today we got down
and dirty, broke
ground on petty island bench triptych.
rented two-person
auger from Wharton,
where the lifelong resident employees
had never heard of the 292-acre island in
their own backyard. (they were fun, though,
in a way northwesterners often aren't. there's
something guarded and self-serious about the
folks in seattle.) the machine was a beast, but
luckily handy martin
was there to lend both
of his to digging the dozen three-foot-deep 8"
diameter holes for the 4x4
uprights. we hit many
big rocks. but when i tried to split them with my
sweet
18v makita subcompact rotohammer, i neatly pierced
them
instead, plucked them out like skewered
potatoes--oh well,
whatever
works! we had to backfill a little to strike
a balance
between getting below frost line and staying above
the water
table, which at full moon high tide this afternoon
seeped into some
of the holes. it was grueling, but miso
made it all ok when we got home. |
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