2 Feb 2008

At last! The work has been completed in the Yambol apartment. After much sweat and toil the client is happy and i can move onto my new project. This weeks work went smoothly even though Monday was rained off and i was ill on Thursday. The main work this week has been rendering the outside of the apartment.

This rendering has been very time consuming. Normally rendering involves long straight walls occasionally peppered by windows and doors. This rendering was full of angles, balconies, stairs, windows and as a result took ages. The weather didn't help either. Again. Due to the cold and damp conditions the render took longer to dry out and cure. This means firstly longer times before the render can be finished and secondly longer delays where thick render has to be built up in layers. This was particularly tricky when rendering the tops of windows. No matter how long it was left for, large chunks always fell out (landing with a splat similar to a cow pat) causing more delays and frustration. Regarding the frustration, it always amazes me the creative usage of the Bulgarian language when cursing by my builders. I have come to the conclusion that Bulgarian may be one of the best languages to curse in while muttering under your breath. It doesn't have the passion of Spanish or the poetry of French but it can be drawn out for a long time, in deep guttural tones while solidly venting your spleen at everyone and everything and their mothers and smoking a cigarette.

The last final slog of the week was the delivery of 8.5 tonnes of stone shingle. The client wanted the garden cover with shingle to quickly and cheaply smarten the place and and reduce the maintenance. Unfortunately, the shingle arrived at 4pm on Friday afternoon. There was a huge amount to shift and spread around. I had to quickly find a couple of casual laborers to shift the stuff and even then we only finished after 7pm. I must give my guys credit for not moaning about having to work late on a Friday and we all got stuck in, sweated and groaned as the pile got smaller and smaller until it was gone. This was also the first time i have seen my guys after work, sit down and take 10 minutes to recover as apposed to jumping in the van and doing it there. It was also when of the rare occasions where my guys refused a beer or two after work (Friday is pay day!), to chat and discuss the week. The all wanted to go home! Not very often anyone will turn down a free beer.


So now the job is finished, the flat can be furnished and be rented out. The flat will be listed on www.yambol-apartments-bg.com very soon and when i have time it will be listed on my website www.JericoEstates.com under the renovations gallery.

I am really looking forward to starting the new project for Mr T but before i can do this i have another job from him. Namely, finished off another house of his. This house has been a money pit for him. Numerous builders, con men and bad work have made this job expensive. Hopefully i will be able to do something to help him and finish it off quickly but regoing over other people work is a real pain.