FANTASTIC START.....a view of THE SERVICE AREA COMPLETE
WITH NEW CAIXA......
Whadaya mean "Whadaya mean???"
Obvious isn't it???



Well, just to fill you in, every time we filter the pool water we have to dump some into the uh, dump area.
Alright, street.
Which means the pool is then increasingly less than full, which means you have to buy a truck full of water. ( see previous November post for picture of a water truck....only if you fancy it, obviously. )
So for reasons of economy and convenience we've installed a dump...the caixa or tank as you gringoes would say, for the water and whilst in it, the water gradually clears, leaving clean water which can be pumped back into the pool. Every now and again you pump out the remnants and clean the caixa, or tank, as you gringoes would say.
Of course it's not really that simple ....little funlettes like the pool pump is at the wrong level to do the job, so we have to use the well pump which is round the other side of the house, so we have to run pipes there and back and etc. etc.
So the pool and house plumbings are fairly complex ....still, nice to have a hobby ( apart from the obvious one.....).

MORE EXCITING STUFF AS LAO CLIMBS THE
LADDER OF UPWARDNESS....


Well, for some reason, all the big doors and windows have four sections, but only two open. Even though there are bolts on the bottom, the outer parts remain shut, and have never been fitted with hinges.


Well, them days is over.
As of today, we have fully opening doors....
Its going to be like living in a field, as the doors and windows are massive. Anisio suggested we could use the living room as a car park from now on.
It's good to know my friends have faith in me.


This, pretty inexplicably, is a pic of figs growing on my incredibly ugly termite ridden prone to collapse , well, presumably, fig tree.
And that's all I have to say on the matter.
Apart from we're going to chop it down, as if it gets much bigger it'll chop itself down, and my porch roof with it.
Bloody termites.


So there, on the left, is the first fully folding back fully opening door.
Cool huh?

DIGGING ANOTHER HOLE....
I can't stop Fabino....everytime I turn my back, he's off smashing concrete, shovelling up great gobbets of clay and disappearing off towards China.


To disguise his obsession from me, he stashes things in the holes, so as I won't notice.
"Oh, I'm building a drainage tank for the pool filtration system"
Or
"Yeh, we need holes for the Manilas for the guest house toilets...."


yeah right.
He tried to tell me this was a potty


And to prove it, he said, here it is full of wee.


Oh yeah, and the best one of all.....
"Ummm, this one's for, like umm, a swimming pool, yeh?....."

Yeah nice one Fabino....thanks a lot.

WELL, DEPENDING WHETHER YOU'RE READING UPWARDS OR DOWNWARDS, YOU'LL KNOW WHO DUG THIS.
...OR, OF COURSE, YOU WON'T....


In the UK it's crop circles.
Here at my house it's fucking great holes in the mud.


One day, my girl, all this will be yours as far as the eye can see....
Needs a few well placed palms....and some more turf....


Talking of turf.....


Heres my new tank/caixa/potty.
Sunbathing on the deck.

Sometimes you just have to make sacrifices.
So every now and again, I give up my normally hectic weekends to work with local youth.


Out of the goodness of my heart I take them into my home and under my wing.....I try to broaden their horizons.....here we're making an omelette from eggs....


Here an exercise in comportment, vital for any up and coming young lady....


And here an exercise in overcoming self conciousness.....
They really are doing rather well... (under my careful supervision of course....)


Here a well received session is underway on dealing with foreigners....sign language; tips of the trade.

Well, I'm not one to blow my own trumpet, ( in fact I can't reach it).
But I have to say, from the results I've seen, these weekends are well worth my efforts, and d'you know, I've even come to enjoy them somewhat myself.

TURF. SPRAY. FILHO.


Yes, you got it first time....Filho spraying the turf.


More turfing.


This time evidence of an additional element....tamping. And turf obviously.


Ummmm. Well it's another bit of montage innit.
Avante garde omelette preparation.
Isadora Duncan eat yer heart out.
Ooooh and mind yer scarfffffff luvvvv.......oops.

NO MORE FLOODING.
WE THE NEIGHBOURHOOD HAVE RISEN.
MUCH LIKE THE FLOOD WATERS.


Here we see the neighbours and my workers and me ganging up to build a quebra mola.....a very small dam across the top of the road, where the rain water floods in torrents from the main road into ours, where it stops....see pic below.


Here is a road sign....that's my road.


Leonardo and family stop to lend their support....only lend it mind, we had to give it back after. Their daughter hates me. As you can see.


Well this is obviously this, obviously.
At least I assume so.

40 DAYS AND 40 NIGHTS.
RAIN. RAIN AND MORE RAIN.


And then it just sits there, day after day....swallowing vehicles whole.
This VW had completely disappeared within an hour.
Somebody said they saw it driven off.
But I know they're probably in on the whole thing.
Bastards.


Fencing. I've got a new fence. It looks nice. And also looks like we have nothing to hide. Apart from maybe some monkeys or a giraffe.


The house from the street with new fence and stuff.


The final shot is of our dam.
Don't know if it works yet.
Hasn't rained for fucking weeks.