If you look at the pic you’ll notice firstly that I’ve added the second floor beam. The gap in between the two new ones is just over 65cms and that’s going to be the width of the stairs.
There’s also a cross-beam added to the floor. This is embedded in the two new beams and the two older beams to the left. The third beam (the first of the old ones) is rather thin, having been devoured by some kind of obnoxious animal And as this beam will be taking the weight of people entering into the room in the attic and the wall that’s holding it up going to be knocked out, there will be a few more cross beams to spread the load.
The second upright is in, and all the cross pieces have been added. It looks rather like Richard Hauptman’s Ladder
It took me ages to make all of the joints and to cut the wood to size, but you have to do it properly – not like my first attempt – the verandah – where you can walk in through the gaps in the joints.
In this case I cut the wood slightly over-long and the joints slightly under-size and then filed everything down to fit. And it isn’t half impressive – all millimetre-perfect.
After that I mixed some cement and went round and filled in some of the holes in the wall that I missed.
As I have said, you can tell when I’m enjoying myself by the time it is that I knock off. 19:20 today, and I knew it too, but there was no way I was going to stop until I’d finished what I set out to do.
For the music today, I had just one double album on continuous loop – another album that has been on my playlist almost from the day it came out. It’s surprising how many live albums are on my playlist but this is one that beats almost every one – Dire Straits’ best album by a million miles, Alchemy Live
Besides having the very best Dire Straits track ever, the vastly underrated “Telegraph Road”, it contains in my opinion the definitive versions of “Sultans of Swing” and “Tunnel of Love” – the latter with the line
From Cullercoats to Whitley Bay
reminding me of a trip I made from Cullercoats to Whitley Bay a couple of years ago in the company of someone who is no longer with us.
What I don’t like about the album though is Mel Collins. There is no place in a good rock band for a saxophone as indeed Mark Knopfler admits in “Sultans of Swing”
Don’t give a damn about any trumpet-playing bands
It ain’t what they call “Rock and Roll!
and furthermore I absolutely detest with a fury those bands that bring on “special guest stars” to augment their numbers.
If I go to a concert I expect to see the band performing on its own and to hear the music that they can play. If I wanted to hear Mel Collins and his blasted saxophone (not that I do) I’d go and find a King Crimson concert somewhere.
Tomorrow is shopping day again. Insulation, tongue-and-grooving, varnish, wallpaper, paste, filler and tape (GRRRR at Krys and Rhys) paint tiles, refractory tile cement and a woodstove.
