The first shed

After lying in pieces on the drive for several weeks, the toolshed can now be erected on the Smithy field. Desperately needed to get my tools in order, this "5 minute job" proved a bit more challenging than expected.

With the land purchased I can finally turn my attention to the shed that has lay dismembered on the drive for several weeks. More importantly I can finally house the future occupants of the shed that have lay around the house tripping me up for what seems like a lifetime. Sheds are an important aspect of the town garden but become an essential component of a smallholding. What’s more, they need to be bigger. This shed is a baby, at just 8 feet by 12 feet, but will provide me with some welcome additional storage and breathing space, until I can get round to tackling something more substantial. I have found a good spot on the field, near to the house and in a sheltered area, but the ground slopes and is full of old ant hills. So, before I can erect the shed, I need to create a level base by building a retaining wall at one end and excavating soil at the other. Using a few breeze blocks and some stones left over from other jobs I built the wall before working off some accumulated calories excavating turf and soil to backfill it.

A spell of beautiful dry and bright weather, and “home working” as a result of the deepening coronavirus crisis (more on this later) afforded me the perfect opportunity to get the job done, albeit in between emails, conference calls and assessments. In many ways this home working situation highlighted the juxtaposition of these two worlds more profoundly than ever, as I now switched between roles throughout the day. One minute trapped in the confines of a room, sitting motionless and slumped, staring pointlessly at a screen with the hum of the computer fan reminding me I was still awake; and the next outside in the open countryside, purposely digging the soil with the backdrop of dramatic hills, swooping birds of prey and the constant rhythm of noisey lambs providing the perfect soundtrack. When I was answering emails, I felt desperate to tend to the shed, and when I was tending the shed I felt frustrated to return to the emails.

However, despite the favourable ambience, erecting this shed was by no means plain sailing. I have put sheds up before with ease, but on nice flat town gardens that did not resemble a miniature model of the Himalayas. The steep walk to the site didn't help, especially with a bag of building sand on my back, a breeze block in each hand and a stupid puppy biting my heels. This was supposed to be one of those 5 minute jobs, superfluous to the bigger renovation tasks, and a break from grafting. 5 days, a few tons of earth, a retaining wall, a bad back and sore heels later I was done. It's a small step, but a giant leap, as the land now has a structure, and I can finally get my tools in order.