Letter from Espargal: 24 January 2020

Here's the story of a man with lots of dogs who thought that a jacuzzi might ease his troublesome back.



So he bought a load of sand and concrete bricks and, with Slavic's assistance, had them laid out in a circle on a terrace below the house.



Where a couple of protruding rocks put up fierce resistance before giving way to Slavic's hammer blows.



We tractored the sand down in buckets to the terrace in front of the house.



I arranged the buckets on the upper terrace from which Slavic fetched them.



And spread their contents about the circle. It took about 40 to lay a decent floor.



It then had to be raked into shape.



Before being levelled exactly, all ready for the jacuzzi, which was due to arrive by 18.00 that afternoon.



The jacuzzi, the least expensive sensibly-sized model, arrived in a heavy box that evening, an hour after the promised delivery deadline and after I'd fired off a critical message to the suppliers. Still, it arrived the same day.



The instructions seemed to belong to a completely different unit.



Neighbour David, who is an accomplished handyman,  came to our assistance and pointed out where things went. The weather was cold and damp; we all wore our winter gear.



We put down the left-over rubber carpet tiles from the pool to keep the sand where it belonged. And we inflated the water cover before mixing a load of concrete for approach steps.



At that point Slavic said it would have made much more sense to put the jacuzzi on the upstairs patio of the house. (Jones had outlawed the lower patios.) Then we wouldn't have to stagger down those awkward steps into the garden in the freezing cold nor stagger back afterwards. It was a brainwave.



So we used the concrete mix we had prepared to extend a path instead.



Before deflating the jacuzzi and hauling it up to the house. It was seriously heavy. I didn't think that Slavic could manage it alone. He thought he could, and he was right.



We wrapped it up in sacks that we secured with my tow rope. Then we heaved it upstairs



on to the patio. I won't  pretend that it was easy. It wasn't.



Laying the jacuzzi on its base, we opened it out and inflated it once more.



It comes with small air and water pumps built into the side wall.



Job done. All that awaits is warm water - and someone to loll around in it.



As for the planned jacuzzi site in the garden, we'll think of something else to do with it.



Jones says that one could usefully delete a few pictures. I'm sorry. I want them to convey the enormity of the task. She hasn't been idle. She never is. Here she is with her latest batch of the most delicious marmalade.



And here are some hoop petticoat daffodils to finish with - and a triple dull orchid to boot. You lucky people!