Thirty minutes later

Rotating bidet
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.

Ah, I see: it's a rotating yellow bidet.

Hoops and swings

Putting the hoops up
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.


Hanging the swings
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.

The bodies are mostly obscured in this photo, but if you look closely you can see elbows, legs and bums of men tightening the climbing frame and fixing the basketball hoop at this end of the ball court.

In the lower picture the swings are being hung from their frame. I'm sure they will be in use soon after the guys leave. (I've noticed the security has been increased for some of the equipment.)

I don't know what that thing that looks like a yellow bidet is (extreme left of top photo, left of centre in lower photo), but I expect its use will become clear shortly.

Sorry there was no posting here yesterday. I left home early in the morning (here's a photo of the site at 8.24) and didn't return until after dark. As you can see, the apron of black extended further once again yesterday.

Back to the Meeting House Garden

Back to the Meeting House Garden
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.


Down the steps to the sea of black
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.

It's been two weeks since there was any significant work on the Meeting House Garden. Today the little digger was at work there, and the wall is being built up from its concrete base.

Separately, the wet pour soft surfacing was extended (see lower photo). It now seems that starting with an apron of surface round the climbing frame yesterday may have been a deliberate and considerate step to head-off the risks of little invaders hurting themselves. If so, full marks!

Soft surfaces

Soft surfaces
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.


Mess
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.

At the far end of the site you can see the steps that were installed this morning. Unfortunately they lead to one of the several areas of the platform that have bad drainage: you can see the puddle from last night's rain at the top of the steps. I'm not sure if the steel of the steps is going to be covered in any way — it looks cheap and tacky by comparison with the brick and concrete steps on the far right.

The men from softsurfaces.co.uk arrived today, and you can see them at work here. The red drums turn out to be part of the mixture they use: the lower photo shows the mixing apparatus. I guess this is their 'wet pour' soft surfacing. I'd have wished for the chance for some more grass to grow back on the site — as soft mats allow — but I assume this wasn't possible.

I hope the wet pour surface dries quickly and resistantly, because it's now covered in hundreds of children's footsteps.

There was a further outbreak of stone-throwing, some of it vicious and aimed directly at the little digger, roller and shovel-buggy.

Long day

More fencing
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.

I left home at 8.30 this morning, and got back at 6pm. There were people working on site before I left and after I returned — admittedly not the same people. The first bit of the fence on the near side of the thoroughfare is now in place, and the slide has been installed.

Colours

Colours
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.

Today started miserable and wet, but brightened up from mid-morning. I was out during the day, and returned to find some more colourful additions to the playground, as well as some red drums (in the distance in this picture).

Quiet Garden in the sun

Quiet Garden in the sun
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.


Site from the Banner Street end
Originally uploaded by davidjennings.

This photo shows how the Quiet Garden is shaping up. The smaller oval at the foot of the tree is where the Bench and cubes will be.

The lower photo shows a different perspective, with the George Fox memorial stone in the left foreground. And some children are on the site again. Boys will be boys.

I heard at the Quaker meeting that the main work (not including the planting) is now scheduled to complete on 6 May, the first day of a new Government.