Work, Work, Work

Well, not really. None of the workers showed up yesterday. Not surprising, since if was a national holiday. Cody had the day off anyway, so he really didn't count.

Also, yesterday, the thermometer on our front porch topped 100° (f) for the first time since we've been here. Global Warming?? Who knows?

Today the workers showed up at 6:30 AM, while I was still out walking the dogs.

Here's a bit of a refresher - We left off yesterday's exciting episode with Mr. Backhoe digging a big hole in the ground...

Manuel and Agusto Watching Backhoe Finish the Hole

And then he made a really big hill near the hole.

That'sa Some Kinda Big Pile

The Pile Has Become Tesmentdous

Here's where the action picked up this morning. Smoothing the sides and leveling the floor.

Mariano and Agusto Making It All Nice And Pretty

Is This the Right Shape?

Around the same time, I had Cody, our Caretaker, start a small trench so we can add more water pipe and the new electrical run. It'll all go in the same trench terminating with a stub so we can run water over to the guest house when it gets built.

Cody's Trench

Here's the floor of the pool and the walls - all getting nice and smooth and level.

Pool Is Really Shaping Up

A Big Hole in the Ground

Some of the supplies that came in today, a nice load of white, hard 1/2" gravel from Orange Walk, lengths of rebar, each 40' long, and bags of cement, stored under the parking palapa.

Gravel Arriving

Rebar is Here

Cement in 80 lb. Bags

Now, with the sides and floor smooth, the guys laid down a covering of polyethylene. It doesn't matter if holes are in it or not. Waterproofing is not the idea here, it's simply to slow down the concrete once it's been poured, by preventing water seeping out of the mix, thus keeping the mix from going off too soon.

Polyethylene or Visqueen Lining The Bottom

Polyethylene or Visqueen Lining The Bottom

Then, when that was done, the guys began positioning rebar on the floor, getting ready to cast the floor on Saturday.

Mariano and Agusto Laying Rebar

That does it for another exciting episode of Workers in Paradise, or How I Learned to Relax and Watch Someone Else Do It. Stay tuned for further adventures as our intrepid crew work up a sweat...