It rained all day yesterday. It's raining all day today. The tapping on the roof just goes on and on. Occasionally I pass a cheerful young man in the hall way. "Oh, it's not bad," in response to my sympathy for the weather.
Unremitting cheerfulness. I hear them in the halls. (The walls and floors of the brick school house are brick. There is no private conversation in a hall.) "Hey, Dude." (They call each other Dude.) "Warm crappers!"
Green baseball cap hasn't been on the job for days. The "dudes" up there all wave at me when I come out with my camera.
John here is the foreman of the shingles. He joined me on the sidewalk after this load went up. "You guys sure are singing in the rain up there," I observed. John grinned. This is his slate team. "We're in the groove." He tells me how slate is laid, how the nail holes from the copper flashing are protected from water, how the tacks go in....."
I don't get any of it; I'm just the smiling fool with the camera. "Yea," John said. "A slate roof is a piece of art."
"Thanks for coming out to admire it again. Excuse me now, Joanne, I have to send another load up now."
Nice to see young folks cheerful while doing a job.
ReplyDeleteI've noticed that about construction dudes, too - they are so cheerful! Maybe it's a requirement for the job.
ReplyDeleteMy husband would love to be there to figure out what they're doing, how they're doing it, and how to replicate it if he ever needed to :)
It is going to be beautiful. Thank you for the various updates. We have the impression that it is all happening next door!
ReplyDeleteHow satisfying to be able to point to the roof and say ,"I did that".
ReplyDeleteJane x
I have the impression these men live for slate jobs, which are infrequent. In between, it's just shingles.
DeleteI think you nailed it. No pun intended.
DeleteThe dudes are doing a fantastic job
ReplyDeleteThat is amazing! For one who prefers being on the ground, I am proud of anyone who climbs around like that.
ReplyDelete"They call each other Dude."
ReplyDeleteDude, that's an awesome line. :)
Beautiful. And I am certain that your appreciation puts a smile in their hearts too.
ReplyDeleteFrom what I can see from your photos, John is right. That slate roof is looking superb. Skilled roofers are amazing. I'm really enjoying your posts on the project.
ReplyDeleteWe are having our nearly 100 year old picture window replaced on Monday. I sincerely hope that our workers are as cheerful and hardworking as yours!
ReplyDeleteIt is nice to see such a great attitude through the rain and inclement weather. Soon it looks like the work will be finished. Great job!
ReplyDeleteThis is great. I love to watch things like this in progress.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like you are making some new friends, Joanne. Yes, there is nothing like a slate roof.
ReplyDeleteIt looks beautiful! Not nearly as daunting, but i thought of when we were replacing our kitchen flooring at the other house. I wanted a dark blue and white checkerboard, which i couldn't find anywhere, so settled for dark blue tiles and cream tiles. The crew of two showed up to do the job, and the one guy told me he hadn't seen his coworker so happy in months. The other coworker said that so many people just pick sheet lino or hardwood, that to get a chance to play with the tiles was great. We loved how it turned out.
ReplyDeleteYou are an honorary " Dude " Joanne !
ReplyDeleteProgress!
ReplyDeleteHari OM
ReplyDelete"excuse me Joanne..." - respect!!!! This is a delightful story to track and it is already looking good.
This may be my last visit before landing in UK so do have a great week and I expect to be reading about completion by next weekend!!! YAM xx
That must be a really strong, heavy roof and yes, a work of art! I'm sure they appreciate your appreciating their hard work.
ReplyDelete"a slate roof is a piece of art"
ReplyDeleteYes it is, done properly as this one clearly is, a slate roof is a beautiful work of art.
It's nice they're such a friendly bunch, explaining their process, waving and smiling, appreciating the warm crappers.
I love slate roofs!! Roofing always looks like such hard work, especially in summer.
ReplyDeleteHappy slate roofers are good slate roofers. Unless they’re happy because they’re slacking off, which wasn’t the case for these guys. And it does look amazing by just going with the pictures. Hopefully the rain won’t affect their finished work. Have a good one!
ReplyDeleteKent @ Knox’s
I think the weather just didn't want to cooperate with your roofing project, Joanne. Good thing these roofers managed to finish the task amidst the harsh weather. Well, the slate roof is, indeed, a piece of art. And they definitely did a great job with their artwork! :)
ReplyDeleteToby Almy @ TittleBrothers