mins later he had pumped/filled it and we could continue with the pour. Sorted.

We have managed a few walks this week, including Struan Beach which is absolutely gorgeous, and just a few minutes drive away. The water looks so blue green with empty golden sand. We found a mahoosive “alien” on the beach... Amazing.

We popped by John and Alison and saw their Polycrub (a poly tunnel specifically made for west coast weather) - which has given me all sorts of ideas for our garden. And I’m hoping that Sarah in Edinburgh will manage to seed some Sea Buckthorn as I quite fancy having a hedge and maybe I’ll provide healthy shots from it too - they are full of nutrients.

I have also ventured into the sea a couple of times but never alone... the inquisitive seals always join me and they are not shy! I've had two dips so far, the first was in and straight out (!) the second was a few strokes. It’s blooming freezing - I only have wetsuit boots and gloves and a rash vest, but I am getting used to it slowly and am sure that I will swim longer each day. Yes, I'm joining the hoards of over 50’s women who wild swim.

Thankfully Keith's fingers, which are covered in cuts and welts, seem to be healing, though we have certainly got through a year's supply of plasters. Dougie at the shop is beginning to wonder if I have a plaster fettish! Talking of the shop - it is certainly the place to meet islanders. I have been told many times ”I dont know you” or “are you the one with the white car” - we have obviously been seen charging Lennie at the hall!!

No more concreting this week now, as we have run out of concrete mix and it can't be delivered till next Saturday so its giving us a breather for our aches and pains to recover. That doesn’t mean we will be sitting on our hands, far too much to do. So we have already repaired our track - Keith used Digby to move some huge boulders to widen the track at the culvert. What an amazing job. I filled one of the field drains we dug with piping and aggregate. I'm going to use Digby to dig the next one and Keith can fill it in! It is quite incredible to see all our bags of building materials slowly be used up and basically disappear into the ground.

So all in all a great week, and managing to overcome most issues that are thrown at us, and I have to say that there are many!!

Highlights this week - our first letter in our “letter box” (at the end of the track) was a picture from Keith's neice’s daughter Alma, in Sweden. We asked her to draw us a picture and she did, posting it to "Keith and Julia Russell, Isle of Coll, Scotland". It arrived a week later and is now on our wall. I had another package yesterday from my lovely pal Nicky - a bar of chocolate and a fabbie tee shirt with “if life gives you lemons, make yourself a big G&T”. She knows me so well. Love it, and such a lovely surprise.

And our beach has cowries... Yay! Not telling anyone where though...

All is good with us on the Isle of Coll, we are still talking to each other and making progress and neither of us is under the slab..........yet!!