An extraordinary amount of rain fell last week (extraordinary for September) and there are already signs of growth in the countryside. Grass is sprouting from the cracks in the ground and the tabaibas (large succulent plants native to the Canaries) are flowering. Then it was back up to 37 C yesterday!
The rain was a good test of how waterproof the roof is now that we have removed the skylight. The result, in fact, was that rain came in and the top floor was flooded. So, another waste of money. This time we will have the whole roof painted with a polyurethane waterproofing paint in two coats reinforced with glassfibre mesh. This comes with a five year guarantee so it sounds as though it should work. The colour is a grey rather than black but we think grey will be more sympathetic anyway.
In the meantime I have been cracking on with waterproofing the container. This meant cutting off the steel roof with an angle grinder. I somehow managed to set myself alight in the process (from the sparks hitting my T shirt). It must have been quite a sight with me standing on top of the ladder frantically pulling my flaming T shirt over my head! At that point I decided to hand over to David.
David also has a better head for heights than I do and is happy to run around balancing on small planks like a squirrel.
My idea is to build a green roof on the container, growing drought hardy succulents which will clothe the top and drape over the sides. They will have to be able to thrive in six inches of soil and pumice with only an occasional splash of water from a hose pipe.
Having removed the top we bolted two six by two timbers to each long side and more six by two's across at 2 foot spacings. With half inch marine ply screwed on top, this will be more than capable of taking the weight of the green roof. The plan is to cover this with a pond liner to make it waterproof.
A kestrel has been visiting us on and off over the past few weeks. We have seen him balancing on the solar panels and then swooping down to pick off caterpillars from the bell-vine growing on the fence. These caterpillars are whoppers! And just look at their horns.
This one seems to be having a mid-life crisis, (also known as metamorphosis).
Anyway, the kestrel seems to love these tasty grubs and he has been sitting on the container just a couple of feet from where I have been working. This being a good spot from which to spy on the caterpillars. He seemed perfectly happy with me being so close by and I feel that, with a bit of time and patience, he could be tamed.
Other news - we finally managed to track down some garden furniture for the roof terrace. Unfortunately it was in kit form.
Fortunately it was cleverly made and quite simple to fit together. And credit where credit's due, Wendy helped put it together before she sat on it.
People here seem to collect dogs without really trying. Sure enough it was almost our turn the other week when we found a stray dog cowering and shivering at the top of our road. We caught and put him on a lead and led him down to the finca, introduced him to Goofy and Pongo, and then gave him food and water. That night he slept in the kennel with the other two. The following morning we took him to the vet. She found a chip which from which she could read details of his owner, whom she was able to contact and arrange for him to collect the dog. His name was Tan and he was a hunting dog, presumably lost chasing a rabbit or some such. We had already become rather attached to him. We had even given him a name - Tramp. Here he is, all skin and groan, after we had got him on a lead that afternoon.
So, what of the kitten? Well she is now more of a cat. She does not like to be excluded from the morning walk. Never mind that she is only pint sized, she insists on joining us, alternating between hiding under a bush and running at top speed, all the time with her mouth open and tongue hanging out.
David is proving to be very useful. I am trusting him with more and more different kinds of jobs. (Especially dangerous ones)! He is really quite capable and needs showing only once for him to maker a good job. Here he is putting in a new concrete step.
The weather has been very settled and really calm and pleasant for the past few weeks. During the previous months we have had some very windy weather which we found quite unpleasant and have seriously thought that if anything would encourage us to leave it would be the incessant wind. In fact the last couple of days it has been so hot we have been praying for a breeze. The sunsets have been pretty good too.