Respect

I asked permission this morning to go to the building site to tend and harvest my lettuce patch and was granted it on condition that I kept to the third of the garden into which I have transplanted all the plants I want to keep and which we've agreed won't be used for materials storage.

I happened to arrive at a dramatic time: the lean-to bathroom behind the already demolished kitchen was on its way down. David and Jamie were quite happy for me to take photos and this one reminded me very much of Tivoli, with a little help from me, demolishing the shed (which was immediately behind the bathroom here) almost exactly two years ago.

Shortly after this picture, the two of them went out to get a cold drink. Several people have said to me that I need to assert my 'right' to visit the house frequently so that I can keep an eye on the builders and make sure they are not taking too many breaks. I know that labourers' tea breaks are the butt of many jokes but I find that very disrespectful of the gruelling physical work that they do - it's a lot more demanding than packing and moving boxes, which I found tough - and I am quite sure that their bodies need to rest for a while after all the exertion. I reckon they more than deserved their down time and cold drink. And their break from me and my camera!