Sunday, 23 October

Pouring the last slab

I have received some encouraging comments from those who have enjoyed following the progress of our build through this blog.  It has also been a welcome means of contact with ex-novices.  One correspondent suggested we should have a webcam so that daily progress could be followed.  Now that would be commitment.
Anyway I am back home and today will update you on the past week.  On Friday I caught the pouring of the cement for the last of the foundations for the building.  The long corridor linking the different rooms is now in place. 

The connecting corridor and courtyard takes shape

This morning I walked with Fr Johny around the site pointing out what rooms were where.  He wanted to know whether we had a tap near the garage so we could clean the cars!  I wasn't sure.  But only our Indian friars- himself, Gabriel and Shemil, are keen car washers.  Johny also wanted to know where the vegetable garden was!  I made a suggestion.  We'll see what happens.  In the photo below you can see the corridor going from outside the library up to the friars' part of the new priory.  Just behind the pile of dirt in the foreground is the courtyard.

Sunday morning: the cement has dried

The foundations now being complete (except for the balconies and verandahs).  The structural steel is now on site and has begun to be erected.  You can see the outline of the oratory roof in the photo below.

Steel for the oratory roof is in place

This week I hope to see the steel below rising so that we can have an outline of the priory roof.

More steel for the roof

When all the steel is in place the next stage will be the roof.  Only then will work on the masonry walls begin in mid-November.  The walls will be of a new product called Timbercrete, invented by Peter Collier who lives at Bilpin in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney.  Here is a link to the Timbercrete site       http://www.timbercrete.com.au/