In the last post I spoke about how we started to erect our pole barn for our sheep, we had constructed the mainframe and secured all the wooden beams and joists into place. Then we purchased the roof tiles and were just about to start work on the roof and sidings when we experienced a rather dull, blustery day which meant that we had to, unfortunately down tools and return the next day.
The next morning came and had brought with it a fabulous sunshine and a morning chorus that could rival any of those from Spring. With spongy mud underfoot Lloyd, Mariana and I attended to our chickens and drove the sheep up through the fields, along the tracks and to the pasture where the barn is. There we met with my father, gathered the roof batons, cut them to size and stacked them atop the tractor and brought them down along the road and up to the barn.
We secured all of the roof batons up and in place then started the task of the tiles themselves. Taking it in turns handing up a few at a time, my father was first, he sat perched on top of the ladder. Siting each one between the batons at the correct measurement apart. Hours passed, but quickly the large stack of roof tiles did deplete, although one might argue (with arms that felt as if they had been stretched double their length) not quite quickly enough.
Once the tiles were in position we climbed down from the ladders, began to rest our arms and right on cue we see my mother and Lucy come walking up the farm track, open the gate and with a smile they hand us our cups of tea, we were glad of the rest and to feel the blood rush back to our arms. After our cup of tea it was time to start work on the side panels. We did the same as before with the batons, measured up, gathered all of the panels for the siding, then stacked them high on the tractor and drove them down to the barn.
All the sidings had been meticulously measured up and after many trips of driving them back and forth over a few days we had quite a few of the sides up. Lloyd and I would generally take on the role of screwing the boards in place whilst Mariana was behind us staining the previously erected boards. Occasionally we would switch up jobs to relieve ourselves from the monotony of doing one job for three or four days on end.
We have been working on the pole barn for fourteen days now (twelve days really, as we got rained off twice) and it is really starting to take shape now, last night we got the doors attached but as we were working late I could not get a photo of them, so I shall follow up with that in a day or so time, we have all the sidings up and nearly the whole barn is stained. Mariana has thoroughly enjoyed the work as she told me she has never constructed anything like this before, only a few rabbit hutches and grow out pens with me over the past few years. She has really enjoyed the experience so far, as have we all, it has been wonderful all working together and chatting away whilst we are all doing our little jobs. The sheep appear to be very eager indeed to get inside the barn that they keep lying underneath our ladders and at our feet whilst we are working.