The two demolition groups massed at the Warm Springs site for the final push, punch list, and sweep up. First to go was the ground floor, including a rug with odors CSI Las Vegas can not identify, and the remnants of the foundation.
Assembly lines were set up between various classifications of garbage and the pickup trucks to take them to their final resting place. Wood came to our home base for a week-ending marshmallow roast. The bricks and concrete blocks were stacked for recycling. The incredible amount of garbage was raked and shoveled into garbage cans and sent to the dump. Innumerable blisters were a testament to the numbers of fully exploited garbage cans and shovels that also ended up in the dump.
The piece de la resistance was left for after lunch. Plum in the middle of the property sat ominously the ex chimney’s concrete base, and the boss man said make it disappear. Muscle Beach came to Neon, and the boys got a chance to show off the fruit of years in gym class. Muscle shirts turned to sunburns as the block gradually chipped away under the hot afternoon sun and rain of sledgehammers.
At the end of the workday, all that was left of the two-day’s effort was clean dirt and a clear space for building a new home in the community.
In a more pastoral setting along Doty Hollow, the rehab crew finished the porch work and expects to top off the metal roof and plaster in the new bathroom tomorrow. Jim Smith became the first medical victim, cutting his arm on the roofing material. It only took six stitches and an hour at the doctor office. $95 cash money and blood dripping in the receptionist room moved him to the front of a long line. As the population in this area continues to grey, fixing up the older homes is a much more attractive option to many residents than nursing homes.
Doc and Clyde, leading local bluegrass musicians in the area’s arts renaissance, came to Neon and gave a public concert showcasing local history through music. Our group learned about the difficulties of crossing the front ranges of the Appalachians, digging out coal, and the omnipresent regional poverty.
(note: photos can be enlarged by clicking on them)
Brick Brigade
Dumpster Girls
Water Shots
Chips off the Old Block
John Henry Who?
Leave No Footprints
Where is the Next Job?
Roofing Team...Watch out for the electrical wire!
I should have watched out for the edge of the roof instead!
The Doty Hollow Tan-A-Rama
Tuesday Evening: Doc Frazier
Our Night out in Neon
Ahh...Music to my NY Ears
So we didn't shower...
