Bricklaying

[poliphilo]

The garden wall is falling to pieces. Someone I spoke to about it- someone who claimed to be in the know- said, "Well you can't blame the builders; they got issued with a bad batch of bricks."

He went on to say that there's no way of telling in advance whether a brick is good or bad- you just have to build it into a wall and see how it lasts. I find this hard to believe:  surely any decent craftsman has a feel for the raw materials of his trade?

Anyway, I don't mind the way the wall looks- crumbly brick is picturesque- but having the wrought iron gate fall out of the gatepost was inconvenient.  So I had a long think (lasting about half a year), mixed up some mortar ("same consistency as cake mix." said Ailz) and glued everything back together. I didn't have a lot of confidence in the outcome- because I'd never laid a brick before-  but I tested the work this morning and it was solid. 

Comments

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I like to think I can handle most simple household repairs.

Electrics are a different matter. I can insert a battery or change a fuse, but I wouldn't dare plunge into the inner workings of a computer. Well done, you!

[daisytells.livejournal.com]

Oh, I gave you the wrong impression. I did not take the machine apart at all! Oh, no! But I found out how to make it work again when I just refused to respond to commands of any kind. I dont think I could do it again, except for the fact that I saved the instructions, printed them out for a notebook, and also saved them on a disc, so that if I lose the notebook, I can print them again on someone else's printer.
Nope, I dont do electric, either. However, simple plumbing? Yep, mainly because I'm not wealthy enogh to afford those people. So once again I congratulate you for your skill, your "smarts", and your economy.

[daisytells.livejournal.com]

There were a couple of typos:
Corrections: "It" just refused to respond...
I'm not wealthy "enough".